Best Hopkins Podcast On Foreign Affairs Podcasts (2025)

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Chinese Cooking Demystified: Chris Thomas and Stephanie Li visit Shaxi! 1:17:54

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4m ago1:17:54

1:17:54

This week on Sinica: On my final two days in Shaxi in Yunnan, Chris Thomas and Stephanie Li, the hosts of the marvelous YouTube channel Chinese Cooking Demystified, joined me for some cooking and lots of chatting about food! We recorded this show together and focus our conversation on their heroic attempt at a taxonomy of different Chinese cuisines…

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Adam Tooze Climbs the China Learning Curve 1:03:28

14d ago1:03:28

1:03:28

I'm in Shaxi, a wonderful little town in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, and I was joined here by the Columbia economic historian Adam Tooze, who shared his thoughts on what he sees happening on the ground in China. Adam's been in China for the last month and reflects on his experiences learning about the country — and even attempting the langu…

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The GERD Water Dispute and its Impact on Egypt’s Water Security 38:49

16d ago38:49

38:49

Situated at the intersection of the Arab world, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Southern Europe, Egypt remains a pivotal actor in the evolving geopolitics of the Middle East and North Africa. Under the leadership of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, the Egyptian state has embarked on a sweeping agenda of transformation—redefining its political economy, reass…

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Are Russia's Tactical Gains Offsetting Its Strategic Setbacks? 31:22

1M ago31:22

31:22

Ukraine’s frontline is holding, but the real battle may be behind closed doors. As peace talks falter, Russian forces regroup, and Western support for Kyiv begins to fray. In this episode, former UK Defence Attaché John Foreman joins me to unpack the fragile diplomacy, shifting battlefield tactics, and the deeper power struggles shaping the war’s n…

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Carnegie's Tong Zhao on the Expansion of China's Nuclear Arsenal 1:10:21

1M ago1:10:21

1:10:21

This week on Sinica, in a show taped in early June in Washington, Kaiser chats with Tong Zhao (赵通) of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a leading expert on Chinese nuclear doctrine, about why the PRC has, in recent years, significantly increased the size of its nuclear arsenal. Zhao offers a master class in the practice of strategic e…

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The Strange Afterlife of an American Football Story from China 45:20

1M ago45:20

45:20

In 2014, the writer Christopher Beam published a humorous, heartwarming story in The New Republic about an unlikely team of American football enthusiasts in Chongqing who went on to defeat their archrivals in Shanghai to win a championship. The piece was optioned by Sony Pictures, and had some big names attached, but was ultimately never made — not…

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The Raider: China and the Life of Evans Carlson, with Historian Stephen Platt 1:22:06

2M ago1:22:06

1:22:06

This week on Sinica, I chat with Stephen Platt, historian at UMass Amherst and author, most recently, of the book The Raider: The Untold Story of a Renegade Marine and the Birth of U.S. Special Forces in World War II. Like his previous works, Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom and Imperial Twilight, it offers a compelling narrative history of an overlo…

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Industrial Policy, "Overcapacity," and U.S.-China Trade: A Conversation with Cambridge's Jostein Hauge 1:08:02

2M ago1:08:02

1:08:02

This week on Sinica, I chat with Jostein Hauge, political economist and an Assistant Professor in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge, based at the Centre of Development Studies and the Department of Politics and International Studies, and author of the book The Future of the Factory: How Megatrends are Changing Industrialization. 3:…

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Seeking the Next DeepSeek: the Chinese Generative AI Algorithm Registry, with Kendra Schaefer 1:03:57

2M ago1:03:57

1:03:57

This week on Sinica, I speak with Kendra Schaefer, the partner at Trivium China who heads their tech practice. She recently published a fascinating paper looking at the Cyberspace Administration of China's comprehensive database of generative AI tools released in China, and she shares the insights and big takeaways from her research on that databas…

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Bonus Ep: Rubio's Visa Revocations, with Jeremy Goldkorn [Explicit] 49:42

2M ago49:42

49:42

Jeremy Goldkorn joins for this largely unedited throwback to the early, sweary days of the show. We talk about the announcement made on Wednesday, 28 May 2025, on the "aggressive" revocation of Chinese student visas for students with Party "connections" or who study "critical fields." You've been warned! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/priv…

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Istanbul's Next Earthquake 33:38

2M ago33:38

33:38

Welcome back everybody to the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. I am your host Davide Donald. On today’s episode we are going to be talking about disaster management in Turkey. Istanbul lies at the heart of the Eurasian and Anatolian tectonic plate fault lines. The prospect of another major earthquake hitting the city of over 16 million peop…

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Radioactive Roots: Life Finds a Way (Even if it Glows a Bit) 50:08

2M ago50:08

50:08

Nuclear catastrophes like Chernobyl and Fukushima serve as a stark reminder of the risks that come with harnessing atomic energy — we hear about the evacuations, the health impacts, the geopolitical consequences. But what about the landscapes left behind? What happens to plants, animals, and entire ecosystems when exposed to high levels of radiatio…

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Making It Rain? The Promises and Pitfalls of Cloud Seeding 32:09

2M ago32:09

32:09

Welcome back, everyone, to the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. We are your hosts, Nassim Ali Ahmad and Rachel Fink. As the world confronts new and novel future crises, among the most concerning will be environmental challenges, driven in many places by the sheer scarcity of water. One answer to that dilemma comes from geoengineering, or th…

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Ukraine, China, and the Emerging Geopolitics of Resource Security 1:28:57

2M ago1:28:57

1:28:57

A bonus episode this week. On May 22, I moderated a panel organized by Vita Golod and the UNC Center for Slavic, Eurasian, and East European Studies. The focus was on the U.S.-Ukraine Mineral Security Partnership, and it features Ivan Us, Chief Consultant at the Center for Foreign Policy at the National Institute for Strategic Studies; Jim Mullinax…

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House of Huawei: Eva Dou of the Washington Post on Her New "Secret History" of Huawei 1:08:40

2M ago1:08:40

1:08:40

This week on Sinica, I chat with Eva Dou, technology reporter for the Washington Post, about her terrific new book about Huawei. From its prehistory to its fight for its life under tremendous U.S. pressure, she tells its story in a way that's both deeply engaging and very evenhanded. 04:53 – Meng Wanzhou’s case and its impact on media interest in H…

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How Close Were India & Pakistan to Nuclear War Really? 33:38

2M ago33:38

33:38

In this episode l am rejoined by Ankit Panda as we delve into the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, particularly focusing on the recent military clashes and the implications of their nuclear doctrines. Ankit provides insights into the current crisis, comparing it to past conflicts and discussing the role of the United States in de-esc…

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Lessons from the Myanmar Earthquake 50:44

2M ago50:44

50:44

Hello and welcome to today’s episode of the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. We are your hosts Talita Fernandes and Hantong Wu. Natural disaster relief can pose many challenges, and we have seen that they are only exacerbated by domestic conflict in the area. Since 2021, when the military deposed the democratically elected government, Myanm…

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Beneath the Black River-Oil Spills in Ecuador’s Amazon Rainforests 41:42

3M ago41:42

41:42

The March 2025 oil spill in Ecuador’s Esmeraldas province is one of the country’s worst recent environmental disasters. Over 25,000 barrels of crude oil leaked from the SOTE pipeline, contaminating rivers, farmland, and coastal mangroves. This spill destroyed local biodiversity, poisoned water supplies, and disrupted the lives of more than half a m…

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NEW! China Talking Points Ep. 1: Trade Truce, J-10C Dogfight, and What Comes Next 1:04:49

3M ago1:04:49

1:04:49

The Sinica Network proudly presents a new podcast: China Talking Points, featuring Kaiser Kuo (host of the Sinica Podcast), Eric Olander (host of the China-Global South Podcast and China In Africa Podcast) and Andrew Polk, co-founder of Trivium China and host of its podcast. We'll be joined regularly by Lizzi Lee, Fellow on Chinese Economy at the A…

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China's DeepSeek Moment — a talk given April 17 2025 at Carnegie Mellon 30:45

3M ago30:45

30:45

I had scheduled a show to record while I was in Providence last week, but it fell through and had to be rescheduled, so please give this talk I delivered at Carnegie Mellon last month a listen! Hope you enjoy. Kaiser See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.…

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Politics of Disaster Miniseries: Disaster Capitalism in Lebanon 47:28

3M ago47:28

47:28

Welcome back everybody to the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. We are your hosts, Nadia Sleiman and Amber Escudero-Kontostathis. Today, we are diving into the critical topic of disaster capitalism in Lebanon amidst its ongoing financial crisis. As Lebanon grapples with currency collapse, inflation, and government paralysis, important questi…

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How Close Was Wagner Group To Actually Toppling Putin? 36:14

3M ago36:14

36:14

In this podcast, I was joined by Candace Rondeaux to discuss her new book, Putin's Sledgehammer, on the rise and fall of Russia’s Wagner Group, particularly the aftermath of its 2023 mutiny. Candace explores the historical origins of the Wagner Group, its ties to Russia's mafia, and its key role in Russia's global operations. She delves into the ev…

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Broken Engagement: Veteran China reporter Bob Davis on his new collection of interviews 1:15:47

3M ago1:15:47

1:15:47

This week on Sinica, I chat with veteran Wall Street Journal reporter Bob Davis, who has covered the U.S.-China relationship for decades. He recently published a new book called Broken Engagement, which consists of interviews with U.S. policymakers who were instrumental in shaping American policy toward China from the George H.W. Bush administratio…

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The EU-China Relationship in the Age of Trumpian Disruption, with Finbarr Bermingham of the SCMP 1:06:46

3M ago1:06:46

1:06:46

This week on Sinica, I chat with SCMP Senior Europe Correspondent Finbarr Bermingham, who joins from Brussels where he's been covering the EU-China relationship in fantastic depth and with great insight. 3:17 – EU-China relations in early 2025: the effect of the 2021 sanctions, who advocated for engagement versus confrontation with China, and the i…

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Live at Pitt: CMU's Benno Weiner on the Evolution of China's Minzu Policy 52:07

3M ago52:07

52:07

This week on Sinica, in a show recorded at the University of Pittsburgh, I speak with Benno Weiner, Associate Professor of History at Carnegie Mellon University, about how China's policy toward its minority nationalities (or minzu) have shifted from their older, Soviet-inspired form to the policies of assimilation we now see. 2:29 – How the so-call…

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Spotlight on Burma: The Future of the Military Junta 43:21

3M ago43:21

43:21

Since 2022, the global media has heavily concentrated on two major conflicts—the Russia-Ukraine War and the conflict in Gaza. While these wars have significant implications, this narrow focus often obscures other conflicts that continue to shape international security, governance, and regional stability. On our Forgotten Wars series, to discuss Bur…

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Miniseries on Contemporary Egypt: Geopolitical Landscape 18:52

3M ago18:52

18:52

From the heart of the Arab world to the crossroads of Africa and Europe, Egypt stands at the center of some of today’s most complex and consequential shifts. Under the leadership of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, the country has undergone profound transformations—economic, political, and social. In this mini series, we step behind the headlines an…

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Sinica Live at Columbia University, with Yawei Liu and Yukon Huang 58:15

3M ago58:15

58:15

This week on the Sinica Podcast, I chat with Yawei Liu, Senior Advisor for China at the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia, and Yukon Huang, former China country head of the World Bank and now Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The show was taped live at the 2025 Columbia China Summit at Columbia University, put on by t…

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Sanctions and Economic Warfare 35:56

4M ago35:56

35:56

Welcome back to the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. I’m your host Vinayak Kalra. Sanctions are a misunderstood policy tool, rooted in a complex history, deemed by some as a lever of soft power and by others as a form of deadly warfare. In the 2020s, sanctions regimes continue to be implemented and enforced as a means of exerting influence …

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As Trump Destroys The US-Led Order, Has BRICS Time Finally Come? 41:06

4M ago41:06

41:06

In this conversation, Pyotr Kurzin and Mihaela Pappa discuss the evolving role of BRICS in the context of global politics, particularly in relation to US foreign policy under the Trump administration. They explore the implications of BRICS as a symbol of a multipolar world, its initiatives in development and health, and the challenges it faces in t…

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Life, Love, and Loss in China: Hazza Harding's story of resilience 1:19:20

4M ago1:19:20

1:19:20

This week on Sinica, I chat with Hazza Harding, a young Australian who began learning Chinese and made his way to China where he became a pop singer with hits on Chinese pop charts and a state media newscaster — and also lost his husband tragically, suffered through the COVID lockdowns while grieving for his loss. Yet he remains committed to furthe…

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Is China Gaining Ground in Technology Diffusion? A Conversation with Jeffrey Ding 45:52

4M ago45:52

45:52

This week on Sinica, I chat with Jeffrey Ding, author of Technology and the Rise of Great Powers, a book that argues that a nation's ability to invent foundational technologies matters ultimately less in its overall national power than its ability to diffuse those "general purpose technologies," like electricity, digital technology, the internet, a…

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Spotlight on Sudan: The Unending Civil War 24:30

4M ago24:30

24:30

Welcome back everybody to the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. I am your host Jiwon Lim. Since 2022, the global media has heavily concentrated on two major conflicts—the Russia-Ukraine War and the conflict in Gaza. While these wars have significant implications, this narrow focus often obscures other conflicts that continue to shape interna…

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Evolutionary Psychology and International Relations, with Jeremy Garlick 1:26:24

4M ago1:26:24

1:26:24

This week on the Sinica Podcast, I chat with Jeremy Garlick, Director of the Jan Masaryk Centre for International Studies, Prague University, and a scholar of China’s international relations. Jeremy is the author of the book Advantage China: Agent of Change in an Era of Global Disruption, but the book we're talking about this week is his new Cambri…

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Live in Berkeley: Jessica Chen Weiss and Ryan Hass on the U.S. and China in 2025 1:02:08

5M ago1:02:08

1:02:08

This week, a special episode taped live at the University of California, Berkeley — my alma mater — on March 6 and featuring Jessica Chen Weiss of Johns Hopkins SAIS and Ryan Hass of the Brookings Institution, both well-known to people who follow U.S.-China relations. This episode was made possible by the Center for Chinese Studies at UC Berkeley's…

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Introducing the Trivium Podcast, now on the Sinica Network 1:18:29

5M ago1:18:29

1:18:29

This week, I'm proud to announce a new collaboration with Trivium, a China-focused strategic advisory firm you've probably heard of. They've got offices in DC, London, Shanghai, and Beijing, and they focus on analyzing and forecasting Chinese policy developments for multinational companies and institutional investors across a range of verticals -- …

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Is Europe’s Uncertainty Over Russia Worsening Its Vulnerability? 44:53

5M ago44:53

44:53

In this conversation, I am rejoined by Dmitri Alperovitch to delve into the latest of the Ukraine War, focusing on the diplomatic engagements between the US and Russia, the strategic decisions made by Ukraine, and implications of Trump's foreign policy. We discuss the limited leverage the US has in influencing both Russia and Ukraine, the challenge…

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Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art — Part 2, with Alice Miller and Joseph Fewsmith 1:23:23

5M ago1:23:23

1:23:23

This week: Part 2 in a series of podcasts in conjunction with the China Research Center at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The series, titled "Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art," ran from September to November 2021, and featured four eminent "Pekingologists," or specialists in Chine…

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The Threat of Cyber on Critical Infrastructure 34:12

5M ago34:12

34:12

Welcome back everybody to the SAIS Review’s The Looking Glass Podcast. I’m your host Jiwon Lim. From phishing emails to ransomware, cyberattacks may be a daily part of your and other people’s lives. However, when these attacks target not just your inbox but a whole industry, the conversation gets complicated. To discuss the actors and goals behind …

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China’s Strategy in Global Power Transitions: Challenges in a Turbulent World — A panel discussion 1:10:01

5M ago1:10:01

1:10:01

This week on Sinica: February 24 marks the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and as I’ve done for the last two years, I moderated a panel organized by Vita Golod, a Ukrainian China scholar who happens to be here in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, at UNC as a visiting scholar. She’s worked tirelessly to promote awareness of …

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The War for Chinese Talent in America, with David Zweig 1:14:00

5M ago1:14:00

1:14:00

This week on Sinica, I chat with David Zweig, a veteran China scholar who is Professor Emeritus from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. We discuss Davis'd latest book, The War for Chinese Talent in America, which looks at Chinese efforts to harness the intellectual firepower of Chinese scientists and engineers who studied abroad, e…

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Getting China Right: Senator Andy Kim at the Hopkins SAIS Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs 1:10:16

6M ago1:10:16

1:10:16

I’m delighted to bring you today the first in a series of conversations from a remarkable day-long session put on by the Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs, or ACF, at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The session was held on Monday, February 3, and was called “Getting China Right.” On today’…

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Back to the 80s: For Trump, is China the New Japan? with Andy Liu 1:05:14

6M ago1:05:14

1:05:14

This week on Sinica, I chat with economic historian Andrew B. Liu of Villanova University about how to understand Trump's thinking on China and tariffs. Andy wrote about this in an excellent piece on N+1 called "Back to the 80s? Trump, Xi Jinping, and Tariffs." Check it out and then listen to the show! 3:59 – How the U.S.’s current trade anxieties …

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You Think Trump's Tariffs Are Bad Now? They Will Get Much Worse 13:19

6M ago13:19

13:19

In this episode, I react to and explain the implications of Trump's tariffs from both an economic and geopolitical perspective. I highlight the historical context of tariffs, their intended purpose, and the potential consequences for international relations and the US economy. I also argue that while tariffs may seem beneficial in the short term, t…

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Is the U.S. Experiencing a Narrative Shift on China? 1:02:12

6M ago1:02:12

1:02:12

This week as we enter the Year of the Snake, Sinica co-founder Jeremy Goldkorn makes a re-appearance on the show. It's been a year since his last, and much has changed — and indeed, if Jeremy is right, we may be at an inflection point in American attitudes toward China. With the "TikTok Refugees" on Xiaohongshu or "RedNote" taking in a view of Chin…

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The State of China, with Adam Tooze, Qing Wang, and Zichen Wang — Moderated by Finbarr Bermingham of SCMP 48:49

6M ago48:49

48:49

Happy Chinese New Year! This week, while I'm decompressing from 10 days in the Alps, my friends at the Asia Society of Switzerland have graciously offered to let me share a podcast recorded just after the U.S. presidential election in November at their annual State of Asia event. "The State of China" features three terrific guests: Wang Qing (王卿), …

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New Podcast Series – "Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art" from Johns Hopkins SAIS 1:15:23

6M ago1:15:23

1:15:23

This week, I bring you the first in a series of podcasts in conjunction with the China Research Center at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The series, titled "Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art," ran from September to November 2021, and featured four eminent "Pekingologists," or speci…

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Xiaohongshu's "TikTok Refugees," with Ivy Yang and David Fishman 1:03:52

6M ago1:03:52

1:03:52

I know I'd said last time there would be no show this week, but that was before this fascinating episode involving TikTok users signing up en masse to Xiaohongshu. Hilarity ensued, and my two guests — Ivy Yang, who runs Wavelet Strategy, an expert in cross-cultural communication, and David Fishman, Shanghai-based senior manager at Lantau Group who …

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My Biggest Geopolitical Risks In 2025 13:19

6M ago13:19

13:19

Welcome to the Global Gambit 2025 - after some minor time off, we're back with more conversations and content, including more from me. This time starting with the 5 biggest geopolitical risks and themes in 2025! This time Pyotr discusses the major geopolitical risks and themes that could shape 2025, including the implications of Donald Trump's retu…

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Lizzi Lee on China's Economy and the Trump Presidency 1:20:52

6M ago1:20:52

1:20:52

This week on Sinica, I'm joined by Lizzi Lee, fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute and by my lights one of the most astute, well-informed people writing on China in the English-speaking world today. She has fascinating perspectives on China's preparations for the Trump administration, on China's reluctance to roll out large-scale cash stimul…