HSS Podcast - Global Perspectives

Can you still trust your own online trail? The invisible threads of digital manipulation are so subtle, and yet they have an enormous power. In our new episode of #GlobalPerspectives, we, like #AI and #BigData, re-explore the rules of free opinion formation "Writing and not only distorting our perception, but also endangering our #democracy. You want to check further information on this topic? Her...

Since the COVID-pandemic and Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, global fault lines have deepened. System rivalry is becoming a buzzword and Africa seems to be in the center of it. With the Russia-Africa Summit, which took place recently in St. Petersburg, the upcoming BRICS Summit in August in Johannesburg, and the Unite Nations Future Summit next year in New York there is a lot of discussion but also...

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, reactions on the African continent were and still are divided. Africa remains the voting block with the most abstentions at the UN-resolutions on the war. Although being a minor economical player compared to the USA, China, or the EU, it seems that Russia is exercising an outsized degree of political influence across some parts of Africa. One key instrument o...

Millionen Menschen leben in Hungersnot. Weltweit hat sich die Lage der #Ernährungssicherheit von Jahr zu Jahr verschlechtert. Die Vereinten Nationen kritisieren dies scharf: „Hunger ist das Ergebnis politischen Versagens.“ In unserem Podcast #GlobalPerspectives erklärt Botschafter Bleicker die globale Nahrungsmittelkrise und ruft die internationale Gemeinschaft zu entschiedenem Handeln auf.

International cooperation faces immense challenges in the face of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and still unresolved consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. At the global level, fault lines have appeared, showing that Europe's and "the West's" power of persuasion and attraction have worn off and do not enjoy unlimited loyalty. To what extent does the Russian war of aggression imply...

“We cannot discount the possibility of an attack against Allies’ sovereignty and territorial integrity.” This passage from NATO’s 2022 strategic concept states a sobering outlook for the future of defence and security. With security experts Aylin Matlé and Andrea Rotter, we discuss NATO’s concrete and upcoming adjustments to these threats. What’s NATO’s position towards Russia? Will the US remain...

Democracies are under pressure worldwide. This year, for example, the Bertelsmann Transformation Index identified more autocratic than democratic states for the first time since 2014. At the same time, many countries of the Global South are alleging that the EU and NATO are pursuing double standard politics. Against the backdrop of these developments we ask: What is good governance actually about?...

“Neutrality maybe works in times of peace, but not in times of war” (I. Groza). Moldovan security experts Denis Cenusá and Iulian Groza analyse the country's trajectory from neutrality to discussing EU accession and NATO membership. Where does Moldova stand in the wake of growing instabilities in Russian-backed Transnistria? And how will the country manoeuvre if tensions with Russia intensify? Mol...

In early April, Pakistan underwent a change of power, initiated by a vote of no confidence in parliament. These events momentarily catapulted the country into the media headlines. Recently, both public interest and seemingly political appetite to address the situation in Pakistan and its neighbour Afghanistan have waned considerably. This stands against the development that Pakistan has to deal wi...

After President Joe Biden first announced The Summit for Democracy during his election campaign in 2020, it finally took place in the beginning of December 2021. Over 275 participants from over one hundred countries joined President Biden in this virtual event to discuss the following core topics: strengthening democracy, fighting corruption, and promoting human rights. In this episode, Norman Ble...

At the much awaited Climate Change Conference in November, the signatory states to the UN Climate Convention have not succeeded in jointly presenting a convincing way to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. At the same time, it was finally possible to concretize rules already laid down at the Paris Climate Conference in 2015, which will advance climate protection. How is climate change aff...

Not only since Donald Trump came to power many have had the subjective feeling that the rise of populist forces is a growing problem, especially in democracies. Trust in institutions and decision-makers is deliberately undermined by those who expect short-term political advantage. This development appears neither constructive nor expedient and could cause the erosion of intra-societal cohesion, es...

In early November, the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) will be taking place in Glasgow, Scotland. Representatives from 196 states will be negotiating the next steps for global climate protection and climate impact adaptation. More than ever, concrete measures and funding commitments for poorer countries will be critical. By global standards, African countries contribute the lea...

After 16 years of Angela Merkel, Germany’s federal election will not only pave the way for a new government but also for a brand-new foreign policy. At least potentially. Taking a deep-dive into foreign policy questions concerning Afghanistan, Russia, China all the way to the discussion around a European Army, this episode explores past failures and future opportunities for Germany’s role in the w...

Entwicklungs- und Schwellenländer stehen heute vor immensen Herausforderungen, wenn es darum geht, Armut zu bekämpfen und ein ökologisch nachhaltiges Wachstum zu erreichen. Diese Folge der Podcast-Reihe Globale Perspectives gibt Einblicke in die Situation in Vietnam und in die Region Lateinamerika. Sie zeigt auf, welche Potenziale eine öko-soziale Marktwirtschaft hat, um den großen sozialen und ök...

The main focus of this episode will be the EU’s NextGenerationEU Plan, especially the new Recovery and Resilience Facility as the centrepiece of this newly created instrument. With a total volume of 750 billion euros, the reconstruction fund represents the largest investment program in the 70 year history of the "European project". How does it work, what are the main goals and what timeline is for...

Entwicklungs- und Schwellenländer stehen heute vor immensen Herausforderungen, wenn es darum geht, Armut zu bekämpfen und ein ökologisch nachhaltiges Wachstum zu erreichen. Diese Folge der Podcast-Reihe Global Perspectives nimmt den afrikanischen Kontinent und insbesondere Südafrika in den Fokus und gibt einen Einblick in die aktuelle Diskussion. Sie zeigt das Potenzial auf, das in einer sozialen...

The EU’s declining image in the Balkan region has enabled other non-Western powers - most notably China, Russia and Turkey - to increase their influence in that area. Looking at EU-accession candidates Albania and Serbia, this episode will discuss how this has become a geopolitical challenge for Europe. How can the EU address the growing competition with external actors who pursue their different...

In vielen Schwellen- und Entwicklungsländern gibt es Dezentralisierungsprozesse, meist mit dem Ziel, eine größere Effizienz und Legitimität staatlichen Handelns zu erreichen. Oft geht es auch um den Versuch, ein friedliches Zusammenleben unterschiedlicher Ethnien innerhalb einer staatlichen Einheit zu ermöglichen, die wirtschaftliche Entwicklung in Regionen fernab der Hauptstadt zu fördern, bürger...

Europe has been in the grip of the Covid pandemic for more than a year now. France is among those countries that were affected the most in socio-political and economic terms. But the post-pandemic era seems to be in sight, which means that the realignment of investments e.g. in digitalisation, the ecological transformation of the economy, and the health care sector are at the forefront of the deba...

Weltweit kämpfen die Staaten mit dem Corona-Virus und seinen Folgen. Einzig China scheint aus der Krise verhältnismäßig gestärkt hervorzugehen. Die Hintergründe dafür und auch die Frage wie China sich nun weltpolitisch aufstellt thematisieren wir mit unserem Büroleiter in Peking.

Moscow’s Partnership with Beijing – is Russia lost for the West? In June 2019, the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, described the Russian President Vladimir Putin as his “best friend”. This remarkable statement, made by the head of state and topleader of China, reflects the strengthening economic and military ties between Russia and China. In areas where the interests of bo...

Das Corona-Virus trifft die Länder Südamerikas schwer. Der Kontinent scheint mit der Pandemie am stärksten zu kämpfen, auch auf der wirtschaftlichen und der sozialen Ebene. Worin liegen die Ursachen dafür und was ist für die weitere Entwicklung zu erwarten? Diesen und weiteren Fragen gehen wir in dieser Podcast-Episode auf den Grund.

The Visegrád countries’ perspective on Germany´s EU-Presidency As Germany´s Presidency of the Council of the European Union ends on the 31st of December 2020, we asked speakers from all four member states of the Visegrád (V4) group (Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia) to share their views on Germany’s ambitious agenda fighting the pandemic, passing the budget for the European Union and climate pro...

Zwar sind die von vielen Experten prognostizierten gesundheitlichen Horrorszenarien in Afrika bisher nicht eingetreten. Die wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Folgen der Krise treffen den Kontinent jedoch extrem hart. Über die Auswirkungen von COVID-19 für Afrika, die Reaktionen auf die Pandemie, aber auch die mittel- und langfristigen Chancen, die aus der Krise entstehen mögen, berichten wir in der ne...