1,685 episodes
HARDtalk BBC Podcasts
-
- Government
-
-
4.4 • 292 Ratings
-
In-depth, hard-hitting interviews with newsworthy personalities.
-
Taro Kono: Can Japan reboot itself for the 21st Century?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Taro Kono, Digital Transformation Minister for a Japanese government wrestling with massive problems. This erstwhile economic powerhouse is stuck with low growth, massive debt and an ageing, declining population. Can Japan reboot itself for the 21st Century?
-
Maria Corina Machado: Can Venezuela's fortunes change?
Sarah Montague speaks to Venezuelan opposition politician Maria Corina Machado. Banned from running in the country’s presidential elections this weekend, she’s still a leading figure in the movement trying to unseat socialist authoritarian Nicolas Maduro. With the country’s economy in ruins and more than a quarter of the population having fled, could the next few days change the fortunes of this oil-rich but very troubled nation?
-
Oliver McTernan: Is peace in the Middle East an impossible dream?
Sarah Montague speaks to former Catholic priest Oliver McTernan who has spent more than two decades working in conflict resolution in the Middle East. He is the director of the organisation Forward Thinking and was involved in negotiations that led to the release of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011. While he has no formal role in the current talks over the war in Gaza, he regularly speaks to senior figures in both Hamas and the Israeli government. Given the history of this protracted conflict, does he hold any hope that it will ever be resolved?
-
Maria Butina: Is time on Russia's side?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Maria Butina, member of the State Duma for President Putin’s United Russia party. The war in Ukraine now hinges on strength of will and staying power: the fighting is attritional, the bloodshed horrendous, and Nato has just reaffirmed its commitment to Kyiv. Two and a half years after the invasion, is time really on Russia’s side?
-
Laurie Bristow: The West's failure in Afghanistan
Stephen Sackur speaks to Sir Laurie Bristow, Britain’s last Ambassador to Afghanistan who led a desperate evacuation when Kabul fell to the Taliban three years ago. What are his reflections on the significance of the West’s strategic failure in Afghanistan?
-
Ilya Ponomarev: How significant is Russian resistance to Putin?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Ilya Ponomarev, a former Russian MP who’s now a key leader of an anti-Putin armed resistance movement active both inside and outside Russia. As Putin’s assault on Ukraine grinds on, how significant is this Russian resistance?
Customer Reviews
Great Show
Great interview on the Israel conflict n Gaza. This is one of my favorite podcasts. It always interesting subjects and relevant topics. Thank you for your program and specially for your Interview with Ariel Dorfman. He is a fascinating writer, a human rights advocate and his life is just amazing. Mr. Dorfman was very inspiring in despite of his life experiences and his dystopian stories of his books. Since I come from Latin America and my father had similar experiences from those years. I am interested to read more of his books since many of his recurrent themes are still very relevant today.
Finally news that is not scared
I really enjoy how hard talk gets down to the important questions. It feels like most news now is so biased and doesn’t ask hard questions. It brings me a lot of joy to hear some one finally asking hard questions
Revealing and Educational Interviews
Stephen Sackur conducts thorough, fair, probing, and revealing interviews with a very diverse set of guests. The level of research into each show is unparalleled. A true jewel in the BBC crown.