London Politica Podcast

“I’m not one hundred per cent convinced it’s true we are living in this world of geopolitical chaos” In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Matt Peterson, Ideas Editor for Barron’s. The two embark on a timely exploration of 2024's key geopolitical risks and their economic ripple effects. Matt discusses his recent work on energy, particularly within the context of the US election, and examines the impact of a potential Trump presidency on the Ukraine conflict and climate agreements. Peterson also delves into the intricate relationship between rising insurance costs and climate spending before turning to the looming US debt crisis, which can no longer be wilfully ignored come November 2024. Ending on an optimistic note, Matt highlights the positive developments in renewable energy and the economy at large, acknowledging the potential disasters avoided along the way. Matt Peterson is the Ideas Editor for Barron’s Group. He has previously held positions at the Atlantic, Eurasia Group, and Yale University building a wealth of experience in the economy, politics, and global affairs spanning over 15 years.

“We’ve been quite good at breaking things and we haven’t been very good at finding our new space in this world” In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Arthur Snell as the two conduct an incisive exploration of British foreign policy. Discussing his book, “How Britain Broke the World”, Snell offers a critical perspective on the UK's historical role in international affairs, as a nation struggling to find its identity on the contemporary global stage. He challenges us to examine the impact of past interventions and consider their consequences for the world today. The two also consider the UK’s international orientations under a potential Starmer-led government, the root causes of overlooked foreign policies, and Britain's intricate relationship with the Israel-Palestine conflict. Snell concludes on a note of optimism for Britain, as a country which is rediscovering its European identity post-Brexit. Arthur Snell is an author, political commentator, and former senior British diplomat with extensive experience navigating the complexities of international affairs. His career on the global stage, encompassing hotspots like Afghanistan and Iraq, informs his critical perspective on British foreign policy.

“Montenegro is not selfish at all. We want to see more Europe, more EU, more common values.” In this episode, London Politica’s CEO Manas Chawla sits down with Dritan Abazović at the Bled Strategic Forum. The discussion deeply touches upon a range of topics from the future of hybrid warfare, the need for a post-pandemic economy, and Europe's role in Ukraine. Abazović highlights the importance of European integration and harmony, the impact of the Ukrainian crisis, and the role of Montenegro amidst global geopolitical challenges. They also delve into the future of world politics, underscoring the importance of young leadership and the value of persistence in making a difference. Dritan Abazović holds the historic mark of being Montenegro's first ethnic Albanian and Muslim Prime Minister (2022-2023). In 2012, he was the youngest Member of Parliament, and served as MP until 2020, when he was appointed to a new position. Abazović is also a published academic and author of two books: "Cosmopolitan Culture and Global Justice" and "A Critique of Global Ethics”.

“We are not giving diplomacy—giving international cooperation and dialogue of discussion—the space that it requires in order to help us balance all these forces.” In this episode, London Politica’s CEO Manas Chawla sits down with Arancha González. The interview, conducted during the Bled Strategic Forum, delves deep into pressing global issues such as the European Union’s enlargement, geopolitical transformations, and rising political dichotomy in a world of shifting power paradigms. Drawing upon her diverse experience at the nexus of international organizations, governments, and academia, González provides valuable advice to the next generation of leaders in politics, emphasizing the need to reclaim the value of international cooperation and encouraging a shift away from binary narratives towards more open global discussions. Arancha González is the Dean of the Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA) at Sciences Po and former Minister of Foreign Affairs for Spain.

"Both the pandemic and the Ukraine crises have demonstrated anew that multilateralism is in trouble." In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Dr Shashi Tharoor. The two discuss several fascinating topics, including the future of the emerging world order with specific reference to India’s role in an increasingly multipolar world. Given India’s growing assertiveness in international affairs, the two talk about the evolving role of international institutions including the UN and G20 given the shift away from a US-centric unipolar world. They discuss the concept of "geopolitical swing states" and how rising powers from the Global South are pursuing independent foreign policies. Debating ongoing spats between India and China, Manas and Dr Tharoor share insights on developments in trade and economic dependence that may frame future conflicts. Dr Shashi Tharoor is a distinguished Indian politician, best-selling author, and public intellectual. He served 29 years at the United Nations, culminating as Under-Secretary-General, and was named as a "Global Leader of Tomorrow" by the World Economic Forum.

“The primary concern is: how can we leverage technology for the betterment of humanity?” In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Robert Opp on the evolving nature of technological risks and the potential of digital technology in advancing global development. During his conversation with Manas, Robert explores the importance of inclusion in the digitalisation process, the increasing global differential in technological access, and the potential for digital technology to “leapfrog” development in the Global South. Robert also considers where we may see the next big technological innovation and the role of the UN in enabling opportunities for international development. Robert is the Chief Digital Officer of the United Nations Development Programme. He leads the agency’s digital transformation, aiming to harness the power of new technology to improve the lives of those furthest behind. Prior to this role, Robert was Director of the Innovation and Change Management Division within the World Food Programme, where he founded and led ShareTheMeal, a smartphone app dedicated to fighting global hunger.

‘The diminishment of meritocracy is very troubling in the long term for democracies.’ In this episode of the podcast, Manas Chawla talks to Charles Dunst about his new book ‘Defeating the Dictators: How Democracy Can Prevail in the Age of the Strongman’ and the principles for good governance for democracies. During his conversation with Manas, Charles explores the reasons behind a growing disillusionment with democratic societies and discusses the tactics deployed by autocratic leaders to consolidate their influence both domestically and overseas. He also considers what must be done to restore the public’s faith in democracy and why meritocracy is essential for the survival of democracy. Charles is a deputy director of Research & Analytics at The Asia Group and an adjunct fellow for the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The Telegraph, and Foreign Policy, among other outlets. As a foreign correspondent, he has reported from Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Israel and the Palestinian territories, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Hungary, and Romania. To find out more about his book, which has been named a Financial Times Best Book of the Week, please see here: https://www.charlesdunst.com.

‘Tech companies are the primary architects of digital space where it is not just a question about rules of data flowing, it is about engineering decisions that affect the way people act.’ In this episode of the podcast, Manas Chawla speaks to the Vice President for Europe & Eurasia and Technology Policy at Albright Stonebridge Group Kevin Allison about the collision between geopolitics and technology as governments focus their attention on the rapidly developing technology sector and increasingly seek to weaponise critical mineral and semiconductor supply chains. They also discuss the influence that tech companies have as geopolitical actors and the pressure they are under as governments seek to dominate the technology space. Kevin Allison is Vice President at Albright Stonebridge Group which is a global strategy and commercial diplomacy firm helping clients to navigate the intersection of public, private, and social sectors in international markets. Prior to joining Albright Stonebridge Group, he served as Director and Deputy Head of the Eurasia Group’s Geo-Technology practice. Kevin began his career in journalism working firstly for The Financial Times and then for Reuters having completed his MPP at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

‘We need to put security at the centre of everything we do until the current systemic competition is won and until we can begin to rebuild the international governance mechanism.’ In this episode of the podcast, Manas Chawla speaks to the CEO of the Munich Security Conference Benedikt Franke about the re-conceptualisation of security to avoid one-sided dependencies and the importance of collaborating with big tech companies to ensure that freedom does not become a weakness in the Western defence strategy. Benedikt also talks about the value of open-source intelligence once its limitations have been taken into consideration. Benedikt Franke is the CEO of the Munich Security Conference, a leading forum on international security policy. Prior to working for the Munich Security Conference, Benedikt worked as a senior advisor for strategic affairs for the German political party the Christian Social Union (CSU) and as a director for the Global Governance Institute. He holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge in Politics and a master’s degree from the John Hopkins University in International Studies.

‘Risk is a core part of how you evaluate anything, but we do not really talk about it in the context of aid even though aid is used in some of the riskiest environments.’ In this episode of the London Political Podcast, Manas Chawla speaks with the Executive Director for Global Policy at the ONE Campaign David McNair. During their fascinating conversation, David shares with Manas his views on the biggest challenges that developing regions of the world are faced with when tackling corruption and discusses the limited reference to risk in conversations about aid. They also talk about the broader structural evolutions that are causing African countries to view the Western paternalistic approach to aid as obsolete and, subsequently, are pushing them towards strengthening ties with other global powers such as China. David is the Executive Director for Global Policy at the ONE Campaign, a non-profit organisation that aims to put an end to extreme poverty and preventable disease by mounting grass root campaigns and lobbying world leaders. David ensures that the campaigns run by the charity are grounded in strong and reliable evidence. He has equally played a crucial role in mounting leading policies and campaigns aimed at tackling corruption, such as the charity’s Trillion Dollar Scandal campaign. David is also a Council Member at the European Council on Foreign Relations and a Non-Resident Scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. In 2012 he was named one of the ninety-nine top foreign policy leaders under 33.

‘The concept of security is changing dramatically, and it is expanding into areas that were not deemed security sensitive before.’ In this episode of the podcast, Manas Chawla speaks to Assistant Secretary General for Executive Management at NATO Giedrimas Jeglinskas about the value of Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO as well as the traditional and non-traditional security issues that the alliance is presented with on its southern flank and in the Asia-Pacific. Giedrimas also discusses the ways in which NATO is opening itself up to the worlds of investment and technology, which the Assistant Secretary General’s vast array of professional careers has helped him to understand the importance of. Giedrimas joined the Lithuanian military in 2003 where he was an officer for five years. On completing his MBA in Finance & Strategy at the Columbia Business School, he then went on to have an extensive career in banking working for Citigroup for over six years. In 2017, he returned to Lithuania to take up the position of Deputy Minister at the Ministry of National Defence before becoming the Assistant Secretary General for Executive Management at NATO just under three years ago. Giedrimas’ professional experience across a variety of different sectors makes for an incredibly interesting conversation about the importance of approaching today’s challenges with a multisectoral approach and connecting the dots between business, politics and technology.

‘Populism has taught us that politics is not just about being technocrats and that politicians cannot just govern through Excel spreadsheets.’ In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Dr Catherine Fieschi about her encounters with Jean-Marie and Marine Le Pen and the factors that have led to the latter's mainstreaming. She also discusses with Manas the decomposition of the French party system since Emmanuel Macron came to office in 2016, as well as the lessons that populism can teach us about the role of the state and the meaning of politics. Dr Fieschi’s extensive research into populism makes for a very insightful conversation about the populist wave and the ways in which it alters traditional perceptions of politics. Dr Fieschi is the founder and executive director of Counterpoint Global, a research and advisory group that helps businesses, governments, and NGOs navigate a new age of social and political risk. She is also a senior advisor at Macro Advisory Partners and a former director of the think tank Demos. Her published work includes Populocracy: The Tyranny of Authenticity and the Rise of Populism and Fascism, Populism and the French Fifth Republic: In the Shadow of Democracy.

‘This new Cold War could signal the transition from the pre-eminence of the US to its decline.’ In this episode of the London Politica Podcast, Manas Chawla interviews former ambassador Alfredo Toro Hardy about the changing international roles of China and the US in the context of China’s increasingly assertive behaviour and a weakened US alliance system. Alfredo also discusses the factors that define the making of foreign policy in both countries as well as the future of China-US relations in a more fragile international system. Alfredo is a former diplomat, scholar, and author from Venezuela. In the past, he has served as the Venezuelan Ambassador to the US, the UK, Spain, Brazil, Singapore, Chile, and Ireland. He has also worked as the director of the Diplomatic Academy of the Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as other Venezuelan academic institutions in the field of international relations. He is the author of twenty-one books and the co-author of fifteen more. His latest book Two Cold Wars: From Hegemony to Decline? was published earlier this year.

‘It is the role of intelligence to speak truth to power.’ In this episode, Manas Chawla talks with Justin Crump, the CEO of Sibylline, about the importance of analysing political leaders through a psychological lens, the failure to listen to intelligence warnings about a Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the impact of the war on the intelligence industry. Justin’s discussion with Manas provides an insight into the nature of intelligence environments in countries in the West as well as in Russia. He also shares his thoughts on the future global challenges that risk professionals will be paying most attention to. Justin Crump is the CEO of Sibylline, a leading risk and intelligence consultancy, and the President of the Association of International Risk Intelligence Professionals. He has also worked as an investment banker for Goldman Sachs and an army officer for the UK Ministry of Defence.

‘China is different, China does things differently, but it also learns from, imitates, and takes the very best of the West and incorporates that into China.’ In this episode, Manas Chawla speaks with Brian Wong, the founder of the Oxford Political Review, about the limitations of mainstream Western understanding of China. He also highlights the importance of states learning from one another as well as being more creative and pragmatic in their interactions. Brian Wong is currently completing a PhD in Political Theory at the University of Oxford. He is the founder of the Oxford Political Review, a publication covering current affairs, political science and international relations, as well as co-founder of the Oxford Policy Advisory Group. He is also a columnist for the Hong Kong Economic Journal and TIME, and he writes regularly for publications such as the Financial Times and Foreign Policy on topics such as East Asian politics. During his discussion with Manas, Brian shares his unique perspectives that seek to fuse current affairs and political theory. He also provides some practical tips for understanding China and its relations with other states. (Recorded on 18/02/2022)

‘The war will change the ESG discussion from something that was easily dismissed as being about sunflowers and windmills to something that is much more serious and systemic.’ In this episode, Manas Chawla, speaks to Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, the US Business Editor at the Financial Times, about the exodus of Western brands from Russia, the role of companies in the unfolding conflict, and the implications of the war for investor understanding of ESG. Andrew has worked for the FT for more than twenty years and has held both writing and editing positions. He has written extensively on corporate America and the topics shaping the US business landscape. He also features regularly on the FT News Briefing podcast. Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine, Andrew has been following and reporting on the reaction from the corporate world. He shares with Manas his latest analysis concerning the monumental consequences that the war will have for business in Ukraine, Russia, and the rest of the world.

‘Russia is badly losing the information war. It is President Zelensky who is all over my phone.’ In this episode, Manas Chawla talks to Tom Fletcher, a former foreign policy advisor and ambassador, about diplomacy in the digital age, the ability of governments to restrain big tech, and the role that social media is playing in the war in Ukraine. Tom Fletcher is Principal of Hertford College at the University of Oxford. Prior to this he worked for the British government, first as a foreign policy advisor to Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, and David Cameron and then as the UK’s Ambassador to Lebanon. He is also the author of two books: The Naked Diplomat: Understanding Power and Politics in the Digital Age, which was published back in 2016, and Ten Survival Skills for a World in Flux, which came out earlier this year.

‘The idea of state interests is a manufactured discourse where officials and diplomats make up what they think their countries' interests are usually without reference to the people concerned.’ In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Founder of Independent Diplomat, Carne Ross, about the losers of the state-based international system and the need for multiple diplomatic mechanisms, at both the international and domestic level, in times of a crisis, such as during the one currently playing out in Ukraine. Carne founded Independent Diplomat, a non-profit venture, which advises governments, political groups, international institutions, and NGOs about diplomatic conduct and strategy. Prior to this, he worked as a diplomat for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for fifteen years, before he resigned over the Iraq War. He is also the subject of the documentary Accidental Anarchist and author of the book The Leaderless Revolution: How Ordinary People Will Take Power and Change Politics in the 21st Century. Drawing upon his time on the front lines of diplomacy and his experience of giving diplomatic voices to state and non-state actors, Carne offers a unique insight into the workings of the international system and the decisions of those who define it.

In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Brunello Rosa about current and future "hot topic" macroeconomic and geopolitical flash-points including climate change, cryptocurrencies impact on monetary policy, and the future of globalization. Brunello Rosa is a macroeconomist and strategist. He is the CEO and Head of Research for Rosa & Roubini Associates, an independent macro-financial and geopolitical advisory firm. In 2021, Brunello Rosa was recognized as one of the UK's top 20 dynamic CEO's by the magazine CEO Publication. The previous year he had been included on a list of the top 100 financial service influencers in the world by Onalytica. He is a member of the Chief Economists Advisory Board of the European Investment Bank, and also sits on the Advisory Board of the Ambassador of Italy to the United Kingdom. Academically, among Brunello's extensive CV, he is a Visiting Professor at the Department of Social and Political Sciences at Bocconi University (Italy) and is a Visiting Lecturer and Research Fellow at the Department of International Politics of the City Political Economy Research Centre at City, University of London. He is also a Research Associate at the Systemic Risk Centre of the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he is a practitioner lecturer. With extensive policy experience in the private sector and academia and with first-hand influence in advising governments and institutions, Brunello is the go-to expert to take us through the key looming macroeconomic issues, and their potential impact that we need to be aware of.

In this episode, Manas Chawla interviews Tina Fordham about the changing nature of the political risk industry and delves into some of the most interesting issues presenting globally for 2022. Tina Fordham is a Partner and Head of Global Political Strategy at Avonhurst, a London-based boutique advisory firm dedicated to serving the needs of sophisticated capital. Prior to this, Tina was at Citi for 17 years as the first Chief Global Political Analyst on Wall Street. She has served as senior adviser to the UK Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, twice spoken to the UN General Assembly and was appointed to the UN’s first High-Level panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment. With such extensive experience at the heart of the political risk industry Tina is the perfect person to listen to on the industry's development and provide some expert analysis on current “hot topics”.