Indzi Rashid (3:41)

Morning, Emma. Look, it's quiet today after a couple of days of Iranian missile and drone attacks, which kind of really came out of the blue. Iran getting on the offensive a couple of days ago, firing 15 missiles, four drones, into the country, which actually had inflicted damage as well. The Fujairah Petroleum industrial zone was struck by an Iranian drone, which caused a massive fire there targeting an energy site. Three Indian nationals were injured as a result. And then also we had seen UAE vessels on the Strait of Hormuz or just off the coast of the uae, targeted by Iranian fire as well. One of them was carrying the UAE's national oil supply, and that was struck. It's believed that the engine room of one of those vessels was hit and there was fire coming out of it. So there were specific targets towards the UAE for the last couple of days. But right now, given this Project Freedom situation, looks like it's on pause, maybe completely cancelled, I get the sense that today, for a third day, we may not see Iranian fire because there could potentially be a route back to diplomacy. Emma.

Emma Nelson (4:57)

Well, let's talk about this pause button being placed on Project Freedom. This, just to recap, was a plan to guide commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz. A very small number of ships successfully transited the strait. But it had been just, what, hours after the US President and the top national security brass had said, this mission is working, what's changed?

Indzi Rashid (5:23)

Well, It's a complete 180 from the president. And I think this reversal is probably being seen as admission that Project Freedom has ultimately failed. Only two ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz in the last 24 hours, and the Iranian retaliation included attempts to strike US warships. There was a destruction of a Korean cargo vessel. As I said, UAE vessels were struck as well. And then we saw the attacks on the UAE over the last couple of days as well. And the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed as the oil crisis continues. Now that President Trump announced that Project Freedom has been paused, we've seen oil prices dropped slightly. But what this gives us a sense is that because this was pressure from the Pakistanis that the president was put under. He said in his post that as a result of speaking to the Pakistanis and some other countries that he's decided to put a pause on this. And that's because Pakistan, in the background, has been working diplomatically as the mediator to try and get Iran and the US to the table. And Iran probably went to the Pakistanis and said, look, the only time, the only time we will actually come and speak with the US Is if the US Blockade is lifted in the Strait of Hormuz and this Project Freedom operation is scrapped. Remember, just the other day, Abbas Arakchee, the foreign minister for Iran, said that events in Hormuz make clear that there's no military solution to a political crisis. As talks are making progress with Pakistan's gracious effort, the US should be wary of being dragged back into a quagmire by ill wishes. So should the uae. So a direct threat towards the United Arab Emirates. He ended by saying Project Freedom is Project Deadlock, mocking President Trump's Project Freedom. And that seems to be pretty much what has happened, Project Deadlock, because now it's not going anywhere.

Emma Nelson (7:17)

Indeed. And it then, as you have just mentioned, places the advantage back into the Iranian hands. Because when we looked at Project Freedom in itself, it was a creation of a few sea lanes, some tankers being able to get through, insurers thinking that, okay, life is a little bit more. A little bit more stable, but it was by no means an absolute opening up permanently of the Strait of Hormuz.

Indzi Rashid (7:42)

No, it wasn't. And that's because, remember, Iran claimed that they've planted mines in the middle of the Strait of Hormuz as well. And so they put that, they put out a specific map of. These are the routes, the approved routes that you should take if you're trying to cross the Strait of Hormuz. But of course, they've asked vessels to get permission from them. And so, no, this was never going to be, you know, a way to fully open up the Strait of Hormuz. It just wasn't going to be possible. But I think there was probably a bit of optimism from the president that his teams on the ground that the US Navy would be able to do a lot more than what they have done. Only two ships managed, managed to actually pass through in the last 24 hours, as I mentioned. And so it's just simply not worked. And so now Iran's in this position, Emma, where effectively they've got President Trump to capitulate on this Project Freedom to get back to the negotiation table, they've got the upper hand because the US has had to back down. They still control many parts of the Strait of Hormuz effectively. And they're in this position now where They've got this 14 point peace proposal that they put to the U.S. they've said, the ball's in your court, you guys need a deal more than we do. And these are our demands. And this is the price that you've got to pay in order to get to the negotiation table. So we're in a situation right now. Is that okay? We've seen some military action over the last few days from Iran into the uae. The fighting in Lebanon is very much continuing. But there seems to be a huge amount of diplomatic activity happening in the background to try and get the two sides to the table. The big question is, is whether Iran will capitulate to US demands or whether the US will keel over essentially to get out of this conflict.

Emma Nelson (9:31)

And if you are sitting in the UAE as you are right now, what is the feeling there? Because obviously after tensions and sort of stress levels had spiked yesterday, the long term issues of how this conflict ends are still, as you say, intractable. They're not remotely solved yet. But if you're trying to get on with doing business and you're trying to travel and you're trying to lead your everyday life, I mean, what is the long term effect of this?

Indzi Rashid (10:00)

Look, I think the UAE will hope that the last couple of days was just a bit of a blip. I think even though the smallest blip like we've seen over the last couple of days will have huge impact in the uae. Because when you've got four alerts coming through on your phone, blaring out across the country, and then, you know, you see oil, an oil facility, a petroleum facility be struck, fire coming out of that, you know that not far off the coast oil tankers are being struck as well. This will have impacted the confidence in the UAE once again. And I think the last month they've been working, they've been rebuilding, events were back on. Right now we've got a big event make it in the Emirates is happening where some of the big wigs across the Emirates are there talking and discussing. Yet in the meantime, we had Iran attacking the country. And so there's just a real sense of it's so unstable. And when you've got a dangerous country, a neighbor like Iran who's got missile and drone capabilities that can target the likes of the UAE and other Gulf states whenever it feels like it then there's always this element of unpredictability, Emma. And I think that's a worry for many people, not only who live here, but also the huge number of tourists, which has now dropped considerably.

Emma Nelson (11:19)

Indeed. Just explain to us how the season is panning out there.

Indzi Rashid (11:24)

Well, look, we're going into the summer months and over the last few years that I've been here, I found that the summer months have actually got busier and busier because usually you can find a pretty good deal and get out here and actually enjoy a bit of the sunshine. And remember, there's AC everywhere, so it's bearable. But the problem you've got now is that no one wants to come here because they're unsure of the safety. And look, it is a very safe country still. The armed forces are doing an incredible job. More than 95% of the missiles coming in have been intercepted. I feel very safe as a resident here. And yes, there are loads of cheap deals now in hotels because many of them are shutting down or refurbishing and they have to bring their costs down in order to keep room occupancy high. But people aren't coming. The roads are empty, the shops are not as busy, the malls are very quiet. And I think that's a huge concern for this country. They will bounce back, I have no doubt about that. And there are plans being put into place, but right now I think they're feeling the pinch.

Emma Nelson (12:25)

Enzaman Rashid on the line from Dubai. Thank you so much for joining us. As ever on the Globalist. It's 9:12am in Bucharest, which is where we head next, because with calm, we will get this. That was Romania's President Nicosur Dan, promising he would find a majority pro European government. It follows the collapse of the current administration, also pro European, via a vote of no confidence. To tell us what's happened, I'm joined now by Alison Mutlur, who's journalist in Bucharest and manager of the universal.net news site. Good morning, Alison.

Alison Mutler (13:07)

Good morning.

Emma Nelson (13:08)

So what's happened?

Alison Mutler (13:11)

There was no confidence vote, as you said in your introduction in parliament and the government was dismissed. It was a real routing. 281 MPs voted against him and his government collapsed. And now Romania has to form a new government which the president says will be pro Western. But there will be a period of instability because Bolognese Liberal Party has said it will go into opposition. Another smaller, pro European party will also go into opposition. And the fact the president said it will be a pro west or pro European government seems to suggest that the hard right populists, who were one of the initiators of this no confidence vote, won't be in the government. So it's unclear if a government is formed, whether there will be a majority. And also, Romania has a host of economic problems that any new government will have to deal with. It's not picking up a nicely packaged present and then going on to rule the country. It's a very difficult time for Romania as also the rest of Europe, particularly Romania, with its budget deficit which is ballooning. Borrowing costs have gone up or may go up even more. And so it's very difficult both politically and economically.

Emma Nelson (14:47)

Just explain to us a little bit how we got here in the first place, given the fact that the creation of that government was very, very hard fought.

Alison Mutler (14:57)

Yes, it was very difficult because Romania has so far stayed on its pro Western track, pro Atlantic track, if you like, which is important. It shares a 400 mile, 600 and something kilometer border with Ukraine. It's been a very stalwart, dependable member of NATO and of the European Union. And it's quite a big country for this part of Europe. 19 million, second only after Poland. And so after the elections, the parliamentary elections, December 2024, they wanted to keep out the populist party, which did very, very well. So the other parties rallied around to form a coalition and Romania again was in a difficult. And the Prime Minister, Ilya Bolanjan, was seen as somebody who was very determined and a good manager and he had public credibility. So he was finally, after lots of jostling and jockeying and discussing, because you have to understand, in Europe often, unlike in the UK and in Europe, we often have coalition governments. I can't remember in Romania the last time we didn't have a coalition government. So there was a lot of jockeying for power. In the end, Ilie Bollojan was seen as a very credible and determined figure to cut Romania's budget deficit. But the problem was after that, as you said, it was very hard. It took weeks and weeks for the government to be formed and it to be voted for it to be approved by Parliament. Ilia Bolojan's austerity measures were quite unpopular because he had to raise vat, for example, there were, I think, wage freezes for doctors, for other public sector workers. But also he wanted to cut spending in state companies that the Social Democrats relied on their support. So that upset the Social Democrats because they saw themselves losing their support and they saw their own interests being harmed. So they left the government, even though they had agreed to all the economic measures because their own personal interests were being harmed, their political interests, particularly in the outside Bucharest, but also in state companies. So they left the coalition last month. They are the biggest party in parliament, the Social Democrats, and they teamed up with these hard right populists, which again raised eyebrows sort of in Romania, but also in Europe, because the Social Democrats, the center left, where the populists are quite Eurosceptic.

Emma Nelson (17:41)

And very briefly, on this issue of the its role within Europe, Romania has been seen as a sort of like a litmus test for resistance against Russian influence. So now that we have this destabilizing effect, where does Romania sit?

Alison Mutler (17:58)

Well, the president has said Romania will stay on its pro Western path, but definitely there is Russia's hybrid war continues in Romania. It was the reason that Romania canceled presidential elections because of alleged Russian interference, which Moscow denies. So I think Russian destabilizing efforts in Romania, or Russian influence, if you like, will definitely continue, particularly as next door in Hungary, Viktor Orban, who was known for his very cozy relationship with Vladimir Putin, has gone and Romania is fruit ripe for picking. So I think those efforts will continue. But then there is a very solid pro European camp in Romania, particularly among voters who want Romania to remain on its pro European, pro western path. But yes, for sure, this will be an opportunity for Russia to try and destabilize things politically and economically. They will continue. The hybrid war will definitely continue in Romania. You know, Romania is weakened now, but let's see what happens in the next few weeks.

Emma Nelson (19:16)

Alison Mutler in Bucharest, thank you so much for joining us on the Globalist.

Michael Armitage (19:19)

Still to come, you want things to affect the painting in a way that one would hope a journalist wouldn't want their telling of a story or a side be affected.

Emma Nelson (19:30)

That's a Kenyan British artist, Michael Armitage, talking about his show at the Venice Biennale. We'll hear more from him a little bit later on. Today's globalist.

UBS Narrator (19:42)

Craft is a matter of perspective, a unique outlook, an obsessive attention to detail. With UBS's Chief Investment Office, House View, we're focused on identifying the latest investment opportunities and market risks to help you achieve your financial goals. So you get the big picture broken down into thought provoking insights, delivered daily and curated by over 200 globally connected, locally active analysts. UBS banking is our craft.

Emma Nelson (20:18)

7:19 here in London. Let's have a look at today's papers, but we head to the Med for that. Joining me in the studio is Emmanuel Papavasilu, who's a Greek journalist, regular Monocle contributor. Hello, Manos. How's life?

Emmanuel Papavasilu (20:29)

Yeah, life is good. Life is good in London. Lots of news lately. Lots of things to talk about.

Emma Nelson (20:35)

Good. Let's go. What would you like to talk about? As if that were a magical cue.

Emmanuel Papavasilu (20:40)

So let's start today with some defense news in Greece. So this year, Greece is hosting NATO Tiger meet 2026. Now, this is something that brings together some of the best NATO air squadrons to train together. And let me tell you, there are cool liveries and there are cool badges involved, but a bit of context of that before we get into it. So the Tiger Meets are annual gatherings of some of the best air squadrons across NATO countries. It's hosted by the association of Tiger Squadrons, which exists since 1961. Now, this is not part of the formal NATO military structure. Think of it a little bit like a social club within NATO that consists of elite squadron members from various countries who come together every year to train annually, share tactics and resources. And it also tends to be a massive PR stunt for NATO because these are open to the public who come and see some of the most spectacular maneuvers. So if you're in Greece this week, it's open to the public this Sunday. And it has been a tradition for each squadron to paint their liveries every year, their jets in tiger stripes in various designs, and actually some of them in full drone realistic tigers on them. So it all happens in Greece in Araxos this weekend. It's in Peloponnese in the top left, if anyone is interested. Hosted by the Hellenic Force 335 Squadron. This year, the the public can expect to see more than like 50 fighter jets. They're gonna be all the latest models. F16s, F18s, Tornadoes, Gripens, and EF2000 Eurofighters. And finally, let's not forget about the cool commemorative badges that the host nation issues every year. This year, I like this one. There's always a design tiger in the design. This year is a very Greek one. It's a tiger wearing a Corinthian helmet in front of a Greek shield with two cross swords behind it. I love it.

Emma Nelson (22:39)

Literally booking my flight right now to have a look at this fantastic weekend of showing off. I mean, is there apart from the badges and apart from the stripy tiger suits and what was it? A tiger in full Hellenic costume. Cannot wait to see that one. I mean, is there actually a more serious point to this in terms of the fact that it's being held in Greece, or should I just relax and we should just talk about planes dressed up as tigers.

Emmanuel Papavasilu (23:04)

Look, I'll get into that with my second story right now, which is like, this is the. Yesterday, the Greek ambassador, the US Ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Galfold, dropped the bomb yesterday that President Donald Trump is expected to visit Greece this year. Now, basically, when she was asked when he's coming, she didn't say exactly. Said in the summer alongside Rubio and Hegseth. And this is a significant visit. Now, in terms of defense and in terms of cooperation, the United States and Greece have deeply enhanced their military partnership throughout the years. There's this mutual defense cooperation agreement which grants access to U.S. bases. And right now, with everything happening in Iran, while the whole world is absorbed in the daily diplomatic dramas and the unfolding consequences of the war, the Pentagon is quietly redrawing the map of American presence across the broader region. Historically, the US maintained close military ties with Turkey. For over 70 years, Turkey has served as NATO's indispensable eastern anchor. And it's been a big strategic significance of the Anatolia geography, basically, was that the US had it as a primary staging ground for American powers in the Middle East. However, you know, the situation has been gradually changing over the years. The US Is now actively building a highly sophisticated military footprint in Greece. It's establishing strategic alternative so it doesn't have to rely on Ankara in times of a regional crisis. For Greece, doing, you know, NATO exercises again of the Tiger squadrons is highly, highly important. And it remains to be seen now if Trump will visit NATO, like, will visit Greece ahead of the NATO summit, which is held in Turkey in July or before. And again, with. With everything that is happening right now, Greece to host the NATO Tiger exercises is deeply significant indeed.

Emma Nelson (25:18)

And, I mean, how does Greece actually feel about Donald Trump, given the fact that he is, you know, he sows a little bit of interest in trouble wherever he goes.

Emmanuel Papavasilu (25:27)

So I'll tell you this. Okay, tell me, Mano Trump will be welcomed with king's honors in Greece. They love him. Obviously, we can expect the obvious protest outside, wherever he will be staying or where he will be doing his meetings. But over time, because of Kimberly, the Gulf oil, the. The diplomat there, she has. She has become somewhat of a celebrity. She has enhanced, you know, the US Position in Greece. Everyone talks about it. And Greece itself has really, really, really, you know, relied in the US for, for military assistance. And in terms of his presence, he will be. He will be, you know, treated as the highest celebrity coming there.

Emma Nelson (26:20)

Good. Right. Let's have a final look at visitations, and you know, Greece opening up its doors. There is a big adventure week being held in Greece, which sounds more like the tiger painting on the aircraft. Everyone's having a nice big play in Greece this week, aren't they?

Emmanuel Papavasilu (26:39)

Yeah, yeah. So this is on the more of the tourism side that connects tourism and media a little bit. So back in the Peloponnese this week and up until next Thursday is what is called the Adventure Week in the Peloponnese. It's basically an initiative created by the Greek National Tourism Organization and the Adventure Travel Trade Association. It's going to bring together journalists from the top travel and adventure related media such as the National Geographic, CNN Travel, Lonely Planet, BBC Travel, et cetera, with representatives of some of the top global tour operators. And they will go to the Peloponnese to experience all the region's outdoor and cultural offerings from hiking, kayaking, gastronomy. Now, it's a great event for journalists and tour operator PR teams to come and meet and network, but essentially it's all a big win for the Greek tourism. And what's important to note here is the shift that the Greek Tourism Ministry is taking to showcase that the adventure offerings of Greece is to say, you know, when you bring Greece into your mind, it's more like you relax into a beach. What they're trying to achieve here and what they were pushing for in the 2025 World Travel Market Conference in London last year was Greece as an adventure destination. So this is the direction of travel that they're going through. And so from this event expect a lot of nice features and stories across media, talking about, you know, kayaking, the Greene hiking, all of that stuff.

Emma Nelson (28:21)

It's interesting to think, just briefly because time's running out. But the idea that the thing that makes Greece so brilliant is not the thing that the Greeks are trying to sell is that because they're trying to diversify or they're trying to draw people away from going to the islands and collapsing on a beach?

Emmanuel Papavasilu (28:35)

No, they're trying to diversify because there's no way of bringing people away. The islands are packed. So what Greece is trying to do is use its full resources, its mountain showcase, its forests, things that people don't know that Greece can offer because Greece as a country can offer like it's a year long destination. And this is what they're trying to show.

Emma Nelson (28:58)

Manos. Emmanuel Papavasilio, thank you so much for joining me in the studio. You're with the Globalist. Now here's a look at some of the other stories we're keeping an eye on today, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky has called Russian strikes ahead of a two day ceasefire cynical. The Kremlin says it's pausing hostilities on May 8th and 9th for the World War II victory celebrations, but has threatened a massive missile attack on Kyiv if Ukraine violates the truce. London's Metropolitan Police has announced the creation of a special unit dedicated to keeping the British capital's Jewish community safe. It follows a number of hate attacks. Around 100 police officers will form the new team with a budget of more than US$24 million. And Spain is to let a cruise ship at the center of a deadly outbreak of Hantavirus travel to the Canary Islands. It follows a request from the World Health Organization. The ship is currently anchored off Cape Verde, about three or four days journey from the Canaries. This is the globalist. Stay tuned. Now for a look behind the headlines. Anyone who has been wandering around London in the last couple of weeks will have seen Waymo doing its thing, driving around the streets to gather information about bringing in robo taxis. Well, here's Monocle's Europe editor at large Ed Stocker on the robo taxi race.

Ed Stocker (30:30)

The robo taxi race shows no signs of slowing despite bumps along the way. In the U.S. alphabet's Waymo is leading the pack, recently surpassing 500,000 rides a week and currently operating its self driving taxi fleet in a string of key cities from Atlanta to San Francisco. Its two main rivals are Tesla and Zoox. But the race is far from over. Waymo is eyeing expansion to London, where it recently started testing, and Tokyo back in March. Meanwhile, Estonian ride hailing app Bolt and Nvidia announced a new partnership to expand autonomous vehicles. But controversies remain from driverless vehicles being attacked during protests to crashes. Global leader China recently slowed its rollout after a mass system failure in Wahoon. Then there's the legislative nightmare, including who to charge for a traffic violation from the start of July. In California, authorities will be able to start ticketing driverless cars with the manufacturer picking up the bill for the sake of their wallets. The companies in this tech tussle will need to iron out the kinks quickly.

Emma Nelson (31:46)

And that was Monocle's Ed Stocker. For more you can sign up to our daily newsletter, the Monocle Minute. You just head to monocle.com minute. 07:31 Here in London, 02:32:31am in Havana. Now what are Donald Trump's plans for Cuba? The US President has renewed his warning that he could take action against the country with a possibility that aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, could be used to force the Cuban government to step down. Well, I'm joined by Andrew Thompson, Latin America specialist, Latin news contributor and regular voice here on Monocle Radio. Good morning, Andrew.

Andrew Thompson (32:25)

Good morning.

Emma Nelson (32:26)

So just explain to us, do, do we know what has Donald Trump said about what he wants to do with Cuba?

Andrew Thompson (32:33)

Well, he said lots of things and the last things were said partly in jest. You know, the talk about putting an aircraft carrier. But, but he seems to be. A theme he seems to be coming back to is that basically the US Will move on Cuba after it finishes its current entanglement in, in Iran. Now, if the involvement in Iran drags on, presumably attempt to force the Cuban government to either exit the scene or make significant reforms will also be delayed.

Emma Nelson (33:12)

Explain to us, when he says move on Cuba, what are we looking at? Are we looking at regime change, an operation similar to what happened in Venezuela with Nicolas Maduro? What are the options?

Andrew Thompson (33:24)

I think the best way to look at it is as a version of what you might call the Venezuelan model. So if you look at that, the U.S. of course, invaded Venezuela for a period of hours, snatched the then president and took him off to face drug charges and other criminal indictments. In the US this was all made possible because if you like, the ruling group, the left wing group that controls Venezuela, split and Del C. Rodriguez, who up till then was vice president, essentially did a deal with Trump and agreed to lead a transition government. Now, as far as we can tell, the Americans are looking at a similar sort of pattern in Cuba. Ideally, it would be from their point of view, regime change and an interim government that would avoid any heavy US Military involvement. An interim government run by elements of the existing Cuban Communist Party, which controls the country, and perhaps others from the opposition or from community groups that would bring in, if you like, an agenda of pro free market reforms and will begin an overhaul of the Cuban economy, which is in an absolutely disastrous state.

Emma Nelson (34:52)

How is Cuba reacting to all this? Because to, you know, see what is happening in Venezuela and to see what is happening with Iran, you would ask yourself whether, you know, how much preparation the Cuban authorities can do.

Andrew Thompson (35:07)

Well, they're taking a defiant position, which of course has been their tradition. You know, for more than six decades. Cuba has been, if you like, a rebel socialist small island very, very close to the United States. And they continue doing that. There are official negotiations are taking place, although the amount of information about what's being said is quite limited.

Emma Nelson (35:35)

Tell us a little bit more about the longer term prospects when it comes to Cuba at the moment because the focus has very much been on preventing the Cubans from obtaining fuel. You know, you've outlined the nervousness in the likes of Havana. Is there a sense that Trump will actually bide his time here? Because we've seen sort of the fears that Cuba will be starved into submission.

Andrew Thompson (36:03)

I think there is an element in which Trump is paying the long game, and he's not necessarily in as much control as he'd like to. I think that US involvement in the Iran war is playing very unpopularly at home. So to suddenly say, and we're also moving on Cuba right now would, just ahead of the US Midterm elections would be quite risky for Trump. It's also true that there are, if you like, members of the Trump administration who definitely want to play the long game, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is himself a descendant of Cubans. That group is particularly interested in there being a transition to more democratic forms of rule in Cuba. And. And that's kind of an important part of their thinking. And it's, you know, you have to bear in mind Rubio, at this stage, is a potential future presidential candidate. And there are almost 3 million Cuban Americans living in the United States. So. So what happens in Cuba is very, very electorally important in the US in the case of Venezuela, the Trump administration has not shown itself to be particularly worried about restoring democracy. They're quite, apparently quite comfortable working with a transitional regime that they've put into office which has no democratic legitimacy. It may be that Cuba is different and that various lobby groups in the United States will insist much more strongly on the need for full, fair and free elections and an eventual transition in Cuba to an elected government, which would in any case require not just years, but probably decades of economic reconstruction and would need to attract significant foreign capital.

Emma Nelson (38:08)

Andrew Thompson, thank you so much. Excuse me. Andrew Thompson, thank you so much for joining us on Monocle Radio. It is 8:38 in Venice now. Russia has opened a pavilion at the renowned Venice Biennale, bringing Moscow back to the show for the first time since its invasion of Ukraine. The pavilion will only be open to the press, and it must close its doors once the public enter the wider exhibition from Saturday. Well, I'm joined now from Venice by Monocle's Associate Culture editor, Sophie Monaghan Combs. Good morning, Sophie.

Sophie Monaghan Combs (38:51)

Good morning, Emma. Thanks for having me.

Emma Nelson (38:52)

How's Sophie? How's Sophie in Venice looking this morning?

Sophie Monaghan Combs (38:57)

Looking incredibly rainy. So that is a bit disappointing. But, you know, it is a city that's still Beautiful no matter what the weather. But, yes, it is. It's not very bright and sunshiny at the moment.

Emma Nelson (39:11)

It sounds like you're out and about.

Sophie Monaghan Combs (39:14)

Yes, I am. There's so many. You know, obviously the Biennale is very busy, but there's also just the normal amount of tourists here. And, yeah, the city feels very busy. I went out early this morning and the streets were already heaving with people on their way to the Giardini or other press events and things that were definitely art related, and then people who were just enjoying the site.

Emma Nelson (39:38)

Amazing. Venice always charms, even when it's jam packed with people and it's raining. Let's talk about this return of Russia to the Biennale. It is being said that, rightly or wrongly, the organizers of the Biennale have made a mess of this.

Sophie Monaghan Combs (39:57)

Yes, I think that is very fair to say, you know, to give it some context. Countries own their own pavilion. So the fact that Russia hasn't been present in the past few years is sort of because of, you know, it's been their own decision. So in 2022, just after the invasion, the artists decided not to stage their show. In 2024, the Russian Pavilion was lent to Bolivia, who staged their exhibition there. So the Biennale administration has sort of said it's not up to them. But it's shown this huge split between the administration, Biennale, the Italian government, who have been very critical of the decision to let Russia back in, and the Minister for Culture has sort of boycotted the opening event. But then it's also shown this split with. With the jury, who were appointed by the late curator, and they resigned en masse at the end of last week. So, you know, I think it's just very clear that this isn't something which, you know, all levels involved have been a part of the decision and have been in support of the decision. And now there'll be an inquiry into whether bringing in the artworks and the people associated with the pavilion has violated EU sanctions or not.

Emma Nelson (41:20)

Indeed. I mean, do we sort of know how we got to this point where inquiries are being held and, you know, wider political and legal questions are being asked?

Sophie Monaghan Combs (41:30)

Well, I think in general, it's because Russia have got to this stage where they actually want to have a presence back at cultural events, back at sporting events. They sort of feel like it's been enough time. And. And to some extent, I think that there has been a huge outcry, but you could argue that there should have been a big outcry about some of the other pavilions that have been present. And so it's sort of difficult. But I think, as you say, the Russian pavilion won't be open past Saturday. People will still be able to see some videos of the presentations. But I think even this week, from what I've heard, not many people are going inside it, just sort of taking a stand. And so I think either way, it's kind of flopped and it's caused a lot of noise, but people aren't writing about it. It's not been a positive whitewash that Russia might have hoped for.

Emma Nelson (42:32)

So let's see if there is anything else that we can be interested by at the Venice Biennale, whether this is sadly dominated the narrative. What have you seen so far which has actually positively excited you?

Sophie Monaghan Combs (42:44)

Well, I think. Yeah. Well, I'd like to talk about the in minor CAI's sort of main exhibition, which, as I said, that the curator of the whole Biennani passed away last year, but she's really got her stamp on this kind of central presentation. And there are so many different works. The theme of it is In Minor Keys. It's all about kind of moving away from the centre, finding things that are a little bit subtle and unsung and sort of bringing them to the fore. And there's a lot of tapestry which I thought was really wonderful. One in particular reimagined the mata mundi, the 14th century Medieval world map that's at Hereford Cathedral in a really fun, sort of whimsical way. There's video works about South Korean freedivers. I was completely entranced by this video work that just sort of took you into a giant flower warehouse in the Netherlands and watched all of the flowers get packaged up and drowned. And I sat there for far too long yesterday. I think there's some really great works on show and it's such a mix.

Emma Nelson (43:50)

You've been hearing from Michael Armitage. Tell us about that.

Sophie Monaghan Combs (43:53)

Yes, Michael Armitage, the British Kenyan painter, has a show at the Palazzo Grassi. It's a huge retrospective, It's a beautiful location and his large scale paintings are very colorful and dreamy. He's influenced by art, literature, cinema, but also contemporary politics. There's some really interesting work on migration in particular. And he embedded himself with a group of journalists ahead of an election in Kenya a few years ago. And I asked him about the relationship between journalism and his art. So maybe we can hear him, his response to that.

Michael Armitage (44:28)

Now, the paintings one, they're paintings, they're not photographs, they're not documenting an actual situation. They're situations, ideas, stories that are absorbed by me and then processed and expressed and kind of evolved through a painting. A painting changes the narrative. When you put things down, the composition can change the narrative. You want things to affect the painting in a way that works, one would hope a journalist wouldn't want their telling of a story or a side to be affected. I think that's something that often gets slightly missed with paintings that start with a real life situation or story is it isn't journalism. It is fiction in its own sense. But the hope is that it gives you a space in which to reflect around some of those ideas.

Emma Nelson (45:18)

And that was the artist Michael Armitage there on show at the Venice Biennale. We'll have to say thank you to Sophie Monaghan Combs joining us on the line from Venice as well. You're listening to the globalist

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Emma Nelson (46:07)

In a little while, we head to Zurich for the latest on the news from the world of wine. Chandra Kurt is going to tell us about the Valais region of Switzerland. Before we do that, let's focus on urbanism for a little while. Jessica Bridger is a consultant on urbanism and contributing editor to Monocle. She joins us on the line from Studio 4 in Zurich. Good morning, Jessica.

Jessica Bridger (46:29)

Good morning.

Emma Nelson (46:30)

We have a sort of a Swiss slice to round off today's program. You want to talk to us about urbanism first? You haven't actually been in Zurich. You've been on your travels.

Jessica Bridger (46:41)

Yes, I was just in Azerbaijan. And the country is gearing up for the UN Habitat World Urban Ribbon Forum in two weeks. So they've been inviting journalists and urbanists to go and see the country to experience what and how its urban development has progressed over the years. So looking at current and future plans, but also looking at the past. Now Azerbaijan is, you know, at the bridge between Central Asia and Europe. It's been a crossroads for millennia. Its first oil boom was a pioneering one. Some of the first commercial oil extraction happened in Baku, its capital, in the 1940s. And that was their first oil boom and they're now in their second.

Emma Nelson (47:20)

Okay, so tell us what is being said at the UN Habitat World Urban Forum. The idea come and have a look at our country. What impressed you?

Jessica Bridger (47:30)

So it's interesting because the WAF itself hasn't begun yet. But this is, I think, the first time that the UN and the host country have brought people in to experience what is actually on the ground outside of the conference. Because typically at the conference you're sucked into these immensely exciting presentations and panels, but you don't get a chance to see what's going on in the host country. So Baku is, without exception, one of the most interesting places I've been to in the past decade. It's a city of 2.3 million, and it has everything from a winding old town with architecture befitting its crossroads. So think geometric Islamic architecture, Turkish architecture, functional local limestone, and then substantial French influences. Staid manor houses of seven to eight stories, and of course, glass and steel monuments to the 21st century. You know, big towers, dramatic starchitecture. And then it has a boulevard that runs along the city's edge of the Caspian Sea, filled with parks and gardens, some of which hearken to the country's Soviet era, which began in the 1920s.

Emma Nelson (48:34)

So, and also there's this interesting part. I mean, if we're talking having a focus on how the city itself operates, it doesn't just have the Parisian influence, but it is one of those cities where industry and living are incredibly closely interconnected.

Jessica Bridger (48:48)

They are indeed. And I think the coolest thing that you see is not only the kind of Bakuvians, or properly said Baki nets, seem happy and eager to make contact, to have contact with you and interact with you, but you are also having contact with and interacting with these incredibly cute, brightly painted oil wells, which are really cheek and jowl with the city center areas, so that industry is still alive within the city. And sometimes you smell, you know, the smell of oil and gas, and you wonder, is this coming from cars or is this just part of this city's DNA? But it is really such a pleasant place, such an urbanistically interesting place, and with obvious high quality of life that I was walking around going, this is really a unique crossroads city with this deep industrial heritage, but an incredibly modern, incredibly open feeling.

Emma Nelson (49:41)

Well, let's move away from that sort of that deeply interesting and unusual city such as Baku to Toronto, whose lawmakers seem to have played it very, very safe with the decision.

Jessica Bridger (49:54)

Yes, they've played it very safe, but also very in a very sensible way with the Okwe Minsing new area, which is 240 hectares at the former waterfront industrial hot zone. We did a thing about it back in December in the magazine. But now the plans for that area designed by Dutch landscape office SLA have just been revealed and unanimously accepted by the city. And the interesting thing is that this is a landscape architecture practice led urban design scheme. So everything is about systems and the integration of those systems. So public realm, environment, buildings, industry, housing, everything is quite well bound together, allowing them to actually achieve remarkable density with what looks to be a kind of quality of public space and public realm, which is quite impressive, along with soft, that is non car mobility.

Emma Nelson (50:49)

And finally, let's talk a little bit about the local. You have been on your travels, what's happening in Zurich?

Jessica Bridger (50:58)

So what's happening in Zurich is actually one of the more kind of heartening things that I've seen in the last year or so, which is we're in the middle of the city's first climate week and that is something where we're looking at blended finance, you know, institutional investment in environmental initiatives, all kinds of kind of pro climate, but very finance aligned projects. And this is something that, you know, if you believed the hype is kind of on its way out, but it's very much in. Again, you know, whether that has to do with the global geopolitical system and you know, the challenges that we currently have or not, I'm not sure. But you're seeing an immense amount of momentum this week and really big players involved in really interesting panel discussions dealing with climate finance and how to bind climate finance to sustainable development, to sustainable urbanistic and sustainable environmental practices.

Emma Nelson (51:57)

I mean, what is the attitude towards climate finance? Very briefly, the fact that actually the doing well as well as doing good,

Jessica Bridger (52:05)

how important is that now that is still alive and well. So there have been a lot of well publicized kind of drawbacks and drawdowns from that. But on the other hand, there are a lot of players, especially in Europe and especially here in Zurich, who very much keep that at the forefront of what they're doing, what they're investing in and what they're looking at. And I think it comes from a very pragmatic place, right? We are seeing evidence of interest in, you know, there's for instance in Europe there's been a marked increase in the installation of heat pumps. So just on the consumer level, but also, you know, on the B2B and then on the financial level we are seeing sustained interest given the geopolitical context that we're in right now and given what's happening in the world for these things as something that can generate profit and good at the same time. So that hasn't changed, but it's more that it's gone and gotten a little bit more specific. And it hasn't disappeared to the extent that maybe reading the newspaper would lead you to believe.

Emma Nelson (53:08)

Jessica Bridger in our studio in Zurich.

Jessica Bridger (53:11)

Thank you.

Emma Nelson (53:11)

Thank you so much for joining us. You're listening to the Globalist. And we stay in Switzerland to focus on the Valais region of the south of the country famous for the Matterhorn, the starting point for the Glacier Express train, and if you like Swiss wine, the upper Rhone River Valley vineyards, where one person who really does does like wine and knows a lot about it and is delightfully happy to share it with us on Monocle Radio is Chandra Kurt, editor of Wine Cellar, Journal producer herself celebrating two decades of her wine, the Chandra to Kurt collection. Chandra is particularly fond of wine from the valet. We have heard her so many times on Monocle on Sunday talking to us about it. Good morning, Chandra.

Jessica Bridger (53:57)

How are you?

Chandra Kurt (53:58)

Good morning, Emma. I'm very good. Isn't it nice to speak so early in the morning about wine?

Emma Nelson (54:03)

Yes. I'm assuming you have drunk a lot before you came on the radio, is that correct?

Chandra Kurt (54:07)

Well, yesterday, let's say yesterday, some break in between.

Emma Nelson (54:11)

May we ask until what time?

Chandra Kurt (54:13)

Usually like at 10 o' clock and then it's enough.

Emma Nelson (54:16)

Excellent. We have a cutting put, Chandra has a cutting off point and it's 10pm lovely to have you on in the morning. Tell us a little bit about the Valais region of Switzerland and what kind of wine we would drink from there.

Chandra Kurt (54:27)

Okay, so the Valais is, you know, Switzerland by definition is a small wine country, but we have six wine region. And the Valais is in the south towards the Rhone river and the Lake of Geneva, if you want to see it. And it's the biggest wine region. And what is fascinating about the Valle, it's also an Alpine wine region and they have a lot, a lot, a lot of indigenous grape varieties. These are varieties you find only there. They are cultivated only there. So they have a long history of very specific grape varieties next to them. Of course, there is the famous shop which is the famous Swiss white wine and they call it Fondant and of course Pinot Noir, like in all the country.

Emma Nelson (55:08)

Okay, let's talk us through each one of those. Chasselat has been in my house. Actually, all of them have been in my house. But you say they have these indigenous grapes. What marks them out as their taste and the way that they are grown? Why are they so different?

Chandra Kurt (55:24)

So the beautiful thing about, you know, you have the international grapes, these are grapes. You find the same grape in all kinds of different countries. And then you have the indigenous grapes, which every country has, like, a signature grapes. Think about Austria, then you have the Grunewald liner, or in Germany, you know, Riesling is very strong. You go to California, for example, you think about Zinfandel, Argentina, Torontes. And in Switzerland, in the valley especially, you have, like, for example, the Petit d', Arvinje, the Haida, the Cornola, the Diolinoar. These are historic grapes that for hundreds of years they existed there. Some almost vanished, because sometimes, you know, they don't produce so much fruit. And then when you don't have so much results, so they get lost, but they tell a little bit. The story about the country and beautiful is that each of them has a unique taste. And, of course, you cannot compare them to each other, but they have signature taste. And it's like when a chef cooks in the kitchen and he uses different, let's say, ingredients. So there's estragon, there is coriander, there is. Is basilicum. And you can see the grapes in the taste. They have, like, really different tastes.

Emma Nelson (56:31)

Tell us a little bit about how you. You were involved in all this, because the Chandra Kirk collection has been. Has been around for two decades now.

Chandra Kurt (56:39)

You know, I'm really proud because it's almost a generation. And the idea, when he started 20 years ago together with Madeleine Gaege, she was the head winemaker of Provin Vallee. And now she's in retirement, but I work with her scholar that she taught everything. So the idea was to create a collection for me, also to be involved in a wine, not always to look at the wine from the outside, like, to write about him and to be like the outside satellite, not to be in it in a project, to feel what it means when you really create a wine together. And the idea was to show each of these grapes in the most pure possible way. You know, this sounds simple, but it's not simple, because you can. In winemaking, you have different tools to change a taste, to make it taste suitable to a specific target group. And what is, for me, the most beautiful is when you really let the grape express herself just how she is. And so we created, like, eight wines. We have now a new Arrose, which is something a little bit else. But we have eight single grape varieties that really, you can learn and discover the character of this grape.

Emma Nelson (57:47)

Finally, Chandra, in the one minute that we have left, what have you learned about winemaking that you do? You didn't know two decades ago, first

Chandra Kurt (57:55)

of all, that I couldn't really do wine myself. You need a lot of patience. You have to work with nature and you cannot predict anything and you need to be very fatalistic and you have to knit a lot of nerves and patience. So I have a highly respect for every person that produces wine.

Emma Nelson (58:12)

Chandrika, thank you so much for joining us on the line from Zurich. And that's all the time we have for today's program. The warmest of thanks to all my guests and to the producers, Anita Riota, Laura Kramer and Desiree Bandly. Desi was also looking after the sound in Zurich and our studio manager here in London was Christy o'. Grady. After the headlines. More music on the way. The briefing is live at midday here in London. The globalist is back at the same time tomorrow. But for now, from me, Emma Nelson, goodbye. Thank you very much for listening.

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