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Channel • 6 Shows

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Politics

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Government

Government

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1D AGO

How India Lost the Neighborhood

Over the past few years, South Asia has witnessed a striking wave of mass protests toppling governments and upending long-standing political arrangements in countries ranging from Bangladesh to Nepal and Sri Lanka. These upheavals are often explained in terms of domestic factors—such as corruption, economic mismanagement, and democratic backsliding. But in a recent Foreign Affairs essay titled “The Folly of India’s Illiberal Hegemony,” the scholar Muhib Rahman argues that there is a larger regional story at play—one that implicates not just local leaders, but also India and the United States. The essay challenges the assumption that India’s regional leadership has been a stabilizing force and asks whether New Delhi’s choices have instead helped create openings for China across South Asia. To talk more about the essay, Muhib joins Milan on the show this week. Muhib is a Perry World House Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania. His research sits at the intersection of international security, emerging technologies, and the politics of the Global South. He has served as a Postdoctoral Associate at Cornell University and holds a Ph.D. in Government from the University of Texas-Austin. Muhib and Milan discuss India’s illiberal hegemony in its neighborhood, the downturn in Bangladesh-India ties, and the enabling role of the United States. Plus, the two discuss the drivers of the “India Out” phenomenon in countries ranging from Nepal to the Maldives and how China is positioning itself to take advantage. Episode notes: 1. Muhib Rahman, “Bangladesh’s Quiet Pivot to China,” The National Interest, October 27, 2025. 2. Muhib Rahman, “Explaining Trump’s Surprising Turn to Pakistan,” War on the Rocks, October 1, 2025. 3. “Why Washington Is Wooing Pakistan (with Uzair Younus),” Grand Tamasha, October 1, 2025. 4. “Sri Lanka's Peaceful Revolution (with Neil DeVotta),” Grand Tamasha, January 29, 2025.

1d ago

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39 min
FEB 4

Can the U.S. Salvage Its Relationship with India?

U.S.-India relations were once described as one of Washington’s MOST important strategic bets in the twenty-first century. But over the past year, that partnership has come under serious strain—buffeted by trade disputes, sharp rhetoric, and deep disagreements over Pakistan and Kashmir. In the current print edition of Foreign Affairs, Lisa Curtis and Richard Fontaine argue that this rupture is not just another rough patch, but rather a potentially consequential turning point. The essay, “America Must Salvage Its Relationship with India—or Risk Losing a Global Swing State,” makes the case that how Washington manages its ties with New Delhi in this moment will have lasting implications for the Indo-Pacific balance of power, U.S. credibility in Asia, and competition with China. To talk more about this new piece, Lisa joins Milan on the show this week. Lisa is Director of the Indo-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. She is a foreign policy and national security expert with over 20 years of service in the U.S. government—including at the National Security Council, CIA, State Department, and Capitol Hill. Most recently, Lisa served as Senior Director for South and Central Asia at the National Security Council from 2017 to 2021. Milan and Lisa discuss the “fit of presidential pride and pique” that has derailed bilateral ties, President Trump’s repeated desire to mediate between India and Pakistan, and the sudden revival in U.S.-Pakistan ties. Plus, the two discuss America’s strategic competition with Beijing, what it will take for Washington to remedy its trust deficit with New Delhi, and the long-term consequences of a sustained rupture between the United States and India.

Feb 4

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46 min
5D AGO

How Economists Failed America

Americans have been deeply dissatisfied with the economy for many years, even as standard metrics continue to show strength and prosperity. This gap between popular and elite thinking has helped populism surge and sparked intense debates about whether old economic assumptions—and policies—need wholesale revision. Find the episode transcript and streaming audio, and get the show direct to your inbox, here Follow Jon on X: https://x.com/JonKBateman

5d ago

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52 min
JAN 28

The State of Indian Politics in 2026

2026 is shaping up to be a hectic political year in India. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appointed the relatively unknown Nitin Nabin to take over as party president. The BJP and its opposition challengers are gearing up for high-stakes assembly elections in five states later this spring. And the Election Commission of India (ECI) is in the midst of a controversial revision of India’s gargantuan electoral rolls. To discuss these and the country’s other key political stories, Sunetra Choudhury—the national political editor of the Hindustan Times—joins Milan to kick off the fifteenth season of Grand Tamasha. The two sat down for a special episode recorded live in HT’s New Delhi studio. Listeners will know Sunetra from her past appearances on the podcast, as well as from her reporting for the Hindustan Times—and, of course, from her book Black Warrant, which has since been adapted into a hit Netflix crime drama of the same name. Sunetra has over two decades of reporting experience and was the recipient of the Red Ink award in journalism in 2016 and the Mary Morgan Hewett award in 2018. Milan and Sunetra discuss the prevailing political winds in Delhi, the BJP’s surprising new president, and the long shadow of the 2025 Bihar assembly elections. Plus, the two discuss the upcoming state elections, the inner turmoil within the Congress Party, and the ECI’s controversial “special intensive review.” Episode notes: “Interpreting the 2025 Bihar Verdict (with Roshan Kishore),” Grand Tamasha, November 19, 2025.“How India’s Women Are Redefining Politics (with Ruhi Tewari),” Grand Tamasha, November 5, 2025.Sunetra Choudhury, “NDA's landslide win will cause ripples far beyond Bihar,” Hindustan Times, November 15, 2025.

Jan 28

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50 min
JAN 29

The State and Fate of America’s Republic: A Conversation With Thomas L. Friedman

A year into President Donald Trump’s second term, the state and fate of the American Republic is uncertain and precarious.  At home, an unprecedented expansion of presidential power has undermined norms and institutions and threatened democratic governance. American politics remain polarized, taking on a tribal and personal character with disagreements often cast as struggles between good and bad. And abroad, the administration’s pursuit of an “America first” policy has undermined the trust of traditional allies and opened up opportunities for U.S. adversaries. What can Americans expect from the next three years of the Trump administration? What should allies be preparing for given an increasingly expansionist and aggressive U.S. foreign policy? And what are the obligations and responsibilities of citizens during these difficult times?   Join Aaron David Miller as he engages Pulitzer Prize winning author and The New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman on these and other issues, on the next Carnegie Connects.

Jan 29

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56 min
JAN 30

How Smart Bombs Enable Dumb Wars

The Paveway bomb, invented by Texas Instruments in the 1970s, was the first truly precise munition. It revolutionized America’s air campaign in Vietnam and allowed whole new kinds of “limited” U.S. wars in Libya, Iraq, Serbia, and beyond. But Paveway’s true legacy was psychological: it seduced generations of U.S. leaders into believing that tactical precision creates strategic victories with few costs. Jeff Stern, an intrepid chronicler of modern conflict, tells this story in his new book The Warhead: The Quest to Build the Perfect Weapon in the Age of Modern Warfare. He joins Jon Bateman on The World Unpacked to explore the past, present, and future of precision warfare.

Jan 30

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46 min
JAN 27

Is Iran Reaching a Tipping Point?

Protests in Iran have now engulfed its major cities and all 31 provinces, creating a mass movement incorporating all elements of Iranian society, despite a comprehensive internet blackout. The regime, blaming the United States and Israel for the sweeping movement, is casting the protests as a continuation of its twelve-day war with Israel and is cracking down hard, with the death toll rising. The Institute for the Study of War has reported that more Iranian security forces have been killed than in any previous periods of unrest. Now, President Donald Trump is vowing U.S. intervention in support of the protestors. How are these demonstrations different than others in the past? What are the Iranian regime’s options for suppressing them? Are we nearing the point of regime fracture or the end of Ayatollah Khomeini’s reign altogether? And how should the United States respond? Join Aaron David Miller as he engages two veteran Iran analysts, the Carnegie Endowment’s Karim Sadjadpour and the New Yorker’s Robin Wright in conversation to discuss the unfolding crisis in Iran and America’s reaction, on the next Carnegie Connects.

Jan 27

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51 min
1D AGO

Is 2026 a Turning Point for Armenia and Azerbaijan?

The peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan, initialed in August 2025, represents a major turning point for the South Caucasus. Thomas de Waal, Zaur Shiriyev, and Areg Kochinyan discuss the role Europe can play in supporting normalization and advancing infrastructure development across the region. [00:00:00] Intro, [00:01:37] The Armenia-Azerbaijan Normalization, [00:11:23] New Connectivity Projects in the South Caucasus, [00:19:31] Europe’s Role in Supporting the Peace Process. Zaur Shiriyev, February 3, 2026, “Europe Falls Behind in the South Caucasus Connectivity Race,” Strategic Europe, Carnegie Europe. Thomas de Waal, December 16, 2025, “Trump’s Peace Lessons for Europe,” Strategic Europe, Carnegie Europe. Zaur Shiriyev and Philip Gamaghelyan, December 4, 2025, “Strategic Directions for Building Sustainable Peace Between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Thomas de Waal, November 13, 2025, “Armenia’s Election Is a Foreign Affair,” Strategic Europe, Carnegie Europe. Thomas de Waal, September 22, 2025, “An Unlikely Road to Peace for Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Foreign Affairs. Philip Gamaghelyan and Zaur Shiriyev, August 7, 2025, “As They Edge Toward Peace, Armenia and Azerbaijan Must Resist Old Habits,” Emissary, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Zaur Shiriyev, May 26, 2025, “The Precarious Power of Azerbaijan,” Foreign Affairs. Thomas de Waal, March 17, 2025, “Armenia and Azerbaijan’s Major Step Forward,” Emissary, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Areg Kochinyan, July 12, 2024, “Why the World Must Support Armenia’s Defeated Democracy Against Russian Hybrid Warfare,” Conflict and Civicness Research Blog, London School of Economics and Political Science. Areg Kochinyan, May 21, 2024, “Armenia Should Use This Window of Opportunity to Leave Russia’s Orbit,” Politika, Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center.

1d ago

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25 min
10/24/2025

"A House of Dynamite” Writer on How Nuclear War Works

A House of Dynamite, a new Netflix film, may be the most realistic depiction of a nuclear crisis ever made. Screenwriter Noah Oppenheim partnered with Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty, The Hurt Locker) to capture the intimate details of the U.S. national security state as a president (Idris Elba) and his advisors confront the riskiest 19 minutes in human history. Oppenheim, the former president of NBC News, joins Jon Bateman on The World Unpacked. They discuss Trump’s missile defense plans, the filmmaking process, and Hollywood’s surprising influence on nuclear policy—from Dr. Strangelove to Crimson Tide. Find the episode transcript, video episode, and get the show direct to your inbox, here. Follow Jon on X (https://x.com/JonKBateman) here.

10/24/2025

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47 min
11/21/2025

AI’s Biggest Skeptic Sees a Bubble

The AI boom is the biggest investment mania in decades, channeling trillions of dollars into data center infrastructure. If investors bet right, they may usher in technological breakthroughs that produce vast wealth. If they’re wrong, they could crash the U.S. stock market, trigger a recession, and spread financial contagion globally. Ed Zitron was among the first to call AI a bubble. His unsparing deep dives into AI finances are must-reads, even for his critics. In a spirited back-and-forth on The World Unpacked, Ed and host Jon Bateman debate Wall Street’s “unhealthy relationship” with Nvidia, if China has its own AI bubble, and whether ChatGPT should give tax advice. Find the episode transcript and streaming audio, and get the show direct to your inbox, here: https://carnegieendowment.org/podcasts/the-world-unpacked/ais-biggest-skeptic-sees-a-bubble? Follow Jon on X: https://x.com/JonKBateman

11/21/2025

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52 min

Carnegie scholars and their global network of experts give their takes on foreign policy issues around the world.