Andrius Kubilius, EU Commissioner for Defence and Space: A new era of defence readiness

A senior US intelligence official has warned that Syria has become the "predominant jihadist battlefield in the world". As many as 10,000 foreigners could now be fighting there and the US fears they could return as part of a global jihadist movement that threatens Europe and the United States. There appears to be stalemate on the ground: the United Nations says Syria is "in freefall". Hardtalk speaks to Najib Ghadbian, the UN and US representative of the opposition Syrian coalition. What should he and others do to end the crisis?Picture: Syrian refugees cross the border into Iraq, Credit: Safin Hamed/AFP/Getty Images

21 Aug 201323min

After almost three years of scraping along the bottom, the United Kingdom seems to be showing signs of an economic recovery from the deep recession that followed the financial crisis in 2008-09. Hardtalk is in the Scottish capital, Edinburgh, to talk to Britain’s former Chancellor Alistair Darling. His Labour Party was in charge when the crisis hit. Can he admit that the government’s economic plans might be working? And can he stop Scotland voting to leave the United Kingdom next year, as he takes charge of the No To Independence campaign?Picture: Alistair Darling, Credit: Oli Scarff/Getty Images

19 Aug 201323min

In what has been billed as a ‘world first', fast food grown in a laboratory was served up in London recently. Hardtalk speaks to professor Mark Post who says his `in vitro burger' could be the answer to our unsustainable appetite for meat and help ease the burden on the environment. There's clearly a need for more meat - the World Health Organisation estimates annual global production will have to double by 2050. So will meat grown from stem cells in a science lab ever make it to our dinner plates?Picture: Mark Post holds an 'in vitro' burger, Credit: Reuters/David Parry

14 Aug 201323min

Genocide is often called the ultimate crime and after every tragedy, the world says 'it must never happen again'. And yet it does. Hardtalk speaks to leading international human rights lawyer Payam Akhavan, who made his name trying to bring to justice those responsible for war crimes in the former Yugoslavia. He believes that the international community has a duty to challenge human rights abuses wherever they occur. But is true justice ever really possible - or is it compromised by the political constraints and realities of the day?

12 Aug 201323min

South Africa is holding general elections next year and for the first time, a whole new generation will cast their vote. The 'born free generation' has no direct memory of the struggle against apartheid - and they have grown up with the powerful African National Congress as their country's government, rather than as its liberators. In a South Africa still struggling to overcome inequality, corruption and youth unemployment, what hopes can the party offer to the younger generation? Hardtalk speaks to Mzwandile Masina, the interim president of the ANC Youth League. Have they still got anything to offer to the younger generation?

9 Aug 201323min

The political standoff in Egypt remains in the balance. Thousands of supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsi, remain camped-out in Cairo. The interim government wants them removed but more bloodshed could follow if the troops move in. Hardtalk speaks to Egypt's new Foreign Minister, Nabil Fahmy. He is part of a government which many of his compatriots view as illegitimate. So will they bring democracy to Egypt as promised or will the streets of Cairo once again become a battlefield?(Image: Egypt's newly appointed Foreign Minister, Nabil Fahmy. Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

7 Aug 201322min

Sarah Montague speaks to Sir John Tavener, one of Britain's most celebrated composers. He says his music is for God - even referring to it as a form of divine dictation. Forty years ago, his work was sometimes dismissed as bland, populist, new age. But over time he has defied the critics - the Protecting Veil was one of the biggest selling classical albums ever, and his Song for Athene was played at the funeral of Princess Diana. Having been ill for much of his life, he says that everything changed after he nearly died from a heart attack six years ago. How did this experience affect his view of life, his music, and his faith?(Image:Sir John Tavener (left) and Simon Russell Beale. Credit: BBC)

5 Aug 201323min

Alaska, a land of pristine wilderness, sparse population and unimaginable resource riches. It is also the corner of our planet which is experiencing the most dramatic effects of climate change. The carbon economy which made Alaska rich now threatens its delicate ecosystem, presenting the US with a challenge. In the second of two programmes, Stephen Sackur explores whether the world’s second largest carbon emitter is getting serious about climate change.(Image: A sea otter sits on a chunk of ice near Whittier, Alaska. Credit: AFP)

2 Aug 201323min