Sauli Niinistö: Finland's new strategic direction
Stephen Sackur is in Helsinki for an exclusive interview with Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö. After decades of pragmatic coexistence with Moscow, Finland has made a big strategic decision: to join Nato, back Ukraine with weapons and reinforce their border with Russia. Are Finns ready for potential tension with their giant neighbour to the east?
7 Nov 202223min
Ben Hodges: Is Ukrainian victory inevitable?
Stephen Sackur speaks to General Ben Hodges, former commander of the US army in Europe. He claims a Ukrainian victory in the war with Russia is inevitable, maybe within months. But given Putin’s pledge to use all means necessary to prevail, how does victory happen?
4 Nov 202222min
Rafael Grossi: Is nuclear power ever risk-free?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Rafael Grossi, director general of the world’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. He’s been to Ukraine and has visited Putin in his continuing efforts to avert disaster at Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant. Is the Ukraine war a lesson that nuclear power is never risk-free?
2 Nov 202223min
Dimitar Kovačevski: Can North Macedonia finally join the EU?
In an exclusive interview, Stephen Sackur is in Skopje to speak to North Macedonia’s Prime Minister Dimitar Kovačevski. His nation emerged out of the former Yugoslavia and is now in the queue for EU membership. But progress is slow. Could Brussels’s reluctance to embrace the Balkan candidate nations see this region sink back into dangerous instability?
31 Okt 202222min
Matthew Collins: Taking on the far right
Stephen Sackur speaks to the writer and anti-racism campaigner Matthew Collins. In his youth he was himself a far-right thug, but he changed sides and became an informer. Now he’s a leading activist in the battle against violent extremism. He's written a book - The Walk In - about his experiences. What is the best antidote to today’s peddlers of race hate?This edition of Hardtalk contains references to racist language.
26 Okt 202224min
Audrey Tang: Can Taiwan forge its own path?
Zeinab Badawi is in Taiwan to speak to Audrey Tang, the country's digital minister. The Taipei government says it stands for democracy in the face of increasing belligerence from China, which claims the self-governed island as part of its territory. Can Taiwan really forge its own path?
24 Okt 202224min
Jan Lipavský: Will energy crisis break Europe's stand against Moscow?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Czech foreign minister, Jan Lipavský, an ardent supporter of Ukraine in a country facing an energy and economic crisis this winter. Vladimir Putin thinks Russia’s energy dominance can break Europe’s united stand against Moscow. Is he right?
20 Okt 202225min
German Galushchenko: How vulnerable is Ukraine?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Ukraine’s energy minister, German Galushchenko. His country’s energy and power infrastructure is being targeted by Russian rockets and kamikaze drones. As Putin doubles down on his escalation strategy, how vulnerable is Ukraine?
19 Okt 202224min
