The World Next Week

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits Mexico with an economics-focused agenda; Swedes head to the polls for a general election that’s expected to be a close race between the ruling left-wing bloc and right-wing opposition; and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi join leaders from across Asia in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, to discuss regional stability, food security, and trade at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit.   Mentioned on the Podcast   Shannon K. O’Neil, Two Nations Indivisible, Oxford University Press

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visits the recently shelled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Russia-occupied Ukraine; the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party chooses the country’s next prime minister; and Chileans vote on a more progressive constitution.    Mentioned on the Podcast   Lillian Posner, “Russian Roulette at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant,” Think Global Health

The United States marks one year since its military withdrawal from Afghanistan; China goes through a severe drought, with repercussions for agriculture, energy, and supply chains; and French President Emmanuel Macron travels to Algeria to try to mend relations.   Mentioned on the Podcast   Alice C. Hill and Madeleine Babin, “What the Historic U.S. Climate Bill Gets Right and Gets Wrong,” CFR.org   Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus   Albert Camus, The Plague   Albert Camus, The Stranger

The United States and South Korea hold joint military drills amid mounting tough rhetoric from North Korea; nuclear deal negotiations continue as Iran responds to the European Union’s most recent draft of a revived agreement; and Ukraine marks its Independence Day six months after the Russian invasion began.   Mentioned on the Podcast   Max Boot, “Why Kyiv’s ‘Thousand Bee Sting’ Strategy is Costing Russia Dearly,” Washington Post   Jessica Chen Weiss, “The China Trap,” Foreign Affairs   Steven Cook and Martin Indyk, “The Case for a New U.S.-Saudi Strategic Compact,” Council on Foreign Relations   Nicholas Pelham, “MBS: Despot in the Desert,” The Economist   Karim Sadjadpour, “What the U.S. Gets Wrong About Iran,” New York Times   Stephen Sestanovich, “Putin’s Strategy in Ukraine,” The President’s Inbox   Scott Snyder, “Why North Korea Might Reject Yoon Suk-yeol’s Audacious Initiative,” CFR.org

In this special episode of The World Next Week, Heather A. Conley, president of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, joins James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon to discuss the books they recommend reading, the books they’re looking forward to reading, and the podcasts they’re listening to for fun this summer. (This is a rebroadcast.)   Read more about Jim, Bob, and Heather’s picks on Jim’s blog, The Water’s Edge.   Jim’s Picks Michael Mandelbaum, The Four Ages of American Foreign Policy (2022) Richard Cohen, Making History: The Storytellers Who Shaped the Past (2021) Laszlo Montgomery, The China History Podcast, Teacup Media   Bob’s Picks Catherine Belton, Putin’s People (2020) Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, The Love Songs of W.E.B Du Bois (2021) Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley, Gastropod, Vox Media Podcast Network   Heather’s Picks Greg Behrman, The Most Noble Adventure: The Marshall Plan and How America Helped Rebuild Europe (2007) Patrick Radden Keefe, Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in

Russian President Vladimir Putin hosts Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Sochi; U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken travels to Cambodia, the Philippines, South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda; and Kenya elects a new president amid a severe drought and the global inflation crisis.   Mentioned on the Podcast   Rachel Chason and Rael Ombuor, “A wild-card candidate in Kenya is sparking an African debate about weed,” Washington Post

A Moscow court considers the case of Marina Ovsyannikova, a Russian reporter who protested the invasion of Ukraine; China celebrates the ninety-fifth anniversary of its People’s Liberation Army amid growing tensions with the United States; and UN member states meet in New York to discuss the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons.   Mentioned on the Podcast   Ely Ratner, “Twelfth Annual South China Sea Conference: Lunch Keynote,” Center for Strategic and International Studies, July 26, 2022   Ivo H. Daalder and James M. Lindsay, “Why Putin Underestimated the West: And How to Sustain Its Newfound Unity,” Foreign Affairs, April 7, 2022   “Keeping the Nuclear Peace, With Michael Krepon,” The President’s Inbox, January 11, 2022 Mike Chinoy, “What Does Nancy Pelosi Think She’s Doing in Taiwan?,” Foreign Policy, July 26, 2022

Pope Francis travels to Canada seeking forgiveness from Indigenous communities for Catholic Church abuses; President Volodymyr Zelensky must respond to a petition for same-sex marriage in Ukraine; and President Kais Saied hopes to ratify a controversial new constitution in Tunisia.   Mentioned on the Podcast   Stewart M. Patrick, Reflecting Sunlight to Reduce Climate Risk Priorities for Research and International Cooperation, April 2022   Alice Hill, The Fight for Climate After COVID-19, 2021   Alice Hill, Building a Resilient Tomorrow: How to Prepare for the Coming Climate Disruption, 2020

Protesters in Sri Lanka storm government buildings as the president flees; Russia declares an “operational pause” in its invasion of Ukraine; the Farnborough Airshow spotlights the future of flight; and the James Webb Space Telescope inspires galactic wonder.   Mentioned on the Podcast   “The Long War in Ukraine, With Michael Kofman,” The President’s Inbox, July 12, 2022   Images from the James Webb Space Telescope 

U.S. President Joe Biden visits Israel, the West Bank, and Saudi Arabia and prepares for a meeting with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom reacts to the resignation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson as Conservative Party leader.   Articles Mentioned on the Podcast Michael Stott and Christine Murray, “Why Mexico is missing its chance to profit from US-China decoupling,” Financial Times, July 3, 2022

The January 6 committee hearings generate new interest, Hong Kong observes the twenty-fifth anniversary of its handover to China, and migrant smuggling gets new scrutiny after dozens were found dead inside a truck in Texas.   Books and Articles Mentioned    Keith B. Richburg, “Hong Kong Was Not Supposed to Look Like This” (2022)   Diana Roy and Sabine Baumgartner, “Crossing the Darien Gap: Migrants Risk Death on the Journey to the U.S.” (2022)   Anthony Salvanto, Jennifer de Pinto, Fred Backus, and Kabir Khanna, “CBS News poll: Half say Trump tried to stay in office through illegal means, should be charged with crimes” (2022)

Summits of the Group of Seven (G7) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will kick off with discussions on critical issues including the war in Ukraine, COVID-19, and the climate crisis. Also, the United Nations will vote on a vital humanitarian aid channel between Turkey and Syria.    Blog Post Mentioned on the Podcast    Stewart M. Patrick, “The G7, NATO, and the Future of the West” (2022)  

In this special episode of The World Next Week, Heather A. Conley, president of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, joins James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon to discuss the books they recommend reading, the books they’re looking forward to reading, and the podcasts they’re listening to for fun this summer.   Read more about Jim, Bob, and Heather’s picks on Jim’s blog, The Water’s Edge.   Jim’s Picks Michael Mandelbaum, The Four Ages of American Foreign Policy (2022) Richard Cohen, Making History: The Storytellers Who Shaped the Past (2021) Laszlo Montgomery, The China History Podcast, Teacup Media   Bob’s Picks Catherine Belton, Putin’s People (2020) Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, The Love Songs of W.E.B Du Bois (2021) Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley, Gastropod, Vox Media Podcast Network   Heather’s Picks Greg Behrman, The Most Noble Adventure: The Marshall Plan and How America Helped Rebuild Europe (2007) Patrick Radden Keefe, Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland (2018) T

The United States hosts the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles, Ukraine marks one hundred days since the Russian invasion began, and the EU Foreign Affairs Council convenes in Brussels to talk trade.   Events and Speeches Mentioned on the Podcast   Antony Blinken, “The Administration’s Approach to the People’s Republic of China,” delivered at The George Washington University, May 26, 2022   “Russia's War in Ukraine: How Does it End?” Council on Foreign Relations, May 31, 2022

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken unveils the Biden administration’s China strategy, Colombians go to the polls for a presidential election, and Foreign Affairs magazine debuts its first podcast.   Articles and Speeches Mentioned on the Podcast   Antony Blinken, “The Administration’s Approach to the People’s Republic of China,” delivered at The George Washington University, May 26, 2022   Deborah Elms, “IPEF: The Party Few Wanted to Attend,” Asian Trade Centre, May 23, 2022   Stephen Kotkin, “Russia’s Perpetual Geopolitics,” Foreign Affairs (May/June 2016)   Julie Turkewitz, “Will Colombia Elect Its First Leftist Leader?” New York Times, May 26, 2022   Podcasts Mentioned   Daniel Kurtz-Phelan, The Foreign Affairs Interview, Foreign Affairs   Daniel Kurtz-Phelan and Stephen Kotkin, “What Putin Got Wrong About Ukraine, Russia, and the West,” The Foreign Affairs Interview, May 26, 2022

U.S. President Joe Biden visits Japan and South Korea, the seventy-fifth World Health Assembly takes place in Geneva, and Australians vote in a general election.   Podcasts Mentioned on the Podcast   Sheila A. Smith and Scott A. Snyder, “President Biden’s Japan and South Korea Trip,” The President’s Inbox, May 17, 2022   James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon, “Finland and Sweden Talk NATO, Biden Hosts ASEAN Leaders, and More,” The World Next Week, May 12, 2022

Finland and Sweden intensify the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) membership process, U.S. President Joe Biden hosts Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders for a special summit in Washington, DC, and Lebanon holds parliamentary elections.   Podcasts Mentioned on the Podcast   Steven A. Cook, “The Middle East’s Reaction to the Invasion of Ukraine,” The President’s Inbox, May 10, 2022

The Philippines holds a general election, a vote for a new chief executive happens in Hong Kong, and foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) nations meet in Germany.   Articles and Podcasts Mentioned on the Podcast   Derek H. Chollet, “U.S. Policy Toward Russia,” The President’s Inbox, May 3, 2022   Josh Kurlantzick, “A Marcos Presidency Will Be Bad News for the Philippines’ Democracy,” World Politics Review via CFR.org, April 15, 2022   Josh Kurlantzick, “The Philippines’ High-Stakes Election: What to Know,” CFR.org, April 21, 2022   Books and Reports Mentioned   Alice C. Hill, The Fight for Climate After COVID-19 (2021)   Stewart Patrick, Reflecting Sunlight to Reduce Climate Risk (2022)

The U.S. Federal Reserve is poised to raise interest rates, the United States assumes the presidency of the UN Security Council, and Japan marks Constitution Memorial Day as the country makes changes to its defense and security policy.   Articles Mentioned on the Podcast Kali Robinson, “How Russia’s War in Ukraine Could Amplify Food Insecurity in the Mideast,” CFR.org, April 21, 2022   Experts and Interactives Mentioned Sheila Smith, CFR Sheila Smith, “Constitutional Change in Japan,” CFR.org, March 11, 2021

U.S. officials visit the Solomon Islands to discuss China, voters in France head to the polls for a presidential runoff, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson travels to India.   Articles Mentioned on the Podcast  Matthias Matthijs, “Macron vs. Le Pen: What’s at Stake in the French Election?,” CFR.org, April 20, 2022