Le Monde diplomatique - English edition Le Monde diplomatique

The tally of coups in West Africa currently stands at six, after the recent military takeover in Niger (which was followed by another in Gabon in Central Africa). In this month's podcast, Anne-Cécile Robert, director of international editions at Le Monde diplomatique, talks about the conditions in which generals step in, offering simple solutions to complex problems. But, Robert says, it would be wrong to see this as a purely regional phenomenon, an ‘epidemic' affecting a ‘coup belt'. As she (...)



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2023/09

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Podcast,
2023/09 W African coups

On this month's podcast, culture critic Maya Jaggi talks about an exhibition currently on at the National Museum of Archaeology Naples (MANN), which she reviews in the July issue of Le Monde diplomatique in a piece entitled ‘Alexander the Great, between Asia and Europe'. As Alexander the Great pushed ever further east in the late 4th century BCE, his aim was conquest. But the result was much more than that: it also brought cultural exchange, unexpected encounters and the sharing of learning. (...)



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2023/07

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Podcast,
2023/07 alexander

In this month's podcast, Ukraine-based journalist Glen Johnson discusses his article in the June edition of Le Monde diplomatique, ‘Moldova's stark choices about its future'. The key choice this landlocked former Soviet republic faces is over whether it should maintain its hitherto strict neutrality or seek protection under the NATO umbrella. Johnson describes Moldova's initial reaction to the war in Ukraine as ‘pitch perfect'. But since then, he says, its government has veered sharply towards (...)



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2023/06

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Podcast,
2023/06 Moldova

China has designated it a ‘national priority' to become ‘the world's premier artificial intelligence innovation centre' by 2030. OpenAI's release of ChatGPT suggests China may have some catching up to do. In this month's podcast, Gabrielle Chou of NYU Shanghai University discusses some of barriers to China achieving its goal, including a brain drain, corruption and a US embargo on high-end (...)



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2023/04

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Podcast,
2023/04 china

In the second of two podcasts this month, Glasgow-based journalist Jamie Maxwell discusses Scotland's change of leader after Nicola Sturgeon's surprise decision to stand down after eight years as Scotland's first minister. As Humza Yousaf takes on her role, Jamie discusses the Sturgeon legacy and the challenges ahead for her successor, both in terms of the independence movement and progressive politics in (...)



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2023/03

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2023/03 Scotland,
Podcast

In the first of two podcasts this month on the resignations of two prominent female leaders, journalist Glen Johnson reflects on New Zealand's prime minister Jacinda Ardern's surprise departure. She won international admiration for her handling of Covid and the Christchurch massacre but, Johnson explains, elements in the business community, the political opposition and the national media cultivated a highly toxic environment that ultimately made her position (...)



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2023/02

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Podcast,
2023/02 Ardern