Warpod

In this episode we explore how the United Nations (UN) counter-terrorism architecture has expanded – and what it means for peace, human rights and multilateral action.  Over the past two decades, counter-terrorism has become one of the UN’s fastest-growing areas of work. From a small footprint with very limited capacity, to a dedicated UN Office of Counterterrorism with 200 staff, the counterterro...

In July 2025, the UK government released three major policy reviews that will shape its approach to security and defence for years to come: the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), the National Security Strategy (NSS), and the Comprehensive Spending Review. Together, these documents set the tone for the UK’s defence and foreign policy — but how well do they respond to the threats and challenges that pe...

Training and equipping police, military, and border forces is a common part of international security policy. But how can this kind of support affect communities in conflict-affected countries?  In this episode, we speak to Hamsatu Allamin, a peacebuilder from northeast Nigeria, and Major George Ashton of the British Army’s Royal Military Police, about the practice known as security force assistan...

The tenth anniversary of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) coming into force provides a unique opportunity for reflection on the impact and challenges of the Treaty to date.  We took some time to talk with Roy Isbister and Elizabeth Kirkham from Saferworld’s Arms Unit and to reflect on their experience of working on the global treaty to regulate the international arms trade. The discussion explores Safe...

With a new Labour government in power after the UK’s 2024 General Election, what does the future hold for the UK’s Integrated Security Fund (UK ISF)?   The UK ISF is a cross-government fund designed to address UK national security challenges, with a budget of approx. £1 billion. The idea of such a fund began in 2001 when a previous Labour government introduced the Conflict Pool, which evolved in 2...

With the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) set to withdraw and the al-Shabaab insurgency still posing a very real threat, how can the Somali security sector address some of the challenges facing the region?  In this episode of Warpod, we speak with regional security analyst and Somalia security expert Samira Gaid alongside Saferworld’s Country Director for Somalia Ali Hersi. We d...

Our conversation with Olivia O’Sullivan and Christine Cheng was so interesting that it ended up being too long to fit into one episode. This shorter bonus episode focuses on how the next UK government might approach US and EU relationships.  If you haven’t listened to the full episode, you can do by clicking here or searching for Ep#5 How are UK political parties thinking about security policy?  O...

The UK’s place in the world is changing, and so is the nature of the conflict around the world. With new risks and developing dynamics pulling policymakers and politicians in different directions, we spoke to great guests.   Olivia O'Sullivan is the Director of the UK in the World Programme at Chatham House and contributor to their podcast Independent Thinking.   Christine Cheng is senior lecturer...

In this episode, we explore the future of United Nations (UN) peacekeeping and the role of the African Union (AU) in peace operations with three guests:  Congresswoman Sara Jacobs, the representative for California’s 51st District and a member of the United States House Foreign Affairs Committee, where she serves as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Africa;   David Haeri from the UN Department...

In this episode, we explore the role of the European Union in the research, development and joint production of arms and military equipment.     Unlike other industrial policy areas such as commercial trade, decisions around arms production and export have traditionally been held solely by individual EU member states – linked closely to their sovereignty and national defence ambitions. However, in...

In this second part of our discussion with Lord Peter Ricketts and Nargis Kassenova, we take a deeper look at some of the security policy change we’ve seen in recent years, and at wider patterns of geopolitical competition and alliances. We also discuss how interventions by some major players in the region have created unreliable and inconsistent security partnerships, which in some cases has erod...

The world is more dangerous now than ever, with worrying upward trends in the estimated number of civilians being killed in conflicts around the world, and rising challenges posed by climate change, new technologies, disinformation and upcoming elections.   To open our new series of Warpod, we look at the trends shaping contemporary security policy, at what’s changed and what hasn’t since our last...

Every day, civilians suffer in violent conflicts attacked by armed forces, militias and rebel groups. These attacks have left many dead or injured, and caused millions to be forcibly displaced. However, most attempts to address these issues are done by influencing conflict parties to cease attacks on civilians, instead of enhancing the protection of civilians in places affected by violent conflict...

Before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, violent conflict had been ongoing since 2014 in part of Ukraine’s eastern regions, the Donbas. In this episode, we discuss Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi)’s study on Ukrainian perspectives on peace, specifically the two groups that have been severely impacted by the conflict: veterans of the Donbas and internally displaced people residing...

In this episode of Warpod, we discuss the biggest challenge that feminist and women's rights organisations and movements face: funding. With 99 per cent of gender-related aid failing to reach them directly, there is a critical need for flexible, core and direct funding for women's rights organisations in places affected by conflict. To discuss the issue, our hosts Jessica Summers and Delina Goxho...

In this Warpod episode, we look at the concept of stabilisation. What does it mean? What challenges does it bring? And how should we tackle these challenges? To answer these questions and discuss ‘doing’ stabilitation strategies in places such as Afghanistan and the Sahel, our hosts Abigail Watson and Delina Goxho are joined by two experts: Philipp Rotmann, Director of the Global Public Policy Ins...

“Peace is not a technical process. Peace is deeply political.” In this episode, we explore new perspectives about what works when trying to stabilise countries troubled by long-lasting violence, crime and terrorism. What happens to societies when they’re affected by extreme violence and proscribed groups? What leads to (relative) success when building pathways to peace and security? What role do p...

Many might not have heard a troubling story about 300 civilians massacred in Mali’s Moura village in early April 2022. Human Rights Watch called it "the worst single atrocity reported in Mali's decade-long armed conflict". Who carried out the attack? The answer appears to be Malian forces had help from private foreign soldiers from the Russian private-security firm Wagner. Reports of shadowy group...

Throughout 30 years of the previous regime in Sudan, women faced more oppression than ever before. During the 2018–2019 revolution, women and young people were the driving force of protests demanding freedom, peace and justice. After the military coup in October 2021, women were on the frontlines, protesting military rule. In addition to the current political complexity, Sudanese women are also fa...

At the end of last year, US President Joe Biden hosted the virtual Summit for Democracy. It convened more than 100 countries to draw attention to rising authoritarianism. The summit looked at three themes: defending against authoritarianism, addressing and fighting corruption, and advancing respect for human rights. How well has the summit, and Biden’s democracy strategy more generally, prepared t...

Over the last seven years, fighting between Ukrainian and Russian-backed separatist groups has been responsible for substantial civilian harm in the region. As well as the use of conventional forces, there has been ‘hybrid warfare’. While the risks of conventional military forces on civilian populations are increasingly understood, we know much less about the risks posed by these hybrid tactics. I...

Looking ahead to 2022, we think about issues that will define the future of conflict – including space, the arctic, climate change, and cyber – and how policymakers and practitioners need to adapt for them. Three guests join hosts, Abigail Watson and Delina Goxho. They are: James Rogers, Assistant Professor of War Studies at the University of Southern Denmark. Jennifer McArdle, Adjunct Senior Fell...

In the eighth and final episode of Warpod's special series ‘Reckoning with 9/11’, our hosts Larry Attree and Delina Goxho ask three experts whether the 9/11 paradigm is here to stay, or the world is now ready to move on. We talk to: Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, law professor at both Queen's University in Belfast and the University of Minnesota, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and prote...

In the seventh episode of Warpod's special series ‘Reckoning with 9/11’, our hosts Larry Attree and Delina Goxho ask three experts about how 9/11 “came home” and impacted on the laws, freedoms and ideals of the U.S. and other Western countries. The three experts are: Hina Shamsi, Director of the National Security Project at the ACLU Spencer Ackerman, a Pulitzer Prize and National Magazine Award-wi...

The sixth episode of Warpod's special series ‘Reckoning with 9/11’ episode explores how authoritarian governments have taken advantage of the war on terror for their own benefits. Our hosts, Larry Attree and Delina Goxho, ask three experts what effects this has had on peace and democracy, especially in the Philippines, Syria and Egypt. Marc Batac works for Initiatives for...