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The Globalist
A 12 out of 10 meeting: Trump lowers tariffs on China, Xi cuts rare earth controls
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Craft matters in small ways, like how a coffee is brewed, and in not so small ways like how your money is cared for. Which is why for 160 years, UBS has elevated banking to a craft, tailoring unique strategies that combine human expertise with the latest technologies, all happening across 24 time zones and 12 key financial hubs. With you at the heart of it all, UBS advice is our craft.
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You're listening to the Globalist, first broadcast on 31st October 2025 on Monocle Radio. The Globalist in association with U hello, this is the Globalist broadcasting to you live from Midori House in London. I'm Georgina Godwin. On the show ahead, I'm going to.
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C
Be very strong in enforcing everything having to do with fentanyl and regulations internally, including taking very strong measures against those that don't obey.
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B
But is there much substance to Trump's words on substance abuse? We'll examine how credible the deal with China, apparently to be renegotiated annually, really is. German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz is on his first state visit to Turkey today, attempting to reset the relationship between Berlin and Ankara. We'll join our correspondent in Istanbul for more. Freedom of expression is once again under attack in Zimbabwe as the venue for a meeting to challenge the President's push for an unconstitutional third term is firebombed. Then it's Friday and we all know what that means.
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We learned that Corbyn was not the only Labour Party leader, past or present, UK or elsewhere, having an arguably awkward interaction with popular culture.
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Yes, Andrew Muller will be back with what we learned this week. And finally, a double hit on the movies. Film critic Karen Krasanovich gives us her recommendations for scary films for Halloween. And we'll hear all about the Tribeca Film Festival in Lisbon, which is on over the weekend. That's all ahead here on the Globalist, live from London. First, a look at what else is happening in the news. The US has slashed refugee admissions and will prioritise white South Africans, sparking condemnations and accusations of weaponizing asylum policy. The US and India have signed a decade long defence pact deepening cooperation to counter China. And the Sagrada Familia has become the world's tallest church, marking a major step towards completing Gaudi's century old basilica. Do stay tuned to Monocle Radio throughout the day for more on those stories. Now, Berlin appears to be turning a page in its relationship with Ankara. Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Mertz is in the city today to meet President Erdogan. It's a reset built around security, defense deals and migration. With a 10 billion euro euro fighter package on the table and some awkward conversations ahead on deportations, Ukraine and Gaza. And somehow the humble donor kebab has made it onto the diplomatic menu too. Well, I'm joined now by Ruth Michelson, who's journalist and Middle east correspondent currently in Istanbul. Ruth, many thanks for joining us once again. What does Mertz want from this trip?
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E
Well, I mean, it seems that it is true that Merz wants to turn the page on relations with Turkey. Primarily it's a discussion of defense deals, closer cooperation. There is expected to be some, or there was expected to be some discussion of visa free travel for Turkish citizens going to Germany. And at the same time, Merz has been under pressure from the far right AfD within Germany to basically impose stricter restrictions on Turkish nationals who are due to be deported from Germany and other things like this. But really the bigger picture when it comes to the entire visit has been about a kind of reset to see something totally different to the visit. When we saw the German President Frank Walter Steinmeier visit last April, and that visit was marked by what was termed Dohna diplomacy, Steinmeier bought something like 60 kg of doner meat with him. It was all intended to visit, excuse me, to celebrate the contribution, the enormous contribution that Turkish nationals have played since decades of emigration to Germany. And it was not very well received. It was seen asinstead, it was seen as a slight, it was seen as undermining many of the contributions that Turkish Germans have made. And it certainly didn't achieve the kind of diplomacy that Steinmeier was hoping. Everything about this visit has been supposed to be a new page, a new turn.
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B
So what are the new terms going to be on the doner kebab? Who's getting skewered?
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E
Hopefully no one. I mean, I think the significance, you know, the symbolic value is really important. Last time Steinmeier, he started in Istanbul, he met with the key opposition leader, the Istanbul mayor, Ekrem Imamolu, as well as meeting with Erdogan. Imamolu is now in prison. And instead of any of these kinds of formalities, Merz flew into Ankara, the Turkish capital has met with Erdogan. And of course there have been questions about Turkey's human rights record, the fact that Imamolu is now in prison and what we've seen in the statements from Meertz is that, you know, what he said was there have been decisions in Turkey that do not yet meet fully meet the standards of European criteria or European standards. But then has essentially said, look, we recognize that these things have happened, but we're going to overlook them and we're going to focus on these defense deals. On the sale of fighter jets that was agreed earlier this week on strengthening Turkey's position in NATO vis a vis Russia. So he's tried to say, we acknowledge that, you know, there have been major human rights questions in Turkey and we're just going to focus on something else.
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B
Let's talk a little bit more about defence. It's clearly very important to both leaders. Tell us more about the Euro fighter deal and why it matters.
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E
Well, this is the sale of €20 fighter jets that was agreed via a consortium that includes the uk, but also includes countries like Germany and Spain. That deal was agreed earlier this week while Keir Starmer was here on a visit. And it's being hailed as this huge success via all of these countries, saying that, you know, this is the largest British sale that it's going to create. Keir Starmer said it's going to create 20,000 jobs. And it's seen as this act of kind of European solidarity to bolster Turkey's defenses against Russia, bolster Turkey's defenses as part of NATO and so bolster this kind of closer defense cooperation. At the same time, this deal was agreed while Keir Starmer was in the country. And Ekrem Imamolu, yes, that name again, would serve new charges of spying for the British state while Keir Starmer was in the country. So something hugely embarrassing for the British Prime Minister who was here to say that this deal is bringing jobs. It's marks a success. It's about closer NATO cooperation. And at the same time, there was this aspect on the domestic front. So, you know, it's really in terms of what this means for Merz, we've seen that he has been embarrassed by Erdogan, who has talked about German support for Israel while they were sharing a stage together. And so there is this willingness on the part of Turkey, Turkey to have leaders come here and say, you know, you can. It's really great that you've decided to sell us these weapons that there's been this term, but don't expect that we won't try and undermine things in some way or another.
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B
Let's bring up Israel. How might the two countries clash, particularly on Gaza and Hamas?
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E
Well, sharing a stage together. Erdogan very pointedly accused Germany of playing a role in genocide. Those were the terms that he used. Something potentially a little bit embarrassing for the German Chancellor. And he was put on the spot, having to defend his country's long term policies and support for Israel, which he did. At the same time, it's probably worth noting, you know, Erdogan has met with Donald Trump and he's been incredibly proud of rebuilding that relationship compared to how it was in Trump's first term. We didn't see that kind of willingness to use terms like genocide or to put the leader on the spot for their support for Israel when he has been sitting or when he's been engaged in any kind of public discussion with the American president. So it's not just about Germany's foreign policy. It's also about Erdogan's willingness to, in his view, call it out.
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B
How does Turkey see its role in ending the war in Ukraine?
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Well, I mean, there's been these long term accusations that Turkey is trying to play both sides. But increasingly what we've seen is that Turkey has been really willing to step into the breach as a mediator, saying, yes, we do have relations with both Moscow and Kyiv and we're going to utilize that for the benefit of the wider world. So Turkey is very keen to see an end to the war and has played host to several rounds of negotiations. The problem with these negotiations is that every time we've been to them, they've seemed, frankly, a little bit limp. Not a lot has been decided. And there is this generalized sense with these negotiations that they're not really going to go anywhere until we see Donald Trump step in. And that was even acknowledged by the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, during one of the previous rounds of negotiations. And so while Turkey is very, very keen to play host and has seen some limited successes with this, we're all waiting to see if Donald Trump would fly in and make a difference in some future round of talks.
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Thank you very, very much. So that was Ruth Michelson, journalist and Middle east correspondent.
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It.
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Donald Trump says he's easing some tariffs on China after meeting Xi Jinping in South Korea. In return, Beijing will work to curb fentanyl supplies, restart U.S. soybean purchases and hold off on rare earth export controls. It's not a full deal and tariffs stay over 40%. But Washington and Beijing are framing this as a major success. Well, I'm joined now by William Yang, senior Northeast Asia analysts for the International Crisis Group. William, good to have you back on the show. What does Washington gain and lose on this?
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So the US Basically gains from, you know, some of the important bottlenecks and also domestic pressure that it is facing from some of the key industries that heavily rely On China, as we know, China has agreed to restart the import and purchase of US Soy, which is an part of the US that is very important for Trump electorally, that is going to ease some of the pressure that he might be feeling from the local constituents in the Midwest. And at the same time, the postponement of the export control on rare earth for a year is also likely going to be welcomed by US Key industries, from semiconductor to the defense industries that are all heavily relying on the rare earth supplies coming from China. But at the same meantime, I believe that some of the concessions that Trump might have made would potentially make the US In a more vulnerable position in the longer term AI race with China, because we know that he did give an acknowledgment that US Semiconductor giant Nvidia will be allowed to start negotiating with China again. Of course, how that that is finally going to be approved and what type of chips will be allowed to be exported to China will remain a question. And likely, if the US did intervene down the road on this particular front, that could also see China reinstating the export control on rare earth again.
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B
How credible is Trump's claim that China will crack down on fentanyl supply chains? And we haven't seen any detail.
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F
Right? Exactly. I think, you know, that also remains to be seen how it's going to be implemented and agreed upon at the working level. Because I think from this meeting it sort of has reflected the type of agreements that Trump likely would be presenting to the public soon after negotiations, which is that a lot of the times he wants a very quick big stroke kind of items for him to be able to at least publicly claim as victory to his domestic audience. But at the same time, a lot of the details which will be key to the implementation of these agreements remain very vague. And this is not only just apply to the trade agreements that he has with China, it also actually applies to the agreements that he has announced with allies like South Korea and also the four Southeast Asian countries that have agreed to to the so called trade agreements or frameworks with the United States.
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B
But as you say, I mean, we don't actually know if those will ever go ahead. Also, tariffs remain steep. They're still over 40%. So does anything improve on the ground for companies in China?
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F
Not really. As all economists have said, the 10% reduction actually means almost nothing to businesses. And that I think likely will have to take more rounds of the working level negotiations for both sides to actually come to real terms. But at least I think what we can say from yesterday's meeting is that the two leaders have signed off on some of the broad stroke sort of items and the consensus that the cabinet members from the United States and the Chinese vice premiers have already ironed out in Malaysia. The a few days before, just watching.
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B
The coverage, Xi Jinping sounded patient and strategic. Do you think that Beijing comes out ahead in terms of substance?
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F
I think for the Chinese side the very important thing is to gain a clear signal coming from Donald Trump, which is that, you know, whether he is going to express any willingness to also at least loosen some of the key export controls on the high tech sector. And you know, as we have already seen from the months before yesterday's summit, is that Beijing is very confident in their ability to play the long game and wait it out against the United States because as they have seen from the patterns that Trump has demonstrated over the last few months, they realize that Donald Trump often is more in desperate need to actually for some, you know, release of the pressure and the tension rather than the Chinese. So you know, I think Beijing believes that the, their political system allows them to gain the upper hand in the ongoing negotiation, but also the competition with the United States so they can afford to weigh. But on the other hand, the United States is in more of a position to be begging for concessions coming from the Chinese side.
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B
What about areas of, of dispute? Was there any discussion of Taiwan, for instance, AI chips and tick tock.
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F
So I think the AI chip is probably the only area that probably has been brought up because we know that that is an area that China really feels like they feel the squeeze and also they're very unhappy about the policy. And so they do want to assess Washington's willingness to at least, you know, considering loosening the policies that they have currently introduced. And at the same but you know, on the other hand, I think because the list of the pressing trade issues that will require immediate care and also attention and agreement coming from both governments are already so long that I believe both sides of think that it doesn't make sense to expand the discussion to other areas like the war in Ukraine and the issue of Taiwan to further complicate the effectiveness and the efficiency of yesterday's discussion. So you know, I think Donald Trump already walking into the meeting already said that he doesn't even know if the Taiwan, the issue of Taiwan will be addressed or mentioned. And I think from the Chinese side they likely sensed that the US Is unlikely to even entertain the idea of making concessions on the issue of Taiwan because their bandwidth right now is all focusing on trade related issues. So that's why probably for Beijing, they also feels like it doesn't make much difference for them to even try to raise that issue. So it was probably not touched upon altogether during the discussion.
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B
And finally, William, why does Trump want to renegotiate this every year? Surely that's unnecessarily complicated and it's going to affect business and markets.
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Right? But you know, I think the bottom line is definitely that both sides still remain quite skeptical about the other side's sincerity to actually honor the their end of the bargain and uphold the one year truce. I think they have seen over the last few months that oftentimes the agreed upon consensus could quickly fall apart because you know, they view the, some of the actions and the decisions made by the other side as bad faith, unilateral moves that are undermining the consensus. And so I think rather than agreeing to a long term deal, for them to keep these agreements to a one year mark leaves also some room for adjustment and also revisit some of the terms and also examining the effectiveness and also the level of implementation of these agreements.
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B
William, thank you very much indeed. That was William Yang, senior Northeast Asia analyst for the International Crisis Group. Now still to come on the program.
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I spent eight years trying to reach.
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Him and then another seven trying to.
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Keep him locked up because I realized.
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That what was living behind that boy's.
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Eyes was purely and simply evil.
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It's Halloween. Karen Krasanovich will be here to tell us which scary movies to watch this weekend. This is the globalist.
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Craft is a matter of perspective, a unique outlook, an obsessive attention to detail. With UBS's Chief Investment Office House View, we're focused on identifying the latest investment opportunities and market risks to help you achieve your financial goals. So you get the big picture broken down into thought provoking insights delivered daily and curated by over 200 globally connected, locally active analysts. UBS banking is our craft.
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This is the Globalist. It's 7:21 here in London. I'm Georgina Godwin and we're continuing now with today's newspapers. In the studio with me is Simon Brooke, who's a journalist and a communications consultant. Good morning to you, Simon.
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Good morning.
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You are not in fancy dress?
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No. We might come to my attitude to Halloween a bit later when we talk about that.
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But still some pretty scary stuff out there, not least of which is this push from Trump to restart nuclear tests. This is a big story in the Washington Post and it's saying really it's not that Simple.
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H
Yeah, exactly. So the Washington Post reporters have been talking to experts and looking at the sort of technical difficulties involved in restarting the tests. And it reminds us, of course, that Donald Trump has talked about resuming nuclear testing immediately. But according to the paper, this has drawn confusion and alarm from some experts who argue that physical testing is outdated. And the thing is that this kind of testing would not be carried out by the Department of War, as it's now known, or the Pentagon, but it would be done by the U.S. energy Department's National Nuclear Security Administration, which operates the Nevada test Site. And the problem, according to former workers at this test site, is that a return to testing could be expensive and complex. According to the Washington Post, experience in physical testing has been lost, they said, because modern nuclear testing relies primarily on computer modeling. And according to the paper, people who have visited the facilities recently describe the equipment used to excavate the test site, which is obviously very important, is something of a rust pit. And it suggested as well that actually just restarting this testing could take years, according to some experts. And there's an interesting quote here from Ernest Moniz, who is a nuclear physicist, co chair of the Nuclear Threat Initiative and was also Energy Secretary during the Obama administration. He said it could take maybe a year. If you wanted to start to say, okay, you set off a nuclear explosion, don't worry about the data, you'd probably take off, take one of the weapons out of reserve, strip it down and then just set it off, he says. But anything more serious than that obviously would take a lot more work.
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B
And it's all been done for show, right?
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Oh, absolutely. There's a quote here in the paper about it costing as much as $100 million, but exactly. This is very much Donald Trump being able to the theatre, the big jet gesture, being able to sort of say to his opponents in Beijing, Moscow, Pyongyang, Tehran as well, or whatever that we have this nuclear capability.
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B
Let's cross to the Financial Times now. And this is following the saga of the Embassy of China, which they plan to build right in the city of London. It's incredibly sensitive, that area. And there are all sorts of worries about spying.
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H
Yeah, absolutely. So, yes, interestingly, the FT reports on that reminds us as well that this argument comes in the wake of the collapsed trial of two British men who were accused of spying for China. There's a furious row about whether the UK government was involved in some way in the legal process, caused it to collapse to help trade negotiations with China. But the FT also points out that not Only is China unhappy about the way we're slowing things down with their embassy as they see it. But the UK has a desire, according to the paper, to carry out significant rebuild of its long standing embassy in Beijing. And this has sparked wider cooling of relations, with some fear threatened, which some fear threatens to become a nuclear winter. So the problem is that the UK government would like to spend about £100 million to remake the British Embassy and the Ambassador's residence. But China has argued that it would like oversight of the renovation and even help to decide the construction company. Now, obviously that is ringing huge alarm.
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Bells throughout Whitehall and the plans for China's embassy here in Britain have been redacted. Beijing won't show them to anybody.
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H
It is bizarre. So what are these missing spaces? What would they be used for? And I think obviously this is a row between China and the UK at the moment. But that general question about to what extent do you go along with China's demands because of the. The benefits of trade is an issue that affect. A question that affects all kinds of countries, doesn't it?
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B
Now, two important elections this week, Dutch and Irish, but one piece of this is that both were hit by AI deepfakes. Let's go to Politico EU to see what they say on that.
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H
Yeah, as somebody who's involved in political campaigning and I lecture on it at Roehampton University in the uk, I was particularly interested in this story and really worrying. I think we knew this was going to happen, but. But yes, exactly as you say, Politico EU points out that it did happen during the Irish and the Dutch elections. So the piece begins when voters went to the polls to elect Ireland's next president. Some of them may have been surprised to see Catherine Connolly's name on the ballot. Just days before, a deepfake video showing her withdrawing from the race had been circulated with convincing imitations of Connolly and also a number of journalists. So. So this is really worrying. I think the Dutch story is even more worrying because two far right members of Parliament were found to be behind a Facebook page promoting deep fake images of their left wing rival ahead of Sunday's tight elections. They apologised and there was recriminations, but I think the fact that politicians themselves are beginning to do this is really worrying and there's a bit of research here that sort of 20,000 election related posts. In the Netherlands, researchers from the University of Amsterdam and the University of Mainz found that over 400 were AI generated. So it's not a huge amount, but you can see there's definitely momentum behind this. And what do politicians, authorities, voters do? I don't know.
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Okay, Halloween.
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You asked.
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Exactly.
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So the Daily Telegraph has this wonderful interview with an A and E doctor who says, why I hate Halloween. Dr. David Metcalfe is a consultant in emergency medicine at the John Ratcliffe Hospital in Oxford here in the uk. And he points out that normally if somebody stumbled into A and E with blood pouring from their neck, you know, they'd be pretty up high, high up the list of priorities. But these days, this time of year. Yeah, so what? Because it's a. It's just a Halloween stunt. However, there are genuine injuries that can be caused during Halloween. One is pumpkin hand. So when you're carving the pumpkin, if you're not careful, you'll cut a piece of your hand off. Even though that would make a great sort of Halloween stunt really, wouldn't it? Perhaps if you did go into A and E with your hand hanging off, they'd go, yeah, whatever, take the third seat on the left sort of thing. But anyway, all kinds of risks and dangers that are associated with Halloween.
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Eye ulcers because people wear contact lenses.
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Oh, yes, really? That is horrible, isn't it? And also people swallowing magnets because apparently nose piercings that are held together by one magnet on the outside of the nose and another on the inside can cause a particular problem as people swallow or inhale the magnet. I don't know. But as I said, I'm not a fan of Halloween, so this is just as far as I'm concerned. More evidence of the fact you should just boycott the whole dreadful affair.
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Grumpy. Simon Brooks, thank you very much indeed for coming in to speak to us. This is the Globalist. Now, here's what else we're keeping an eye on today. The US has slashed refugee admissions to 7,500 and will prioritise white South Africans, a move condemned as a politicized betrayal of persecuted people worldwide. Critics say Washington has torched decades of moral leadership in exchange for a culture war signal. Washington and New Delhi have signed a 10 year defence pact tightening military cooperation and technology sharing, underscoring how central India has become to the US strategy to counter China's influence. The agreement cements India as a core pillar in the Indo Pacific security architecture. And Barcelona's Sagrada Familia is now the tallest church in the world after workers place the first section of the cross on its central tower. The milestone brings Gaudi's 142-year-old masterpiece into its final stretch after decades of delay. From War lost plans and pandemic shutdowns. This is the Globalist. Stay tuned. It is 9:37 in Harare, 8:37 in Zurich and to Zimbabwe now where the Southern African Political Economy series Sapes Trust offices in Harare were firebombed and a security guard reportedly abducted just hours before a press conference challenging plans to extend President Emerson Munangagwa's rule to 2030. Well, Dr. Ibo Mandaza is the executive chairman of Sappers. He's with us now down the line from Harare. Ibo, it's great to talk to you. When did this attack happen and what exactly took place?
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G
It took place on 12:40am just the early hours of the morning of Tuesday between the 28th. The guard who was recovered later in the day reports that two vans arrived. There were 10 people armed. They apprehended him, tied his hands, gagged his mouth, threw him in one of the vans and proceeded to do what they did. Namely, they targeted the seminar room in which we have been meeting for almost 40 years. And the peers have put a bomb in there. And while they were attacking the building opposite the restaurant which they burned down two years ago, the bomb went off and they appeared shocked at their own, at the blood, and they got them running away from the scene, locked the gate with two padlocks and then drove off with the security guard.
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B
Now all of this comes back to this push to extend Emerson Mnangagwa's rule to 2030. You were planning to have a press conference which in fact did. Go ahead talking about this. Just give us a little bit more about his plans for this and who's behind it.
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G
Well, I should make the point that the surface was providing a venue for the press conference which was to be addressed by civic leaders, namely Gwisai Tendaibiti Ngarivume and Job Sikala.
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B
So all recognized opposition leaders.
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G
Yes. And we agreed to give them the venue. We have given the venue. It's a well known venue, I mean for public discourse and so on and so forth. And of course we subscribe to the views of these people, the majority of whom are Zimbabweans who are opposed to this mutilation of the constitution, were opposed to what we have always regarded as a state incapable of reform. Yes. So yes, we were a party to it. No doubt about that.
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B
This kind of intimidation isn't new in Zimbabwe. You will remember when my colleagues and I launched the country's first independent radio station back in 2001, we were branded enemies of the state. We were forced into exile for challenging the regime's control of information. Is this simply the latest chapter in the same playbook? Are we seeing this happening again and again and again? Is there any space in Zimbabwe for free speech?
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G
Well, you have to create the space. We have been around for almost 40 years and our main task has been to create space. You're not given space, you have to create it. And so the fight back continues. I believe that the regime is on the defense as it has been for almost 20 years, and I believe that the popular forces will prevail eventually. No doubt about that.
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B
In terms of the damage to your property, you've been very clear that you see this as an organized and deliberate act. I wonder if, if what evidence leads you to that, but also if there's been any response from the authorities and if there will be any kind of investigation.
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G
Well, it's incredible. There's been no statement at all from the authorities. On the contrary, the police presence was less to do with investigating the arson than having to ensure that the press conference did not take place. And that is really what happened. And up to now, there's not a single mention of this attack, Asan, except that the Zimbabwe Council of Churches yesterday issued a statement condemning it and also calling on the authorities to investigate it. Otherwise, there's been utter silence on the part of the state.
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B
Dr. Iba Mandaza, thank you very much indeed. Dr. Mendaza is the executive chairman of SAPES in Harare. You're with Monocle Radio. It's Friday, which means Monocle's contributing editor, Andrew Muller has been hard at work unpacking the last seven days for us. Here he is with this Week. What we learned.
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D
We learned this week that the extremely former UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn is to star in a pantomime.
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G
Oh, no, he isn't.
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D
Oh, yes, he is. Or to be clear, for the benefit of listeners who may have been following the somewhat slapstick birthday spasms of Corbyn's putative new political party, another pantomime. We learned that Corbyn had agreed to an on screen cameo in some ghastly sounding production in a small theatre in his North London constituency in which he will appear as the wizard of Oslington.
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F
Oh, no.
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D
We did not learn, however, and remain mystified by the decision of producers to cast Corbin as any variation of the wizard of Oz. After all, one is famous as a vainglorious charlatan who encouraged a cast of picturesque naifs to undertake a bewildering journey on the ultimately empty promise that he could solve all their problems with a variety of nebulous magic. And the Other first appeared in a novel published by L. Frank Baum in 1900, later adapted into a popular MGM musical starring Judy Garland. Look, we checked, right? And all the Widow Tanky jokes had been done. And at any rate we would have then had to do a whole thing for international listeners about how Tanky is a colloquial term for obdurate Stalinist and Widow Twanky is a character in the popular pantomime Aladdin. So actually Widow Tankey is genuinely very witty. Well done to everyone who got there before we did. But we learned that Corbyn was not the only Labor Party leader, past or present, UK or elsewhere, having an arguably awkward interaction with popular culture. And we also learned that fat headed culture war bun fights over nothing whatsoever are not an exclusively American province.
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B
Arriving back in Australia from his overseas.
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I
Trip, the Prime Minister stepped off the plane proudly wearing a T shirt with the name of a band Joy Division.
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D
We learned, yes, that Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had descended the stairs of his official aircraft wearing a Joy Division T shirt and that Australians were up in arms. Let's have a sound effect of an up in arms Australian struth. We learned upon further frankly reluctant investigation that the upness in arms struth being encouraged by Australian Opposition leader Susan Lay was not over the Prime Minister's taste in music as such, as indeed Joy Division made many fine records, as all discerning persons agree, or even over the propriety of 60 something men, never mind prime actual ministers wearing band T shirts in public, but over the admittedly unsavoury etymology of Joy Division.
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B
The name was taken from the wing.
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Of a Nazi concentration camp.
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We did not learn from this, obviously that Albanese endorses the policies and or sentiments to which Susan Lay alluded, because he doesn't. But we did learn that Albanese was big enough not to note that Susan Ley chose to put that double S in her name during her own teenage punk years, just saying etc. Or that she once drove a Volkswagen bargain. We learned anyway, and at least that not even all of Sue, SS and lay's coalition partners were willing to go along with this twaddle.
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F
There's a lot to legitimately criticise the Prime Minister about trillion dollar debt, skyrocketing house prices and job losses in our heavy industrial sector. Wearing a T shirt isn't one of them. I'm part of the troubled and forgotten ex generation that came of age listening and dancing to Joy Division and New Order.
- [40:39]
D
So we learned of Lee's attempt to weaponize Joy Division and we worked on this upcoming bit for some time. Pay attention that far from creating a hostile atmosphere for the Prime Minister with her transmission, she has merely caused her own colleagues to wonder if she's lost control. And at least Albanese didn't get off the plane in Washington in a dead Kennedys top. And on the subject of national leaders leaving Washington D.C. on official aircraft, we learned as U.S. president Donald Trump embarked on a tour of Asia that Earth's most powerful individual, the man upon whose whim human civilization lives from one minute to the next, is capable of telling the difference between certain large wild animals. So that was something.
- [41:29]
C
They're really aptitude tests I guess in a certain way, but they're cognitive tests. Let AOC go against Trump. Let Jasmine go against Trump. I don't think Jasmine. The first couple of questions are easy. A tiger, an elephant, a giraffe. You know when you get up to about 5 or 6 and then when you get up to 10 and 20 and 25. They couldn't come close to answering any of those questions.
- [41:54]
D
Although we learned from which that someone in the circle of the President of the United States appears to think it useful that he at least semi regularly takes the Montreal cognitive assessment test which is used to identify symptoms of dementia. Although we're sure reviewing his appearances on his Asian tour, there's absolutely nothing to worry about on that front.
- [42:16]
C
Now known as the Gulf America. Is it nice? They say it now routinely. I heard the news today. The Gulf of America weather is wonderful. They don't say it with a smile. It's called the Gulf of America. How did that happen? Right.
- [42:31]
D
We further learned that his plans for re establishing US hegemon in the Caribbean and we will further concede having been beaten to all the Donroe doctrine zingers. Well done. Everybody may not have ended there.
- [42:45]
H
The U.S. department of Defense announced it.
- [42:47]
D
Was moving the U.S. gerald Ford aircraft carrier and its strike group from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean to add even more firepower to the situation. We learned that yes, some old fashioned gunboat diplomacy is being brought to bear upon a particular Latin American capital, Caracas. It does seem at best an eccentric undertaking. Yes. For Monocle Radio, I'm Andrew Muller.
- [43:16]
B
Thank you, Andrew. This is the globalist on Monocle Radio.
- [43:23]
A
Iq, EQ and AI. Three components key to the craft of innovation at ubs. Because to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving age you need a partner with with decades of experience, endless passion for the work and A finger on the pulse of leading technologies, bridging human expertise with artificial intelligence. All to elevate you. Ubs. Banking is our craft.
- [43:59]
B
It is, as we have mentioned Several times, times 31 October, which is Halloween traditionally. This has always been more of a big deal in North America. So we've asked the critic Karen Krasanovich to join us to make some spooky weekend viewing suggestions. Karen, firstly, why. Why is Halloween such a big deal? I mean, here in London, I know I sort of tend to walk around Hampstead and as we walk past heavily decorated houses, we, we tut and go, ha. So American.
- [44:26]
J
It's true, it's true. Any excuse, really. And don't forget, we don't have culture. You know, you have culture. We have to make our own. This is a Celtic holiday. Traditional, isn't possibly pagan, but it's just, I mean, I think it just starts out with a deep love of dressing up in candy and then takes it down from there. But of course, the Halloween tonight is the thinnest veil between the worlds and all the spooky stuff. So if Mexico can celebrate Mexican Day of the Dead, then we can do it as well.
- [44:57]
B
Absolutely. Is it not just kind of begging at people's doors for sugar?
- [45:02]
J
Yes, it is, it is. And it's a good tradition.
- [45:06]
B
But one of the other traditions, of course, that people do at Halloween is watch scary movies.
- [45:11]
J
Yes, yes, you should, you should. Tonight, if you don't have one scheduled or you don't have tickets, you should go and scare yourself. Even if you don't like horror movies. I don't actually, but I can tell you there's some good ones. Yes.
- [45:25]
B
So tell us what we could be watching.
- [45:26]
J
Right, okay. Well, this year has been really good year for all sorts of things. Halloweeny and scary. Black Phone 2, for example, and the conjuring rites have been out. If you haven't seen them, they're very popular, dangerous animals, also very scary. And weapons. The one I was talking about a few weeks ago is another film you should see, or Sinner, and those are both this year. And Bring Her Back actually is extraordinary. A lot of people are missing this wonderful performance by Sally Hawkins by a very scary sort of Australian gothic horror movie. It's beautifully shot, but if you want to stay in it, it's weird because there have only been. There really hasn't. There really isn't a new release for tonight, which is unusual, but earlier this week, Shelby Oaks, the good old fashioned jump in your seat horror movie was released, I think two days Ago. And also Begonia, not actually a horror movie, but it has a lot of horror in it, is released today.
- [46:25]
B
Of course, there are lots of golden oldies, though.
- [46:28]
J
Many, many, many, many. And we watch them a lot in my house, I have to say. There's Halloween, 1978, who could forget? And then Halloween 4, which is another classic, 1998. If you want to go back to the 70s, you've got the town that dreaded sundown, 1974, I won't tell you any more about. And also Psycho too. The sequels. We think of Psycho, we think of the Exorcist, you can't go wrong with those. But also their sequels are really worth watching.
- [46:55]
B
Hmm. Now there's a bit of a horror related story. It's not actually a film. This is about Elsa Lanchester.
- [47:02]
J
Yes, yes. And it's Burt Lancaster and Elsa Lanchester. And I've been getting it wrong all my life. A friend of mine called Scott Michaels, who used to run Dearly Departed Tours in la, he's now based in Palm Springs, discovered that Elsa Lanchester, See, there I go again. Was not. Her ashes were not scattered at sea. They used to call neptuning if you're Neptune. That's what it means. In 1987. Now she was married to Charles Lawton. And don't forget that Charles Lawton's only film, first film and only film was Night of the Hunter, which is a wonderful classic with Robert Matthew, him. She didn't like where he was buried when he died, so she decided she wanted to be somewhere else. And they found records of her ashes at the Valhalla Memorial Park. And so they had an unveiling, I think two days ago or Tuesday, of a plaque for her commemorating her final resting place. And it says, Elsa Lanchester, bride of Charles Lawton, which I think is a lovely, lovely touch. And lots of people showed up that had worked with her, like Bruce Davidson and Bela Lugosi's daughter had sent a message and we had people that dressed up because, of course, don't forget her Bride of Frankenstein hair is iconic. We often see it on children today.
- [48:24]
B
Yeah, people dressing up this very, very day. Right. Are you dressing up tonight?
- [48:29]
J
I am dressed, actually. This is my costume. I'm going as an Avengers 4, which isn't out yet. This is the T shirt from the art department. I know it's a bit niche. I went to the gym and everybody was turning their heads. I thought, oh, they can read the symbols, which is nice. But yeah, tonight we will be, we will be going out and Looking for spooky things to do.
- [48:51]
B
Listen, a big news story has come in and I really think it's worth discussing. This was just. We just picked it up before the show came on air. This is about Netflix.
- [49:02]
J
Yeah. Yeah. Okay. We're always worried when studios go to buy other studios and it just seems like the. You can understand why they're doing it, but it means a compression of not only jobs, but also handling of ip, of new creation of films and things like that. So with this, the same company that handled the Skydance Paramount deal is looking into buying Warner Bros. Discovery for Netflix. Now, this doesn't seem like a big deal, but Warner Bros. Discovery has a lot of franchises in it. I think it has Harry Potter and DC franchises. And what's interesting is that three different sources have said that this company, this financial deal company is getting the financial data from Warner Brothers for Netflix. Now, we know that data is golden because Netflix doesn't like to show much of theirs. But if Netflix buys this, it will mean another compression for the industry. We used to have many studios, now we have just a handful of. And so I think it is slightly concerning not only for people that work in the industry, but also for people who enjoy watching things on Netflix because.
- [50:15]
B
It will ultimately give us less choice.
- [50:17]
J
Well, it will mean that we might have more choice in theory, but less choice in practice. For example, if Netflix owns something we want to see, they might not choose to stream it, they might not choose to make it available, or they might choose to. Let's say what we think. We think that the new James Bond movie is starting to cook now because there was a deal actually between Bollinger and Aston Martin, which you think, oh, what does that mean? But we're wondering what's going to happen to that franchise. And so I think we have to wonder about this as well. But one good thing is that if you're a big fan of anything on hbo, this will also include HBO on Netflix, if they so choose to stream it.
- [50:56]
B
Right. But what they don't want is its cable TV networks, which include cnn, tnt, Food Network, Animal Plan and all of that. They're not interested in that. In that side of it, they say we've been very clear in the past we have no interest in owning legacy media networks. What does this mean? That actually we've really seen that pivot now and it is all looking very much forward and away from those legacy brands.
- [51:23]
J
It scares me a little bit because it looks as if they're steering away from factual, from CNN or Food Network Animal Planet, documentaries and things like that actually educate. Sensational. I think they're finding those brands don't fit with what they're interested in doing. And also, I mean, I'm surprised they want hbo, but HBO does have a lot of entertainment and a lot of really wonderful things. I'm assuming that would include buying the Sopranos as well, which is nine series. I think it means that they're not interested in anything that is a brand that they can't put comfortably under the Netflix umbrella.
- [51:58]
B
Finally, Karen, I know that you're a film critic and not a theatre critic, but you. You did go to the theater last night.
- [52:03]
J
I did. Wow. Yeah, I only go a few times a year. It's a huge commitment. It's a lot of time. Movies are fast compared to the theater. But I went to see Alicia Vikander at the Bridge Theater, down by Tower Bridge, in the lady and the Sea, which is based on an Ibsen. Yeah, Ibsen ip. I suppose we'll put it that way. Wonderful performance. But again, like some theater I'd seen a couple months ago, not a spoiler, but it. The theatrical handling of the theater in the round where there was rain in the second act, and rain became a pool, and then it became a swimming pool, and then it became a pool that you could dive into, and that was just incredible. But the performances were great. It was a gripping story. Very, very pacey. And it was lovely to see one of the actors who dived in purposely flexing by the side of the pool to show off his muscles, because in the script it's said, and he's cut.
- [52:58]
B
There you go. I also went to the theatre. Fantastic play. The Woman at the Park Theatre in Finsbury Park. Brilliantly written, brilliantly staged, fantastically acted. I was blown away by it. I'm really hoping to get somebody either from the cast or perhaps even the writer on to talk to us about that, because it was lovely. Listen, Karen, enjoy Halloween. Thank you. You'll notice that I have come as a witch.
- [53:24]
J
You don't even look scary today. You know, you're not even making an effort.
- [53:28]
B
Karen Kasanovich, thank you. This is the go. Who writes this? The Ghoulbillist on Monaco Radio Lisbon is rolling out the red carpet this weekend for the European edition of the Tribeca Film Festival, the sister event to Robert De Niro's New York original. Now in its second year, Tribeca Lisboa brings big names like Kim Cattrall, Meg Ryan and Giancarlo Esposito to the Portuguese capital. But he's not just about celebrities. With tickets. Tickets priced at €15 and a focus on accessibility, the festival is also making a statement about culture, creativity and who gets to take part. Well, I'm joined now from Lisbon by the film producer Solene Leger. Solene, welcome to the show. What role does Tribeca Lisboa play within the wider film industry? Is it seen as a cultural pivot towards Europe?
- [54:44]
I
Hi. A very good question. So, you know, first I'll say it's only the second edition of Tribecales Boas, so it's still finding its feet, building its name, shaping its identity and showing what kind of festival it wants to be. But in my opinion so far, what's special is the mix. You know, it connects independent American filmmaking with Europe's creative energy. And it does so in a city that is is increasingly a hub for production, tech and culture. So it's really helping redefine, in my opinion, what a film festival can be. Not just screenings, but conversation, podcast and live music as well that brings together creator from different worlds. That's what they are succeeding it in that second edition as well, I think.
- [55:37]
B
I mean, it could have gone to anywhere in Europe. What made Lisbon the right fit?
- [55:43]
I
Lisbon is ideal for this. You know, it's a beautiful city.
- [55:46]
F
Yes.
- [55:47]
I
But more importantly, it's culturally diverse, very dynamic and affordable compared to other festival cities. So a good example is the venues. You know, it said it all. From, you know, the Convento do Beato to the Unicorn Factory in Beato's innovation district. It's a mix of heritage and innovation. And Lisbon already attracts artists and digital nomads. Now it's really hosting a world class creative event. And that event in particular.
- [56:25]
B
What does Lisbon get out of hosting this?
- [56:30]
I
I think it's both visibility and community. The festival draws international attention, but it also engages local talent. Talent. One example through schools like 42 Lisboa. You know, it's a free coding academy that trains young tech minds. Or you also have Tumor Lisboa. It's a creative learning center for teenagers, interesting in film, animation or design. So both venues are actually hosting festival events, from talks to live recording to master classes. So symbolically, it shows that Lisbon isn't just a backdrop, it's an active player in the creative exchange.
- [57:15]
B
Would you say that this was part of a repositioning for the original Tribeca Tribeca New York as a global storytelling brand?
- [57:23]
I
Yes, 100%. I mean, Tribeca has clearly moved beyond New York. This isn't just a European edition, it's a part of A strategy to become a worldwide storytelling platform. The brand now spans film, television, podcast, immersive experiences and live talks. And Lisbon is the first European stop. But the idea is a cultural cross pollination, I think, letting American and European creators learn from each other.
- [57:57]
B
And just briefly, how does Tribeca Lisboa balance star power with all those big names with the platforming of new and local voices?
- [58:06]
I
I know you, you said it in your, in your intro. I mean, Kim Cattrall, Meg Ryan are all part of this year's program with one stage, I mean big stage on conversation and spotlight. But the lineup also features new and local voices. I want to give you a precise example and I'm gonna watch that movie tomorrow. One of the highlights of this year program is the Portuguese premiere of a movie called Onijun. So the screening is tomorrow. The film is written and directed by Lillian T. Merrell. She's an American filmmaker and it's a US Portuguese co production entirely shot in the beautiful highland of Azores. And it's the perfect example of what Tribeca L stands for. Giving an international platform to a project that is both local in its roots and global in its reach.
- [58:56]
B
Salern, thank you so much. That's very, very interesting. And I'm quite sure that, that if people are in Lisbon this weekend, they will want to have a taste of that festival. Celine Lejer there. And that's all for today's programme. Thanks to our producers, Carlotta Rebelo, Tom Webb and Hassan Anderson, our researcher Joanna Moser and our studio manager, Christio Grady. After the headlines, there's more music on the way and the briefing is live at midday. In London, the Globalist returns at the same time on Monday. I'm twitching Godwin. Thank you for listening.
- [59:40]
A
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