With Akanksha Narain

Will the EU parliament elections upend the EU's political balance?

<p>With Trump's criminal conviction, the chaos and division of American politics seems set to increase. But this is about much more than what happened in a New York courtroom, with roots in American history, its political structures and the rise of certain ideological movements. I spoke to American political scientist Jonathan Terra about the backdrop to the current events.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>I spoke to disinformation expert Amil Khan about the current state of disinformation in global and UK politics and the risks it could pose to the 2024 UK general election. Amil is Director of Valent projects. His work has been covered in a range of media outlets including <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/05/01/disinformation-is-on-the-rise-how-does-it-work" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disinformation is on the rise. How does it work?economist.com</a>, and the BBC <a href="https://youtu.be/VQ1jXrvJazY?feature=shared" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">How some AI developers are combatting malicious bots | BBC Newsyoutu.be</a>.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>I had the chance to speak to Marika Mikiashvili of the Droa liberal internationalist party in Georgia about the background to the current protests in her country, Russia's history of interference and military intervention and the importance of Georgia's struggle to the wider question of democracy in Europe.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>It was my huge pleasure to speak to German historian of Britain Helene von Bismarck. You can find her on Twitter and Bluesky and also on her website <a href="https://www.helenevonbismarck.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.helenevonbismarck.com/</a></p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Following on from the episode on 22 April, the second part of my conversation with Sydney Nash on the UK's relations with Europe.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>At a time when the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/24/world/europe/ukraine-kharkiv-russia-glide-bombs.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">unbreakable city</a> of Kharkiv faces untold destruction and sustained bombardment by Russian forces it was a privilege to speak to <a href="https://twitter.com/DrJadeMcGlynn" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dr Jade McGlynn</a>, a scholar of Ukraine and Russia, who is based there. We discussed the situation in Kharkiv and across the wider front and also the vital work she is involved with to raise funding for new technologies to support Ukraine's defence. You can find more details of it here <a href="https://uscc.org.ua/en/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://uscc.org.ua/en/</a></p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>As ever, British debates about the EU tend to be debates about Britain. We might hope to rejoin, or at least regain a better-functioning trading relationship with the organisation, but we don't do enough thinking about where the EU is headed in its own development. So I spoke to Europe expert Sydney Nash about this over two episodes. The first of these focuses on the EU's current situation.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Iran and Israel have been on the brink of open conflict, in the light of Iran's barrage of drone and missile strikes on Israel, which in turn followed Israel's strike on Iran's consulate in Damascus. I spoke to Charlie Gammell, Iran expert, historian and former diplomat, about the crisis and what we might learn from it.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>How do British political parties get funded? What does that money buy? With only a few weeks to go until the local elections and in a year of a general election I spoke to Seth Thevoz, political and investigative journalist, about how parties are funded.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Professor Amalendu Misra of the University of Lancaster is an expert in Latin America and the Caribbean, notably Haiti. I spoke to him about the current crisis there and what it tells us about the wider region. </p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Mike Martin (who is on Twitter and elsewhere @threshedthought) is one of the most insightful thinkers on conflict and geopolitics active today. He served in the army in Afghanistan with some distinction and subsequently has worked as an academic and adviser on conflict and strategy. He is now running for parliament as the Liberal Democrat candidate in Tunbridge Wells. When we say that parliament needs more people who have actually done things with their lives and fewer professional politicians, it's hard to imagine a better candidate than Mike.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Is Democracy for Sale? The degree to which dark money, powerful interests and political power intersects in this country is startling and depressing. One of the most dogged chroniclers of this phenomenon is the investigative journalist Peter Geoghegan whose book, published articles and substack are all essential reading for people that take an interest in this question.</p><br><p>I spoke to Peter about his work and what it means for our politics. You can find Peter's substack here <a href="https://democracyforsale.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://democracyforsale.substack.com/</a> and he is on Twitter here <a href="https://twitter.com/PeterKGeoghegan" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/PeterKGeoghegan</a></p><br><p>I'm, as always, at <a href="https://twitter.com/SnellArthur" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/SnellArthur</a> and <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://arthursnell.substack.com/</a> as well as on BlueSky for those that celebrate.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Returning to our occasional episodes on Britain's relationships with Europe and the EU, I spoke to EU law professor Jacob Öberg about how Britain could evolve its relationship with the EU in future, the realistic possibilities of joining a customs union, the single market and the EU itself, and the need for future governments to start talking honestly to the British people about the realities of our relations with Europe.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Frank Ledwidge is a War Studies academic, a former serviceman and an expert on military matters. He made several visits to Ukraine since the start of the current conflict and offers an incisive, clear-eyed account of the challenges faced there, the capacity of the Russian military to learn and the risks the West has brought on itself through chronic underinvestment in its military.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>At the heart of much of the discussion of the multiple crises facing the Middle East is Iran, whose proxies are active across the region. But what is it that Iran itself wants? What is it trying to achieve and and what considerations does it bring to these questions?</p><br><p>To try to answer these complicated questions I was fortunate to be joined by Charlie Gammell, historian, Iran expert and former UK diplomat, to talk through Iran's recent history, it's current preoccupations and its possible futures.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

With Laura Cretney

<p>Argentina's 'anarcho capitalist' president Javier Milei haș a series of policies that are barely believable. I spoke to Leiza Brumat about the political and economic background to his election, his political platform and whether he is likely to get it adopted.</p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>BONUS EPISODE</p><br><p>In conversation with Jason Pack of the <a href="https://twitter.com/DisorderShow" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder Podcast</a> about Yemen. This is a joint episode with Disorder, so if you are already listening to that show, you won't find too much different between these two. </p><br><p>There are some links that were referenced during the show. </p><br><p><a href="https://time.com/6555947/houthi-airstrike-history/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://time.com/6555947/houthi-airstrike-history/</a></p><br><p><a href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/01/12/houthis-red-sea-british-royal-navy-is-back/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/01/12/houthis-red-sea-british-royal-navy-is-back/</a></p><br><p>And my substack articles on Yemen can be found here <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://arthursnell.substack.com/</a> </p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>EMERGENCY EPISODE</p><br><p>On 11 January US and UK airforces struck targets in Yemen associated with the Huthi militia which has been targeting international shipping in the Red Sea, purportedly in solidarity with the plight of the Palestinians.</p><br><p>To try to understand the bewildering background to these worrying events I was privileged to be joined by Hannah Porter, Senior Research Officer for Yemen at ARK Group and a particular expert on Yemens Huthis.</p><br><p>Hannah can be followed on Twitter @Hannaheporter</p><br><p>You can find me in the usual places, including a recent Substack piece I wrote about Yemen's Huthis here: <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com/p/what-do-the-houthis-want" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://arthursnell.substack.com/p/what-do-the-houthis-want</a></p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>After a tough year in 2023 and a lack of major progress in regaining territory from the Russians, this year promises to be another challenging one for Ukraine. Looming over all of what Ukraine does is the question of Western support. Will the USA be able to overcome its political turmoil and continue to provide the Ukrainians with the weapons and aid they desperately need? Will Europe be able to step up its weapons production? And perhaps the biggest question of all: will Donald Trump return to the presidency, thereby ending American support to Ukraine?</p><br><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/profile/lukeharding" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Luke Harding</a>, Guardian foreign correspondent and author of the book <a href="https://guardianbookshop.com/invasion-9781783352777" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Invasion</a>, has spent most of 2023 in Ukraine, reporting from the frontlines of that conflict. He joined me to discuss the war so far and the war to come.</p><br><p>Thank you for listening to this podcast. Please check out my substack Not All Doom <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://arthursnell.substack.com/</a> and don't forget to give us a positive review if you have enjoyed this episode. </p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>With all the pressure of the Christmas season I held off from putting out a 'geopolitical review of the year' or something like that: there's a lot going on and people need some space. Instead, I wanted to finish the year with an episode that is in some ways completely different, but also relevant to the issues we have covered in the podcast earlier. <a href="https://www.tcd.ie/research/profiles/?profile=smomara" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Shane O'Mara</a> is a professor of experimental brain psychology at Trinity College, Dublin and the author of numerous books and studies. He also has a brilliant Substack called <a href="https://brainpizza.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brain Pizza</a> which I can highly recommend.</p><br><p>Recently, Shane published a book called Talking Heads which explains the unexpected link between human conversation, which of course depends on human memory, and nations. At a time when nationalism in its most pernicious and dangerous form is an increasing phenomenon, understanding that it is a function of human memory, not some inherent feature of Englishness, Germanness, Russianess or whatever, feels like an important insight and worth talking about.</p><br><p>Thank you all for listening to this and other episodes of the podcast. I hope you have enjoyed it and hope that you will continue to listen into 2024.</p><br><p>You can follow me <a href="https://twitter.com/SnellArthur" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/SnellArthur</a> also more often on BlueSky <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. I write at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com/p/my-enemys-enemys-enemys-enemy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://arthursnell.substack.com/</a></p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>As the Israeli assault on Gaza, immediately preceded by the Hamas-led massacre in Southern Israel, continues, we return to the history of this conflict. This is the second part of my extended interview with the historian&nbsp;<a href="https://www.historythatmatters.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">James Barr, author of several books on the history of the Middle East including&nbsp;A Line in the Sand&nbsp;and&nbsp;Lords of the Desert</a>, some of the best regarded guides to the region, particularly in the early years of the twentieth century. If you have not yet heard the preceding episode 18, where James starts this story, I recommend that you listen to that first.</p><br><p>In this episode we start at the aftermath of World War II and the horrific events of the Holocaust, as Jews are trying to emigrate to what will become the State of Israel and the British colonial authorities are trying to stop them.</p><br><p>You can follow James via his website <a href="https://www.historythatmatters.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.historythatmatters.org/</a> as well as on Bluesky at&nbsp;<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/jamesbarr.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://bsky.app/profile/jamesbarr.bsky.social</a></p><p>I am on Twitter @snellarthur, Bluesky <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social</a> and&nbsp;arthursnell.substack.com </p><br><p>If you’ve enjoyed this podcast why not subscribe, and give us a positive review.</p><br><p>Also, don't forget to check out the Disorder Podcast <a href="https://www.goalhangerpodcasts.com/disorder" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.goalhangerpodcasts.com/disorder</a></p><p>Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate site <a href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behindthelines</a> and please sign up for my substack at <a href="https://arthursnell.substack.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">arthursnell.substack.com</a> and/or follow me on Bluesky</p><p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/snellarthur.bsky.social" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@snellarthur.bsky.social</a>. You can sometimes find me on other podcasts - most often <a href="https://disordershow.com/home" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Disorder</a> which I am involved with in partnership with RUSI, the <a href="https://www.rusi.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Royal United Services Institute</a>, the world's oldest think tank.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>