Turkey’s Balancing Act: Prospects for Stabilisation in Syria and Iraq
Can Turkey act as a stabilising force in Syria and Iraq, or are its policies driven by short-term security concerns? As Ankara seeks to navigate the shifting geopolitical landscape of the Middle East, its approach to Syria and Iraq has become a key test of its regional influence. In this episode of Global Security Briefing, Neil Melvin is joined by Burcu Ozcelik, Senior Research Fellow, RUSI, Dr Serhat Erkmen, RUSI associate fellow and founder of the geopolitical risk consultancy, Pros and Cons, and Dr Oytun Orhan, Coordinator of Levant Studies at the Centre for Middle Eastern Studies (ORSAM), to examine Turkey's policies. The discussion explores the impact of domestic pressures, regional rivalries, security threats, and great power relations, asking whether Ankara can translate tactical gains into a sustainable regional role.
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The UK's 2025 Carrier Strike Group Deployment and Britain’s Indo-Pacific Tilt.
The Royal Navy Fleet flagship in Asia prompts a critical question: How serious is Britain about the Indo-Pacific? Against a backdrop of deepening UK - Japan defence and economic ties, shifting US engagement, and growing regional security pressures, this episode of Global Security Briefing explores what the HMS Prince of Wales' 2025 mission reveals about the UK's approach to the Indo-Pacific. Host Neil Melvin is joined by Dr Philip Shetler-Jones to discuss how the deployment has been received in Japan and across the region, what has changed since the 2021 Royal Navy mission, and where Britain's Indo-Pacific policy may be heading in the years ahead.
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Does the Trump Administration Have an Indo-Pacific Security Strategy?
Tensions in the Indo-Pacific are testing US power and alliances. What does this mean for regional strategy and for the UK? In this episode of Global Security Briefing, host Neil Melvin is joined by Dr. Kori Schake, senior fellow and the director of foreign and defence policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, and Dr Philip Shetler-Jones, senior research fellow, RUSI, to examine whether the Trump administration has a coherent Indo-Pacific strategy or is simply reacting to China's growing influence. As Washington debates its role in Asia amid military overstretch, defence industrial challenges, and diverging views on alliance priorities, the UK faces key questions about its own Indo-Pacific tilt. With British carriers deploying to the region and AUKUS under scrutiny, this episode explores whether the US has the will and means to lead, how regional actors are responding, and what all this means for UK strategy in an era of intensifying great power competition.
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Have the Recent Conflicts Transformed the Middle East?
Open warfare has crossed the Middle East, and in its wake came an erosion of the norms of statesmanship and the power of international law to avert conflict. What are the implications for deterrence, diplomacy, and the future of UK, US, and regional strategy? In this episode of Global Security Briefing, host Neil Melvin is joined by RUSI experts Burcu Ozcelik and Michael Stephens to assess whether the Middle East is on the cusp of fundamental transformation or simply entering another volatile chapter. With the region rocked by Hamas' October 2023 attacks, a devastating war in Gaza, direct military strikes between Iran and Israel, and renewed US intervention, long-held assumptions about deterrence, regional power balances, and the limits of escalation have been upended. As Prime Minister Netanyahu meets President Trump in Washington, the episode explores how far the region has shifted and whether latest confrontations mark the end of 'grey-zone' conflicts and the emergence of a new order shaped by overt state-to-state warfare. Has Iran's deterrence crumbled? Can Israel claim strategic success? Are Gulf states and the US recalibrating their roles? And what does all this mean for the future of Gaza, the Arab-Israeli process of diplomatic normalisation, and UK foreign policy?
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How Should the UK Approach European Security?
How is the UK's Labour government approaching European security, and how does this compare to the Conservatives? In this episode of Global Security Briefing, host Neil Melvin is joined by Professor Richard Whitman to examine how much has changed since Labour came to power. The UK is currently setting a path to navigate an uncertain world in a series of major reviews - the Security and Defence Review has just been published, a new National Security Strategy was release, and a Defence Industry Strategy is due later in the year. But amid the flurry of Whitehall documents, Labour is under pressure to deliver on its promises and, crucially, match the resources to fund a major increase in defence spending. Discussants assess the British government's readiness to find the financial resources that will be necessary to match the political commitments it is making. What should be the UK priorities as European security looks likely to undergo significant changes in the coming decades?
Global Security Briefing provides regular insights from leading international experts to help you make sense of the far-reaching changes affecting international security around the globe. Hosted by analysts from RUSI's International Security Studies team, the podcast looks at how the UK can best shape its foreign and security policies in an increasingly dynamic international environment.
The Global Security Briefing channel is also host to a back-catalogue of episodes from the concluded RUSI podcasts 'Bridging the Oceans' and 'Mind the Gulf'.
Running from 2020 to 2023, 'Bridging the Oceans' aimed to create a platform to discuss the key defence and security questions of the world’s most dynamic region: the Indo-Pacific. Hosted by Veerle Nouwens, it explored what the Indo-Pacific is, where its limits lie, and what the fast-evolving defence and security issues are in this dynamic part of the world.
Running from January to May 2022, the 'Mind the Gulf' Podcast Series explored how the Iranian nuclear programme – and international diplomatic efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon – interacts with regional security dynamics and the wider Middle East.
The views or statements expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the podcast does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by RUSI employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the view of RUSI.
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