The Foreign Desk

After years of political oppression, violent protests and internal conflicts, could Ethiopia’s new prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, lead the country into a new era? Andrew Mueller is joined by Mohammed Ademo, Michala Wrong and Ahmed Soliman.

Images of children in detention centres have shocked the world this week but even after signing an executive order to keep families together, Trump still insists that Congress and the Democrats are to blame. Is this more of Trump’s trademark deflection or does he have a point? Monocle’s New York bureau chief Ed Stocker explains.

With so many international summits taking place it’s hard to keep up, let alone remain interested. The recent meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, however, reignited the media’s passion for a handshake photo opportunity. Was the interest focused on the politics, or just the novelty of seeing two unlikely leaders together? What do these meetings actually achieve? And why hasn’t communication technology made them redundant? Andrew Mueller is joined by Stefania Palma, Aaron David Miller and David Reynolds.

Lifting the trophy at the end of the World Cup would be great, sure. But for the 31 other countries taking part, all will not be lost when their time in the tournament is done. The underdogs, the unexpected victors, the villains – every team, and therefore country, is entering into a battle for recognition. Andrew Mueller asks who will emerge the winner.

The run-up to Mexico’s elections in July have been far from ordinary: many of the candidates have been killed and even more have decided that it isn’t worth the risk. But is this just part of the election process in one of the world's most violent countries or does the problem run deeper? Andrew Mueller is joined by journalist Esteban Illades, former deputy foreign minister of Mexico Andrés Rozental and the mayor of Pachuca, Yolanda Tellería Beltrán.

When North Korean state media announced this week that Syrian president Bashar al-Assad was to visit Kim Jong-un the world reacted with a collective ‘Huh?’ But the two leaders have plenty in common and, as Andrew Mueller explains, this won’t be the first time the countries have co-operated.

Sanctions are a good way for a country to show that they are unhappy with the way another country is acting but who do they really punish? And are they just the easy option? Andrew Mueller is joined by Andrea Berger, Shashank Joshi and Nahlah Ayed.

One of Southeast Asia’s largest infrastructure projects has stalled. But, as our Asia editor at large Kenji Hall explains, the high-speed rail link between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore was about far more than a quick connection across the border.

The UK is still hellbent on leaving the EU. Meanwhile, Macedonia and Albania are set to be the next countries to join the union. As with any organisation, however, growing too large comes with its own set of risks. So how many members is too many? Why would anyone want to join the dysfunctional club anyway? And are there any countries that should never be allowed in? Andrew Mueller is joined by Heather Grabbe, Quentin Peel and Albania’s minister for foreign affairs, Ditmir Bushati.

Student newspapers have long played a part in shaping the conversation on campus, as well as, sometimes, nationally. But is the rise of online journalism and ever-decreasing budgets putting that at risk? Our Toronto bureau chief Tomos Lewis hopes not.