The International Risk Podcast

Tracking the Hidden Threat: How Conventional Weapons Are Diverted to Fuel Global Violence

Author: Camila Mateos Betancourt Conventional weapons diversion is one of the most under-recognized yet critical international security threats today. Firearms and ammunition, which begin their lifecycle in legal and regulated markets, too often slip into the illicit sphere, arming criminal networks, destabilizing post-conflict societies, and undermining national and regional security. In Episode 238, we host Nils…

Nils Duquet

Nils Duquet

Nils Duquet is director of the Flemish Peace Institute. He started working at the Flemish Peace Institute as a researcher in 2006 and has authored more than 70 policy-oriented and academic publications on illicit firearms trafficking and gun violence in Europe, domestic gun policies and European arms export controls. He has coordinated several large-scale European…

Episode 238: Tracking the Global Risk of Conventional Weapons Diversion with Nils Duquet

Coordinated-and-produced-by-Camila-Mateos-Betancourt This week on The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen is joined by Nils Duquet to explore the complex threat of conventional weapons diversion. As firearms and ammunition move from legal manufacture to illicit possession, they fuel global violence, empower organized crime, and destabilize post-conflict regions. In this episode, Nils breaks down how weapons are…

Interference in Orbit: Legal Ambiguity, Strategic Risk, and the Future of Space Governance

Interference in Orbit: Legal Ambiguity, Strategic Risk, and the Future of Space Governance

In an increasingly congested and contested domain, the question of whether interference with satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constitutes an act of war is no longer theoretical. The proliferation of satellite constellations, the strategic entanglement of civilian and military uses, and the rise of ambiguous state behaviour in orbit have created an unstable environment…

Kai-Uwe Schrogl

Kai-Uwe Schrogl

Professor Dr. Kai-Uwe Schrogl is the President of the International Institute of Space Law (IISL), the global association of space lawyers from more than 50 countries on all continents. He served from 2014 to 2016 as chair of the Legal Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) and was from…

Episode 231: Whether Interference with Satellites in LEO is Act of War with Kai-Uwe Schrogl

This week on The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Dr. Kai-Uwe Schrogl, one of the world’s leading experts on international space policy and the former Chair of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space Legal Subcommittee. In this critical episode, they explore the growing risks in Low Earth Orbit…

Chasing the Scream - Johann Hari

Chasing the Scream: The Search for the Truth About Addiction – Johann Hari

Written by Elisa Garbil – 02.05.2025 Chasing the Scream by Johann Hari takes us beyond headlines and criminal statistics to confront a far more complex and urgent truth: our global drug policies are not just failing and they are actively producing harm. While it may seem a departure from previous discussions on extremism or gender inequality, this…

Trump attempts to increase consumer confidence and fails

Consumer Confidence Collapses and Brings International Risks

From Wall Street to the Eurozone: Why US Consumer Confidence Collapse Signals Strategic Risk for European Business Leaders The latest collapse in US consumer confidence should serve as a strategic wake-up call for European business leaders. Beneath the headlines of volatile equity markets and fiscal reboots lies a deeper, more structural threat: the world’s largest…

Episode 227: Fraud and KYC with Jason Costain

This week on The International Risk Podcast, Dominic Bowen speaks with Jason Costain, one of the UK’s leading fraud strategists and the founder of Javloc, a specialist consultancy in financial crime prevention. In this deep-dive episode, they examine the accelerating threat landscape shaped by fraud, artificial intelligence, and the unintended consequences of digital innovation. From…

Episode 226: Arms Trade from a Feminist Security Perspective with Anna Provan

Coordinated and Produced by Elisa Garbil Today we’ll dive into the often-overlooked realities of how women and girls experience armed conflict! Whether women are the victims, combatants, or leaders in peace-building. From the risks of gender-based violence and the underrepresentation of women in disarmament efforts to the long-term socio-economic impacts of the global arms trade, this…