Power Play

How will responses to the confrontation between Israel, its allies and Iran redefine the line that divides Donald Trump and Joe Biden?

Host Anne McElvoy talks to Kim Darroch, the former British ambassador to Washington and former U.K. national security adviser, about the scenarios facing President Biden and what Trump might do if he returns to office. They also discuss the options available to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanya...

This week marked the grim six-month milestone since the Hamas terror attack on Israel and the ensuing counter-attack on Gaza, which has led to a mounting death toll and a humanitarian crisis that has divided world opinion.

While President Joe Biden's White House struggles to help end the bloodshed, what would his opponent — Donald Trump — do differently if he were voted into office later this year?  

Host Ann...

In the wake of a devastating Islamist terror attack in Moscow, the dark arts of spreading disinformation are again in focus as Russia’s President Vladmir Putin pins blame for the assault on Ukraine.

As a widening array of countries and malign actors spread fake news and analysis, real life consequences are all too clear. How can democracies like the United States and its allies confront information warfare from their adver...

With the specter of a famine and a possible ground incursion of Rafah looming, Israel's allies are fretting. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned of an impending catastrophe in Gaza. Yet Benjamin Netanyahu says “no international pressure will stop Israel” from achieving its war aims. 

The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine and uncertainty about who will be calling the shots in the White House next year are testing Eur...

Now that Donald Trump is all but certain to lead his party into November’s presidential election in the U.S., it’s make up your mind time for Republicans – are they with him or not? One of them is a big gun in Floridan politics, the Mayor of Miami, Francis Suarez. 

Suarez earned a national profile by briefly entering the race for the White House last year before dropping out as the Trump bandwagon rumbled on. He’s gai...

From Maine to California, Super Tuesday is the biggest date in the calendar for the United States primary election — a third of delegates for the Republican and Democratic conventions have been chosen. 

While Donald Trump didn’t quite manage a clean sweep, the former president looks all but certain to face Joe Biden in November — now that the only other contender for the Republican crown, Nikki Haley, has pulled out. 

As Pr...

As European leaders gathered in Paris this week, there was a sense of foreboding about the war in Ukraine, and the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is a further reminder of how far the Kremlin will go to suppress its foes.

Nowhere is the threat posed by Russia felt more acutely than on Europe’s Eastern frontier — and especially in Estonia, home to a significant ethnic Russian population.  

In this episode, ...

From the Munich Security Conference, host Anne McElvoy speaks to U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Celeste Wallander, U.S. assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.

News of the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny set the tone for the conference, where securocrats and world leaders gathered to discuss the mounting crises facing decision-makers.

Our g...

As security and defense chiefs descend on Bavaria this weekend for the annual Munich Security Conference, can anything be done to dampen down the geopolitical fires around the world? 

On everyone's lips will be Donald Trump's latest campaign salvo, which has shaken confidence in America’s commitment to the Atlantic defense alliance. The wars in Gaza and Ukraine, along with the crisis in the Red Sea, also top the agenda.

Hos...

The largest NATO exercise since the Cold War is underway in the North Atlantic. The most powerful military alliance on the planet is putting on a show of strength — hoping that the Kremlin is taking note.

As Congress struggles to agree a new package of American support for Ukraine, can the rest of the alliance share the burden?

In this week's edition of Power Play, host Anne McElvoy speaks to the U.K.'s Ambassador to NATO, David Quar...

As Donald Trump’s seemingly unstoppable campaign to win the Republican nomination gathers pace, most eyes in America and the world are moving to the more important contest — between him and Joe Biden. 

Trump’s resurgence is causing jitters in the Biden camp. He has a small but consistent lead in national polls. Will Biden manage to keep hold of the electoral coalition that brought him to the White House four years ago?

Host Anne...

How much attention is Africa receiving as the world remains transfixed by wars in Europe, the Middle East, and as elections in the West loom?

This week, host Anne McElvoy talks to the award-winning musician and activist Angélique Kidjo about her campaign to improve education for girls in Africa and to address the humanitarian needs of her native continent.

They also discuss the U.K.'s attempts to send illegal asylum seekers to Rwanda...

The focus of the 2024 World Economic Forum at Davos was on rebuilding trust, with artificial intelligence top of the agenda. Since the roll out of AI-powered chat bots, AI has developed a major trust problem among the public. The majority of Americans said last year that the risks of AI outweigh the potential benefits, and in the EU, Europeans were overwhelmingly in favor of restrictions around its use to protect jobs and privacy.

M...

As the World Economic Forum draws to a close in Davos, Power Play rounds off the week with analysis of an eventful week in the Swiss Alps.

Host Anne McElvoy brings together a top team of POLITICO's reporters: Alex Ward, national security reporter based in Washington; Nahal Toosi, senior foreign affairs correspondent; and Suzanne Lynch, author of POLITICO's Global Playbook, your must-read each morning to keep up with the latest ...

In this episode, U.K. Foreign Secretary David Cameron sits down with Anne McElvoy at the World Economic Forum to discuss the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, Britain's role in the Israel-Hamas war, as well as Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine — which he says is his "absolute number one priority." Cameron adds, "One thing we can do is demonstrate during the course of this year that Putin isn't winning."

Cameron also addresses U.K. Prime ...

Donald Trump's emphatic victory in the Iowa caucuses has been the talking point of many at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos. Meanwhile, the accelerating pace of artificial intelligence is also never far from the lips of those attending this year's WEF.

In today's edition of Power Play — continuing our special coverage of Davos — host Anne McElvoy explores these two prevailing themes.

Anne talks to Anthony Scaramucci, who was b...

As the World Economic Forum gets underway in Davos, many of the world's most powerful business leaders, politicians and tech gurus — and even the odd veteran pop star — have arrived in the Swiss Alps hoping to set the agenda for the year ahead. 

This week we present four episodes of Power Play with an array of interviews and analysis. Today, host Anne McElvoy brings together three of POLITICO's keenest Davos watchers to chart t...

After weeks of relative calm, Russian forces ushered in the New Year by pounding Ukrainian cities. While global attention has been gripped by the war in Gaza, it’s a reminder that there is no end in sight to the conflict in Ukraine. 

This week, NATO ambassadors met in Brussels to reinforce their commitments to help Ukraine’s air defences fend off devastating Russian air strikes, which have killed dozens of people in t...

As we enter a mammoth election year on either side of the Atlantic, Power Play looks back on the highlights from our interviews in 2023 to set the scene for the big geopolitical stories of 2024. 

In this week's bumper New Year edition, host Anne McElvoy takes a tour through the best of Power Play since the podcast launched last September, talking to some of the most influential figures in the United States, Europe and beyond.&n...