Afleveringen
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Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega has declared there will be no more elections. The frail 80 year-old former Sandinista guerrilla seized power in 1979, was voted out, clawed his way back in 2006, then jailed opponents, banned parties and had security forces shoot dead hundreds of protesters. He has since installed his wife Rosario as co-president and moved to scrap the vote for good.
Former Australian diplomat and Managing Editor of International Intrigue, Jeremy Dicker, joins hosts Hamish McDonald and Geraldine Doogue to explain why Ortega is betting Washington won't bother stopping him.
Plus, Is Australia trapped between two artificial-intelligence superpowers? A cheap new Chinese system, Kimi K3, is reportedly matching the best American models at a fraction of the cost.
Have American export controls on advanced chips backfired, forcing China to build faster and cheaper artificial intelligence?
Guest: Jeremy Dicker, Managing Editor of International Intrigue and former diplomat
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Britain is on its seventh prime minister in a decade, and the new one has inherited a fractured union. Can Andy Burnham govern a country many now call ungovernable?
Burnham replaces Keir Starmer, who resigned in June after barely two years, worn down by policy reversals, poor local election results, and slipping public confidence.
He arrives promising a "circuit breaker": a new economic model, reindustrialisation, and the kind of regional devolution he championed as mayor of Greater Manchester.
But Britain's troubles run deeper than any single leader. An unelected House of Lords, uneven devolution across Scotland, Wales and the English regions, the slow economic drag of Brexit, and a north left behind after Cameron-era promises on rail and investment went unmet all point to something structural.
Meanwhile Nigel Farage and the populist right are gaining ground, testing whether Burnham can win back the disaffected voters Labour has been losing.
Presented by Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald, this episode puts these questions to Ben Wellings of Monash University, author of English Nationalism and British Disintegration.
They weigh whether Britain has quietly become the new Italy, chronically unstable and unsure of its place in the world, and whether Burnham's bet on hope and a "Downing Street of the North" can hold a fracturing country together.
And they ask what it all means from an Australian vantage point: if Britain really is the leading edge of Western decline, is Australia paying close enough attention?
Guest: Ben Wellings, Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations at Monash University.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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Reuters Editor-in-Chief Alessandra Galloni won't use the word "lie" when referring to Donald Trump, telling Global Roaming he instead "says things that are not true."
It's a careful answer from the woman running one of the world's biggest and most trusted news agencies.
Founded 175 years ago, Reuters has thousands of journalists stationed in over 165 countries and supplies the original reporting that fills newspapers and bulletins worldwide.
Galloni told Hamish Macdonald and Laura Tingle that trust and access were at the core of the organisation's success.
In this wide-ranging interview about media, the impact of AI and journalistic ethics, Galloni argues that the news industry has never been more important or more fraught for those on the ground.
Guest: Alessandra Galloni, Reuters Editor-in-Chief
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We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
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Sudan's war has entered its fourth year.
Drones are now striking schools, hospitals and fuel stations, and the world's largest humanitarian crisis keeps falling off the radar.
More than 13 million people have been displaced since fighting broke out between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Last year the RSF was accused of genocidal violence in the city of El Fasher. Now it is encircling El Obeid in North Kordofan, and aid workers fear a repeat.
Kylie Morris and Latika Bourke speak with Noah Taylor, an Australian who heads the Norwegian Refugee Council's operations in Sudan.
He describes drone strikes killing civilians, children mimicking the sound of weapons as play, and aid convoys struck on the road.
Taylor argues the disaster is a failure of political will, and points out that Australia, as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has diplomatic leverage it has barely used.
There is a wider warning too. The shift to cheap, indiscriminate drone warfare is spreading to conflicts far beyond Sudan, and no one yet has a reliable way to keep these weapons out of civilian skies.
His message to Australians is blunt: donate if you can but also reach out to the Sudanese families now living in your own suburbs, hear their stories, and refuse to let this war fade quietly from view.
Guest: Noah Taylor, Head of Operations in Sudan, Norwegian Refugee Council
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Indonesian language teaching will be extinct in Australia by 2031, warns a parliamentary inquiry into Australia's Asian capability.
Australia talks constantly about the importance of Asia, but is failing to build the skills needed to understand our closest neighbours.
At the same time, Indonesia is on track to become one of the world's largest economies and an increasingly influential power in the region.
So how did Australia get here? And what does it mean for trade, diplomacy, defence and our future relationship with Southeast Asia?
And with China testing missiles in the Pacific, is Australia missing a perfect opportunity to build relationships in the region?
Hamish Macdonald and Laura Tingle speak with Labor MP Tim Watts, who chaired the House of Representatives inquiry into building Asia capability in Australia. They discuss the collapse of language study, what Australia risks losing, and whether we're missing one of the biggest strategic opportunities on our doorstep.
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For decades, there were some things Democrats and Republicans agreed on.
America should lead the world, NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) matters, and the US-Israel alliance is untouchable. As Trump rips up international alliances, inside the Democratic Party anger over Israel's war in Gaza has ruptured the old pro-Israel consensus.
Last week 103 House Democrats, nearly half the caucus, voted to end military aid to Israel. The amendment failed, but marked decreasing support for Israel within the Democrats.
Jeremy Shapiro from the European Council on Foreign Relations argues the change is real but the alliance still holds deep support.
Speaking to Hamish Macdonald and Laura Tingle, Shapiro argues Donald Trump is a spotlight-obsessed president willing to cut down anyone rising beneath him, from Marco Rubio to JD Vance, and warns that Europe is now hedging against an America it no longer trusts.
Plus, Türkiye rise under Erdogan, and where US foreign policy will land by the 2028 election.
Guest: Jeremy Shapiro, European Council on Foreign Relations.
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Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts.
Mentions:
Laura's article on the Türkiye summit: NATO was a lesson in how the geopolitical landscape has shifted around Trump
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Just a year ago, the leader of France's far-right National Rally party appeared finished after being convicted in an embezzlement case and barred from seeking office.
Now, Marine Le Pen is back in the race, after a Paris appeals court upheld her conviction but shortened her ban from seeking public office, paving the way for her 2027 presidential bid.
With the National Rally party currenty standing as one of France's most popular parties, it's an election that could reshape Europe.
So how did the French far-right move from the political fringe to the verge of power? Can Le Pen credit her support more to anti-immigration sentiment, or a frustration with the staid political status quo?
Victor Mallet is the senior editor of the Financial Times, and author of Far Right France: Le Pen, Bardella, and the Future of Europe. Victor has been travelling across France speaking to some of Le Pen's most loyal voters, her most strident opponents, and the wayward voters caught in the middle.
Laura Tingle and Latika Bourke speak to Victor about Le Pen's comeback, the rise of her protégé Jordan Bardella, the collapse of Emmanuel Macron's legacy, and what the National Rally party's victory would mean for the world.
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Is Donald Trump trapped in a war with Iran he cannot end? The ceasefire has collapsed, and the warships are back.
Chicago University's Professor Robert Pape has been modelling conflict for over 20 years and says both sides look to be caught in an escalation trap: a long war neither can walk away from.
Pape tells Global Roaming's Latika Burke and Steve Canane why every off-ramp has closed, why he believes Iran is rising into a new centre of world power, and why the next few weeks could be the most dangerous of the entire war.
Guest: Professor Robert Pape, Chicago University
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China is pushing harder for influence across the Pacific. Australia is responding with defence agreements, new security partnerships and rugby league.
As Pacific leaders gathered in Brisbane for State of Origin, Canberra was expanding its regional diplomacy through sport, including the multi-million-dollar PNG Chiefs NRL deal. At the same time, China's rare intercontinental ballistic missile test sent a fresh signal about the changing security environment facing Pacific nations.
So can footy really shape geopolitics?
Hamish Macdonald speaks with ABC Pacific's Sam Wykes about rugby league's cultural power across the Pacific, and with Lowy Institute analyst Oliver Nobetau about the growing connection between sport, security and strategic competition in Australia's neighbourhood.
Could rugby league become Australia's most effective soft-power tool or is that asking too much of a football game?
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Every night in Israel, one TV channel stands out.
Channel 13 is among the few major outlets willing to challenge Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
Now, a dispute over the channel’s ownership has become a flashpoint in a wider battle over press freedom, judicial independence and the future of Israeli democracy.
Anat Saragusti, Director of press freedom at the Union of Journalists in Israel, tells Global Roaming the Channel 13 dispute is just one part of a broader effort to weaken independent journalism.
From attempts to reshape media regulators to pressure on public broadcasters and sanctions against the newspaper Haaretz, she argues Israel’s independent media is facing growing political pressure ahead of the country’s next election.
Plus, how Israeli citizens are seeing the war in Gaza, the restrictions on journalists, and the escalating tensions between the government, the courts and the media.
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Indonesia's next capital was supposed to showcase the country's future: a purpose-built city in the jungles of Borneo designed to ease pressure on Jakarta and signal Indonesia's ambitions on the world stage.
But Nusantara now faces a critical political test. Former president Joko Widodo pushed the project past the point of no return, yet his successor, Prabowo Subianto, appears far less committed. So is Indonesia's new capital actually becoming the capital — or could one of the most ambitious nation-building projects in Asia stall before it's finished?
Then, after months of conflict involving Iran, the US and regional powers, Pakistan is finding itself at the centre of major diplomatic negotiations. Asia-Pacific correspondent Amanda Hodge explains how Islamabad has rebuilt its international standing, why Washington is paying attention again, and what Pakistan hopes to gain from its new role as a geopolitical broker.Guest: Amanda Hodge, Asia-Pacific Correspondent for the Australian
Get in touch:
We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts.
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In this Global Roaming limited series, Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue are inviting big thinkers from different fields to consider how Australia can not just survive - but thrive - in a more challenging world.
In this episode, Australia's former Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel shares his thoughts on how Australia can feasibly get to net zero, and harness our potential as a clean energy superpower. Plus, he has a radical new idea to safeguard art against AI...
Alan's recommendations:
The Prince and the Pauper by Mark TwainSeascraper by Benjamin WoodProve It: A Scientific Guide for the Post-Truth Era by Elizabeth FinkelGet in touch:
We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts.
This episode was first broadcast on Friday 2 January 2026
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In this Global Roaming limited series, Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue are inviting big thinkers from different fields to consider how Australia can not just survive - but thrive - in a more challenging world.
In this instalment, Michael Stutchbury - Former editor-in-chief of the Australian Financial Review and Executive director of the Centre for Independent Studies, says that Australia's economic luck is about to run out. He argues we need break the cycle of high spending and low growth if we want to retain anything like the prosperity we're accustomed to.
Get in touch:
We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was first broadcast on Friday 16 January 2026
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In this Global Roaming limited series, Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue are inviting big thinkers from different fields to consider how Australia can not just survive - but thrive - in a more challenging world.
In this episode the Lowy Institute's Lydia Khalil shatters the perception that our geography alone is enough to protect us from the insidious new security threats that are already making their way to our shores, and she outlines how we can protect ourselves going forward.
Lydia's recommendations:
The Man in the High Castle - TV series on Amazon PrimeFor All Mankind - TV series on Apple TVGet in touch:
We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts. This program was first broadcast on Friday 9 January 2026
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In this Global Roaming limited series, Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue are inviting big thinkers from different fields to consider how Australia can not just survive - but thrive - in a more challenging world.
In this episode former Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Varghese attempts to shake Australia out of our complacency and excite us about the potential of new foreign policy possibilities.
Peter's recommendations:
The Golden Road by William Dalrymple - you can find our conversation with William the link to his new book HEREWhy Great Powers Sleepwalk to War — A Masterclass with Hugh White - Joe Walker podcastGet in touch:
We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]
Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was first broadcast on Friday 26 December 2025
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In this Global Roaming limited series, Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue are inviting big thinkers from different fields to consider how Australia can not just survive - but thrive - in a more challenging world.
First up is Hannah Ferguson, the CEO of Cheek Media, who has disrupted Australia's traditional media landscape. She shares her ideas for re-connecting Australians to news and politics and to 'make caring cool again'. Hannah's recommendations:
The Good Fight: What Does Labor Stand For? Quarterly Essay by Sean KellyCareless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn-Williams -
When Martin Luther King the third visited Australia earlier this year, we sat down with him to find out how he has harnessed his father’s dream of an oasis of freedom and justice now in the 21st century.
Martin Luther King III was ten years old when his father, the hero of the modern US civil rights movement, was assassinated for his advocacy against racism. King III has picked up his father's fight for a free and equal America, but is his father's dream still possible in 2026?
King joins Hamish Macdonald and Kylie Morris to talk about whether the spirit of non-violent resistance can help push back against ICE, his hopes that Trump abides by the law when it comes to the next Presidential election and what he would ask his father if he were still alive today.
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Since we first broadcast this episode in February, much has happened space wise; there was the NASA Artemis mission bringing a lunar colony closer to reality, Jeff Bezo’s rocket launch that exploded, Space X became the biggest IPO in history and Elon Musk reached beyond the skies as the world’s first trillionaire.
But as tech billionaires compete for NASA contracts, from Elon Musk's SpaceX to Jeff Bezos' Blue Origins, can we trust corporations to act on humanity's behalf .
Hamish Macdonald and Jonathan Webb (Lab Notes) speak to rockstar physicist Professor Brian Cox, about who owns space, and why tech billionaires are not the bad guys, but not the good guys either.
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Back in February despite uprisings, sanctions and the ongoing conflict with Israel negotiations were underway between the US and Iran over its nuclear ambitions. Those negotiations saw Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rushing to Washington to influence any potential deal.
Two weeks later Israel and US made their first military strikes.
A vital question at the time was: how does Iran sit within the wider region? And what deal did the US really want?
Today, despite ongoing negotiations for peace deal between Iran and the US those questions still stand.
Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald are joined in studio by Vali Nasr, who advised the US State Department on Iran during the Obama era to talk about why Trump fell for his own saviour narrative, and how October 7 is still reshaping the region.
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