Lowy Institute

Latest Episodes:

Peter Varghese reflects on an international life and career Jun 25, 2020

Show notes

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with diplomat, foreign policy intellectual and now Chancellor of the University of Queensland, Peter Varghese.

Peter had a distinguished career in the Australian public service over nearly four decades, representing our country abroad, running the foreign ministry and our key intelligence assessments agency and advising a prime minister. He is a rare beast: in addition to being a highly effective bureaucrat, Peter is an original thinker and an elegant writer.

Peter and Michael speak about the history and reality of race relations in Australia and growing up in the suburbs of Brisbane in the 1960s; Peter's time spent working with John Howard and the controversial foreign policy decision to participate in the US-led invasion of Iraq; his time as High Commissioner in New Delhi and his thoughts on the Australia-India bilateral relationship; the future of Australia's relationship with China; and American politics.

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COVIDcast: Foreign Minister Joseph Wu on Taiwan’s place in the world Jun 18, 2020

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In this episode of COVIDcast, Natasha Kassam, Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute, sat down with Taiwan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Joseph Wu. Dr Wu was appointed Foreign Minister by President Tsai Ing-wen on 26 February 2018. He was previously the head of the National Security Council, and the Chief Representative in the United States as the head of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington DC.
COVIDcast is a Lowy Institute pop-up podcast for anyone interested in understanding the effect of coronavirus on global politics. In each episode, Lowy Institute experts and invited guests discuss the implications of coronavirus for the world.

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Rory Stewart on the adventures and disappointments of modern politics Jun 18, 2020

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In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with former diplomat, traveller, author and politician, Rory Stewart, a man whose life so far has been both conventional and highly unconventional.

Born in Hong Kong, Rory spent his childhood in Malaysia and Scotland, and passed through a number of establishment institutions including Eton, Balliol, the Black Watch, the Foreign Office and, according to speculation, the Secret Intelligence Service. He was a summer tutor to Princes William and Harry. And yet he has also repeatedly gone off-piste and done interesting and sometimes remarkable things, including walking 10,000km across Asia, and running as an independent candidate for mayor of London.

Rory and Michael speak about Rory's prescient response to the Covid-19 crisis, the disappointment of political life, the hollowing of the centre ground in British politics, and the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Panel discussion: Kurt Campbell and Michèle Flournoy on unrest in America Jun 17, 2020

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On Thursday 11 June, Lowy Institute Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove hosted an in conversation online event with Kurt Campbell and Michèle Flournoy. They discussed the US presidential election, Washington’s relations with Beijing, the global implications of the coronavirus pandemic, and the unrest on America's streets.
Kurt Campbell served as the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs in the Obama administration, where he is widely credited as a key architect of the “pivot to Asia.” He is CEO of The Asia Group, and serves as Chairman of the Board of the Center for a New American Security.
Michèle Flournoy served as the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy in the Obama administration from 2009 to 2012. She is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of WestExec Advisors and Co-Founder and former CEO of the Center for a New American Security, where she serves on the board.

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Panel Discussion: The end of Hong Kong as we know it? Jun 16, 2020

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Lowy Institute Research Fellow Ben Bland led a discussion on the future of Hong Kong with three people who have been at the heart of recent events: pro-democracy lawmaker Dennis Kwok, human rights activist Bonnie Leung and Financial Times correspondent Sue-Lin Wong.
China’s decision to unilaterally implement national security legislation in Hong Kong has dealt a heavy blow to the city’s freedoms and autonomy. This latest move comes after years of intensifying pressure from Beijing, which has struck at the foundations of Hong Kong’s success as a global financial centre: individual liberties and the rule of law. With thousands of democracy activists already arrested in the last year and Beijing’s interventions becoming ever more intrusive, is this the end of Hong Kong as we know it?
PANEL
Dennis Kwok is a practicing barrister and a pro-democracy member of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council, representing the legal profession. First elected to LegCo in 2012, Dennis is a member of the executive committee of the Civic Party. Dennis graduated and received his LLB from King’s College London in 1999 and was called to the Hong Kong Bar in 2006.
Bonnie Leung is a democracy activist and a member of the Civil Human Rights Front, which organised the massive peaceful protests against Hong Kong’s controversial extradition bill last year. A former district councillor, she also served as an international spokesperson for the anti-extradition bill movement.
Sue-Lin Wong is the Financial Times' South China correspondent, covering the pro-democracy protests on the ground in Hong Kong. In 2019, she opened the FT's bureau in Shenzhen, where Chinese tech giants Huawei and Tencent are headquartered. She will be joining The Economist as a China correspondent in July. Sue-Lin graduated from the Australian National University.
Ben Bland is a Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute who focuses on Hong Kong, as well as directing the Institute's Southeast Asia Program. He is the author of Generation HK: Seeking Identity in China’s Shadow and was formerly the South China Correspondent for the Financial Times, based in Hong Kong.

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COVIDcast: Xi Jinping and COVID-19 Jun 11, 2020

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In this episode of COVIDcast, Richard McGregor, Lowy Institute Senior Fellow, sat down with Chris Buckley of the New York Times to discuss Xi Jinping’s China. Chris is widely acknowledged as one the world’s leading authorities on Chinese politics. He was back in his hometown of Sydney after the Chinese government refused to renew his visa allowing him to work as a journalist in China.
COVIDcast is a Lowy Institute pop-up podcast for anyone interested in understanding the effect of coronavirus on global politics. Each week for the next few weeks, Lowy Institute experts will sit down to discuss the implications of coronavirus for the world.

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Dennis Richardson on Australian politics and foreign policy, the US and China Jun 11, 2020

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In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with legendary Australian official Dennis Richardson about his storied career in the public service, prime ministers he has known, and the foreign policy challenges facing Australia – including how to manage our relationships with the United States and China.

Over the course of his 48-year career, Dennis Richardson AO served in many important jobs including Ambassador to the United States, Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Secretary of the Department of Defence, and Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

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COVIDcast: World economy in flux Jun 04, 2020

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In this episode, Roland Rajah, Lowy Institute lead economist, sits down with Adam Tooze, Professor of History at Columbia University and the Director of its European Institute, to discuss how the COVID-19 economic crisis is evolving and reshaping the world economy.
COVIDcast is a Lowy Institute pop-up podcast for anyone interested in understanding the effect of coronavirus on global politics. Each week for the next few weeks, Lowy Institute experts will sit down to discuss the implications of coronavirus for the world.

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COVIDcast: Secretary General Meg Taylor on COVID in the Pacific Islands May 29, 2020

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In this episode Jonathan Pryke, Director of the Lowy Institute’s Pacific Islands Program, sits down with Dame Meg Taylor, Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, to discuss how COVID-19 is affecting health, economics, local communities, climate change, regionalism and geopolitics in the Pacific region.
COVIDcast is a Lowy Institute pop-up podcast for anyone interested in understanding the effect of coronavirus on global politics. Each week for the next few weeks, Lowy Institute experts will sit down to discuss the implications of coronavirus for the world.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In conversation: Carl Bildt on the European Union after Brexit and COVID-19 May 28, 2020

Show notes

On Wednesday 27 May, the Lowy Institute’s Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove hosted an in conversation event via live video stream with Carl Bildt.
Carl Bildt was Sweden’s foreign minister from 2006 to 2014 and prime minister from 1991 to 1994, when he negotiated Sweden’s EU accession. A renowned international diplomat, he served as EU Special Envoy to the Former Yugoslavia, High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, UN Special Envoy to the Balkans, and Co-Chairman of the Dayton Peace Conference. He is Co-Chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations.
The conversation examined topics such as such the state of the European Union after Brexit and COVID-19, Sweden’s controversial approach to controlling the pandemic, and the transatlantic alliance as America’s presidential election approaches and Angela Merkel’s term draws to a close.

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