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The Globalist
US-Iran talks, Japan’s defence on alert and the growing rift between the UAE and Saudi Arabia
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Craft matters in small ways like how a coffee is brewed, and in not so small ways like how your money is cared for. Which is why for 160 years, UBS has elevated banking to a craft, tailoring unique strategies that combine human expertise with the latest technologies, all happening across 24 time zones and and 12 key financial hubs. With you at the heart of it all, UBS advice is our craft. You're listening to the Globalist, first broadcast on 27 February 2026 on Monocle Radio. The Globalist in association with U. Live from London. This is THE Globalist with me, Emma Nelson. A very warm welcome to today's program. Coming up, after a day of talks in Geneva, what progress has been made between the US And Iran? We'll examine the latest effort to dial down tensions. Also ahead in the next 60 minutes, Japan pledges to beef up its front line with missiles sent to the westernmost island near Taiwan. We'll ask if the message to China could be any clearer. Our newspaper review will come from our Paris bureau.
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And we learn that the residents of one swish neighbourhood of Mumbai are approaching the end of their wits and or tethers as a consequence of local authorities having had what may well be the worst idea in all of human history.
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Andrew Moolah will tell us what we learned this week, plus the fashion news too. That's all coming coming up on the Globalist live from London. First, a quick look at some of the other stories we're following today. Pakistan has bombed Taliban targets in Kabul and other Afghan cities in a sharp escalation of the long running border dispute. The streaming platform Netflix has abandoned bidding for the media company Warner Bros. Discovery, clearing the way for a rival offer from Paramount. And the Prime Minister of Japan, Sanae Takeichi has told part parliament she's opposed to altering male only succession in the imperial family. She says she doesn't want a woman succeeding to the chrysanthemum throne. Stay tuned to Monocle Radio throughout the day for more on these stories. But first, the messages from negotiations involving the US and Iran grew more and more positive as yesterday afternoon and evening went on. An immediate agreement is within reach, suggested a prominent adviser to Iran's supreme leader. But all the while, the military presence of America's firepower continued to build. The USS Gerald R. Ford, the world world's largest aircraft carrier, left Crete for the Middle East. Well, I'm joined now by Paul Walde, who's a Europe correspondent at the Globe and Mail. Good morning. Welcome back. Paul.
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C
Hi. Good morning.
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A
Good to have you with us. Right, let's have a look at what happened yesterday. So there were three rounds of talks with them. One day they went into the good part of the evening and depending on how you read, went really well. Or there was no deal.
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C
Well, exactly. It doesn't sound like there was any major breakthrough. The Iranians are kind of hailing this as, you know, a lot of progress was made. The Omanis, who kind of are the mediators, have also said it was a good round of discussions, but we haven't really heard a lot from the White House or from Washington about how they view this. So it still remains to be seen whether or not Trump is going to go ahead with these threats to carry out some kind of military strike. But for now anyway, they're still talking. They plan another round of meetings next week, which will be important because this round will include more representatives from the International Atomic Energy Agency. And those are the people who would monitor any kind of an agreement. So I guess there's a sense that maybe they're getting down to some kind of details on an agreement. But still, it looks like there's some pretty important roadblocks that remain.
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Indeed. I mean, just talking about what looking ahead to Vienna already, the Omani foreign minister has said that yesterday's talks yielded significant progress and that discussions on the technical level resume in Vienna next week. This is where the difficult part starts, doesn't it? But does that mean that some principles may well have been established?
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C
I mean, it's so hard to say because, you know, the Iranians have complained, probably rightfully so, that they're not really clear on what Washington or Trump wants out of these discussions. They want to keep the focus strictly on the nuclear program, whether or not Iran will ever be able to develop or enrich any uranium ever, whether or not their stockpile of uranium that they have on hand should be sent out of the country, depleted in some fashion. They're prepared to talk about all of those kinds of things, but they want a reduction of sanctions. On the other hand, in response to anything they agree to, what they're concerned about is that Trump has thrown in a bunch of other issues. He wants to stop them from developing a long range missile. He wants to stop them from funding organizations or groups in the Middle east such as Hamas and others. So it's not really clear. And you know, Trump is also mused about regime change in Iran. So I think the Iranians want to keep the focus on the nuclear program and they're not quite sure where the White House is going. So until we really get a clear sense about how Washington views all of this, it may just be a bunch of discussions, technical discussions on something that Washington's not going to agree to anyway.
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A
I mean, is there a fear that Donald Trump actually himself isn't 100% sure what he wants?
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C
I think there's always a fear that Donald Trump isn't quite sure what he wants on any given day. And that is, that's the real worry. I mean, this whole issue he raised in the State of the Union address earlier this week about Iran having the capability to develop missiles that would hit the U.S. most intelligence observers say that's just not the case. They've never had that capability. They don't have it now. And they're a long way from developing that. They're even a long way from developing any kind of a nuclear weapon, given the strikes that Washington and Israel carried out last year on the three nuclear underground nuclear sites that Iran has. So, I mean, everything is a long way off now. And it's really not clear what exactly Trump wants out of this.
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There is that view as well from Tehran that some parts of the Iranian regime still think that the sticking point here is that Iran's nuclear facilities need to be destroyed permanently for any deal to be reached. And this is something that there are big sways of the, of the regime which are saying that's absolutely never going to happen. I think we've had the head of the Iranian government Informational Council saying enrichment will continue with accordance with needs.
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C
Right. I think what Iran has argued for a long time, and in fact, this was part of the agreement that was struck during the Obama administration, was they would, they were prepared to sort of stop all enrichment for a few years, but keep a tiny amount of enrichment for medical purposes, for civilian use. Now, that's been their stated position for a while. That was what the original agreement called for, that was actually being monitored. But that doesn't seem to be good enough. We don't think for Trump, he wants a complete 100% eradication of the program. And he wants Iran to ship out the stockpile of uranium, of enriched uranium it has on hand. He wants that either diluted or taken out of the country. And that, again, is something the Iranians are against. So it really comes down to an issue of will Trump be prepared to allow Iran to have any enrichment program at all, or is he going to stick to this 100% position?
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And if, for example, this does not happen, that the 100% requirement is not met, Iran does keep its enrichment program. How does the United States go about actually launching a military offensive on Iran, given the fact that, okay, last year we had the deliberate, we had the targeting of very specific nuclear facilities in Iran in what seemed to be sort of a reasonably contained operation. But we have Democrats in the US now saying, in the House saying that were Donald Trump to want to launch military action against Iran, they need to force a vote on it.
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C
Yeah. And I think there's a vote coming up on this that could really tie Trump's hands to some degree. So he really only has, some are saying, a window of maybe up to this weekend to do any kind of a strike. But there is so much uncertainty about what he, and maybe Israel would hit in Iran. Would it be a big strike? Would it be limited? What would the targets be, and what would be the point of it? I mean, they launched the attacks last June. They, Trump claimed he obliterated their whole nuclear program. So what is it they're going after this time? And if Trump's stated goal is regime change, how does he go about that? By launching missiles? I mean, does that involve sending troops in? We've seen some comments from JD Vance saying there's no way the US Would get involved in some kind of prolonged conflict in the Middle East. So we have that. So that seems to indicate some kind of a limited response. But given the amount of firepower Trump has assembled off the coast of Iran and in the region, you have to wonder how he's going to find a way out of this that doesn't involve using some of that.
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You mentioned Israel and the region, and the news that's broken overnight is that Israel has struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. This is complicating things because there are fears, aren't they, about what Hezbollah might do if the United States attacks its sponsor Iran? The potential for drawing so many other players into this conflict would be huge.
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C
Well, exactly, and I think that's what a lot of people are worried about, and I think even some of the military officers in the US Are worried about this as well. What would Iran's response be? What would Hezbollah's response, Hamas response, and others be? Now, obviously, Iran is in a much more weakened position than it has been in a very long time, as are its allies in across the region. So it's not clear exactly what kind of strikes they could carry out or whether or not Iran would want to if it was a limited strike on behalf of the U.S. but nonetheless, that's a real concern. And of course, now you have the whole Pakistan border situation going on that the whole area is becoming so much inflamed that you really have to wonder how Trump finds a way out of this diplomatically and what will satisfy the Iranians right now as well.
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And also looking at your position as a Europe correspondent for the Globe and Mail, looking at what Europe's reaction could be to any action in Iran, because Europe has played a very, very big part in striking nuclear agreements with Iran in the past. Also, as a Canadian, you have that, you know, the, the observation from over the border as to what America is doing in terms of flexing its military muscle.
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C
Well, exactly. And I mean, I think, you know, if you go back again to that Obama agreement, the Europeans were part of that. The Europeans were keen to be part of the monitoring effort to help try and track this program. But Trump threw that out the window in his first term in office, and now he's back to trying to renegotiate that on his own. Sort of a US Only approach, maybe with Israel as well. And I think for Europe, for Canada, for other countries, that's a bit concerning, that the US has kind of abandoned any kind of multinational effort and is really going it alone here and maybe launching the world into what could be a pretty dramatic military conflict. It could, you know, affect not only, obviously, the lives of people in Iran, but the price of oil, the economy, all kinds of different things. So, yeah, there's fallout for this all over the world.
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Paul Waldy, Europe correspondent at the Globe and Mail, thank you so much for joining us on the line. You're listening to the Globalist. We head to Paris now for today's newspaper review. Heading to Paris Studio 5 is Frances Collins, Foreign News Correspondent for the BBC Associated Press and lots more. Good morning, Frances. How's Paris looking today?
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It's looking beautiful. I think the last time I came to the studio, it was equally beautiful because it was snow and ice. And now we have the air of spring in Paris.
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Absolutely. So, okay, so suddenly everything changes in Paris. Right. So the grey lid of the Tupperware box that we've been sealed in for months and months and months suddenly springs open.
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Exactly. We had two sunny days. Beautiful. 17, 18 degrees. I was out walking in a forest near where I live. It was. It was wonderful.
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And your voice sounds actually energised and lifted because of it. I'm so glad to hear it. Right, let's press on with the papers. What have you found?
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Well, concern, obviously internationally here as well, regarding what's going on between Pakistan and Afghanistan, because as you've been reporting there have been attacks overnight on Afghanistan. Pakistan's position on this is that there's been too much cross border terrorism, too many attacks, suicide attacks, notably coming inside Pakistan. And they say they're aimed at clearing out what they call safe havens in the border areas. So we understand there's been strikes on Kabul in Kandahar province and Paktika, also one of the border areas. And this is something you may recall flared up a few months ago. And there's been ongoing peace talks which I think have been led mainly by Turkey and Qatar, mediating a rather uncomfortable ceasefire which now seems to have stopped. It's in no one's interest for this to continue. But slightly concerning quotes from the Pakistan Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammed Asif. He calls the Taliban a proxy for India. So what we don't want to see and what nobody wants to see is any sort of escalation that does involve other players in the region, notably India, because of course we've had issues in the past between Pakistan and India for well documented reasons. He talks of open war, but they say they're targeting the Taliban headquarters, ammunition depots, posts on the border and stopping these cross border attacks that have been ongoing in the last few months.
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Indeed, Open war is the headline that has been seized by absolutely everybody else. Right, let's move to French news. Marine Le Pen from the far right party. I can't remember what used to be the Front Nationale. My mind's gone a complete blank. What is it now?
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D
It's the National Rally, effectively.
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Thank you. Yes, that's it. Raison de mont national. Marine Le Pen's been giving interviews.
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D
She has interesting character, always when she speaks, whether you like her or loathe her. And she does divide opinion, of course, in France. She's worth listening to. Interview with BFM TV this week. Of course she wants to run for the presidency next year for the fourth time, but currently barred. So she was talking about that. You may recall she was convicted last year of embezzling EU funds that she says she was calling an anti democratic decision last year when she was convicted. This is money coming from the EU to her party, which was being spun off in directions it shouldn't have been. She's now mellowed a little bit on her anti democratic stance, saying that if she doesn't win her repeal, which is in July, and gets that bar from running for public office lifted, then she won't be running for the President. She said it's impossible to be campaigning with an electronic bracelet. I mean, I have to say, there's something quite admirable about a country and a system that doesn't really mind going after anyone who's at the top as well as at the bottom. If you think that Nicolas Sarkozy has had his own issues over the last few years and knows all about wearing electronic bracelets, Marine Le Pen talking about it quite openly. She's had her appeal, but the verdict is going to be delivered, as I say, on about the 7th of July, and that's going to determine her political future. And of course, if she doesn't run, it's going to be Jordan Badela, who is her protege. She says he's an independent mind, he'll do exactly what he wants to do. She'll be there to offer the advice and experience she's built up, but she won't be controlling him as a puppet. And in the polls, he is popular, so, you know, that strength to his elbow next year could be very interesting when it comes to the presidential elections.
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The difficulty is, is that the minute she says, and this is getting widespread coverage, I think the Times of London has picked up on it and say then, and she is denying that she was pulled, she would pull the strings, that she won't be the puppet master. Jordan Bardella is. Is a free man. The minute you say that, that places it within a frame of. Well, everybody will be looking at her to see what she is doing.
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C
Yeah.
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D
And she says she'll take whatever role is offered to her. She will accept positions within the government, if indeed they make up the government. And that's far from conclusive at the moment. But he is young, he's only 30 years old. He is someone who's come up under her auspices, let's say. So I think it's fair for a BDI to be cast on the influence she does have over the candidate next year in the election. And of course, attention is not only on him and on her, but also on the. The emergence as yet, if there is going to be one of someone of a centrist nature, because of course, Macron won't be running again. So is there a centrist vote up for grabs or is it going to go right or left? Who knows?
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Now, let's. I know you want to bring us. You want to plunge us into France's cultural life. We had the scissors last night, but. But also there's a. There's a bigger thing at the moment that lots of countries, including the United Kingdom and, and dare I say plenty of other nations, are just gently poaching. The top talent from America as senior actors and senior figures are finding themselves disillusioned with the Trump administration.
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D
Yeah, this is something which the French. I do notice the French press does tend to deal with quite a lot because, of course, it's a lot of cachet for French cinema. Not that it necessarily needs that, but they do love it when people come here and extol the virtues. We've got a history of Americans coming and extolling the virtues of Paris dating back to Josephine Baker Hemingway, for example. Angeli Jolie was here recently saying that in France, it's enriching as an artist and as a woman to be in France. I feel more of myself comes out here. Others who've been here, Timothy Chamalet, who does. Does speak French, although friends of mine say that his French is a little bit odd in certain areas, but it's better.
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Most Hollywood actors, I think we have to give him that.
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D
Well, indeed, with a French father, it is. He chats away about his love for Santa, Da on the football team and life in France. But other people have made Paris their home. Wes Anderson, Natalie Portman, Sofia Coppola. Jude Law lives in France, I think, for half the year. Most famously recently and controversially, you could argue George Clooney is applying for citizenship. And I think the rather exacting language test won't be applied to George Clooney. He says he's learning French, but I don't think he'll be taking the test to get his citizenship. So is there a cultural exodus? An article in Le Monde is saying Paris is turning into frollywood, a refuge for American actors. And it cites several auteur films being made in France, set for release in a few months time. They give that impression. Matt Dillon is in a film called La Crui de Ga. The Fence. Woody Howison and Christian Stewart are appearing in another film. Mark Ruffalo is in a thriller by Bertrand Bonello. So, yes, is it. Is it a home for French actors? Probably not more than it has been in the past, but it's something that Le Mans wants to talk about. And of course, it fits into the narrative of standing up against Trump, which is often behind a lot of articles in the French press.
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I honestly don't think more Hollywood names have been squeezed into one item in all my days on Monocle Radio. Well, I think that's a record, Frances. Well done. Let's, let's. Okay, we're in with both feet. Let's talk about the Cesars. Jim Carrey received an honorary award, and guess what, he did it in French as well. Is this suddenly becoming a thing that everybody should speak French? Because I think Jodie Foster speaks French. Her French is exquisite. But the fact is that in order to appear cultured, you need to speak French.
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D
Well, I think it's a sign of respect as well. I mean, Jim Carrey doesn't live here, but he's getting the, the main award, the, the lifetime achievement award, as it were. So it was a little labor, the, the bit I saw. And he made jokes about how bad his French was, but good on him for turning up and, and speaking. I saw Jarvis Cocker recently speaking French as well. The, the musician from Pulp. He lives here and he's got a. He's got a. He's got good French but with a Mancunian accent, which is always quite, quite odd to hear. So Jim Carrey, yeah, he was, he was honored. The host, Benjamin Laverne, he donned a yellow suit and did a tribute to Jim Carrey's role in the mask. And he cracked a few jokes as well. Did Laverne, you know, made a joke about the Epstein files, which didn't go down too well. He said, it's a beautiful room tonight. Many familiar faces. I must say, for some of you, a refreshing change of pace to be sitting in a list of nominees where the other names aren't redacted by the FBI.
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A
Oof. Okay, that's. So there we go. So we have this idea that France has a cultural sort of cachet to it. Speaking French is a sign of respect and yet they can still pull those punches. There were some, There were some sort of old school moments though, weren't there? Because Brigitte Bardot had her tribute, which was obviously rather difficult given the fact that, yes, having been the ultimate sex kitten in the late 1950s and 60s, had her politics moved well. But there was also an award for the Richard Linklater film Nouvelle Vague.
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D
Yeah, Black and white film about the. The shooting of the. The Jean Luc Goddard classic Bre. So that went down well. Of course, the Attachment by Karin Tadio won the Cesar for the best film. Leah drucker for file 137 was best actress. And Laurent Lafitte for the richest woman in the World was the best actor. Also worth noting, record, female representation. Years of criticism not just at the Cesars, but also at the BAFTAs and at the Oscars regarding gender parity. Women represented 43% of nominees this year, which is a record. And notably, Lise Fisher, the first woman in the history of the Cesars to win the best visual effect for the great arch. Also, politics coming into it. I mean, you could never have an award ceremony without it. We would be surprised if there was nothing. But Isabelle Adjiani used her time on stage to call for a standing ovation from the men in the room to honor women victims of sexual assault and also the women of Iran.
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Okay, thank you so much. Francis Collins coming to us from Studio 5 in Paris. Thank you so much for bringing us the paper review. You're listening to Monocle Radio. 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. It's 1623 in Akita, Japan, 723 here in London. Now Japan is to deploy missiles to an island right on the border with Taiwan, sending perhaps Tokyo's strongest message yet to Beijing about its priorities when it comes to security. The island of Yonaguni, which is less than 70 miles from Taiwan's eastern coast, is far closer to Taipei than to Tokyo and has long been seen as a possible front line in any conflict between China and Taiwan. By 2031, it will station surface to air missiles. Well, I'm joined by Yu Hua Chen, who's assistant professor at Atakita International University in Japan. A good afternoon to you.
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E
Good afternoon.
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A
Why has Japan decided to do this?
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E
I think this is a part of a long term strategic transformation of Japan rather than a very short term political gesture of Japan toward China. The thing is.
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A
Yes, do carry on.
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E
Right. The thing is this plan, I mean for much for the Cold War era, Japan's defense posture was always concentrated on its northern region, Hokkaido. Right. Pretty much reflect the threat from Russia. But around 2010, under the Prime Minister Yoshiko Noda from the Democratic Party of Japan, Japan started to shift it's a strategic focus from the north toward the southwest region which consists a number of islands including Amani, Oshima, Miyako Islands, Ishigashi island and Reina Yonaguni island. And the staff from Shinzo Abe and then Kishida government, we do see Japan start to deploy a number of missiles from those islands from the east to the west until the Yonaguri Island. So I would say this is a very long term strategic shift of Japan
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A
and indeed I mean, how has this been? What's been the reaction to this in Japan? Because to be so bold and to say that by 2031 there will be surface to airmen missiles at Yonaguni which as we've mentioned is geographically so much closer to Taipei than it is to Tokyo. Have the Japanese accepted. Have the. Is the current mood in Japan that of that of accepting that the geopolitical tectonic plates are shifting?
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E
I mean this plane as a matter of fact was set back to three years ago 2022, 2023 and that was why when Akoisumi visit Yonaguni island and Saint. Our missile deployment has been in focus, right? Has been in focus for years and part of the reason Japan want to deploy missiles and by the way, the missile is a type 3 missile surface to air missile that is with defense character and one of the main reason Japanese government to do so is try to reflect the concern of Japanese citizen on those islands because those Japanese citizens they worry about if there's any attack from China because of Taiwan or single guidance issue they might be at the first front of the Chinese attack. So deploying those defense missile is very important because those type 3 missile can intercept the coming missiles from China or coming aircraft from China within a 50km range.
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A
This is a very clear message being sent to China by the Japanese administration from Sanae Takichi whose opening few months were defined by a row that she'd managed to engage in with China.
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E
Right. But as I mentioned earlier, Li's defense missile deployment has been on focus for more than a decade. This is cross parties, cross government and cross factions consensus and it has been taking place for more than a decade. So I would say it's pretty much reflect the consensus of a Japanese political elite rather than Takaichi herself.
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A
So finally, just on the long term, you mentioned the fact that this is all deeply strategic. Does this actually strengthen deterrence in the region or do we have a situation where Taiwan would actually be more vulnerable?
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E
I would say this means our defense development probably is less to do with Taiwan contingency because this Type 3 missile is a very short range missile only cover airspace around 50 kilometers. But Yunaku, the island is about 100 kilometers away from Taiwan. So I would say this missile deployment is much more about Japan itself rather than the Taiwan contingency. But of course the Chinese government tried to use this as a reason try to attack or try to accused Japanese government being militarized the Taiwan Strait or losing missile.
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A
Yu Hua Chen, thank you so much for joining us on the line from Akita in Japan. Still to come on today's globalist, Utterly beautiful stuff. Why Finland's flag carrier has decided that flying through the air isn't wondrous enough. It's decided to bring you a soundscape. Stay tuned. Now here's a quick look at some of the other stories we're keeping an eye on today. Pakistan has bombed Taliban targets in Kabul and other Afghan cities in a sharp escalation of the long running border dispute between the two countries. Pakistan's defense minister says there are now a state of open war with Afghanistan. The streaming platform Netflix has abandoned bidding for the media company Warner Bros. Discovery. It clears the way for a rival offer from Paramount, who has valued the company at around US$108 billion. The US financial tech firm Block says it's cutting more than 4,000 jobs. That's around half its workforce because AI tools mean smaller teams can do more. The company's shares have risen by more than 20%. And the prime minister of Japan, Sanae Takeichi has told parliament she's opposed to altering mail only succession in the Imperial said she didn't want a woman succeeding to the chrysanthemum throne. This is THE globalist. Stay tuned. Now, what was once a valuable strategic partnership between two of the Middle East's most prominent nations seems to be collapsing. The UAE and Saudi Arabia currently find themselves on different sides of violent conflicts in Yemen and in Sudan. They're often competing for the same economic spoils. And in recent months things have soured quickly. I'm joined now by Insaman Rashid, who's Monocle's Gulf correspondent. He joins me on the line now from Dubai. Out and about insi. A very good, very good morning to you.
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F
Morning, Emma.
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A
Just explain to us why things are going wrong. In particular, there's been a bit of a focus on it. We've talked about it before, but things are happening now that are really a sign that the deterioration is very prominent.
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F
Yeah, it is very prominent indeed. And the rift between the UAE and Saudi Arabia has really escalated since the back end of last year. And it's a rift which is now incredibly public as well. So obviously the big issue has been Yemen, the UAE backing the Yemeni separatists, the Southern Transitional Council, the fcc, where they launched a surprise offensive in, in southern Yemen in the area of Had Ramaut, a strategically vital and oil rich region. As a result of that, Riyadh felt pretty betrayed. Riyadh, of course, supporting a united Yemen. They've accused Abu Dhabi of undermining the Saudi led coalition against the Houthis threatening its national security and, and buffer zone. And this then essentially marked a very rare direct batch between these two GCC heavyweights, shifting the dispute from a very quiet diplomatic friction to operational and military tension on the ground in Yemen. But the Yemen dispute isn't just local, it's about influence as well. You know, this isn't just a fight that's occurring in Yemen, it's a contest over leadership of the Arab world. And when you've got two countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia going at it head to head, it's a lot more than what's actually happening on the ground. This is about actually having ownership of the gcc. This is about leading the GCC as well. Dubai, the uae, Abu Dhabi, they've done that for quite some time. Saudi Arabia now wants its moments and are really pushing to be a leader in this region. Whether that's diplomatically, whether that's strategically, whether that's through business as well. And so what we're finding is that actually a lot of the tensions that are happening in a place like Yemen, which both of these countries have an involvement in, are now spilling out into other sectors as well.
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A
And explain to us a little bit more about where these other sectors are becoming involved. Are we talking geographically or are we talking the world, that the whole economy and society works?
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F
Well, it's having knock on effects across so many different sectors. I mentioned a few initially. The media to start off with, has played a huge role in all of this. We've seen specifically, you know, Saudi led media targeting the UAE and the UAE's role in what's been happening on the ground in Yemen. And they've done that specifically by allowing international media into Yemen, showing them around where the UAE may have been committing human rights violations within, within Yemen itself, for example, that the Saudis allowed the BBC in to film and showed them, help them point cameras in the direction of potential human rights violations in return. The UAE on the media front has been pretty quiet, but they've led a social media campaign through the voice of influential social media influencers tweeting things or posting posts across social media networks to really demystify any of the reports coming out of Saudi Arabia. So we've seen this huge media battle from mainstream media here in the region through to social media. And then the other huge issue is business between the two countries. We just had the World Defense show recently in Riyadh. There were meant to be 30 UAE defense entities that were meant to travel to Riyadh for the show, none of them traveled and in fact the main one, their stall in the middle of the whole event, all was turned into a cafe, which was a bit of a kick in the teeth. So what we've also found as well, getting business visas for people from the UAE entering into Riyadh has been incredibly difficult as well. So business is having a huge knock on effect.
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A
Hindsi, final question. This does not exist in a vacuum. This dispute obviously has complications and consequences when it comes to other big areas of dispute and trouble in the Middle East. If America decides that it needs to mount some sort of military operation against Iran, what does that do for these two?
- [35:48]
F
I think that's going to be the real test for these two countries we've seen over the last few days. Egypt, Egypt's President Sisi has personally engaged to kind of mediate between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. Bahrain also reportedly kind of engaging both of the capitals to calm their tension, signaling concern. And that's because of potentially what could happen out here in the region if Donald Trump does decide to strike Iran. And all the signals are pointing towards that. What will be incredibly important is to see whether the UAE and Saudi Arabia are singing from the same hymn. She whether they are actually in line together, whether they can actually support the same strategy that they want. Right now, Saudi Arabia are really pushing a narrative that the UAE is in lockstep with the Israelis. They are essentially supporting an attack on Iran. And the UAE is saying that Saudi Arabia is not doing enough to, to create peace and stability in the region. And so if these two heavyweight nations in the GCC are at each other's throats when, if and when a strike happens on Iran, that will be a very, very testing time for the region.
- [37:18]
A
Insoman Rashid in Dubai, thank you so much for joining us. On the global. Just nudging 7:37am here in London. It's Friday. So here's what we learned.
- [37:37]
B
We learned this week that the state of the Union is our country is winning again.
- [37:44]
F
In fact, we're winning so much that we really don't know what to do about it.
- [37:49]
D
People are asking me, please, please, please,
- [37:52]
F
please, Mr. President, we're winning too much. We can't take it anymore. We're not used to winning in our country.
- [37:58]
A
Until you came along, we're just always losing.
- [38:01]
F
But now we're winning too much.
- [38:03]
B
Interminable we learned that US President Donald Trump can correctly claim to have earned at least one honor. That is the title of deliverer of the longest State of the Union address on record. His one honor. 108 minutes at the lectern, easing past the 99 minutes put up by President Bill Clinton in 2000. Tempting to say. Shame there isn't a gold medal or gaudy trophy for this, but it's at least an even bet that by the time you hear this, there will be. Am I right? Anyway, we learned greatly, too, our disappointment, if we're honest. We were kind of banking on. On the State of the Union to write this edition for us, that on this occasion, Trump stuck mostly to the script. We did, however, get briefly excited by this. That is, a caller to a program on C Span introducing himself as a voter dissatisfied with a recent Supreme Court judgment and identifying himself as John Barron, which listeners with a command of recent and stupid American history may recall was the alias President Trump adopted during the 1980s when he was pretending to be his own publicist and who had a somewhat familiar tone to both his voice and his vocabulary.
- [39:21]
F
Well, this is John Barron.
- [39:23]
E
And you have.
- [39:23]
F
Look, you have. This is the worst decision you ever have in your life, practically, Jack. And Jack's going to agree with me, right? But this is a terrible decision.
- [39:32]
C
And you have Hakeem Jeffries, who are.
- [39:34]
F
Who. He's a dope. And you have Chuck Schumer, who can't cook a cheeseburger. Of course these people are happy. Of course these people are happy.
- [39:42]
B
But we learned that C Span was at pains to insist that the caller was not who viewers may very well have assumed it was, although we were at least reminded of the somewhat melancholy fact that Trump actually named his youngest and tallest child after his imaginary employee. So we learned that we would be compelled to search elsewhere for material, a quest that took us as far afield as India, where we did at least discover that we could employ the linking device of monotonous din droning on and on and on, far past the tolerance of the sane. For we learned that the residents of the one swish neighbourhood of Mumbai are approaching the end of their wits and or tethers as a consequence of local authorities having had what may well be the worst idea in all of human history. That is engineering grooves into the seafront boulevard, imaginatively named Coastal Road, so that when vehicles drive over them at certain speeds, a tune is emitted, the specific tune being the one playing in the background. Now that is Jai Ho from the soundtrack of Slumdog Millionaire. Here is what that sounds like when rendered by Tata Wheel on asphalt. We learned that those within earshot are being subject to this racket more or less, all goddamn day. Every goddamn day. Yes. They're being driven to distraction. They're tired of it. They're feeling deflated, like they're in a rut. Just get on with it, alright? Settle down. On more or less the same continent.
- [41:37]
A
Ish.
- [41:42]
B
We learned that Thai police had either mounted an ingenious undercover operation or merely sought to liven up an otherwise routine arrest to enhance station morale. Give everyone a fun story to tell at the Christmas party, whatever. Hard to say. We learned that Bangkok's finest had determined, for reasons somewhat opaque to us at time of broadcast, that the best means of apprehending a particular miscreant was to join a parade commemorating Lunar New Year festivities. And while actually wearing one of the feline themed costumes in which revellers suit up on such occasions, claw enforcement. Is that anything? We learned, however, that the unorthodox approach had worked, which I'm sure we can agree is the main thing.
- [42:29]
G
For Christ's sake.
- [42:30]
B
And that the streets of Bangkok had been safened, if that even is a word. It isn't to the tune of one ne' er do well. Seriously, do you know when this guy ever did well? Nair Quite a right. We just have to hope he doesn't try. Lion UNDER OATH. For Monocle Radio, I'm Andrew Muller.
- [42:55]
A
An exhausting dispatch of what we learned courtesy of Andrew Muller. There you're listening to Monocle Radio. 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. 07:43 Here in London, a roundup of the latest fashion news. We can cross to Cyprus to join Natalie Theodosi, Monocle's fashion director. Good morning, Natalie. How are you doing? And how's Cyprus looking?
- [43:51]
G
Good morning, Emma. It's so nice to hear your voice again. Cyprus is sunny and quite calm. It's a nice morning.
- [43:58]
A
Good. Off we go. Right, so you've not been traveling, but there's been quite a lot of movement in fashion in the last couple of weeks, not least because we've got Milan Fashion Week and we will talk about that and we'll talk about what happened at Fendi. But first, at the moment we have Ramadan and it is playing a really important part in fashion.
- [44:20]
G
Absolutely. It's something that started almost a decade ago. Brands which were expanding, especially in the gcc, starting With Dubai started recognizing Ramadan as an opportunity and the way they first approached it was with Ramadan capsule collections. They then started experimenting with hosting iftar meals, which is when people break their fasts at sunset. But that does feel quite surface level and that's what people have been saying. And also there had been quite a bit of saturation. There were way too many events, the same type of events happening around the month of Ramadan. So I think now the brands are thinking that they need to find more meaningful ways to engage with people during the month of Ramadan. Especially as the GCC especially has surpassed the US and China in terms of performance. It's such a strong market. So this is a time to really engage with customers in more subtle ways, I think that don't necessarily have to do with selling product and to show them that, that they respect their culture
- [45:30]
A
and how do they go about doing that? Because as you've said for such a long time it's been a sort of a self contained capsule moment actually for niche luxury. But it needs to have much more sense cultural sensitivity.
- [45:43]
G
I think it's rethinking how you host the events. I think it's also people tend to shift their time schedules so it's about accommodating to the way they live during that month and also of focusing the capsules and the celebration towards the end of the month where people are preparing for EID and also the campaigns that are being shot around that time should involve local talent and celebrate the local religion and culture. And interestingly speaking to some people that own local agencies and work with the western brands that are trying to come in and take advantage of the moment, they've been saying that actually mid price and high street brands have been doing it much better and they're engaging with local talent and doing more innovative campaigns. So I think luxury brands should look at what Nike is doing, what the high street is doing and get some ideas.
- [46:44]
A
Let's head to Milan Fashion Week. The great debut or the all eyes are on the debut of Maria Grazia Chiuri at Fendi. She was a woman who brought Dior into, into its status as you know, one of the great, great. I think it's a $9 billion powerhouse. She left last year. She's taken up the helm at Fendi. What was the verdict on her first show?
- [47:07]
G
Just like with Dior, it's quite a divisive one. I've always been a fan of her work and everything that she achieved at Dior with Fendi, I'm still not quite Sure. I think we need to see a few more collections, if you. It was a collection that felt like a palette cleanser, was very commercially savvy. You could see some great accessories, but it was quite minimal, all dark tones. So I think we need to see more. What was interesting, though, is to see how she's already starting to experiment and play with fur, which is Fendi's biggest signature, and where they really have artisan expertise as well. And she's already bringing artists. Artists in and introducing new services, like bringing your vintage fur to be reworked at the Fendi atelier. So I think it's just the beginning. It wasn't a kind of breathtaking debut, I would say, but there's a lot of potential there.
- [48:04]
A
No, I'd absolutely agree. I mean, some very, very beautiful pieces, very paired down, some lovely monochrome. But she has always come along with the idea of saying she is a woman's designer. Was there any sense of that?
- [48:15]
G
That? I think so. There's always that in. In her work, whether you see the. The women artists that she's bringing on to collaborate, sometimes. Sometimes printing their test text or their artwork on accessories. But also you. You always get the. The sense that women are able to move really freely in her clothes. Every time you see one of her. Of her shows, and she kept referring to Silhouette for her Fendi debut, that she wanted to create clean lines and. And pieces that women can move in.
- [48:49]
A
Speaking of sort of good pieces for women, tell us about the effect of Carolyn Bassett Kennedy. I think someone rather cynically said every woman believes she dresses like Carolyn Bassett Kennedy.
- [49:01]
G
And it's interesting that every woman might think that she dresses like Carolyn Bassett Kennedy. And it's such a minimal look that she's known for. But I don't think anyone has had so much influence on fashion, maybe aside from Princess Diana. And it's. I mean, now it's reaching quite a crescendo. But it's been a few years that she's been on every designer's mood board. People are referencing their. Her looks and trying to recreate them. But now it's getting even bigger with the release of the series Love Story. And it's interesting to see the direct effect on brands. Like, now everybody's searching for a Prada 19 his bag. Everyone is looking for Calvin Klein, and there's an independent New York eyewear brand where she used to get her sunglasses made called Selima. And they cannot keep up with the orders that are coming in. So there's a lot of opportunities. But hopefully Brands will be smart in, in the way they're handling it and so that they don't reach a point of saturation too quickly.
- [50:04]
A
Natalie Theodosi in Cyprus, thank you so much for joining us us on Monocle Radio. Now, music is something that most airlines use to help soothe your soul as you board and disembark. A blast of the Blue Danube has been a well worn soundtrack, for example, to fighting your way to your seat on an Austrian Airlines aircraft. Well, instead of going for a more obvious option, such as giving you a few bars of Sibelius Finlandia or even a dollop of extreme death metal, Finland's national carrier, Finnair, has created an entirely new new soundscape. It's composed by the celebrated Finnish composer Lauri Pora, which will accompany its passengers from gate to disembarkation or Monocle. Helsinki correspondent Petri Birtsoff was given a sneak peek of the 45 minute soundscape and he sent us this report.
- [51:07]
H
We know what most airlines look like, after all, each has its own livery, staff uniforms, brand logos and colors. But what does an airline sound like? Is an altogether more difficult question. The music you're hearing, hearing in the background, is what thin air will sound like. Its new sonic identity is original composed specifically for the airline by Lauri Porra, a famed Finnish musician and composer known for his orchestral scores. Porra tells me the soundscape was written with the psychology of travel in mind and that he drew on his own memories as a passenger for inspiration.
- [51:49]
D
And of course I have, have a lot of memories from Finnair, starting from, you know, the first flight in my life of, you know, being really excited and then, you know, going on family holidays and later becoming a business passenger and, you know, just wanted to get to the meeting and back and this sort of, just trying to, trying to take from all these different situations of different kind of travelers and create something universal that would, I guess one of the main, main things you want to achieve with sound is that people get comfortable and, you know, relaxed to the flight and, and also I think on this one and what Finnair has been working also is to get it, have a more unique Finnish sound. Concentrate also on Finnish happiness and this sort of thing because there's a lot of, you know, good music you can hear everywhere. And one thing that we talked about a lot, that this would be music specifically for Finnair, that this is something that only Finnair can play on their planes. So, you know, using traditional instruments and taking inspiration from Finnish and Nordic things.
- [53:15]
H
Bora's challenge was to write Something universal. Music that could speak to nervous first time flyers, seasoned business travelers and families heading on holiday, all sitting within the same cabin. And crucially, given Finnair's status as the national carrier, the music had to feel and sound. Finnish Borra turned to nature for inspiration and used traditional instruments.
- [53:38]
D
You know, using some traditional instruments like Cantela and Jojiko and certain kind of symphonic orchestra sound. I mean, in the end music is abstract and whatever claims can be made with it. So I also think that I thought about Finnishness when I was doing it, but if somebody hears something else, then they have right to do so.
- [54:11]
H
The finished work is substantial. 12 tracks, around 45 minutes of music structured almost like a travel narrative. From anticipation to calm, from ascent to reflection, different parts of the soundscape will be used. Used during boarding, safety demonstration, landing and taxiing, it will gradually find its way into Finnair's lounges. Even its customer service curated playlists are common in aviation. But a commissioned soundscape that follows the passenger from gate to arrival marks a shift. We know that much like light or scent, sound shapes our behavior, often subconsciously. Simon Large, Finnair's chief customer office, believes airlines are just starting to explore audio's potential.
- [54:57]
D
One of the components of the brand is that always should be thought about, certainly in terms of customer experience, we believe is sound and it's often underappreciated, I think in terms of customer experience, design, but it can be enormously influential in terms of how it makes people feel.
- [55:27]
H
For Finair, the brief was both psychological and aesthetic. Large says the soundscape had to reflect national identity, reduce anxiety and preserve flying sense of wonder.
- [55:38]
D
There are three dimensions to it that I think are quite important, important for us. The first is it's important to, I think, sound authentic to where your brand comes from and in this case we want it to be authentic to Finland. I think the second role that sound plays in an in flight experience is for everybody. But one we think about is as a way of calming people, because anxiety can still be a big part of flying. And sound always has a role to play there, I think in reassuring, calming, providing a sense of peace. And then I think the third element is also how do we inspire people, how do we continue to make travel a sense of wonder, in a way. And I think again, sound has a big role to play there and should be thought about in that context.
- [56:34]
H
That balance between calm and curiosity is particularly relevant in long haul travel, where Finnair has built its reputation. Connecting Europe and Asia via Helsinki, passengers may spend 10 hours or more Inside the airline's cabins. The sensory environment therefore matters. Flying still causes anxiety for many airlines. Lines say music can help. It slows breathing, steadies the heart and eases boarding and descent. For Vinair, it also signifies home. Larch recalls Finnish colleagues reactions to hearing the music for the first time.
- [57:13]
D
I could see immediately that it was evoking a much deeper emotion with them. Clearly there are. There is within the music itself notes or tunes or assemblies of notes that strike very deeply in the Finnish core here in the way he's composed this. And then I thought, well, this is what we wanted. This is what we're trying to evoke. We want something that will generate deep emotion amongst our Finnish customers, but also something that's clearly Finnish, but also something that will make others curious who are not from Finland. And I think it does all of those things.
- [58:03]
H
Translating national identity into sound is delicate work that risks turning into caricature. With Finnair's soundscape, Borra embedded Finnishness into the structure of music, tonal space, pacing, instrument, resulting in a music that feels calm and reflected. Recalling the Nordic landscape, this soundscape forms part of a broader redesign, spanning lighting that evokes northern skies and materials drawn from Finnish forests. The goal for Finnair is coherence, an unmistakably finished journey from gate to landing. Sound may linger in memory long after a flight. While most passengers may not know the composer's name, they sense if the space feels calm, tense, anonymous or distinct. Finnair bets that sound will make the difference. For Monocle in Helsinki, I'm Petri Borzow.
- [59:05]
A
And that's all the time we have for today's programme. The warmest of thanks to all my guests and to the producers, Angelica Jobson, Carlotta Rebelo and Anita Riota. Our researcher was Annelise Maynard and our studio manager was Christy o'. Grady. After the headlines, there's more music on the way. The briefing's live at midday here in London. The Globalist is back at the same time on Monday, but for now, from me, Emma Nelson. Goodbye. Thank you for listening. Have a great weekend.
- [59:34]
C
Foreign.
- [59:40]
A
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.