Independent Thinking

Negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine war do not appear to have made significant progress. In the meantime, the focus of US President Donald Trump's 'lighthouse diplomacy' appears to have switched to Iran.
Chatham House analysts discuss the state of the talks, and whether Europe will step up to provide the weapons and military support that Ukraine needs. They also examine how the Russia-Ukraine conflict fits into the wider superpower competition between the US, Russia and China.
Joining host Bronwen Maddox are Grégoire Roos, director of Chatham House's Europe, Russia and Eurasia programmes; Orysia Lutsevych, head of the Ukraine Forum; and Natalie Sabanadze, Senior Research Fellow with the Russia and Eurasia Programme.
 
This episode comes as we look ahead to two major upcoming Chatham House events: a conversation with General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's ambassador to the UK, marking four years since Russia's full-scale invasion, and our annual Security and Defence conference.
Both events are now fully booked for in-person attendance, but audiences will be able to watch General Zaluzhnyi's appearance and some of the defence conference events online.
Full details are available on our website: https://www.chathamhouse.org/events/upcoming
 
Presented by Bronwen Maddox. Produced by Stephen Farrell and Sara Seth.
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In a special edition of Chatham House's Independent Thinking podcast recorded at the Munich Security Conference 2026 over the weekend, Chatham House Director Bronwen Maddox and Grégoire Roos, Director of the Europe and Russia and Eurasia Programmes, unpack the key issues that emerged from this year's forum.
The main speaker, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, adopted a different tone from Vice President JD Vance, who shocked many in the audience last year when he delivered a verbal broadside against Europe at the same conference.
But does it signify a shift in the Trump administration's newly assertive stance, or was it the same message in a different wrapping?
In a recording session in a side room amid the hustle and flow of the conference, they also discuss innovations in defence technology and drone development, the resilience of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, what level of support Ukraine can expect from Europe, and whether European companies and policymakers will respond effectively in the face of increasing competition from Chinese manufacturers.
 
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As Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer ploughs through crisis after crisis, his Labour Party faces multiple threats in upcoming local elections. Our Chatham House analysts examine whether having six prime ministers in a decade is a sign that Britain, like some of its neighbours, has more fundamental underlying problems that make it increasingly hard to govern.

Host Bronwen Maddox is joined by Olivia O'Sullivan, Director of the UK in the World Programme at Chatham House and Grégoire Roos, Director of the Europe and Russia and Eurasia Programmes.
 
Presented by Bronwen Maddox. Produced by Stephen Farrell and Sara Seth.
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After the US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, our analysts discuss where in the Western Hemisphere US President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio may turn their attention to next.
Host Bronwen Maddox is joined by Laurel Rapp, director of Chatham House's US and North America Programme, and Dr Christopher Sabatini, Senior Fellow for Latin America. They dissect the so-called 'Donroe Doctrine', Marco Rubio's project to reform Cuba's regime, Haiti, and why oil is central to the MAGA playbook.
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Presented by Bronwen Maddox. Produced by Sara Seth and Stephen Farrell.
Subscribe to Independent Thinking wherever you find your podcasts.

Host Bronwen Maddox is joined by Ben Bland, head of our Asia-Pacific Programme, and Dr Yu Jie, senior research fellow on China. They discuss the opportunities and risks of closer engagement between the UK and China, and why the opacity of Chinese elite politics makes them an unpredictable security actor.
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Presented by Bronwen Maddox. Produced by Stephen Farrell and Sara Seth. 
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