Skyrocketing Gold prices: 2025 geopolitical risks and trends

Skyrocketing Gold prices: 2025 geopolitical risks and trends

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen is joined by Dr. Moshe Lander to examine the waves of gold prices and investment trends, and what they are linked to, from investor sentiment to geopolitical instability and historic legacy. Moshe Lander is a Canadian economist and Senior Lecturer at Concordia University, and a…

The Dam of All Dams: Assessing China’s Hydropower Ambitions on the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet

The Dam of All Dams: Assessing China’s Hydropower Ambitions on the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet

It’s kind of China’s moonshot. Nothing like it has been built before. And when a moon mission happens, the world is watching.” Brian Eyler on the International Risk Podcast On 19 July 2025, Chinese Premier Li Qiang presided over the ceremony marking the start of construction of the world’s largest hydropower dam project on the…

Ukraine

Ukraine at a Strategic Inflection: Risk, Pressure, and Uncertainty

Written by Elisa Garbil – 16.10.2025 Late in the night of 4–5 October 2025, Russian forces launched one of the more intense combined missile-and-drone assaults of the war. According to Ukrainian officials, more than 50 ballistic and cruise missiles, along with nearly 500 drones, struck nine regions across the country, hitting energy infrastructure, civilian districts, and industrial…

Taliban, Afghanistan

Afghanistan: what future for the country under Taliban rule?

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen is joined by Dr. Arian Sharifi, Chief Strategy Officer at PercedgeResearch, to examine the evolution of the political situation in Afghanistan since the fall of Kabul in August 2021. The conversation assesses both regional and international risks linked to terrorism, economic, humanitarian, and political risks associated with…

The Global AI Race: Competing Visions and Rising Risks

The Global AI Race: Competing Visions and Rising Risks

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Professor Adam Chalmers about the global race for artificial intelligence leadership and the profound implications this competition holds for innovation, governance, and international risk. Chalmers, a leading voice on political economy and emerging technology, examines how the United States’ new AI Action Plan…

Pakistan Underwater: A Tumultous Summer of Floods and Rising Uncertainties over the Indus

Pakistan Underwater: A Tumultous Summer of Floods and Rising Uncertainties over the Indus

Pakistan has been battling severe monsoon flooding this year, enduring almost constant flooding since June. The devastation has been calamitous. According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), since the rains began on 26 June, 998 deaths have been reported. Torrential rains and riverine flooding wreaked havoc across the country’s agricultural heartland: over 4,700 villages…

Authoritarian Alliances and the Risks to the Global Order

Authoritarian Alliances and the Risks to the Global Order

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Doug Livermore, Senior Vice President at CenCore Group and Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army’s Special Operations Command, about the accelerating cooperation between authoritarian regimes and the risks this poses to international stability. Drawing on his extensive experience in special operations, irregular warfare,…

Syria

Syria’s Unfinished Transition: Risks and Realities in the Post-Assad Era

Written by Elisa Garbil – 29.09.2025 When Bashar al-Assad fell in late 2024, many Syrians dared to imagine a future beyond authoritarianism and endless war. The dictator’s sudden departure sent a wave of relief across the country, and for a fleeting moment, optimism seemed to outweigh fatigue. Yet the early glow of freedom quickly dimmed. By mid-2025,…

Regional Shifts and Risks in the Middle East: On the Future of Governance and Integration

Regional Shifts and Risks in the Middle East: On the Future of Governance and Integration

In this episode of The International Risk Podcast, host Dominic Bowen speaks with Shayan Talabany, Senior Analyst and Advisor at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, about the profound shifts underway in the Middle East. From U.S. retrenchment and recalibrated alliances to the pressures of youth unemployment, nationalism, and the war in Gaza, Talabany…

Rivers in Peril: The Collapse of the Indus Water Treaty and the Future of South Asia’s Water Security

Rivers in Peril: The Collapse of the Indus Water Treaty and the Future of South Asia’s Water Security

“‘The cancellation or what you call the abeyance of the Indus Water treaty is not anything which is practical but it is very political; it is politically dividing these two countries and creating huge mistrust. Just in May, these two countries were on the verge of nuclear war so anything can happen”. Ashok Swain, Episode…