Podcast in which Beacon Editor, Joe Davies, talks to Dr. Lina Khatib, Head of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House, and Prof. Eugene Rogan, Director of the Middle East Centre at St. Antony's College, University of Oxford, on "What can - and should - the West do to support the Syrian people?". In 2011, the Syrian people took to the street to peacefully protest against the Assad regime, demanding democratic reforms and the release of political prisoners. The past 7 years...

In this episode the of the Beacon, Nicholas Chin speaks to Catarina Leao, a DPhil student in Politics at Wolfson College, studying the effect of authoritarian legacies on political positions. In the podcast they discuss the likelihood of democratic transition, and how the authoritarian histories of Portugal and Spain have influenced the rise of new populist parties in these countries.

To celebrate the arrival of The Beacon on Apple PodcastS, we're rereleasing some of the best episodes from previous years. In this episode of The Beacon, Verity Bligh interviews Edward Lucas, senior editor at The Economist and author of “New Cold War” and “Cyberphobia”. They discuss past and present Russian power politics, the importance of cyber-security and the future of journalism in a world of “fake news”.   Edward Lucas’ book recommendations: “The Engineer of Human Souls” by Josef...

In this week's special episode of The Beacon, Stephen Walt gives a guest lecture to the Oxford International Relations Society on the topic "Where is US foreign policy going?". Walt is Professor of International Relations at Harvard University and is on the editorial board of Foreign Policy and numerous other International Relations and Security Studies journals. Walt is known for proposing the balance of threat theory, in which states' alliance behaviour is determined by the threat they...

Archie Philipps speaks with Carne Ross, former British diplomat and founder and Executive Director of Independent Diplomat, the world’s first non profit diplomatic advisory group, which helped gain South Sudan statehood, and is currently advising the Syrian Opposition. Topics discussed in this podcast include  the changing nature – and potential disintegration -  of states, the Middle East conflict, and the failings and future of diplomacy  

In this week's episode of The Beacon, Robert Pieters interviews Professor Rana Mitter to discuss the continued relevance of China's experiences of the Second World War for its contemporary international relations. Professor Mitter, based at the Oxford University China Centre, is a leading authority on modern China, having authored several books on the topic, including China’s War with Japan, 1937-45: The Struggle for Survival in 2013. As China becomes more and more important on the global...

In this week’s special episode of “The Beacon”, uploaded the day after Trump withdrew the US from the Iran Deal, Tandee Wang, an international contributor from the Australian National University, talks to Amin Saikal about the deal and its consequences for the Middle East region and the international community.   Saikal is a Professor of Political Science and Director of the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies at the ANU. His major works include “Iran at the Crossroads” (2016), “Zone of...

In this week’s episode of “The Beacon”, Verity Bligh talks to Kori Schake and Caitlin Vito at the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS). Kori Schake is Deputy-Director General of the IISS and was previously a research fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace. Caitlin Vito is Coordinator for the Deputy Director-General’s Office at the IISS and is a regular contributor to its publications on armed conflict and migration issues. Kori is also a regular...

Discussing the philosophical narratives around the European Union, Millie Radovic interviews Professor Simon Glendinning of the London School of Economics. A graduate of Oxford, Prof. Glendinning has focused much of his research on European Philosophy which he teaches at the European Institute of the LSE. Discussing how some of these enduring concepts, particularly Immanuel Kant’s ideas, relate to the EU today, Millie and Prof. Glendinning talk about what Kant may have said about Brexit,...

With the manifest failure of the international community to act to save Syria's citizens and the recurrent infringement of any UN Security Council-backed resolution for a nationwide ceasefire, most recently after a week which has seen the relentless bombardment of Eastern Ghouta, this week's episode of The Beacon sees Adam Mazarelo interviewing Matthieu Cimino, Marie-Skɫodowska Curie researcher at the University of Oxford and an associate researcher at the IREMAM, Aix-en-Provence. They...

In light of the tensions and ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, this week's episode of The Beacon sees Adam Mazarello interviewing Lama Alhelou, Junior Members Scholar at Jesus College, Oxford and Gaza resident. They discuss the what it's really like to live in Gaza, the prospects of peace for the future and the attitudes of a generation of young people, for whom war has become a permanent feature of life.

In this week’s episode of “The Beacon” – released on Australia Day 2018 – Verity Bligh talks to Kevin Rudd, a former Australian prime minister, current student at Jesus College and a lifelong Sinologist. Together, they discuss the nature of international diplomacy, China’s rise as a global power and the Turf Tavern “yard of ale” challenge. 

In this week's episode of "The Beacon", Verity Bligh talks to Kalypso Nicolaidis, Professor of International Relations at Oxford, about her innovative and engaging approach to make sense of big-picture current affairs. They discuss the meaning of Brexit through the lens of Greek mythology, the need for union rather than unity in Europe and the role of academia in a world that has "had enough of experts". 

In the final Beacon podcast of term, Nicholas Chin discusses the major problems that face refugees today with Evan Easton-Calbria,a researcher for the Humanitarian Innovation Project.

In this week's The Beacon, Nicholas Chin interviews Masooda Bano, Associate Professor in the Oxford Department of International Development, Senior Golding Fellow, Brasenose College, University of Oxford and author of The Rational Believer: Choices and Decisions in the Madrasas of Pakistan. They discuss aid effectiveness, what we can do to make sure aid is more effective and looking at ways in which we donate money.

Taste Tibet    In this week's episode of "The Beacon", Verity Bligh speaks to Julie Kleeman and Yeshi Jampa, the husband-and-wife team behind Taste Tibet - hands-down the best food stall at Oxford's Gloucester Green Markets. Taking a step back from International Relations as an over-theorised academic field, this interview dives deep into Tibetan...

Patrick Thewlis Interview In this week's episode of The Beacon, Nicholas Chin interviews Patrick Thewlis, a quantitative research assistant on the Changing Structures of Islamic Authority project. They discuss the social determinants of intimate partner violence in Europe, assessing the socioeconomic conditions behind violence and the intrinsic data...

Avi Shlaim Interview  In this week's episode of The Beacon, Verity Bligh interviews Avi Shlaim, a leading historian on the Arab-Israeli conflict and professor emeritus of International Relations at St Antony’s college, Oxford. They discuss the challenges of studying the Israel-Palestine crisis, the meaning of national identity and the importance of...

Edward Lucas Interview In this episode of The Beacon, Verity Bligh interviews Edward Lucas, senior editor at The Economist and author of “New Cold War” and “Cyberphobia”. They discuss past and present Russian power politics, the importance of cyber-security and the future of journalism in a world of “fake news”.   Edward Lucas’ book...

Council of Europe- Louise Barton Interview In Michaelmas' first episode of The Beacon, Verity Bligh interviews Louise Barton, Head of Human Resources at the Council of Europe and former Advisor to the Secretary General. They discuss the role of the Council of Europe against a backdrop of turbulent European political developments. 

In this episode of The Beacon, Zoe Hodge interviews some of Oxford University's many international students and how this reflects global international relations. She discusses race, nationality and intercultural exchange with Layo London, and visiting American students at Mansfield College, Kaitlyn DeVeydt, Brandon Sanchez and Audrey Putnam.

This week's episode of The Beacon explores President Trump's approach to foreign policy. Questioning how far Trump's election represents a turning for US foreign policy, and aiming to get behind the meaning of "America First", Lydie Sheehan speaks to Dr Jacob Parakilas, Assistant Head of the US and Americas Programme at Chatham House, and Dr Charles Krauthammer, a political commentator for the Washington Post and Fox News. 

This week’s podcast focuses on approaches to counterterrorism. To find out more on the matter Lydie Sheehan spoke to Professor Louise Richardson, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford and a specialist in international security with an emphasis on terrorist movements, Dr Loretta Napoleoni, a political analyst with expertise in terrorist financing, and Richard Barrett, former director of global counter-terrorism at MI6, who now works on countering violent extremist as part of the Global...

This week, The Beacon examines the 2011 uprisings in Tunisia that jumpstarted the “Arab Spring” across the Middle East and North Africa. To understand what happened in Tunisia from the people’s perspective during those early days, Dunya Habash spoke with 3 Tunisians who participated in the events in different ways. The first was Montasar Adaili, a masters student studying in Tunis when the protests broke out, Dr. Mohamed-Salah Omri, associate professor of Modern Arabic Language and Literature...