Talk Eastern Europe Talk Eastern Europe

In this episode of Talk Eastern Europe, Adam and Alexandra kick off this episode with a rundown of some of the recent developments in the region, including the ongoing war in Ukraine, recent local elections in Serbia, the upcoming European parliamentary elections and developments in Hungary and Poland.

Later, Adam is joined by Vazha Tavberidze, a Georgian journalist and staff writer with RFE/RL's Georgian Service. They discuss the situation in the country surrounding the recently passed “foreign agent” law and its consequences. They also take a look at what’s next politically in the context of the upcoming elections in October.

For further reading via New Eastern Europe:
“Why the “Russian law” is so dangerous for Georgia” by Grigol Julukhidze and Mariam Gubievi: https://neweasterneurope.eu/2024/05/05/why-the-russian-law-is-so-dangerous-for-georgia/

“Georgia has now reached a crucial moment” by Jakub Bornio: https://neweasterneurope.eu/2024/05/20/georgia-has-now-reached-a-crucial-moment/

“Georgians want a better future” by Mark Temnycky: https://neweasterneurope.eu/2024/05/15/georgians-want-a-better-future/  

Support us! Become a TEE patron: www.patreon.com/talkeasterneurope  

In this episode, Alexandra and Nina start by catching up on news from the Western Balkans. They also discuss the latest developments in Georgia and Alexandra shares her impressions from a recent trip to Tbilisi.   

For the main interview, Alexandra talked with publisher Buzz Poole about his decades of experience working with authors from Southeastern Europe and bringing their stories to Anglophone audiences. Buzz gives listeners a “behind the scenes” look at the publishing world, shares his views on unique themes and aesthetics in fiction from this region, and makes quite a few suggestions for further reading.   

You can check out the titles mentioned at https://sandorfpassage.org/  

For those wanting to learn more – check out our special bonus content for our patrons, featuring a conversation with Tim Schaffner of Schaffner Press about the upcoming release: The Bone Whisperers: Two Women Scientists and Their Work to Connect Lost Lives in Bosnia-Herzegovina by Taina Tervonen.

Listen to it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-181-bone-105302149  

Check out New Eastern Europe online at: www.neweasterneurope.eu

This episode opens with Adam and Nina running down the latest news in the region, including the situations in Georgia and Armenia as well as the new mobilization law in Ukraine. Nina also mentions the assassination attempt of Slovakia's Robert Fico - and we have a special longer update via our patreon page here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/exclusive-update-104836695

Later, Alexandra helps us mark the International Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners in Belarus, by bringing us several stories from former Belarusian political prisoners and their families. Our guests discuss their experiences while imprisoned, life after release, and what the international community can do to support current and former prisoners. 

Talk Eastern Europe stands in solidarity with Belarusian political prisoners and would like to thank the following guests for appearing in this episode:Volha LoikaTasiana KhomichKrystsina CharankovaKsenia SyramalotAnonymousCheck out these links for more information about Belarusian political prisoners and the International Day of Solidarity on May 21. You can support organizations that work with Belarussian political prisoners such as Bysol, Viasna, Politvyazanka, ByHelp, Strana Dlia Zhizn and many others."

Postcards for political prisoners campaign:
You can write a postcard to political prisoners in Belarus by finding a political prisoner's address on Viasna's website and sending a postcard which refrains from overly political statements. Alternatively, you can also send a digital greeting by filling out this form and sending a message via Solidarity Postcards Atelier. It is expected that the correspondence may be withheld or censured, so you can also post a picture of the postcard on your social media with the tag #FreeNameAndSurname of the prisoner you have written to.

Support our work - become a podcast patron: www.patreon.com/TalkEasternEurope 

In this episode, Adam and Nina open with breaking news from Slovakia and discuss the recent shooting of Slovak’s Prime Minister- Robert Fico.

Later, they move to the South Caucasus and comment on protests in Armenia and Georgia. They close with an update about Ukraine and positive news from the Czech Republic.  For the main interview, Nina is joined by Dr Marat Ilyasov, a visiting Scholar at the Global Academy of George Washington University to discuss the recent developments in Chechnya including the possible scenarios of Ramzan Kadyrov’s succession.

Our Patrons can also listen to bonus content where Marat discusses what the experience with two Chechen wars could suggest for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, available here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-179-wars-104412121

Marat’s analysis is based on his academic article which is restricted, but the abstract is available here.

Support the podcast, become a patron: www.patreon.com/talkeasterneurope  

Don’t forget to check out the latest articles online at www.neweasterneurope.eu

In this episode, Adam, Alexandra and Nina commemorate the 20th anniversary of the EU's 'Big Bang' enlargement. They also discuss Xi Jinping's visit to Serbia and Hungary, the latest news from Russia and Ukraine, and the elections in North Macedonia and Croatia.  

Later in the episode, Alexandra and Nina are joined by Maja Gergorić, an expert on anti-gender movements in post-communist Europe. Maja shares her insights on gender equality challenges and the so-called anti-gender ideology in Croatia and elsewhere in the region.  

In our patron-only bonus content, Maja comments on the recent parliamentary elections in Croatia and discusses possible scenarios for the future government.  

Support the podcast, become a patron: www.patreon.com/talkeasterneurope  

Talk Eastern Europe is Shortlisted in two categories for the Publish Podcast Awards – Best News Podcast; and Best Political Podcast. Check it out: https://publisherpodcasts.com/2024/en/page/shortlist2024  

This episode opens up with Adam, Alexandra and Nina discussing the latest news developments including the US Congress’s passage of the Ukraine aid bill; political developments in Croatia; the situation in Georgia and the situation of civil society in Azerbaijan.

Later, Adam is joined by Andrew Wilson, a professor of Ukrainian Studies at UCL and a senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. They discuss Andrew’s latest book titled “Political Technology. The Globalisation of Political Manipulation”. 

You can find more about the book here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/political-technology/748E44E97FF0C37F54B419E901665AC3

And learn more about political technology at Andrew's blog: https://www.politicaltechnology.blog/

Don’t forget to support the podcast by joining our Patreon page: www.patreon.com/TalkEasternEurope

And drop us a line on Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/TalkEasternEurope