For decades, North Korea has been framed as unpredictable, irrational, and perpetually on the brink of crisis. Missile launches, nuclear tests, and sudden diplomatic reversals often reinforce the perception of a regime driven by impulse rather than strategy. Yet this narrative obscures a more complex reality. Beneath the dramatic headlines lies a system that calibrates…
Rachel Minyoung Lee is a Senior Fellow for the Stimson Center’s Korea Program and 38 North. She is also co-chair of the North Korea Economic Forum, which is part of the policy program at the George Washington University’s Institute for Korean Studies (GWIKS). Lee was a North Korea collection expert and analyst with Open Source…
This episode with Rachel Minyoung Lee examines the evolving risk landscape surrounding North Korea, moving beyond headlines focused solely on nuclear escalation to explore the country’s broader strategic behaviour. We discuss how Pyongyang balances military signalling with pragmatic decision making, why weapons tests and military exercises are often calibrated rather than impulsive, and how sanctions, limited trade,…
This episode with Hamid Khalafallah examines the current state of Sudan’s civil war beyond shifting battlefield developments. We explore how patterns of territorial control have altered the structure of authority across the country, why governance capacity remains limited even where military advances have occurred, and how elite bargaining and the “political marketplace” logic have become…
Hamid Khalafallah is a researcher, policy analyst and development practitioner. He is currently a PhD researcher at the Global Development Institute of the University of Manchester, researching grassroots movements and political transitions in Africa. Before that, Hamid worked for various international organizations in Sudan, focusing on governance and development issues. He holds a master’s degree…
Since April 2023, Sudan’s conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has reshaped not only territorial control, but the deeper structures of governance, authority, and political economy. More than 12 million people have been displaced, and over 21 million face acute food insecurity. Yet beyond these staggering humanitarian figures lies a…
This episode with Professor Djavad Salehi-Isfahani examines how prolonged sanctions, inflation, and structural economic stagnation have reshaped Iran’s political economy. We explore how comprehensive sanctions since 2011 constrained oil revenues and fiscal capacity, why inflation and currency depreciation have reinforced one another over time, and how these pressures have affected poverty, middle-class security, and youth prospects. The…
Djavad Salehi‐Isfahani received his PhD in Economics from Harvard University and has taught at the University of Pennsylvania and Virginia Tech, where he is currently Professor of Economics. He is the Managing Editor of the Middle East Development Journal and a Research Fellow at the Economic Research Forum (ERF) in Cairo. His research has focused…
Iran has faced more than a decade of sustained economic pressure. Inflation has remained above 40 percent. The rial has experienced repeated episodes of sharp depreciation. Oil exports, once the central pillar of state revenue, have been significantly constrained by sanctions. From the outside, it looks like a system in permanent crisis. Yet despite these…
This episode with Dr Daniel McDowell examines how digital currencies, financial sanctions, and geopolitical competition are shaping the future of the global monetary system. We explore why the US dollar continues to dominate global finance despite political pressure and technological change, how sanctions influence state behaviour, and why network effects make rapid currency shifts unlikely. The discussion also…
