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We're proud to support the craft of journalism. UBS brings you the latest news from around the world with the Globalist on Monocle Radio. Be part of an international network that brings together leading insights, research and technology across 24 time zones and 12 key financial hubs. With you at the centre of it all, UBS advice is our craft.
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Foreign.
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You're listening to the Globalist's first broadcast on 12 September 2025 on Monacle Radio. The Globalist in association with U.
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Hello.
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This is the Globalist broadcasting to you live from Midori House in London. I'm Georgina Godwin. On the show ahead, the President is.
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Unafraid to use the economic might, the military might of the United States of America to protect free speech around the.
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World despite threats from the usa. The former president of Brazil, Jair Balsonaro, has been found guilty of plotting a military couple. Russia withdraws from the European Convention on Prevention of Torture. We'll hear the legal view from an international rights organization. We'll have a look through the papers and hear why this season will be pivotal for storied Italian fashion house Bottega Veneta. We'll examine North Korea's leadership succession plans.
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And then we learned when the music mercifully ceased, however, that branching out further into stand up comedy, or indeed any discipline related to saying things out loud in public would be ill advised.
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Have Andrew Muller's usual wry look back at the week and then a roundup of news from the Nordics and on your bike, Japan's new penalties for pedal power. That's all ahead here on the Globalist live from London. First, a look at what else is happening in the news. China's most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, has sailed through the Taiwan Strait into the South China Sea. On sea trial Taiwan is issuing updated civil defense guidelines that for the first time tell citizens how to respond if they see enemy troops. And Nepal is set to name former Chief Justice Sushila Khaki as interim prime minister after anti corruption protests toppled. KP Sharma Ali do stay tuned to Monocle Radio throughout the day for more on those stories Now. Jair Bolsonaro, the former president of Brazil, has been convicted of plotting a coup after losing the 2020 election and sentenced to 27 years in prison. Well, I'm joined now by Antonio Sampao, who's an expert on Latin American politics and security. Antonio, many thanks for joining us on the Globalist. Why is this ruling being hailed as historic?
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So this is the first time that Brazilian former Brazilian president is found guilty of attempting to stage a coup. Of course, Brazil has had coups in the past, but it hasn't reached the Supreme Court or being judged in the justice system. So this is a first for Brazil. And Bolsonaro, of course, is a major, major figure in the Brazilian political scene, even though he had already been sort of blocked from seeking any political job in the future due to another judicial decision a few years ago, Bolsonaro is sentenced to 27 years. And this is a major development for his supporters. He's still a very popular figure among the right wing in Brazil. And he himself personally will be the person to name his successor. And that is another thing that we're watching.
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So just remind us of the timeline of the coup plot and Bolsonaro's role in it.
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So according to the investigations, the Prosecutor General of Brazil and the Supreme Court, there has been a person who made a plea bargain, who was his former secretary, right wing man called Maurusiji. He was also among those to be sentenced yesterday, but he got a very, very. A much smaller sentence of two years due to his role in the plea bargain. So according to these statements and some documents, Bolsonaro attempted to convince the heads of the armed forces of the need to stage a coup. According to him, due to manipulations of the Brazilian electoral system, which was the target of several fake news, news attempts and statements by right wing influencers that he wasn't trustworthy, even though Bolsonaro himself had been elected to the system. So the thing that really made the coup attempt just an attempt, was the fact that two of the three heads of the armed forces, the ones for the army and the air force, refused Bolsonaro's approach to stage a coup. And one of the people sentenced Yesterday, actually to 24 years, slightly less than Bolsonaro was the head of the navy at the time. That was also. And he himself was the only one of the three heads of the armed forces to accept and be part of the coup. So due to this resistance of the other two heads, the coup did not not go forward.
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Tell us more about Washington's reaction.
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So the US has been very active, an unexpected player in this sentence, in this process. And the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has reacted already to the sentence by stating on acts that Brazil that the US will take new measures against Brazil due to the, what he called the persecution of Bolsonaro by. And he named specifically one of the judges, one of the justices that issued the ruling, Alexander de Morais. He was also the one who made the report, the Rapporteur of the trial. And he, he is known for being a very active justice of the Supreme Court, interfering or issuing judgments on policies implemented by the executive branch of the power. So he has achieved a certain controversy in Brazil. And of course, Brazil is already seeing the effects of a tariff of 50%. So Brazil was among, of course, the many countries that the US had imposed tariffs, that Trump had imposed tariffs a few months ago. But the tariffs on Brazil had been at the time only 10%. And due to the progress of the trial against Bolsonaro and reportedly due to lobbying by Bolsonaro's son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, who is in the US right now, Trump increase this tariff against Brazil to 50%. Now, it is not clear what else the US can do and will do in regards to that, but it's very clear that Trump is not taking a passive approach to this trial.
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I mean, as one left wing politician in Brazil said, in Brazil, coup mongers go to jail in the US they get back into the White House. I mean, how is Lula managing this US Pressure?
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So Lula is facing an interesting or in a very complicated situation because on one hand, politically, this measure, this, these tariffs and sanctions by the US have in a way benefited Lula because he, he was not doing very well. His popularity was declining. And this perceived attack or interference by the west in a very technical judicial matter inside Brazil, clearly an internal affair has given Lula sort of a cause to defend Brazil against. But on the other hand, the tariffs are very real and they have very practical effect on, on the pockets of Brazilians and inflation. And there are several economists who have already predicted that Brazil will have a much smaller GDP due to these tariffs. So all in all, these two factors, the political leadership of resisting Trump and the economic damage, they sort of cancel each other out. And Lula has not been very severely punished, at least in the polls. But Trump, bad Lula has not attempted to negotiate very much with us. He said that he will not call Trump to negotiate this, but he will call Trump to talk about COP30, which will be in November in Brazil. So he's taking a practical approach and taking, you know, a position of pride approach against, against Trump.
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And finally, Antonio, briefly, how divided is Brazil? What is the feeling on the ground now and the future for, for the right?
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So Brazil remains divided and Bolsonaro retains a very, very large support of, of the, of the population and Poles right before the sentencing showed that if Bolsonaro were to run for election, Lula and him were at the same level in the polls around 40%. So that's the level of support he has what the trial, and not so much the trial, but the tariffs that Trump imposed and the role that his son had in that has called for many Brazilians has evoked calls that he is not a very patriotic figure because of the damage that the starfs are having already in Brazil. So many experts have predicted that these tariffs and these measures will switch those who are not his hardcore supporters against Bolsonaro. So the ones that were in doubt about Bolsonaro or his successor will.
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Go.
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Away from this political movement due to, due to this anti patriotic act that he did. Now, one important thing to remember is that there have been some movements in Brazilian Congress for an amnesty and that has been advanced by some members of his party, the Liberal Party, pele. Now it has lost some momentum in recent weeks, but you know, it's something that can happen in the future. And the tariffs and the desire by the lawmakers to correct these tariffs and convince Trump to withdraw them has been a factor.
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Antonio, thank you very much indeed. That's Antonio Sampao, who's an expert on Latin American politics and security. This is the globalist. 12 minutes past 9 in Moscow. 712 here in London. Vladimir Putin has initiated the process of withdrawing Russia from the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture. This is an international agreement protecting people from torture and which also allows independent monitors to inspect prisons. Well, to look at what this means, I'm joined now from Kyiv by Jeremy Pizzey, who is a legal adviser to the International Human Rights Foundation, Global Rights Compliance. Jeremy, thanks for coming on the show. I wonder if you could give us the background on the context of Russia's withdrawal from this agreement.
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Yes, of course.
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Lovely to be here. And yes, in terms of a bit of a background overview, this has been long foreshadowed by Russia since the full scale invasion, at least. The European Committee charged with monitoring respect for this convention indicated that Russian authorities were engaged in a long standing, ongoing failure to cooperate with them. So the Committee had indicated for quite a while that it had tried to engage in constructive dialogue with Russian authorities, but was effectively rebuffed from carrying out any visits or given no response to any of its requests. And so this is really part of a pattern. This is part of Russia's ongoing attempt to extricate and isolate itself from international obligations linked to human rights violations, whether it's the UN Human Rights Council or Access for the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights or the UN Committee Against Torture itself. So it's part of a pattern but.
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What will it mean in practice? I mean, it seems that Moscow's already behaving in a way that runs counter to this agreement anyway.
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Yeah, well, that's well noted. And my opinion, and my view is that it actually, it doesn't change anything effectively in practice, because that is exactly true. Russia is already preventing access in violation of the treaty. So practically speaking, it doesn't have much effect other than being another effort on Russia's part to simply prevent access to detainees, whether it's the ICRC or whether it's now this Committee. However, it should have practical effects in terms of how states respond to it, because torture is a peremptory norm of international law. It's a norm. It's a rule of supreme importance, which effectively means that just like the International Court of Justice has said, when a state decides to engage in a serious breach of it, like Russia is doing and is adding on to it with these actions, states have an obligation not to recognize the. The legal validity of any consequences of it. So the. All of the criminal sentences that are handed to Ukrainian prisoners of war subsequent to torture should never be recognized. And states should focus on this even more now that Russia has demonstrated the willingness to which it seems to want to commit torture as a state policy or not provide any aid or assistance to this. So it should have practical effects in terms of how states respond, but in terms of how we monitor Russia, it has no practical effects.
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And what does it mean symbolically, then?
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I think it's mostly quite a profoundly disturbing signal that Russia must feel, I would assume, from these acts that it has more horrendous behavior to hide from the world. So in a symbolic sense, it represents Russia's broad rejection of all protections that international law affords to the integrity of human beings. So it's effectively another indicator of Russia's willingness to use torture as a state policy. And it's an attempt, rather symbolically, to normalize abhorrent behavior that is emphatically prohibited under international law and all basic international human rights treaties.
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Has the Kremlin attempted to justify the move at all?
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Russia's argument seems rather unclear in this regard. It mainly seems to revolve around the fact that it was removed from the Council of Europe, and it feels like it no longer needs to abide by any treaties that may or may not be linked to or associated to this body. But that is legally incorrect, as this treaty is completely separate from membership to the Council of Europe. So it's. So it's more of a sense of vindictiveness. If anything else, this sense of justification, how Russia's presented it, and what can.
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Bodies like yours, the Global Rights Compliance, do about this? Are there any protections that exist?
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Our goal, I would say, is dual, at least in the way that we work. So our main role is in part to advocate outside of Ukraine, but also we are engaged within Ukraine in assisting Ukrainian authorities to investigate and prosecute torture or related offenses that are committed by Russian forces or officials. And so what happens is, while for now, of course, sensibly, most Russian officials or perpetrators are not within Ukrainian custody or within the custody of any other states, but the goal is to investigate and build cases that are solid enough, which then can be used for, for example, international arrest warrants, or at least European arrest warrants, where we can try on the principle of universal jurisdiction, so that where Russian perpetrators go into other countries in the world, they can still be brought to justice, even if they aren't coming to Ukraine, or alternatively, to build a clear base of responsible people for sanctioning purposes. So in both those ways, those, I think, are the main avenues moving forward to try to get some form of redress, at least in the medium term, for these violations.
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Jeremy, thank you. That's Jeremy Pizzi, who's legal adviser at the International Human Rights Foundation, Global Rights Compliance now. Still to come on the program, Japan puts the brakes on the cycle of traffic violations as it introduces new penalties for bike riders. This is the Globalist. Craft is its own reward. Which is why at UBS, we're honoured to work alongside over 50 of today's leaders, Nobel Laureates, each an expert in the art of economic science, bringing you engaging discussions, actionable insights and inspired solutions, all focused around the questions that shape our world today. For a better outlook, find a Nobel perspective. UBS banking is our craft. 7:19 here in London. Hello, London, I'm Georgina Godwin. This is the Globalist. And joining me in the studio is Zoe Grunwald, who is Westminster Editor at the lead. Zoe's here to have a look through the front pages. And, Zoe, dominating everything in Britain today, certainly, is the sacking of Peter Mandelson. He was the UK Ambassador to the US and he has been removed from that role after various allegations came to light about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. What this is doing is, of course, putting the spotlight on Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, and questioning his judgment in putting Mandelson in that post in the first place.
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Yeah, absolutely, because more and more has been coming out over the week since, of course, we saw that birthday book which had a Message from Peter Mandelson to Jeffrey Epstein in there calling him his best pal. Previously, Mandelson has batted down suggestions and questions about his relationship with Epstein. But more and more information has come to light this week about Mandelson having done deals with the disgraced financier since he was put in prison for a sex offense against a child. Now, the latest bit of news is that actually Mandelson's relationship with Epstein was flagged to security officials during the appointment process. And now the big question is, was Keir Starmer aware of this relationship? And if so, why did he deem it appropriate to put this man, Peter Mandelson, in a position of power? And this, of course, is coming off the back of a series of really difficult pieces of news for the Prime Minister, not least the challenge he's getting from Nigel Farage and reform. Also, obviously, the resignation of his Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, last week over her tax affairs. There are more and more questions about Keir Starmer's judgment and actually, I think a question about his advisors as well, what they knew, whether they're advising him correctly. This issue has actually become quite existential, I think, for the Prime Minister.
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Well, of course, one of his key advisers, Morgan McSweeney, was a great ally of Mandelson.
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Yes, absolutely. And there are now allegations even from the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, who some are suggesting is starting to prepare his potential leadership bid. He basically said, this is what happens when you put factions before the party's good and the country's good. So there is now this kind of suggestion of open warfare in the Labour Party, as people are suggesting. Mandelson was put in post because he might have been a loyalist to Morgan McSweeney and Keir Starmer. But why was this not anticipated, that these allegations and this relationship between Mandelson and Epstein would come back to light and come back to haunt him.
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What does this mean for foreign policy? Because, as we know, of course, Donald Trump is due to make a state visit to the the UK very soon. Mandelson was key in planning this. And of course, Trump is accused of exactly the same things that Mandelson has been sacked for doing.
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This is why it's very politically difficult. So this week, the Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch, really stuck the knife in at PMQS about Peter Mandelson. But, of course, if you're saying that you believe the birthday book and everything in the birthday book is true, obviously, with Peter Manson's message, it does also obviously put Donald Trump on The spotlight and it's certainly UK leaders are very, very nervous about you in Donald Trump's bad book. So it is a difficult diplomatic line to toe. But definitely Donald Trump and Keir Starmer will be worried, I think, about the state visit next week, the renewed focused on Epstein and of course any questions reporters might have about Donald Trump's relationship with Epstein as well.
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Well, in the United States, of course, there's been something that's overtaken and eclipsed the Epstein story temporarily at least, and that's the shooting of Charlie Kirk. There's an update on this because the FBI has found the weapon and they're now asking the public to identify the suspect in the assassination. This young far right leader.
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Yes. So they've released a series of stills of the suspect leaving the vicinity, which was at Utah Valley University after the shooting. They've offered, the FBI have offered a hundred thousand dollar reward leading to the arrest of the suspect. As you said, they've discovered the older model high powered bolt action 30 caliber hunting rifle was wrapped in a towel near the scenes. They've also found magazine rounds. So they found the weapon. But still the suspect is on the run. And obviously this is really unusual US with US law enforcement. Suspects are apprehended very, very quickly. So I think the longer this goes on, the much more worrying it is, especially because those political tensions in the US were already very fraught. This obviously looks politically motivated. Obviously Kirk was an incredibly controversial figure, the Turning Point USA co founder and a voice for the kind of the populist right movement in America. So tensions are really, really high. And I think there is a worry that unless they apprehend the suspect quickly, things could get out of control.
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And I mean, there were scenes in Congress weren' when there was a call for a minister's silence and shouting and disagreement came out.
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Yeah, absolutely. So the Republican House Speaker, Mike Johnson, had to urge members of Congress to turn down the temperature after the murder of Kirk. And this is, you know, on both sides where particularly those on the kind of left are pointing out that Kirk was an incredibly controversial figure, made lots of disparaging marks about minorities, immigrants, LGBT people. And yet, of course, those on the right are saying, you know, this is could almost be justifying political violence. We need to be very careful about what we say and we just can really feel the rhetoric and the temperature ramping up now.
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And of course some kids had been shot earlier that same day in a school shooting. And I think that was one of the reasons they were objecting to a minute's silence.
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Absolutely. And Charlie Kirk himself had said before he believed that gun deaths were a price that had to be paid for freedom when it came to gun control. So, again, opening up that debate about gun control as well as we know, is a real hot button issue in the US and very much is on the divide between left and right.
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Well, guns very much in the center of everybody's consciousness at the moment, particularly NATO. They're strengthening defenses after Russian drones were shot down over Poland. What's the detail on this story?
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Yes. So several NATO members have now committed to sending various things to Poland. So this includes troops, artillery, air defense systems, all to kind of secure that eastern flank in Poland where we saw that unprecedented Russian drone incursion into the airspace. Poland has requested a session with the UN Security Council about the incident, which will take place this evening. The Netherlands and the Czech Republic have all said they're going to send defenses. Lithuania is going to receive a German brigade because obviously there are warnings that the Russian attacks on Ukraine could spill over there. Donald Trump obviously has been trying to broker a peace in this region, but he's kind of sat on the fence a little bit with this. He told reporters last night that he thinks the alleged incursion might have happened by mistake. Obviously, other European parties are not so sure about that. Poland has said they think it was a test of their boundaries, of their powers. And other EU countries have said that they think that this is more Russian provocation. And obviously NATO needs to respond as strongly as possible. And all in alliance with each other.
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Absolutely. Well, whatever the truth of it, Russia's certainly not invited into Poland. And nor was this rather tall man who was anything but inconspicuous when he went to a wedding to which he was not expected.
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No. So this is a really funny story. So four years ago, this couple, Michelle and John Wylie, had a wedding. And when they got the photos back, they noticed that there was a mysterious man in the photos in the church. They couldn't find him. They asked relatives, they asked friends and family. They asked stuff. Who was this man in the picture? Why was he at their wedding? Nobody knew. And it became a bit of a mystery. You know, people saying, was he a ghost? Who was he? Anyway, it turns out, obviously, all these. All these things have rational answers. This man wandered into the. The wrong wedding by mistake when he was supposed to go to a different wedding. When he realized, he thought, well, I can't duck out loud. That would be rude, so I'll just have to stand there and smile. And then as soon as the, the ceremony was over, he managed to get away, not before taking a can of coke with him, which I think was quite a funny detail.
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And I just love it. He was sort of talking about how to his horror, he got caught in the photographs and was trying to sort of shrink down, but was so tall.
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That's right, he's 6 foot 2. So he was saying he just knew this was going to happen. But it is really funny, isn't it, when you stumble into a situation like that and you think it's a very British. You think, I'm just gonna have to go along with this and just sort of keep my head down and smile for the couple. I think it's quite nice. And also, you know, this couple were thinking, is he a stalker? You know, who is this man? I think they'll be very relieved. It's a very funny story to know it's just some random guy who just had to appear happy for them for a moment.
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Zoe, thank you very much indeed. That's Zoe Grunwald there who's Westminster editor at the lead. This is the Globalist on Monocle Radio Radio. Now here's what else we're keeping an eye on today. China's most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, has sailed through the Taiwan Strait into the South China Sea on sea trials. The vessel, first unveiled in 2022, is expected to join the fleet soon, but has not yet formally entered service. Taiwan is issuing updated civil defense guidelines that for the first time tell citizens how to resp if they see enemy troops. The handbook also warns people to treat any claim of Taiwan's surrender as false, reflecting rising pressure from China. And Nepal is set to name former Chief Justice Sushila Khaki as interim prime minister after anti corruption protests toppled KP Sharma Ali. The unrest, triggered by a short lived social media ban, killed 34 people and injured more than 1,300 before before Oli stepped down. This is the Globalist. Stay tuned now for a look behind the headlines. Here's Monocle's fashion director Natalie Teodosi on why the upcoming season will be crucial for Italian fashion house Bottega Venice Veneta.
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This autumn will be pivotal for Bottega. Veneta. The Italian luxury label is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its signature intreciato or interwoven leather, while at the same time preparing to unveil the first collection designed by its newly appointed creative director, Louise Trotter. To celebrate its big milestone, the house has released a campaign craft design language which pays homage to Italian graphic designer Bruno Munari, it highlights the house's commitment to handwork. Intrecciato clothing and accessories require the expertise of trained artisans who weave the leather by hand. The brand's CEO, Leo Rongone told us about how the Intrecciato has embodied Bottega Veneta craft and creativity for 50 years. He also pointed out that the house has never been defined by a logo, but rather by the softness of its leather and the excellence of its craft, and Intrecciato distills these qualities. To mark the beginning of the fashion season, a pop up space in London's Harrods department store has just opened. La Tavola, a walnut wooden table inspired by the communal workshop tables the labels artisans work from, is at the center of the space where you can shop stationery, the new Mezzanote perfume collection and exclusive bag designs in the brand's signature emerald green hue. Furniture also features interlocking wood and concrete structures, another homage to the Interciato and the label's ongoing fascination with the world of architecture. As Rongone added, cultural advocacy has always been at the heart of the Botteca Veneta mission.
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Monocle's fashion director Natalie Teodosi there and for more you can sign up to our daily newsletter, the monocle minute@monocle.com minute this is the Globalist. It's 1531 in Pyongyang, 831 in Zurich. South Korea's intelligence agency reported this week that Kim Jong Un's daughter has solidified her standing as a potential successor to lead the Pyongyang Pyongyang regime. Kim brought his daughter on an official visit to China recently and featured her prominently in state media, which intelligence officials view as signaling his succession plans. Well, I'm joined now by Robert E. Kelly, who's professor of political science at Busan National University in South Korea. Robert, many thanks for coming on the show. What do we know of Kim's daughter?
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Not a whole lot. She's 15. We know her name. You know, we've seen her, which actually is sort of important. Kim Jong Un, we believe, has two other children, including a son who is older than the daughter. His name is Ju A. We don't actually know much about the son. There's sort of a rumor about his name, but as far as I know there are no photographs of him. And it's notable that if the son is indeed 15 and the daughter is 12, it's notable that Kim Jong Un has chosen the daughter for promotion and publicity rather than the son North Korea's pretty reactionary place in terms of gender norms and sort of cultural behaviors and so on. And so you would presume that the male who's older would be the natural monarchic successor, but that doesn't seem to be the case. But that's all we really know about her, right? We've seen pictures of her staying in front of like missiles and stuff like that. But you know, we don't actually know anything like what she likes and, you know, what she does and what she's learning in school. We just, we don't know any of that.
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I mean, there are some people suggesting that the son is being secretly groomed for the role. Can we gain any insight into that when we look at Kim's own succession when he came to power?
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Yeah, that's actually a really good point because that actually was the case for him, Right. The previous Kim, there have been three, this is the current one, Kim the second had multiple children by multiple women. And so there's some jockeying and competition. And Kim Jong Un was off getting an education in Switzerland. We know this now. And that was all sort of under the radar at the time. And so it's possible that Kim the fourth, I suppose the son is off, you know, I don't know, secretly a student in some school in Tokyo or Mexico or whatever. But, you know, I mean, that's all just sort of speculation. But I mean, you are correct that it was the path for dad, the current Kim. So it's possible that the son is doing the same.
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So back to the daughter. Why is she being spoken of as the potential successor? Just because she's been thrust into the media spotlight at the moment? Moment?
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Well, I mean, she wouldn't have been thrust in the sense that she like, didn't actually happen by accident or something like that, right? I mean, Kim put her out there, right? I mean, he chose to do that by bringing her to Beijing and that was pretty exceptional, right? I mean, Kim Jong Un is going off to meet, you know, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping and all these other big important guys in North Korean diplomacy. And he brings along his 12 year old daughter, which is pretty remarkable. And apparently there was some, there was some unhappiness, there was some disdain for that on the Chinese side. You don't know too much about that, but that's the rumor. But that tells you pretty clearly that she's sort of the number one choice. Again, we don't know, but that's pretty rare and it's obviously pretty out of the ordinary to bring your 12 year old daughter to some big heavyweight diplomatic thing. So I think that's why this is happening, right? I mean, North Koreans chose to do this. This didn't just sort of happen. I mean, this has all been stage managed.
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What is the process of publicly indicating a success? Why is the process of publicly indicating success a candidate important for North Korea? Why do they do this?
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Well, I mean, North Korea is a dictatorship, right? I mean, it's a monarchy. There are a lot of factions inside North Korea that could potentially sort of overthrow or turn into a figurehead, a weak successor. There was concern back in 2011, 2012, this might happen to the current Kim, Kim Jong Un, who, as we discussed, was sort of unknown, he's sort of been spirited back from, from Switzerland and suddenly end up as the super great Korean leader in just a few years because his father had had a pancreatic stroke from his alcoholism and suddenly was, you know, on death's door. And so, you know, if I. My sense and my guess here is that Kim sort of saw his own succession as kind of like rocky and it was a little bit risky because he'd only gone through the process for three years. Right. And so he's laying out his daughter's path to succession early. Right. Kim jong Un himself, 41. I mean, he's not very good health, overly obese, he smokes a lot and stuff like that. But if we hang on for another 20 years, that's 20 years that he has to sort of like find out who would succeed, who would support the daughter and who wouldn't, and then purge those people who wouldn't. So this is like the long run up, given that, you know, her succession would probably be controversial because she's a female.
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Robert E. Kelly, thank you very much indeed. This is Monocle Radio. And now it's Friday. So here's our new musings on the events of the last seven days.
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We learned this week that not absolutely everything is necessarily what it looks like.
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I can't wait to see where this goes.
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Please enjoy the generic German Oompa music. It is scene setting. And that we learned this valuable lesson about waiting until the facts were in before leaping to conclusions. From the Bavarian settlement of Schwabach, Big hello to all our listeners in Schwabach.
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Hello.
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D
We learned that residents of a particular apartment block in Schwabach had been deprived of their slumbers by persistent ringing of their doorbells late at night. Exactly. We learned that suspicion had come fallen upon local rapscallions playing Klingelstreik The German variant of that hugely amusing game involving ringing a doorbell, then running away. Throw a blanket on the producer, they're on fire. We learned, however, that the actual culprit was a slug sliding back and forth along the bell plate. Let's see how the producer goes with this. Amazing. But we also learned that some things absolutely are what they look like. We learned this actually technically late last week, but it's hardly our goddamn fault if insurgent populace socialist cults start their party conferences on a Friday afternoon. For we learn something of what awaits the United Kingdom, the other side of the next general election. If opinion polls are any guide. We learned four starters from the Party Conference of Reform uk, the symposium to which we allude that Dame Andrea Jenkins, Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, fancies herself as a singer songwriter, which in fairness is no more or less daft than her fancying herself as mayor of Greater Lincolnshire. We learned when the music mercifully ceased, however, that branching out further into stand up comedy, or indeed any discipline related to saying things out loud in public would be ill advised.
- [39:51]
B
Labour government in their recent rounds of transportation funding have bypassed both Luke and I and our areas, but instead chose to give the funding to the Labour metro mayors. How about booing?
- [40:09]
D
You'd need to wake them up first. Tough crowd etc. We learned, however, that Dame Andrea was not really the luminary in whom whose aura Reform UK supporters had schlepped to Birmingham to bask.
- [40:27]
A
Ladies and gentlemen, please give the warmest.
- [40:30]
B
Of welcomes to Lucy Connolly.
- [40:36]
D
We learned that the worthy personage who reform UK's core support of law and order enthusiasts would rise to applaud was someone recently released from prison after serving 40% of a third 31 month stretch for inciting racial hatred. Specifically using her social media account to urge the burning down of hotels housing migrants to which she pled guilty and slash butt, who is now being styled by Britain's more excitable conservative tendencies as basically Nelson Mandela.
- [41:05]
A
The sheer injustice she has suffered has shocked millions of people across Britain and.
- [41:10]
B
Indeed across the whole world. She's a wonderful, wonderful mum, wife, beloved.
- [41:15]
A
Child, mind, a little kids from every corner of the earth. She's taken wonderful care of. So I am of course referring to Britain's favorite political prisoner, which you may.
- [41:28]
D
Be shocked to learn wait for it was not quite the most surprising thing we Learned at Reform UK's conference.
- [41:37]
G
It's highly likely that the country Covid vaccines have been a factor, a significant factor in the cancer of members of the Royal family.
- [41:47]
D
Sure, why not? Still despite what the polls appear to be trying to tell us, we, for one humorous news monologue, are not concerned about where all this might be leading. As if we've learned one thing from the recent history of the world. It is that the citizens of a prosperous, functional and orderly democracy and general admired nation would never be so foolish and credulous and self defeating as to voluntarily entrust the sombre responsibilities of national government to a rabble of obvious quacks, charlatans, crooks and weirdos led by someone from whom you would not purchase double glazing.
- [42:22]
B
The President did not write that letter. He did not sign those documents. He maintains that position.
- [42:33]
D
Yes, we learned more about the awkwardly and indeed increasingly well documented friendship between US President Donald Trump and the late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. We learned, and to be honest, kind of admire House Speaker Mike Johnson for giving this line a whirl, that Trump was not, despite what appearances may well suggest, a compadre and or customer of Epstein, but was instead all along nobly risking the tarnishing of his own gleaming reputation to unravel Epstein's racket from within.
- [43:03]
F
He was an FBI informant to try.
- [43:05]
I
To take this stuff down.
- [43:07]
D
So we would appear to have learned that despite the Jeffrey Epstein saga being.
- [43:11]
I
A Democrat hoax that never ends, the.
- [43:15]
D
FBI had nevertheless at one maddeningly unspecified point, sent the future of President of the United States undercover to gather information on the figure at the center of this thing, which was not happening. Or and bear with us, we learned.
- [43:29]
I
That the other documents released by the House Oversight Committee contained a photo of Jeffrey Epstein holding an oversized check that was made out to him from the President. I wondered if the President has any recollection of that, or what do you guys make of that photo that was included in those documents?
- [43:46]
B
Did you see the signature on that check? It is not Donald Trump. Trump's signature?
- [43:50]
D
Yes. We learned that the Democratic Party's dirty tricks division had decided 22 years ago to forge the signature of the host of imminent NBC game show the Apprentice, who was at the time a registered Democrat and a donor to Hillary Clinton on a deeply unsavoury birthday greeting to a child trafficking pimp, had somehow secreted it among Jeffrey Epstein's effects in anticipation of his untimely demise in murky circumstances 16 years later, and had then waited until Trump had not only run for and won the Republican nomination for the White House three times, but been twice elected president before releasing it all sounds entirely plausible when you put it like that. Am I right? For Monocle Radio, I'm Andrew Muller.
- [44:43]
A
Many thanks to Andrew. This is the Globalist on Monocle Radio with ubs. You have a truly global partner incorporating new technologies, innovative approaches and unexpected opportunities, leading you to insights that help answer the questions that matter. Delivered with passion, care and unmatched expertise. Because it's about rising with the dawn each day, knowing that we can do even better. That's what banking is to us. Not just work, but a craft. UBS banking is our craft. I'm joined now from Helsinki by our correspondent in the city, Petri Burtsoff, to give us a round of Nordic news. Petri, good morning to you. What are you up to today?
- [45:38]
I
Good morning, Georgina. It's been quite a tough, in a good way, tough week. It's the Helsinki Design Week and as you know, with design weeks, it's just endless array of events and parties that stretch into the night and then start again in the early morning. And it's sort of the final weekend of that. So still, I think two, no, three days to go. I'm losing track of time.
- [46:01]
A
Too much socializing. How my heart bleeds for you, Paul. Petri.
- [46:05]
C
Exactly.
- [46:07]
A
Listen, tell us about the new design and architecture museum and the winning entry for that.
- [46:14]
I
Yes, speaking of design. So this was of course a very significant international architecture competition for what is set out to be really a landmark building in sort of south harbor of Helsinki, which is really the center of Helsinki and the city central skyline of Helsinki. And they revealed the winning entry out of, I think They've received over 600 entries from sort of leading architecture practices around the world. And they revealed the winning entry yesterday during the, during the Helsinki Design Week. And it's a local architecture studio, JKMM Architects, they've done other museums as well, a very critically acclaimed studio. And their entry called Kumma, which funnily enough translates a Finnish word that translates as sort of odd or strange. But I think the building doesn't look that strange at all. It's a beautiful white building that will sit at Helsinki's waterfront, includes a large outdoor terrace open to all citizens. But the catch here is that we have to wait five years before it's completed. So they will start sort of the, the groundwork for the construction has already started when they start constructing the actual building in 2027. But it will be, you know, it will house Finland's design and architecture museums, which are currently separate museums. And this will really be sort of the flagship museum showcasing Finnish design and Finnish architecture to the world.
- [47:44]
A
Excellent. And I've just been looking at pictures of it. It's very geometric, isn't it?
- [47:49]
I
Yeah, it is. It's quite angular, but then also sort of like, you know, rounded, soft, soft corners and white buildings. So it's. I mean, the requirements were. Because it sits sort of in front of neoclassical historic buildings, so it shouldn't be too much of a sort of a statement, but it still needs to be an iconic building, but it needs to also sit in its surroundings. I think the winning entry is actually has pulled that trick off quite well. And then there's also all these requirements for sustainability. They use recycled bricks and bricks and stuff, so on.
- [48:18]
A
Right. Right, let's move on to Sweden now, which is lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 15. Why?
- [48:28]
I
Right, first of all, yes, you said from 15. We don't know yet what the new age will be. Studies have shown, or studies have suggested rather that it should be lowered to 14, but it might be that they lower it to. It to even lower. And the reason for this is. This is almost like something out of a movie. But basically criminal gangs in Sweden have for some years now have actually used underaged people. So essentially children under 15 for their gang crimes, assassinations and so on for this very reason, because they cannot be prosecuted. They're under the age of criminal responsibility. So Sweden is now has decided, the government of Ulf Kristersund has decided to lower the age so that they can also prosecute the miners. And obviously the reason for this is that they want to put a stop to this gang criminality.
- [49:23]
A
Absolutely. Back to Norway. Let's have a look at the world's longest and deepest tunnel. It's finally got approval and it's 27 kilometres under the sea.
- [49:37]
I
Yeah. So this will be running for 27 km under the sea. It will be running at a depth of about 400 meters. So it will be when completed and trust me, it will be years from now. This is a massive undertaking. When completed, it will be the world's largest undersea road traffic tunnel running for 27,7 kilometers. And this is the thing, I mean, for anybody listening who's ever driven the coastal highway of Norway, it just takes ages. It takes several days to drive through the entire. Because there's ferry crossings and all the fjords and it's just really slow traffic. So kind of the point of this tunnel is to cut the travel time and it promises to cut the travel time by 11 hours. So that's quite a significant reduction in travel time. And. And driving through that tunnel will just take 35 minutes now because a similar trip before would have taken almost 12 hours.
- [50:40]
A
Just tell us quickly about the safety and logistics side of it.
- [50:44]
I
Yeah, well there's obviously this is an undertaking that hasn't even been done before, digging at this depth and for such a long distance. So this is something that Norway has already approved a long time ago. But then the construction got stalled because of kinds of safety issues and then they had to sort of redo the plan and now they got approval for this new sort of a safer way of building it. But there's a lot of things that need to be taken into consideration when you go this deep. Just think about it Georgina. You're 400 meters under the sea and you're in your car and you know, for 27 kilometers, you know, just a feeling I would be just scared. No matter what the safety precautions are. I would be a little bit scared driving through that tunnel.
- [51:29]
A
Absolutely. Me too. And finally, a British endurance swimmer has become the first person to swim around Iceland. What's.
- [51:38]
I
Exactly. So this is for all those sort of hobbyist amateur swimmers who want to maybe try something a little bit more challenging. So there's a gentleman by the name of Ross Edgeley who's become the first person to swim around Iceland. And this is, I kid you not, I mean obviously he didn't do it it in one go. He did it over several months in several stages. But just think about these icy waters, rough seas, it sits in the middle of the Atlantic, all this rugged coastline. This is not like somebody swimming on a sandy beach on a leisurely. But this is really quite a physical undertaking that he's managed to do. So something to inspire everybody listening and you and I also, Georgina, to go and swim around Iceland.
- [52:23]
A
Really my only question is why?
- [52:26]
I
Yeah, exactly. Maybe it's about proving something to himself, to other people. But he's actually, he's doing it to support environmental research and he's actually collected data on marine ecosystems during his journey as well. So he must have had some kind of sensors either on him or then the supporting raft that he had.
- [52:45]
A
Petri, thank you very much. I'll let you get off back to your design week partying. That's Monocle's Helsinki correspondent, Peter. And this is the Globalist on Monocle Radio. Now in Japan, the National Police Agency has released a rule book that will go into operation next April which outlines penalties that will be imposed on cyclists who violate traffic laws. Well, I'm joined now by Miles Gibbons who's co founder of Whole Grain Cycles, a small bicycle parts and accessories brand. Miles is currently honorable 3 month cycle trip across Japan. And he joins me now from Nurikura, which is located at the edge of the Northern Japan Alps. Miles, tell us a little bit more about where we catch you now.
- [53:34]
C
Hi, Georgina. Firstly, thanks for having me. Yeah, we've just started a segment of our route which started in Matsumoto yesterday and we've been going east and got to Norikura to this amazing rock Raya can.
- [53:48]
A
And this is not your first trip to Japan. Have you noticed any difference in cycle usage since your, your last visit?
- [53:56]
C
Well, yeah, so I visited Tokyo and cycled in the Izu Peninsula about eight years ago, which, which was my first trip to Japan and Tokyo. And arriving in Tokyo this time, I noticed obviously working in the bike industry, you look around you and you actually analyze things without even thinking about it related to bikes. And I noticed a massive rise in cycling compared to back then and a huge amount of people using basically a sort of a cheap electric city bike, you know, fully loaded, front basket, rear basket, to get around and obviously carry their things around.
- [54:39]
A
So what are the traffic violations that will be subject to fines in Japan come April?
- [54:45]
C
Well, it looks like, it looks like it will be very similar things to many other places around the world and what we might be used to in the UK and, and, and, and Europe, which is obviously where I hail from originally. So, you know, bike lights. I believe the helmet law, wearing a helmet was already in, not riding on the pavement. Pavement is, is a new one because I think that's been quite a regular thing that people will, will do here.
- [55:15]
A
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, have you found that, that the rules vary when you travel in the, in the world?
- [55:22]
C
Yeah, I mean, yes, but not the rules. The rules vary in strange sort of nuanced ways, but generally are similar in, in lot of the sort of, I guess you would say, like developed world where there is actually a care about what laws should be for the bicycle. But I would say the etiquette and the culture that creates the actions that people do and have on the bike is the thing that varies much more greatly. And so that's obviously the gray area of how people ride and what is acceptable of cycling cyclists in different parts of the world.
- [56:01]
A
And is there a difference between urban riding and being on the open road?
- [56:05]
C
Oh, yeah, massively. I mean, just one example in the UK and something that we've been finding here is it's actually, it's actually advised to cycle side by side when you are out and there's not much traffic around. So that would be out in, in rural areas because it is safer. You can be seen more. It's more likely that the perception of you on the road is bigger and you're therefore safer. And then of course, if there's traffic behind, you would go single file and let cars through here. It seems to be a similar kind of cultural etiquette here where if you make yourself shown on the road. So, for example, as we're riding through tunnels in these sort of remote areas, as we hear trucks and big vehicles or whatever vehicle coming up behind, we might stick our eyes, arm up and just make ourselves a lot more visible and sort of almost say thanks before a vehicle comes by. And people seem to respond to that quite, quite well. I'm not sure the exact rule in Japan, for example, with riding side by side or one by one. I don't think there's anything specified, especially in rural areas and urban areas. Yes, it differs in that there is a lot more traffic and therefore the etiquette is, is and should be quite different. And that's where a lot more people here are cycling on the pavement.
- [57:29]
A
Well, yes. I mean, here in Britain, certainly to me, as a pedestrian, there seems to be a complete breakdown of the cyclist code. I mean, daily I'm almost run down by bikes on the pavement or jumping red lights at crossings. I mean, I know that there are rules against this. Are they ever enforced?
- [57:50]
C
I mean, I can definitely tell you from my own experience that they are. I've been stopped when I've. And I promise you I did this accidentally. I saw a green man out of the corner of my eye, thought it was the green light went through and there was a police car sitting right behind me. And they immediately pulled me over and said, hey, you know, you've just done. And they sort of used the soft power thing. I said, really? I'm very sorry, I totally misunderstood the lights at lights and they let me on my way. And then similarly, riding on the pavement, just coming off onto a paved area, a pavement area, from riding on the main road of Oxford street. And there was a police person right there and they enforced, enforced that and, and similar kinds of things around. So I believe they are enforced when the police are there in person. But how you enforce it, you know, unless we, I mean, we are a massive surveillance, you know, country in the uk, so. So yeah, I don't know whether you, you could do any more than that.
- [58:52]
A
I wonder if I'd be liable for criminal prosecution if I actually shoved the next person off their bike that cut me up on the bedroom. Thank you very much.
- [59:01]
C
Probably probably.
- [59:03]
A
Thank you very much to Miles Given, who's co founder of Whole Grains Cycles. And that's all we have time for today. Thanks to our producers, Laura Kramer, Tom Webb and Monica Lillis, our researcher, Daniela Brauer Smith, and our studio manager, Elliot Griffith Greenfield, with editing assistance from Mariella Bevan. The briefing's coming up at midday in London and the Globalist will return at the same time on Monday. I'm Georgina Godwin. Thanks for listening.