In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks to two friends of the show about how Europe is responding to the war with Iran. In the first half, the Rt Hon Tom Tugendhat MP — former chair of the UK Foreign Affairs Select Committee and former UK Security Minister — discusses Britain’s confused response to the conflict, and in the second half, French journalist Wassim Nasr explains France’s position.
Sir Tom and Wassim explain:
- The UK government’s uncertain response to the Iran war
- What politicians mean when they talk about the ‘legal basis’ for military action
- The lessons of the Iraq War and whether they are being misunderstood
- Iran’s role in the insurgency against Western forces in Iraq
- The debate over designating the IRGC as a terrorist organization in the UK
- The state of the British military after decades of defence cuts
- The strategic controversy surrounding Diego Garcia and the Chagos Islands
- France’s historic Arab Policy and its effort to maintain strategic independence in the Middle East
- France’s military agreements with the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait
- The E3 framework (France, Germany, UK) and its role in negotiations with Iran
- Macron’s attempt to expand France’s nuclear deterrent to cover Europe
- The evolving situation in Lebanon and Hezbollah’s weakening position
- Intelligence cooperation between France, Israel, and regional partners
- Whether Europe is entering a new era of strategic independence
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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.
Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.
This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small.
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