The Final Service

After 20 years of “forever wars,” the American contest for influence and control in the Middle East hasn’t stopped. But now the US has company, and the countries in the region have options. Mara Rudman, Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress , joins Ray Suarez to dissect the delicate state of play in the Middle East.    Guest:   Mara Rudman , Executive Vice Preside...

At the 2023 APEC Forum in Detroit, Malaysian Deputy Minister Liew Chin Tong tells Ray Suarez how spaces like APEC are key to balancing relationships with competing superpowers. Then, Deputy Secretary Vangelis Vitalis shares how the demand for traditional Kiwi exports has kept Aotearoa’s economy afloat.   Guest:   Liew Chin Tong , Deputy Minister of Malaysian Investment, Trade and Industry   Vangel...

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai played host to the APEC Forum in Detroit, where she balanced American interests, international trade agreements and ongoing rivalries with China. Ambassador Tai joined Ray Suarez to speak about how that meeting went, and what it really means to put workers at the center of US trade policy.    Guest:   Ambassador Katherine Tai , US Trade Representative   Host:...

Researcher Christopher Reddy has watched in despair as public confidence in science has plummeted. He joins Ray Suarez to discuss his new book, “ Science Communication in a Crisis ,” and why scientists may be part of the problem in science denialism.   Guest:   Christopher Reddy , Senior Scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and author of “ Science Communication in a Crisis ”   Hos...

In his new book, “ A Traveler’s Guide to the End of the World ,” nature writer David Gessner grapples with communicating about climate change with the next generation. David and his daughter, Hadley, join Ray Suarez to have that conversation, and to spur all of us “hypocrites” who drive cars and fly in planes to fight the climate fight.   Guest:    David Gessner , nature writer and author of “ A T...

Screenwriter Noah Pink tells Ray Suarez how he discovered the true story behind “ Tetris ,” from the Cold War race to secure the rights to the classic video game to its escape from the former Soviet Union. Guest:   Noah Pink , “Tetris” screenwriter    Host:   Ray Suarez   If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs . We cann...

Putin may have won the “battle” against Wagner’s Yevgeny Prigozhin, but he’s losing the meme war. Ray speaks with Jen Kirby, Vox’s foreign and national security reporter, about fact verification and conflict reporting amidst state propaganda and viral Twitter memes.    Guest:   Jen Kirby , senior foreign and national security reporter at Vox   Host:   Ray Suarez   If you appreciate this episode an...

Peace is a process, not an outcome. And in the case of Yemen, Saudi Arabia’s meddling in the country’s civil war has prevented peace for almost a decade. Ray Suarez speaks with Arwa Mokdad , Peace Advocate with the Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation , about what a deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran could mean for the future of Yemen.   Guest:   Arwa Mokdad , Peace Advocate with the Yemen R...

Can a single gathering of world leaders really pull billions of people out of poverty? Eric Pelofsky , Deputy Chief of Staff and Vice President of the Rockefeller Foundation, joined Ray Suarez days before the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact in Paris to share how international financial institutions can make up for past mistakes.   Guest:   Eric Pelofsky , Deputy Chief of Staff and Vice Pres...

Conspiracy communities that once promoted QAnon and anti-vaccine theories have now sunk their teeth into an even tastier morsel: our food supply chain. Laicie Heeley, Executive Producer and Host of “ Things That Go Boom ,” joins Ray Suarez to break down how cracks in our food system have paved the way for international conspiracy theories about the ongoing food crisis.    Guest:   Laicie Heeley ,...

Concerns about a 'global elite' exerting control over demographic shifts and our food choices have hit the mainstream, and they are feeding anxieties. Ray Suarez speaks with French legal scholar Rim-Sarah Alouane about the "great replacement theory", and what it takes to be considered “French first.”   Guest:   Ridha Khadher , baker and owner of  Au Paradis du gourmand   Rim-Sarah Alouane , French...

The 1998-1999 war in Kosovo may have ended the fighting between Serbs and Albanian Kosovars, but it didn’t end the conflict. Anatol Lieven, journalist and Eurasian Program Director at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft , joins Ray Suarez to explain why ethnic tensions are once again flaring up in the Balkans.   Guest:   Anatol Lieven , journalist and Eurasian Program Director at the Q...

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey’s all-powerful leader of 20 years, was recently re-elected, raising serious questions about the state of Turkey’s democracy. Is Erdoğan trying to rebuild the Ottoman Empire? And is his republic Russia’s Trojan Horse in NATO? Ray Suarez speaks with Merve Tahiroğlu , Turkey Program Director at the Project on Middle East Democracy about Erdoğan’s imperial ambiti...

For decades, Georgia has tried to extricate itself from Russia's shadow. But with the recent influx of Ukrainian refugees and anti-war Russians and the rise of Georgia’s Dream Party, the former Soviet state is once again walking a political tightrope between Russia and a tenuous future with NATO. In this episode, reporter Levi Bridges takes us on the ground to hear about the dangers of standing up...

“How is it that foreign corrupt interests could manipulate our government?” asked retired Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, in her testimony during the first impeachment trial against former President Donald Trump in 2019.    In her absorbing memoir, “Lessons from the Edge,” Yovanovich reflected on the disinformation campaign that eventually led to the end of her post as Ambassador to Ukraine. Ray Sua...

The innovative concept of a “15-Minute City” holds the potential to address many urbanization challenges. But it hasn’t been without its critics. Ray Suarez and ‘CityNerd’ creator Ray Delahanty, delve into the eccentric conspiracy theories surrounding it, and its feasibility for the future of urban planning in American cities.   Guest:   Ray Delahanty , Host and creator of CityNerd     Host:    Ra...

Derailed trains, collapsed bridges and an unreliable power grid point to America’s growing infrastructure problem. And though President Biden campaigned on “building back better,” these issues have taken a back seat to political gridlock—at home and abroad.    US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg joins Ray Suarez to break down how the Biden administration plans to get America’s infrastruc...

The hard truth is that whenever tensions escalate between the US and Asian nations overseas, Asian Americans bear the brunt of that anger at home. In this episode, we revisit the story of Wen Ho Lee, a Taiwanese-American scientist who was falsely accused of spying for the Chinese government, with Helen Zia and George Koo.   Guests:   Helen Zia , journalist, activist and author of Last Boat out of...

For decades, Asian-Americans have been the least likely racial minority to hold political office, accounting for less than 1% of elected leaders. But a new generation of Asian American leaders is changing the tide. In this episode, World Affairs President & CEO Philip Yun tells the story of the election that altered the course of his life. Then, California Assemblymember Alex Lee tells Ray Sua...

Aarthi Shahani, author of the memoir Here We Are: American Dreams, American Nightmares, joins Ray Suarez to discuss her family’s painful path to citizenship, and why it’s time to change the immigration narrative in America.   Guest:    Aarthi Shahani , author of the memoir Here We Are: American Dreams, American Nightmares and host of “Art of Power”   Host:   Ray Suarez   If you appreciate this epi...

Everybody knows the immigration system is broken. So what are policy makers doing to fix it? And with the end of Title 42 – a pandemic-era order to deny asylum at the US-Mexico border – Biden’s immigration policy will face new challenges.     Ray Suarez speaks with Sabrina Rodriguez, national political reporter at The Washington Post, about what the end of Title 42 means for the 2024 presidential...

In an era where changing social norms and labor-market shifts are pushing men to the sidelines, can a crisis of masculinity explain why men are falling behind? Idrees Kahloon, author of “What’s The Matter With Men?,” joins Ray Suarez to explain why improving the welfare of struggling men may help bring greater gender equality.   Guest:   Idrees Kahloon , DC bureau chief for The Economist and autho...

Despite being found liable for sexual abuse, many commentators wonder if the E. Jean Carroll verdict will burden — or boost— Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. The rise of strongman rhetoric and polarizing gender politics is fueling a cultural war in the US, and masculinity is at the center of the debate.   Angela Saini, author of The Patriarchs: How Men Came To Rule, joins Ray Suarez to b...

Distrust in official election results isn’t a new trend in Nigerian politics, but the explosion of mis- and disinformation across social media platforms ahead of the country’s 2023 presidential elections made it even harder for Nigerian voters to sort fact from fiction. BBC Nigeria senior disinformation journalist, Fauziyya Tukur, joins Ray Suarez to share how digital disinformation is threatening...

Despite being the first president—former or sitting—to be indicted for a crime, Donald Trump remains the front-running candidate for the GOP nomination. If the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol and allegations of assault and defamation aren’t enough to deter diehard MAGA fans, what does the future of American politics look like?   Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins Ray Suarez to break...