Belarus’s Presidential Election, Anti-Kremlin Protests Persist, and More

Belarusians go to the polls, discontent simmers in eastern Russia, and Japan remembers the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki amid discussions of the country’s long-term national security strategy.

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Hosts
  • James M. Lindsay
    Mary and David Boies Distinguished Senior Fellow in U.S. Foreign Policy and Director of Fellowship Affairs
  • Sheila A. Smith
    John E. Merow Senior Fellow for Asia-Pacific Studies

Show Notes

Belarusians go to the polls, discontent simmers in eastern Russia, and Japan remembers the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki amid discussions of the country’s long-term national security strategy.

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Israel and Hamas reach a cease-fire deal aimed at exchanging hostages and prisoners while seeking a longer-term pause in fighting; the incoming Donald Trump administration weighs ambitious moves on immigration; Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Russian President Vladimir Putin sign off on a twenty-year partnership agreement; and students in Serbia protest violations of civil rights.

United States

President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee; the Supreme Court hears arguments over the Joe Biden administration’s imminent banning of TikTok; Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation prompts questions on the future of U.S.-Canada trade relations; and Europe’s eastern states confront energy issues after Ukraine stops the flow of Russian gas through its territory.

Ukraine

In this special year-end episode, hosts Bob McMahon and Carla Anne Robbins sit down with the New York Times’ chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe Steven Erlanger to review the biggest stories of the past year and discuss developments to watch in 2025. They analyze the conflicts and political developments in the Middle East and Europe, President-elect Donald Trump’s picks for his national security team, the state of democracy worldwide, and more.

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