A far-right party which came to prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic recently showed itself to be a contender to Japan’s centrist political establishment, when it grew from one seat, three years ago to 15 seats in the recent elections.

Known as Sanseito, the party is led by Kamiya Sohei, whose YouTube videos spread conspiracy theories about vaccinations. Its political platform is a nationalist ‘Japanese first’ agenda and warns against a ‘silent invasion of foreigners’.

Whilst for Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party coalition, the election results were bruising. The LDP lost its majority in the Upper House, having already lost control of the Lower House last year. But its embattled Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba, whilst facing calls from within his party to resign, has said he has no plans to quit.

Against this backdrop, there’s a growing unease amongst Japanese voters over issues like immigration, over-tourism and the economy and Sanseito are tapping into that.

Joining us to discuss Japan's political climate are Kenneth Mori McElwain, professor of Comparative Politics, University of Tokyo, Japan; Dr Fabian Schäfer, chair of Japanese Studies, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany; Jeffrey Hall, author and lecturer, Kanda University of International Studies, Eastern Japan; Dr Kristi Govella, associate professor of Japanese Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, UK.

Presenter: William Crawley

Children in Indonesia are now receiving free school meals — part of a bold new plan by President Prabowo Subianto to tackle malnutrition.

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

Image Credit: Dimas Rachmatsyah via Getty Images

When the war in Ukraine began back in February 2022, the remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicle or drone as its commonly known, was peripheral to the conflict. But three years on, the drone in all its shapes and sizes has taken on a central role in this battle, in the air, on land and at sea, for surveillance, reconnaissance, combat and other purposes. Now drone technology is evolving even further into the area of autonomous weapons.

Presenter: Gary O’Donoghue

Image credit SOPA via Getty Images

In July, a brutal highway hijacking in southern Syria sparked tit-for-tat clashes between Druze and Bedouin fighters.

During the week-long violence, over a thousand people were killed and more than 125,000 displaced. Syrian government forces and Israel also entered the conflict.

The latest hostilities come less than a year after Syrians celebrated the end of dictatorship and the promise of renewal. The resurgence of sectarian violence raises urgent questions about interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s leadership and whether his government can truly unify a fractured nation.

What does Syria’s recent conflict tell us about al-Sharaa’s presidency?

Contributors: Dr Rim Turkmani, Research Fellow at Director of Syria Conflict Research Programme (CRP); Makram Rabah, Assistant professor of history at the American University of Beirut; Dr Rahaf Aldoughli, Middle East and North African Studies at Lancaster University; Dr Burcu Ozcelik, Senior Research Fellow for Middle East Security at the Royal United Services Institute.

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

Image credit Reuters via BBC Images

What lies behind the clashes on the Thai Cambodian border is a fractured friendship between the two nations.

In July both countries strike each other with civilians killed and injured in the crossfire. More than a hundred thousand are evacuated.

Thailand warns the clashes could escalate to war. In May a brief gunfire exchange killed a Cambodian soldier. Just over two weeks later surprising details from a recorded private phone conversation went public.

On that 17-minute call to Cambodia was Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra. It was supposed to defuse the situation - instead it has erupted.

Away from the border, there’s been public outrage in Thailand, a major prime ministerial setback, fractured friendships, diplomatic ties downgraded and even more political pressure on a far from robust government.

Contributors: ·

Presented by Charmaine Cozier

Image credit: Lillian Suwanrumpha via Getty Images

In Chile, a powerful new telescope has just given a taster of what we can expect from it later this year, when it will be used to survey the cosmos over a ten-year period. In one image it revealed vast colourful gas and dust clouds swirling in a star-forming region 9,000 light years from the Earth.

Housed in the Vera C Rubin Observatory, which sits on a mountain in the Chilean Andes, the telescope is designed to get giant images of the sky about one hundred times larger and quicker than any other existing telescope can achieve. It contains the world’s most largest digital camera, the size of a large car.

When the Legacy Survey of Space and Time begins towards the end of 2025, the camera will film the entire Southern hemisphere night sky for the next decade, every three days, repeating the process over and over. And it will focus on four areas: mapping changes in the skies or transient objects, the formation of the Milky Way, mapping the Solar System and understanding dark matter or how the universe formed.

So, on this week’s Inquiry, we’re asking, ‘What will Chile’s latest telescope tell us about the Universe?’

Contributors:

Presenter: Charmaine Cozier

Image Credit: Anadolu via Getty Images

More and more of the tasks we perform in our daily lives are been guided by artificial intelligence, from searching the internet for answers to relying on satellite navigation in our cars. But studies recently released suggest that our use of AI is having a negative impact on our ability to make informed judgements and decisions. In one recent study from MiT’s Media Lab, a group of people were asked to write several essays. Some of them used AI, others didn’t. Those who used generative AI reportedly became lazier with each subsequent essay.

This cognitive offloading, allowing AI to take over from our brains might be less taxing, but there are concerns that if we come to rely on AI, we are in danger of replacing our own critical thinking for a technology that might not always come up with the right answer.

However, there are those who argue that AI can be beneficial in helping our cognitive function, that it can be employed to take on the more mundane, repetitive tasks, freeing up headspace to allow us to become more productive. Software education platforms are just one example where AI is been employed to assist teachers in things like knowledge checks and grading, with the claim that it allows them time for more valuable interaction with their students.

So is it possible to find a balance where we can we can rely on AI but not to the extent were we lose our mental agility.

Contributors:

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

Image credit: Surasak Suwanmake via Getty Images

Brazil’s Zebu cattle, or “supercows” are bred for size, strength, and meat quality. Every year the animals are showcased at ExpoZebu, Brazil’s premier cattle fair. These animals are preened, pampered, and prized, before being sold for millions for their genetic material.

Zebu cattle were not always part of Brazil’s landscape. After being imported from India in the late 19th century, farmers found their resilience to heat, pests, and poor pasture made them ideal for Brazil’s expanding cattle frontier.

Thanks to decades of selective breeding and low-cost pasture-based farming, Brazil is now the world’s largest beef exporter, and demand is only rising.

Despite its economic success and domestic popularity, Brazil’s beef has a significant environmental cost due to its emissions and links to deforestation. However, their genetic material has the potential to be used around the world to make cattle more resilient to climate change.

Photo Credit: Carolina Arantes

Contributors:

Presenter: David Baker

Ahead of last year’s US Presidential elections, Donald Trump was asked if he would defend China against Taiwan, he responded that Taiwan should pay the US for protection from China. Taiwan is a self-governing island, claimed by Beijing and whilst Taiwan is not formally recognised by the US, they do remain the island’s most important security partner. Taiwan manufactures over ninety percent of the world’s most advanced semiconductor chips, which makes some American industries heavily dependent on trade links with the island.

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the most important energy corridors in the world. It is the only sea route from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, it serves as the primary maritime route for oil exports from the Gulf. Any disruption to traffic through the strait would have implications for oil markets and regional stability.

While some Gulf states have developed pipelines to bypass the strait, the volume of oil transported by sea is far greater, and for many countries, including key Gulf exporters, the waterway is essential to maintaining trade. China is the largest buyer of oil that travels through the strait, making it particularly exposed to any disruption.

Iran itself relies on the Strait of Hormuz to sell its oil and any blockage of the route would likely damage Iran’s own economy and could strain relationships with regional neighbours.

Despite past threats to close the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway has remained open, including during the tanker wars of the 1980s, but any disruption could have a big impact on global oil supplies.

Picture Credit: Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Contributors:

Jacob P. Larsen, BIMCO’s Chief Safety & Security Officer

Petter Haugen, Partner, Equity Research Shipping, ABG Sundal Collier, Nordic Investment Bank

Presenter Charmaine Cozier