Ballot from the blue: will Ukraine hold a poll?

After years of peacekeeping and counter-insurgency campaigns, the country is getting tooled up and trained up for serious military conflict. The “baby bust” brought on by the pandemic has changed global population predictions; we look into the down sides of a world with fewer people. And the Benin Bronzes have become a focal point for the art world’s restitution push. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2 Apr 202121min

Case numbers are on the rise—at a more worrying rate even than the first wave. We ask why, and what is being done to slow the spread. As revenues at wildlife-tourism spots have dried up, so has security—and now poaching is even more rampant than before. And scientists’ increasingly audacious bids to see around corners. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1 Apr 202121min

The tepid debut of Britain’s dominant food-delivery app signals doubts not only about the gig economy but also about London’s ability to lure tech-firm listings. Chinese officials love to deploy “cloud seeding” to water the country’s parched lands, but even if it works, it distracts from better water-management policies. And why tweets so often come back to haunt their authors.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

31 Mar 202119min

Western fashion brands are in Chinese consumers’ crosshairs, the victims of political wranglings over sanctions and human-rights issues—a spat that may soon consume other industries. A striking number of people in the criminal-justice system have had traumatic brain injuries; our correspondent investigates how much that link has been overlooked. And why the audio app Clubhouse has stormed the Middle East.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

30 Mar 202123min

In a province that is home to a massive natural-gas project, a long-simmering insurgency has burst into horrific violence; we ask why the government seems to have lost control. Our correspondent visits Minneapolis, where the police officer accused of murdering George Floyd goes on trial today. And the existential threat to a bird that has forgotten how to sing love songs.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

29 Mar 202121min

The country has empowered its women, established itself as a garment-industry powerhouse and vastly improved public health—but its politics remains troubled. The pandemic has not reduced average global happiness, but rather reshaped it: the old are more content and the young less so. And a look at the staggering costs of the Suez Canal blockage. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

26 Mar 202121min

European leaders will address the thorny question of vaccine-export controls today. We look at the row with Britain and what it means for the broader relationship with the EU. Our correspondent visits Congo-Brazzaville as the president of nearly 37 years triumphs again—at a continuing cost to his people. And research suggests that Europe’s most inbred rulers were the least adept.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

25 Mar 202122min

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan just does not like interest-rate rises. So he has again sacked a central-bank governor given to imposing them—again, to his own peril. America’s love of free markets extends also to the business of sperm donation; our correspondent discusses the risks that come with so little regulation. And the opera composer who is shaking up stereotypes.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

24 Mar 202121min