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- [00:04]
Tom Rountree
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 and 12 key financial hubs. With you at the heart of it all, UBS advice is our craft.
- [00:38]
Vincent McEvin
You're listening to the Globalist, first broadcast on 3rd December 2025 on Monocle Radio. The Globalist in association with U. Live from London, this is THE Globalist. I'm Vincent McEvin. Coming up, President Macron heads to China. Can he bolster flagging Sino Franco relations? Then to the Caribbean is US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in legal trouble over boat strikes?
- [01:24]
Chris Chermack
The secretary assembled hundreds of admirals and generals. He said, you exist to break things and kill people.
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Vincent McEvin
We'll hear how Canada has managed to beat Britain into the EU Defence fund. And Tom Rountree, VP of Global Luxury Brands at ihg, pops into our pop up radio studio at the international luxury travel market in Cannes.
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Tom Rountree
That's never happened before in the history of travel ever that we've had seven generations traveling. So all of those ingredients absolutely are hopefully painting a rosy picture for the future.
- [01:57]
Vincent McEvin
Plus, we dissect the day's papers, get a roundup of the latest fashion news and find out which city has come out on top for cyclists. That's all ahead on the Globalist. Live from London. First, a look at what else is happening in the news. Five hours of talks between President Putin and President Trump, senior negotiator appear to have failed to produce a breakthrough on securing a Ukraine peace deal. India has ordered all new smartphones to come preloaded with a state run cybersecurity app, sparking privacy and surveillance concerns. And Pope Leo led a silent prayer at the site of the Beirut port explosion and demanded justice for its victims as he wraps up his three day visit to Lebanon. Stay tuned to Monocle Radio throughout the day for more on those stories. But first, French President Emmanuel Macron has travelled to China for a three day visit looking to strike a balance between protecting strategic industries, security interests during a time of global trade turmoil. I'm joined now in the studio by Nina Dos Santos, international broadcast journalist and the former CNN Europe editor. And down the line with Howard Zhang, journalist and former head of the BBC's China service. Nina, first to you, what's the itinerary for this visit?
- [03:20]
Nina Dos Santos
Well, there's going to be a visit to The Forbidden City. There's also going to be some cuddly panda diplomacy as well on the agenda over the next three days. As you pointed out, this isn't the first time Macron has been to China. In among the EU leaders, he's been one of the more frequent visitors during his time. It's his fourth visit to China, and the Chinese themselves are making quite a lot of that. If you read some of the estate press over in China, they're really making the point that Macron comes time and time again to China and that just cements China's position in the world. But as you pointed out, there's trade to talk about and some other awkward conversations that Macron has to have on behalf, not just of France, the EU's second biggest economy, but also, also he's speaking to a certain extent for the other EU member states as well, because the EU has a 300 billion euro trade deficit with China. And France, for instance, just that economy itself, 46% of its own trade deficit comes from trade with China. So there's a lot at stake here. And essentially what he wants to do is sort of reset the balance. Will he be successful? Hmm. The jury's out on that, though, Vinny.
- [04:31]
Vincent McEvin
Well, Howard, let's just focus in first on that Sino, Franco relationship. How healthy is it currently? Lots of visits, as we heard there. But are things in good order? Very much. Like Nina just said, there's a lot of sort of very subtle details hidden in there. On the Chinese side, I think what they most want from this visit is some type of appearance that France and Europe is not totally on US side. I think that's what the Chinese side cared the most. And they are locked in, in this global rivalry with the US and in many aspects, if you read the Chinese newspapers and read all their media reporting, they're talking about somehow they like the French thinking of a more independent diplomacy. And I think that's where the reason why there's so many more visits. They like this type of visits and they want to show the world that China is not alone on this one. And Nina Macron and President Xi have been around on the international stage for sort of a decade. At the top level, do we know much about their personal relationship? Because they'll have met each other not just on those visits, but also at international summits.
- [05:51]
Nina Dos Santos
Well, so that's an interesting one because obviously, remember that Chinese diplomacy is highly choreographed because there's huge amounts at stake for a country like that that, let's face it, doesn't face the same democratic limitations that Emely Macron faces back home. Remember that he's lost his parliamentary majority, so he's really a sort of lame duck French president. He's heading into the last year and a half of his time in office, or maybe even one year, because he's got to leave office in 2027 and cannot run for another third term. So this is kind of Macron's diplomatic swan song, if you like. And he is to certain extent encumbered by the limitations of democracy, which Xi Jinping himself isn't, especially Xi versus other Chinese leaders, because he's very much changed the system towards his legacy and his benefit for the future inside China. But the thing that we have to remember here is that China has over, throughout the course of not just Macron's time in office, but other EU leaders, time in office previously continued to subsidize certain industries that have eaten away at core industries in Europe that are very emotive ones that really chime with the electorate, and in particular autos and in particular electric vehicles and steel, which is a very, very emotive one for France and in particular Germany, and also China's stolen march on the EU when it comes to green technologies. So those are the kind of industries that Macron will have to try and defend, not just on the behalf of the French industry, but also on behalf of the EU as well. He's taking with him a whole trade mission of the usual French executives, you know, big companies in the aerospace, defence industry. He's hoping to make some deals for French companies in food and also certain energy sectors, as I said before. But France is in a really interesting position on this one for the main reason that unlike Germany, it doesn't have a huge combustion engine car footprint with China. But on the other hand, it has faced retaliatory action from China, with its spirits and wines being targeted by punitive actions each time the EU tries to sort of curb and clip China's wings when. And it keeps trying to spread into those crucial markets like steel, electric vehicles and also green technologies in the EU.
- [08:13]
Vincent McEvin
Howard, you're seeing a lot of Chinese EVs across Europe now, but Chinese consumers have long been known for their hunger for French luxury brands, and you'd see the likes of Louis Vuitton and others heavily in China. That appetite, though, has cooled slightly. Is there anything Macron is going to be doing on this trip to try to boost that trade once again? Macron definitely will try. Like Nina pointed out on the EV side and on some of the other French products. But the the Chinese demand cooling. It's not something I think even the government can help at this very moment, but French delegation would definitely try because they want to show they can still deliver something for the French industry. And Macron's 2023 trip did not end too well even in the French media and that did not taste too well in Washington because his emphasis on diplomatic autonomy and now so this time is something to make up and I would just to add there will be some type of symbolic mentioning on Ukraine and Taiwan. This is almost many experts I read in the think tanks are commenting on this. So one would expect at least the French president, however lame duck is now will try to push on that one, see if he can get something off of it. Well, you pre empted where I was turning next to security matters, Nina. France has been a strong supporter of Ukraine, Macron hosting Zelenskyy in Paris once again on Monday. China has, however, sort of tacitly supported Russia's illegal war. Do we expect any discussions on the conflict and Putin's sort of renewed aggression towards Europe?
- [09:56]
Nina Dos Santos
Well, one can assume that there's going to have to be some sort of discussion because essentially China has as you pointed out, even in second position behind the scenes, helped to underwrite Russia's ability to continue to wage this in Ukraine, not just by providing access to dual use technologies and spare parts that Russia needs, but also to continue to buy that Russian oil. And that keeps the Russian economy, even if it's in the doldrums, afloat in a way that Vladimir Putin can just continue to wage this war and what is becoming a war of attrition, peace efforts in Moscow notwithstanding, over the last couple of days. So Macron will probably, one would assume, have to try and impress upon Xi Jinping his vision of how things badly this war needs to end soon and it needs to end well. That said, as Howard was just pointing out before, there have been some big diplomatic curveballs and EU officials are quite nervous about this visit as a result of the 2023 visit when Macron just suddenly got on the plane to come back from China and started pontificating on Taiwan and making all sorts of uncoordinated diplomatic statements. There's real concerns here that Macron needs to stay on message. He cannot go rogue on issues like Ukraine, he cannot break ranks with the EU if you like. And he needs to also get China to try and make at least some sort of oblique recognition that this war needs to end sooner rather than later, because as I was saying before Russia can continue to wage this war and a war of attrition, if China continues to trade so much with Russia.
- [11:32]
Vincent McEvin
And Howard, just finally sort of what is the Chinese position and also the sort of Chinese public's view, as much as we can ascertain on the war in Ukraine and the sort of support that Russia receives from, from China, but also that question of Taiwan, do we expect there'll be much discussion on the Russia side, the Russia, Ukraine war side? The Chinese public is pretty much split. If you talk about the online reactions, the majority are supportive and condemning NATO, whipped up by the propaganda machine. And if you speak to people in private, quite a few people are not happy about Russia's action in Ukraine, but their voices don't really count. And in terms of Taiwan, I would say there's a huge tsunami of nationalist voices being whipped up in the propaganda sphere as well. So it's very difficult to say what the real people actually think, even, you know, officially privately talk to them. They're unwilling to even say anything against the government lying at this point. Well, Nina Dos Santos, former CNN Europe editor, and Howard Zhang, former head of the BBC's China service, thank you for joining us. This is the Globalist. In the Caribbean, where the US has carried out some 20 strikes on alleged drug boats from Venezuela, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is alleged to have given a verbal order to kill everyone, a charge that he denies. Instead, the White House has sought to place the onus on Naval Admiral Frank Bradley for ordering a so called double tap strike, a second strike on the same ship in the Caribbean with the sole aim of killing two survivors of the initial attack. US Lawmakers are now investigating this action as a possible war crime. Monocle's Chris Chermack spoke with General Ben Hodges, former commanding general of the US army in Europe, about the strikes in the Caribbean. Chris began by asking what the chain of command looks like in an operation like this and how involved the secretary of defense would have been in setting its parameters.
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Chris Chermack
Well, I hate to say it depends, but it really does depend. I mean, there's a degree of micromanagement that goes on in everything. It used to be in Afghanistan that the commander there once a week was on a video call with the president, whether it was President Bush or President Obama. The secretary of defense obviously gets very involved in these kind of things. So ideally what happens is that there's a strategic end state, there's a plan for how you're going to do this, and then the secretary depends on his military commanders to carry out the military part of the task. Normally, tactical decisions are made by tactical commanders. Now, in this case, of course, these are not just normal operations. A question for me has been what are the rules of engagement? Now, we don't typically publish the rules of engagement because they are classified. You wouldn't want to communicate to the enemy what your limits are. But I haven't heard anybody talking about rules of engagement here. In the rules of engagement are designed to help accomplish the task within a legal framework. And in this case, the secretary, of course, would have had to have approved the rules of engagement if they're there. I don't know. I doubt that the secretary is directly involved in each strike on each boat. I mean, there's been 20 of these. But, I mean, Rumsfeld was famous for very specific guidance on very specific things. So I would not say that Secretary Hegseth was not involved. That would not surprise me if he was involved. General Hodges, you mentioned rules of engagement there. That's something we've talked with you about before.
- [15:32]
Vincent McEvin
The fact that this secretary of defense.
- [15:35]
Chris Chermack
Maybe doesn't hold those in quite as.
- [15:37]
Vincent McEvin
High regard as previous secretaries of Defense.
- [15:41]
Chris Chermack
This is at the heart of it, as you say, what the rules of.
- [15:44]
Vincent McEvin
Engagement might have been.
- [15:46]
Chris Chermack
There are these allegations that the secretary of defense had a kill order, essentially. Can you ever imagine a situation where an order to kill rather than simply to target would be justified? Let's go back to Quantico. You remember this famous meeting where the secretary assembled hundreds of admirals and generals, and he specifically, and this gave me a chill when I heard it, he said, you exist, pointing to the audience. You exist to break things and kill people. That is a, let's call it, commander's intent or a cultural sort of statement. He's creating an atmosphere of expectation. Now, how that gets acted out or played out, and how does that translate into actions and orders, that's a different story. But just to be clear, the secretary has been very busy for the last 24 hours trying to create distance between himself and the admiral by saying, the admiral is a great hero. I'm with him. I stand by, or you know, what he did in the performance of his duties, his orders. I mean, this is clearly the secretary dumping the whole thing on top of the admiral. But it was the secretary that created or is attempted to create an environment of you exist to break things and kill people. So that's an important part of this. And then in that same meeting, he also said, we're getting rid of woke rules of engagement. So it's Not a long walk to get from that to destroying boats at sea without knowing exactly who's on board those boats. Or to even do the so called double tap to strike and finish off the two survivors who were there. General Hodges, there's been a lot of discussion, not just about this particular strike.
- [17:44]
Vincent McEvin
But also because of an ad by.
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Chris Chermack
Democratic politicians, frankly, about this idea of whether the military should follow commands that they consider illegal. And that's what you're getting at here as well. It did make me wonder, I mean, can we really expect members of the.
- [18:02]
Vincent McEvin
Military to disobey orders? How easy is that?
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Chris Chermack
How conscious were you of that reality.
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Vincent McEvin
In your own work and time in the military?
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Chris Chermack
Well, so as you know, I'm a pretty old guy. I'm 67. I started at West Point in the summer of 1976. So really just a couple of years after the end of the war in Vietnam. So the My Lai massacre was still fresh in the minds of all of us. And so I can remember sitting in a class being lectured about my responsibility not to obey an unlawful order. And in fact, the phrase that was always used, it was called the Nuremberg defense, which is of course what the Nazis on trial in Nuremberg after the war said that, you know, we were just following orders of the Fuhrer. And of course that didn't work as a defense. And we use that phrase in the U. S. Military. Nuremberg defense will not protect you from carrying out an unlawful order. It is your responsibility. Cadet Hodges. Lieutenant Hodges. Major Hodges. General Hodges, it is your responsibility to know the difference between a stupid order and an unlawful order. Now, of course, it's easier to say than to do. Usually the kind of orders that we're talking about are not going to be quite so black and white. But if it's in the case of something that's a little bit on the margins, it's not quite so clear. Well, you know, these are narco terrorists. We're defending America from a terrorist invasion. And that's the language that the administration has tried to use here. And it's also instructive that Secretary Hegseth removed the top legal officers in each of the services. The Army, Navy and Air Force. Judge advocates General. They were all removed at the same time, without cause, early in his tenure. Why would you remove all three judge advocates General Unless you were trying to change the culture, send a message about, you know, what we're going to do.
- [20:05]
Vincent McEvin
General Ben Hodges, former commanding general of the US army in Europe, in conversation with Monocle's Chris Chermack. Still to come in the program. For those who like going places on two wheels. We reveal the best cities around the world for cyclists. This is the globalist.
- [20:30]
Tom Rountree
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.
- [20:57]
Vincent McEvin
UBS Banking is our craft. Well, let's continue now with today's newspapers. Joining me is Simon Brook, freelance journalist and communications consultant. Simon, good to have you back in the studio. What's caught your eye?
- [21:19]
Simon Brook
Yeah, well, the New York Times is one of a number of news outlets, as you can imagine, covering the peace negotiations in Moscow with Steve Witkoff, also known by some as Steve Witlas, and President Trump's son in law, Jared Kushner. And according to the New York Times, negotiators discussed the substance of US Peace proposals, but did not delve into any of the wording of the provisions, reach any specific compromises, or agree to a new summit between Mr. Putin and Mr. Trump. So many people, myself included, you might agree, would regard that, read that as meaning no progress at all. I think it's also interesting that the report includes quotes from what's described as the Kremlin's top foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, who says the discussion was very useful, constructive and very substantive and lasted not for five minutes, but for five hours. Now, again, I think many of us might read that as being an example of Vladimir Putin's love of lecturing his visitors, his theories of the history, his rewriting of history. Absolutely. Exactly. And his own version of it. Yeah. And also playing for time. And I think there's something about this comment that it lasted for five hours, not five minutes, which is almost sort of teasing the west and just saying, look, we're just playing for time, that's all. And I think if you put this into the context obviously of recent coverage or recent events in Ukraine, then it does appear that Putin does seem to feel that he's making the running here, that on the battleground, you know, that he has some success. So he's probably feeling quite confident. And also I think this idea that Putin now sees this as the US as his ally in many ways against Ukraine and Europe. So pretty depressing, but not surprising.
- [23:13]
Vincent McEvin
I mean, notable as well that Jared Kushner, the President's son in law, who's made an Art out of making a buck off of his father in law's presidency. He is there. There are lots of. Of lots of reporting that the sort of oligarch class around Donald Trump these days is keen to sort of do deals with Russia, isn't it?
- [23:30]
Simon Brook
Yeah. Well, one of the people I was speaking to a while ago was saying that what is this closeness between Trump and Russia? And one theory is that when US banks were not willing to lend to the Trump business empire, that were Russian investors who would do this. I mean, obviously the point about Steve Witkoff is he is a property mogul. He's made money in property and there are opportunities there. So that that could be something behind it. It's also worth noting that, in fact, Wyckoff and Kushner were key brokers in the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. So they have had some success. But there is. Yeah, it just shouts property deal at you, doesn't it?
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Vincent McEvin
Yeah. And I mean, that relationship goes back decades. A very suspect and suspicious trip by Trump was made to the USSR in the mid-1980s for business opportunities, which has always been viewed very strangely, but ever since, he's been a Russia fan. Well, we'll turn to our next story over the BoR, the handling of a spy case here in the UK. There was a lot of controversy about this, but there's a report that's come out.
- [24:34]
Simon Brook
Yeah, just a bit of background here. So this is, as you might remember, the former parliamentary researcher and a teacher who faced allegations of espionage, spying on behalf of China. Prosecutors unexpectedly dropped the charges and said that the government had not provided sufficient evidence that China represented a threat to the national security of the UK and that that description is key, so. Yeah, exactly. The Guardian is report on the reports on what happened in this particular trial and is the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy found, according to the Guardian, that there had been systematic failures that created a crisis of public confidence and fueled allegations of conspiracy at the highest levels of government. And this is the idea that the British government, some British government officials, somehow influenced the trial or encouraged prosecut to drop the prosecution because they didn't want to upset China when it comes to trade. And I think, obviously this is a UK story, but I think it has international ramifications because countries around the world will be thinking, you know, China's a spy, an enemy in some ways espionage, but also a trading partner. So a very difficult decision to make. And of course, this particular case comes in the way, in the wake of the fact that the British government has for the third Time now put off a decision on this Chinese super embassy that might or might not be built in London.
- [26:03]
Vincent McEvin
Well, that is some sort of much needed good news for Keir Starmer's government. It's what they were saying. They hadn't interfered. But I want to ask you, because I know that when you were a young man like me, we both worked in Parliament, didn't we? And it is still the case if you're sort of in your first job out of university. Parliament is a really attractive place to work. It can be exciting. It can be, I have to say, quite a dangerous place to work as well. There's sort of no formal hr. It's very siloed system. But something in the recent weeks has come out is how vulnerable those staffers are, because there's been warnings to MPs to, you know, slightly interrogate their staff if they feel that they're asking questions about things that they shouldn't be potentially asking about. There is this sort of danger, isn't there, in our democratic system? You've got hundreds of MPs with thousands of staff that they can be vulnerable. They're not very well paid. They might be a bit young, a bit naive.
- [26:51]
Simon Brook
I mean, it's a great opportunity, as you know. You just suddenly learn so much about the democratic process, don't you? And I'm sure you had the same thing of dealing with inquiries from constituents about all kinds of different issues, which is exciting. You know, you walk Cabinet ministers in that. It's a tremendous opportunity for anybody who manages to do it. But I think, yeah, as you say, concerns about a. How these people were treated. I mean, I. I was very well treated with the MP I worked for, but I knew other. There were colleagues that I met in the. The dining rooms and the tea rooms or whatever, who were going to the laundrette, who were working 12, 14 hours a day, who were, you know, had no sort of employment protection in that way. And also now, I think. I mean, it's always been there, but I think increasingly, with the influence of China and Russia being more aggressive, we've seen so many more of the examples of young people who might be vulnerable to any kind of approach and end up being spies.
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Vincent McEvin
Turning now, though, to Bulgaria and Gen Z have managed to force the government to scrap a tax plan.
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Simon Brook
Yeah, I think this is quite an encouraging story, really. There's always, you know, characterizing Gen Z as the people who just, you know, keyboard warriors who just sort of post stuff on. On Instagram and leave it at that. But The Times is reporting that tens of thousands of this demographic took to the streets of Bulgaria, forcing the government to withdraw an unpopular budget ahead of the country's eurozone entry in January. They turned out on Monday night for what was described as one of the biggest demonstrations the country has seen since the 1990s. About 50,000 people gathered around a huge plaster pig installed in front of the Parliament building, which I think is perhaps referring either to the Prime Minister or to somebody called Delian Peevski, who is a controversial oligarch, who's a former media mogul, a national security adviser. He's actually been sanctioned by the US and the uk, the Times points out. But, yes, this example of people power means that these tax rises and Social Security contributions have been at least put on hold, if not scrapped. And interesting that the Bulgarian president has posted on Facebook that the Bulgarians have said no to this government. There's only one way out. Resignation and early elections. So Bulgaria, a country that faces a number of challenges, not least from Putin, but quite encouraging, I thought.
- [29:12]
Vincent McEvin
Yeah. And interestingly, you know, lots of countries in the UK is going to move to votes at 16 by the next election, as it plans to. So then you're going to get Gen Alpha as a political force as well. Let's see whether or not that gets tapped and heads to the streets, too. And finally, Sabrina Carpenter, the singer regular on the Monocle Playlist, has been condemning the White House's use of her song. She's the latest artist to do this.
- [29:39]
Simon Brook
Yeah, exactly. So Politico pointing out that, as you say, that so many have done it before. So, yes. So according to Politico, she might be man's best friend, and this is the name of her seventh studio album released in the summer, but she certainly isn't the White House's best friend. So this is. She's condemned the White House House in response to a video that they posted using one of her songs, showing agents arresting original sorry individuals as part of Trump's immigration crackdown. And it's her song Juno, which plays in the background, and she has said it's disgusting and she's very much against it. The White House, again, very, you know, very dignified response. We won't apologize for deporting dangerous criminal illegals. Blah, blah, blah. Anyone who would defend these sick monsters must be stupid. Or is it slow? So, yeah, as I said, very restrained comment from there. But there's. There's also the. The Politico makes the point. This is just one in a series of confrontations between Trump and singers.
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Vincent McEvin
Bruce Springsteen.
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Simon Brook
Exactly. Beyonce.
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Vincent McEvin
Haven't they?
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Simon Brook
They have indeed. ABBA is another one. Foo Fighters, Kenny Loggins. But of course, the President's friend Friends appears to be the Village People. And you know, one of his favorite songs is ymca, which he's been seeing dancing to. So yeah, do be careful if you're a successful singer.
- [31:00]
Vincent McEvin
Simon Brooke, thank you very much. You're listening to the Globalist on Monocle Radio. Now here's what else we're keeping an eye on today. Five hours of talks between President Putin and President Trump's senior negotiator Steve Witkoff appear to have failed to produce a breakthrough on securing a Ukraine peace deal. Deal. Putin said changes proposed by Kyiv and Europe to a draft plan were unacceptable, adding if Europe wants to go to war and starts one, we are ready right now. India has ordered all new smartphones to come preloaded with a state run cybersecurity app. Manufacturers have 90 days to ensure all new devices come with the government's Sanshya Sati app whose functionalities cannot be disabled or restricted. The move in one of the world's largest phone markets with more than 1.2 billion mobile users has been criticised by cyber experts who say it breaches citizens rights to privacy. And Pope Leo led a silent prayer at the site of the Beirut port explosion and demanded justice for its victims as he wrapped up his three day visit to Lebanon. He also met some relatives of the 218 people who were killed by the massive blast on 4 August 2020 which devastated a large part of the capital. This is the Globalist. Stay tuned. Well, it is just gone. 8:32 in Brussels and 2:32 in Ottawa where after months of tough talks, the Canadian government has clinched a deal to join the EU's 150 billion euro security action for Europe program. Accession to the loan for weapons safe schem gives Mark Carney's government access to jointly financed defence projects and allows Canadian companies to bid into EU supported joint procurement projects. Well, we're joined now by Aaron Burnett, senior fellow at the Democratic Strategy Initiative in Berlin. Aaron, thanks for speaking to us this morning. How significant a win is this for Canada?
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Aaron Burnett
Well, it's certainly, it's a win for a few main reasons. I mean one of the biggest reasons is even political. Canada's in my home country is in a certain situation of very aggressively diversifying away from the US economically and that does include the field of defence procurement as well. Canada is also in the midst of a decision about whether it will go for a fleet of of F35s fighter jets sourced from the US or Gripens sourced from Sweden or have a mixed fleet. And this particular scheme, or joining this particular scheme is a way for Mark Carney to send a message saying, well, we have some options on the table that don't necessarily always involve the US either. So it's interesting timing in terms of sending out certain, certain messages to his own public and also to the Americans and to the Europeans. And, you know, and Mark Carney has taken, you know, quite seriously the idea of deepening partnerships with Europe. And this is just a, you know, he's done that through various deals on, you know, with, on critical minerals with Germany, for example. You know, he's been to Europe several, and this is really just the latest win that he can put in that column in that particular way, in terms of saying we're realigning a bit.
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Vincent McEvin
He spent, of course, several years across this side of the Atlantic as a Bank of England governor. This scheme, though, that he's joined Canada notoriously has spent under The NATO required 2% of GDP on defence spending. They're trying to ramp this up. Will this new deal help with that? How will it actually work? Work?
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Aaron Burnett
Well, there's a lot of things we're still actually finding out about this particular deal. I mean, the SAFE instrument, you know, in order to be eligible for loans under the SAFE instrument, you can't source more than 35% of components covered under a deal from a non EU country or from outside of Norway or Ukraine. Now, countries like Canada can apply, apply for certain exemptions under the deal. So if you are sourcing from Canadian companies, it might be that that exemption is just a little bit higher than that 35% or is included somehow. But we're still looking for information on what is that number, what is that percentage that is covered by a Canadian exemption. So there's a lot of questions still coming in this deal about what exactly Canada is getting out of it, what exactly are Canadian companies getting out of it? We know that talks with the UK between the EU and the uk, but whether they would join, say failed because of some of these thorny issues. What would the size of the exemption be for British companies? And they couldn't come to an agreement on that. So there's a lot of unanswered questions still, you know, really about how much this is going to, to boost readiness in Canada or elsewhere. But for the moment, I think we can really say that it is a political win.
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Vincent McEvin
I mean, for Brussels does sort of getting a G7 partner strengthen the credibility of SAFE. And do you think this might sort of kick start talks with Britain, which as you mentioned, is sort of shut out at the moment?
- [36:48]
Aaron Burnett
Absolutely, it certainly does. Now, there are two other G7 countries already other than Canada in SAFE. Those would be Italy and France. It is interesting. Who else is missing though. I mean, Germany, with a famously large defense sector, is actually missing from safe, despite being an EU country, for example. So, I mean, having a third G7 country in Canada and, you know, the first non EU country to join or the first non European country to join certainly is significant and the EU will certainly count it as a win that it's getting more countries on board and might be able to entice other countries, G7 or UK to join. But it really remains to be seen whether the gap is just simply too far to bridge, you know, to ensure UK participation. The fee that the EU was asking Britain to put up to be able to participate in this was simply a very steep one according to the Brits. I mean, the EU was originally asking for somewhere between four and a half and 6.5 billion pounds from the UK to be able to participate in this instrument. They eventually knocked that down to an ask of 2 billion. That simply was too high for the United Kingdom. And we don't actually know even now precisely how much money Canada has actually actually committed to putting in. So whether this is going to. Whether we are going to see British participation eventually is a very open question.
- [38:26]
Vincent McEvin
Aaron Burnett in Berlin. Thank you. You're listening to Monocle Radio. Well, let's cross over to the French Riviera, where the international luxury travel market is in full swing. This week, Cannes plays host to some of the world's most exclusive hospitality brands. Earlier, Monocle's Laura Kramer spoke with Tom Rowntree, vice president of global luxury brands at ihg, at our pop up radio studio. She began by asking about the IHG resort brand Six Senses, which has a series of major new openings coming in 2026.
- [39:04]
Tom Rountree
We're super excited. So Six Senses, which is really synonymous with the world's most incredible resorts, built on the foundation, foundations and principles of sustainability, wellness and crafted experiences, is having a bit of a movement. Yeah, very exciting. So we began a couple of years ago with the opening of Six Senses in Rome and then more recently with Six Senses in Kyoto. And then next year we'll be opening Six Senses London in quarter one of 2026 in the former Whiteley's building. And we'll then also be opening Six Senses in Dubai Buy on the Palm and also Six Senses in Milan, three openings, that is.
- [39:43]
Rebecca Tay
It's a lot for you, I have to say. I was wondering, you know, when, when you decide that you're going to open into a new market, what are the factors that you think, okay, it's ready for Six Senses now That's a great question.
- [39:54]
Tom Rountree
But it's a number of different things. I mean, any resort or any urban location, but maybe even more so with resorts. So as I mentioned, Six Senses is a brand that is resistant resort forward.
- [40:04]
Vincent McEvin
Right.
- [40:04]
Tom Rountree
We are a resort brand. But what we heard from our guests around the world and actually hotel owners is that they wanted Six Senses in certain locations that they travel to. So what we've then looked at is what are the global gateway cities which where it makes sense for us to have a Six Senses location so we won't be in all urban locations. Regent is a brand that will fulfill that need. So it starts off with that first and foremost and then it comes right down to then to the building, the property, the vision for the owner, the micro location within that city. So there's lots and lots and lots of different factors that go into, into those decisions.
- [40:39]
Rebecca Tay
And with ihe, you do have a very big footprint in the Middle East. I think you've just opened. Is it the world's tallest hotel?
- [40:47]
Tom Rountree
Absolutely. So we were actually the very first hotel brand to open in the Middle East. We opened the Intercontinental Phoenicia in Beijing route in 1961. We then had the very first property open in Dubai, the Intercontinental Dubai, the original one on the creek and also in Saudi Arabia. So we have a very long history of presence in the Middle east and I actually spent 14 years of my career in the Middle east region. But yes, you're right. So we have just opened Vignette Collection, which is the latest addition to our luxury portfolio. We've opened CL Tower, which is the world's tallest home hotel and Altitude Swimmers, if ever that is a thing. We have the world's tallest infinity swimming pool in a hotel. So, yeah, quite remarkable.
- [41:30]
Rebecca Tay
Very respectfully, no thank you. I don't like.
- [41:35]
Tom Rountree
I'll join you in the bar on the low grab on the ground floor.
- [41:37]
Rebecca Tay
I'm very happy that you're happy that that's happening.
- [41:40]
Chris Chermack
For you.
- [41:40]
Tom Rountree
It's all about choices.
- [41:43]
Rebecca Tay
What do you think about. We're seeing so much travel in that direction, aren't we, in the Middle East? So much hospitality, excitement, lots of brands going in. What do you make of it?
- [41:52]
Tom Rountree
Well, super excited by it. First of all, I think we're Very, very fortunate to work in the travel industry. And I think when we have a role to play, which is to further open up destinations to tourism, enable people to connect to different cultures around the world, there's something that's quite joyful of being part of that particular journey and yeah, absolutely. I think what we've seen as well post pandemic is that people are not foregoing leisure travel. That is hugely important to one's wellness and one's well being. So then seeing new destinations being sought after, Saudi Arabia in particular, is very, very exciting. And we'll be opening a region in Jeddah next year, which we're very, very excited by. Jeddah being a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it's a very exciting time.
- [42:33]
Rebecca Tay
And are there parts of the world that you feel are maybe still underserved or haven't reached their full potential yet that you would be kind of interested in?
- [42:41]
Tom Rountree
Yeah, always. And I think that is you as a publications as well, incredible journalists that you are. We're all looking at what is the next frontier. And certainly Saudi Arabia is very, very topical. Portugal continues to be in high, high demand. Not a new frontier, but continues to be in very high demand, as does Japan. The one that's really piquing my curiosity, I'm going to tell you now is, and it has been for a couple of years now, is Albania.
- [43:07]
Rebecca Tay
Tell me more.
- [43:08]
Tom Rountree
Yeah, so if you think about where it is from a geography perspective, you've got Croatia, Montenegro, Albania on the Adriatic. The topography is absolutely breathtaking. The history going back to their culture, the history of food, of wine is just very, very rich. And think about all the neighboring countries there, proximity to Greece. It's a really, it's got all of the ingredients to make a phenomenal tourist destination. And I first went there two years ago for the signing ceremony for an Intercontinental. We're opening in Tirana and that property will be opening end of next year and so very, very excited to see that. But that one I think is one I will put my money on as a future tourist destination.
- [43:50]
Rebecca Tay
Now we are heading into, I think it's safe to say, another year of uncertainty. Definitely economically, geopolitically. And I wondered, what's the view from where you sit?
- [44:00]
Tom Rountree
I think one of the benefits that we saw coming out of the pandemic that it enable people to really understand the value to one's well being of being surrounded by people you love and about connecting to the world around us. And that's what's really driven that ongoing growth in luxury leisure travel. And I read A statistic fairly recently that was saying that between 2024 and 2032 the luxury travel sector almost double in revenue. There's also, you'll probably be aware as well is that this year is the birth of generation B. So now we have seven generations of travelers. So the matures people born up till 1946 and now generation B, that's never happened before in the history of travel ever that we've had seven generations traveling. So all of those ingredients absolutely are hopefully painting a rosy picture for the future.
- [44:55]
Rebecca Tay
And what trends do you think are then driving the luxury guest experience today? Given that there are so many factors, how many different generations that you just alluded to, what's driving that?
- [45:04]
Tom Rountree
Yeah, I think family travel is a really, really big one. It has been for a little, for quite some time now. But then there are, there's behavior within family travel. So multi generational travel travel very, very, very important. We as hotels now we're thinking about how we design spaces. We're also looking at how we design resorts. So the Regent Phu Quoc in southern Ireland of Vietnam, we have three seven bedroomed beachfront villas. But those seven bedroom beachfront villas can then connect into other two and three bedroom villas. So we've got spaces for families to come together.
- [45:36]
Rebecca Tay
That's great. And what are you most excited for then in 2026 direction of travel, if you will?
- [45:41]
Tom Rountree
Obviously all the incredible openings that we've got going on. So I'm very, very excited by that. I'm also very, very excited by us opening our first members club at Six Senses Place, London, which will be the first time that we've done that as a bit of a proof of concept. So very, very excited by that opening in London and then in terms of where I'm traveling to.
- [46:01]
Rebecca Tay
Yeah. What pool can we find you at?
- [46:02]
Tom Rountree
Wow. My goodness me. Well, always down here and visiting my in laws in the south of France. So down here at the Carlton Cannes for sure.
- [46:09]
Vincent McEvin
That was Tom Rountree, Vice president of global luxury brands at ihg, speaking to Monocle's Laura Kramer at the international luxury travel market in Cannes. This is the globe list. Stay tuned.
- [46:25]
Tom Rountree
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 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.
- [47:03]
Vincent McEvin
Well, it's time now for a roundup of fashion and retail news. And I'm joined in the studio by retail expert and brand consultant Rebecca Tay. Rebecca, thank you for being with us. First of all, Prada has acquired Versace.
- [47:18]
Rebecca Tay
Yes, that's right. So this has been a deal that's been in the works for a while, but it is now fully completed. You know, it's a landmark moment. Donatella Versace and obviously her brother, they showed on the Runway for 47 years, and last season was the first season that they didn't. And so there's been a lot of news for the brand in general, but I think most experts are saying that this is just the beginning. There's a lot of work to be done at Versace. They have a lot of work to do in terms of reclaiming their market and, you know, proving their relevance, I think, as well. So it's a good challenge, I think, for the product group.
- [47:50]
Vincent McEvin
And what's gone wrong and what do Prada plan to do with the label?
- [47:54]
Rebecca Tay
Yeah, it's an interesting one. I think the first things that they've sort of been saying is to sort of reduce their reliance on outlet stores. So they've relied really very heavily since in the last sort of seven years where they've been owned by the Capri Group in the US So trying to reduce the reliance on discounting, improve their relevance. So this is an area where it's quite interesting because Prada is known as a minimalist brand. Versace is very much a maximalist brand and reclaiming some of those brands codes. So they're, you know, they're very much known for the Medusa and they're kind of Greek and Mediterranean influences, obviously their Italian heritage as well. So leaning into those a little bit more, proving that they, you know, have that nostalgic factor that is, you know, very, very popular right now with the younger audiences, but then also on the more operational side, leaning into synergies with Prada Group as well. So I think they've already made some moves in terms of leather manufacturers and leather. Leather working groups as. As well. Well, kind of, you know, trying to reduce costs there where. Where possible.
- [48:56]
Vincent McEvin
And to Paris now there's been some changeover at lvmh.
- [49:00]
Rebecca Tay
Yes. So, you know, this. I think the Bernard Arnault and the succession discussion is ongoing. People are saying that this isn't really necessarily related to that. But Pietro Beccari, who has been and still will remain the chief executive of Louis Vuitton, has now had a promotion. He's now also the chair and the CEO of the fashion group. So that includes eight other brands within lv, bmh, some big brands as well. So they used to be considered quite small. But it's also Celine, Loewe, Marc Jacobs, Givenchy. It doesn't include Dior, so Dior falls separately. It's under the kind of leather and fashion group. But it does improve and increase his remit for sure.
- [49:39]
Vincent McEvin
And I mean, how successful was he at Louis Vuitton? Why is he the one that's been picked for this?
- [49:43]
Rebecca Tay
Yeah, it's a good question. I think there were definitely some rumblings that this was going to happen. There's, I think on it personally. People have been saying that he's probably wanting to move back to Italy at some point. So that might still be in the cards in the next few years. For now he is US based, I believe he might be Paris actually. But he is credited for turning around in a lot of successes at Louis Vuitton. So for example, he brought in Pharrell Williams as the head of men's creative designer. He was responsible for spearheading the Takashi Murakami collaboration this year which really basically saves Louis Vuitton at the beginning of this year. So he has that sort of magic mix of understanding brand and herit whilst also kind of keeping an eye on the commercials for sure.
- [50:28]
Vincent McEvin
And we're going to turn to a story about adverts in a second. But another story you flagged is Chanel showing in New York. And I mean there seems to be a theme from these stories that a lot of brands are struggling at the moment. Do you think this is sort of pre, sort of recession indicator that we're in right now?
- [50:45]
Rebecca Tay
It's, you know, I think a lot of the luxury brands have struggled with China. So China never rebounded. It hasn't rebounded in the same way that a lot of brands, brands were expecting. And at the same time people have noticed and analysts have noticed that the US is actually a huge market for luxury. So there's a lot of untapped potential in the us. There's a lot of regions within the us so not just, you know, not just your New York and la, but also Texas for example. This is a huge market with, as I said, a lot of untapped potential. So yes, Chanel's.
- [51:14]
Vincent McEvin
I don't know whether there's a Real Housewives franchise maybe.
- [51:17]
Rebecca Tay
Yes, yes, exactly.
- [51:20]
Vincent McEvin
And finally it's December, the Christmas ads are all out and you think there's a nostalgia theme being detected.
- [51:26]
Rebecca Tay
Yeah, it's been called sort of the Ralph Lauren Christmas. So Whether or not it's actually Ralph Lauren, it's sort of the Ralph Lauren aesthetic which really leans into these traditional British and American styles. So you.
- [51:37]
Vincent McEvin
It's very much the McAllister house from home Alone. I was in a store. Yes. So store after store. And it was like plaid everywhere, heavy colors. Like it's a pivot back, isn't it?
- [51:47]
Rebecca Tay
100%. It's the sort of deep red velvet. Velvet and forest green and a lot of shearling. And I think Ralph Lauren himself, his Christmas ads are very kind of Colorado.
- [51:58]
Vincent McEvin
They've got a huge pop up in Sloane Square at the moment, haven't they?
- [52:01]
Rebecca Tay
They do, exactly. And you can sort of experience this Ralph, the authentic Ralph Lauren Christmas. But obviously other brands are leaning to this as well. So Burberry, you know, obviously is a British brand, has a lot of heritage to kind of lean into as well. They've sort of, they've tapped Jennifer, Jennifer Saunders from AB Fab. So kind of leaning into that nostalgia of people who loved the. And then American Eagle, you know, a little bit of a younger brand. They've, they've got Martha Stewart headlining their Christmas campaign where she's sort of really. Yes, she decorated a, she's kind of wrapped a turkey in denim, which is their latest rendition of their great jeans tagline for this year.
- [52:38]
Vincent McEvin
And they're still sticking with that tagline.
- [52:40]
Rebecca Tay
They are. Apparently. This is for Thanksgiving at least. But she is still, you know, very much on their social channels as the, as the front woman, Martha Stewart.
- [52:47]
Vincent McEvin
Wow. Okay. You think you'd run a mile from that campaign given what happened to Sydney Sweeney and her career since. Well, Rebecca Tay, thank you very much. You're listening to the Globalist on Monacle Radio. And finally this morning, the 2025 Copenhagen index of the world's top 100 cities transforming their streets for cycling has been revolving released. This year's report has a global outlook ranking cities by region, though the top spots are still dominated by European cities. To discuss, we're joined from Zurich by Urbanist and Monocle contributing editor Jessica Bridger. Jessica, thanks for speaking with us. So take us through the top of the table.
- [53:58]
Jessica Bridger
Good morning. So the top of the table, as you said, is dominated by Europe. So we have utrecht in place one, Copenhagen in two, Ghent in three, Amsterdam in four and Paris in five. Here in Zurich, we're number 22, although Bern in Switzerland takes number 20. And I think the interesting thing about this list is that they've taken quantitative and qualitative kind of real world conditions to assess which Cities make cycling safe, convenient and can mainstream it.
- [54:30]
Vincent McEvin
And I think that top five is really interesting because the top four, you know, Denmark, Holland, they are famously cycling cities. They're also on the smaller end. But Paris in particular is a real success story for cyclists and pedestrians as well. It's made massive moves when it comes to sort of reshaping. You know, it's a megacity, but it's reshaped its landscape, hasn't it? Shutting down whole streets and boulevards just for cyclists and pedestrians.
- [54:55]
Jessica Bridger
Absolutely. And I think that we see that these regulatory frameworks that support cycling, in addition to the infrastructure, are a major thing that accommodates, accomplishes many cities goals of increasing cycling as part of the modal share of people commuting, people running errands. And Paris, as you said, has been doing an excellent job of making space on the street, but also forwarding policies and forwarding different kinds of initiatives that allow, for instance, parents to cycle children to school, to allow recreation to happen on streets, especially on the weekends, shutting down boulevards and things like this. And I think that there's many cities that have have done similar things, that have similar initiatives that are now gaining a lot of momentum. And I think part of the thing that's making these initiatives gain momentum is not only the public desire for that, the desire on the part of kind of city legislators to encourage that, but also the introduction of products such as electric bicycles. We've seen that market explode and it's going to continue rising. It's currently at $54 billion estimated as the total E bike market. And it's supposed to ris rise to about 87 billion by 2032. And that's massive. You can't have these changes without the technologies that allow people to adopt better ways to move in cities.
- [56:19]
Vincent McEvin
E bikes, you know, they are quite successful in some cities, but there are big problems building, particularly in London, where there's been a real deluge. There isn't kind of a sort of city hall control of them, it's council by council. So you might be cycling along in one borough and then all of a sudden the E bike stops when you hit another borough. Complaints about them sort of building up on pavements and things. Who is getting it right in terms of e bikes?
- [56:42]
Jessica Bridger
That's tough. I think that Zurich is actually doing a good job or Switzerland overall, requiring a lot of E bike drivers to kind of license their bikes, to kind of put in again a regulatory framework that controls the use of these bicycles. These bicycles have top speeds that are well beyond A normal cycle. There was a recent study in one of the newspapers looking at the incidence of accidents of people over 60 using these bicycles, who are maybe accomplished cyclists who are used to cycling as a commuting method. But on the other hand, they are not used to the speeds and the reaction times required by a bicycle that's going 45 kilometers per hour and the braking distances. Yes, exactly. And so it's kind of we need better framework for. Across the mobility spectrum, we're seeing an explosion of different modes, right. Things that land between the normal kind of quote unquote analog bicycle and the car. And we need to not only create frameworks that support the development of these products, whether it's microcars, small cars, bikes, E bikes, delivery vehicles that are, you know, e powered or powered by foot pedals. And we need to encourage them, but also have the legislation to make them safer. Safe and make room for them on the street. Profiles in cities how do you slot in alternative forms of transportation into cities? And I think we often forget that bicycles, even in the Netherlands, you know, they have the top. They have, you know, three out of five. The top spots on that list done by Copenhagen eyes that infrastructure was not always there. That was something that was built out in the 1970s. So infrastructure can also change with the times, with the products, with the legislation, with the public demand, demand for alternative modes of transportation.
- [58:35]
Vincent McEvin
Jessica Bridger, thank you very much for that. Well, that's all for today's program. Thanks to our producers Chris Chermack and Angelica Jopson, our researcher Joanna Moser and our studio manager, Elliot Greenfield, with editing assistance by Christy o'. Grady. After the headlines. There's more music on the way. The briefing is live at midday, London time. I'll be back tomorrow with the Globalist at the same time. I'm Vincent McEvin. Goodbye and thank you. Watching for for listening.
- [59:40]
Tom Rountree
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 advice is our craft.