Episode 166: The Failures of the Rwanda Bill, EU Migration Policies, and the Geopolitics of Libya with Tarek Megerisi

Recently, we heard from Mireia Faro Sarrats, and we had a fascinating discussion about Europe’s externalisation of its refugees, and the UK’s recently passed Rwanda Bill. Under this bill any asylum seeker entering the UK ‘illegally’, from a ‘safe’ country, such as France, could be sent to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there…

Mireia Faro Sarrats

Mireia Faro Sarrats is the communications officer at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Previously, she worked as a communications officer at the European Institute of the Mediterranean, a public affairs officer at the United States Consulate General in Barcelona, and in the communications department of the European Agency for Fundamental Rights in Vienna. Faro…

Episode 165: The Rwanda Bill and the Externalisation of EU Migration Policies with Mireia Faro Sarrats

Recent statistics show the UK’s migration is at a record high. In April 2022, the British government stated that any asylum seeker entering the UK ‘illegally’, from a ‘safe’ country, such as France, could be sent to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there rather than in the UK. If these claims were successful,…

Leiticia Bode

Professor Bode is an associate professor in the Communication, Culture, and Technology master’s program at Georgetown University. She received her PhD in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and her bachelor’s degree from Trinity University. Her work lies at the intersection of communication, technology, and political behavior, emphasizing the role communication and…

Russian Disinformation: The Risks Posed to Europe

In an age where information flows freely and quickly, the threat of deception looms large, casting doubt on the basic fabric of truth. The Russian disinformation campaigns, a complex web of misinformation, propaganda, and manipulation, are among the most formidable orchestrators of this digital deception dance. These disinformation efforts have matured into a powerful tool…

The 2024 Russian Elections – What Are the Risks of Another Putin Presidency?

Following the Russian elections last weekend, Vladimir won his third  consecutive, and fifth overall presidential term, securing 88% of the vote on Sunday. Whilst many would assume that another term of Putin’s presidency is sure to be more of the same, our recent conversations with Ben Dubow and Ambassador John Herbst  indicated that, amidst a…

Ambassador John E. Herbst

Ambassador John E. Herbst is senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center and served for thirty-one years as a foreign service officer in the US Department of State, retiring at the rank of career minister. He was US ambassador to Ukraine from 2003 to 2006, when he worked to enhance US-Ukrainian relations, help ensure the conduct of…

Episode 153: Putin’s Presidency, Russia’s Aggression on Ukraine, and the Prospect of a Drumpf Presidency -Is There a New Axis of Evil? with Ambassador John E. Herbst

Last week, we heard from Ben Dubow, who gave us some fascinating insights into how he sees Putin’s next presidential term playing out and the implications of who comes second in the Russian presidential elections.   This week, we thought it crucial to hear from someone who has real world experience in international diplomacy, Ambassador…

Episode 152: Putin’s Next Term as President – An Insight into the Risks Surrounding the 2024 Russian Elections with Ben Dubow

As we step into 2024, a critical year for democracy worldwide, the stage is set for 64 national elections, marking an unprecedented turnout at the polls. The backdrop is a canvas of escalating international tensions, the daunting specter of climate change, and stretched thin inter-governmental organizations like the UN and NATO. In a year of…

Ben Dubow

Ben Dubow is leading expert in AI and disinformation with a focus on Russia and its neighbors. Ben is a senior fellow at the Center for European Analysis and founder and president of Omelas, a firm that deploys AI to collect and contextualize open source intelligence. Unique insights from Omelas’s data and analysis of Russian…