Hardtalk

Stephen Sackur speaks to Gulnur Aybet, senior adviser to President Erdogan of Turkey. The murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul put Turkey at the heart of a story about a shocking abuse of power and a total disregard for human rights. Turkey was the accuser, Saudi Arabia the accused. And yet for all its appeals to the international community, the Turkish Government itself faces condemnation for violations of basic human rights. When it comes to respect for universal rights and norms how much authority does Turkey have?

It took former cricketer Imran Khan two decades of political slog to win power in Pakistan. It’s taken his critics just months to decide he’s out of his depth. They point to the country’s crippled economy, propped up by emergency loans despite the Prime Minister's promise to end the begging bowl culture. Is the PTI government strong enough to put Pakistan on a new course? Stephen Sackur speaks to Pakistan’s Finance Minister, Asad Umar.(Photo: Asad Umar. Credit: Reuters)

What drives musical creativity? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to songwriter Mark Knopfler. In the pantheon of rock ’n’ roll greats, a special place is reserved for guitar virtuosos – think Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page or Mark Knopfler, front man of Dire Straits, one of the biggest bands in the world in the 80s and 90s. Unlike so many other rock stars, Knopfler never fully embraced the world of excess and celebrity. He forged a solo career writing, performing and working with the likes of Bob Dylan, Tina Turner and Emmylou Harris.Image: Mark Knopfler (Credit: BBC)

President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua has been in power for the past 11 years, but this year he has faced popular protests and demands that he step down. His response has been repression and defiance. Stephen Sackur is in Washington DC to speak to leading Nicaraguan dissident Felix Maradiaga, now leader of an opposition in exile. Is change finally coming to Nicaragua?Image: Felix Maradiaga (Credit: United Nations)

How do we decide what's important? How do we balance the priorities of the here and now with the big picture challenges that will determine the future of human civilisation? HARDtalk speaks to Sir Martin Rees, one of the world’s leading astrophysicists, who has recently been gazing into the future of our own planet. The next century, he says, will determine humanity's long term destiny; so are the prospects good, or grim?Image: Sir Martin Rees (Credit: Getty Images)

Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May is facing a mutiny inside her own Conservative Party, which threatens to scupper her Brexit deal and quite possibly her premiership too. If she loses the key parliamentary vote on her deal in just a few days time, the UK could plunge into political chaos. The stakes could hardly be higher for Owen Paterson, a Conservative MP and former Minister intent on rejecting Mrs May’s Brexit. Is it too late to avert a damaging national crisis?Image: Owen Paterson (Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Danuta Hübner, an influential Polish MEP who sits on the Brexit Steering Group of the European Parliament. In just a few days time the UK parliament will make a fateful decision; to accept or reject Theresa May’s Brexit deal painfully negotiated with the EU. Right across Europe the vote will have huge repercussions. For all of the focus on Britain’s political crisis, this is Europe’s problem too. Is the EU ready to deal with potential Brexit chaos?

On December 11th, two and a half years of posturing, politicking and poisonous disagreement come to a head: the UK Parliament will vote on whether to accept the Brexit deal Prime Minister Theresa May has negotiated with the EU. Her case boils down to this: it’s the least worst option. But many in her own party, as well as the opposition, simply don’t buy it. Stephen Sackur speaks to former minister Jo Johnson, who resigned in order to oppose the deal. Does he have a credible alternative?Image: Jo Johnson (Credit: Reuters)

Can anyone or anything challenge Saudi authoritarianism? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Abdullah Alaoudh, a Saudi exile whose father is facing charges that carry a death sentence. President Trump says he doesn’t know whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and frankly he doesn’t seem to care. Safe to assume then that he also doesn’t care about the hundreds of clerics, intellectuals, and dissident activists locked up by MBS’s security forces.Image: Abdullah Alaoudh (Credit: Getty Images)

Israel’s seemingly indestructible Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dodged another political bullet. After the recent flare up of violence in Gaza, his defence minister quit and another key cabinet hawk- Naftali Bennett, said he would go too if he wasn’t given the defence portfolio. The prime minister called his bluff, and Mr Bennett, who speaks to HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur has decided to stay put after all. What’s behind the chaos in Israeli politics? Are the right wing factions putting their own interests before those of the nation?Image: Naftali Bennett (Credit: Reuters)

How do you stop prime ministers and presidents lining their own pockets with the country's wealth? US Judge Mark Wolf is lobbying for the creation of an international anti-corruption court. Judge Wolf knows the territory well, having helped expose the corrupt links between the FBI and a notorious gangster in Boston. He says countries that cannot or will not hold government thieves to account should let the court do the work. But when his own government suggests it wants international justice to "die", what hope is there of holding the corrupt to account?(Photo: US Senior District Judge Mark L Wolf in the Hardtalk studio)

Mohamed El-Erian’s career has been at the top end of economic advice. Along with writing several best-selling books, he spent 15 years at the International Monetary Fund, headed the investment giant PIMCO, advised President Obama on global development and is now the chief economic adviser at the insurance company, Allianz. The American economy is booming. Growth is well above 3% and unemployment is near a 50 year low. President Trump claims it’s the best it has ever been and has claimed the credit for that. But he’s threatening a trade war with China at a time when many economists are warning that the US and the world face another recession. Hardtalk’s Sarah Montague asks Mohamed El-Erian, if he sees dark days ahead for the American - and therefore the world’s - economy?(Photo: Mohamed El-Erian)

In a special interview to start the BBC’s Beyond Fake News season, Stephen Sackur speaks to The Washington Post’s editor Martin Baron about the fractious relationship between the White House and the US media.Image: Martin Baron (Credit: Getty Images)

The US mid-term elections were a mixed picture for President Trump. Democrats took control of the House of Representatives and that will allow them to block the President’s legislative agenda. As a leader Donald Trump has been accused of dividing the country and now Congress is split. Sarah Montague speaks to one of America’s best known and celebrated military leaders. General Stanley McChrystal oversaw the American war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since leaving the military he has studied and taught the principles that make good leaders effective. So what kind of leadership does he think the US needs now?

It is an age old debate that engages scientists and philosophers; which is the more powerful influence on who we are, nature or nurture? In recent years, genetic science has done much to reframe the debate by highlighting the connections between our individual DNA and our traits and behaviours. At the forefront of this research is Robert Plomin, a professor of behavioural genetics at Kings College London. To what extent are our genes our destiny?

American politics in the era of President Donald Trump is a polarised, partisan arena. But still there are pillars of the US system of governance such as the constitution and the courts that are supposed to safeguard the liberty of all, irrespective of creed, colour or politics. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to David Cole, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union - the century-old guardian of citizen rights. Has the ACLU betrayed its mission by putting partisanship before principle in the age of Trump?Image: David Cole (Credit: Getty Images)

Cyril Ramaphosa replaced Jacob Zuma as leader of the ANC and President of South Africa with a promise to revive the country’s economy, tackle poverty and root out corruption. Maybe he underestimated the scale of the challenge, because South Africa is currently in recession, and popular discontent is rising. One key sector- energy, threatens the stability of the entire economy. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Deputy Energy Minister Thembisile Majola. Is the ANC incapable of delivering the change South Africa needs?

In just five months, Britain will be out of the European Union. But on what basis, and under whose leadership? And could it yet not happen? Brexit uncertainty is coursing through the veins of British politics leaving little room for anything else. The governing Conservative party is deeply divided, as is the Labour opposition. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to David Lammy - a prominent Labour advocate of another referendum on any final Brexit deal. But how would that help Britain move beyond its Brexit breakdown?Image: David Lammy (Credit: UK Parliament)

Afghans will have to wait until next month to get the results of last Sunday’s parliamentary election – but in one sense the verdict is already in; the ballot again exposed widespread insecurity and the absence of government control in many parts of the country. Stephen Sackur speaks to President Ashraf Ghani’s recently appointed National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib. Has the US Government decided to engage with the Taliban regardless of the wishes of the Afghan Government?(Photo: Afghanistan's National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib (Centre). Credit: Atta Kenare/AFP)

Turkey’s President Erdogan says the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was a savage crime meticulously planned in Riyadh. He wants all those responsible to stand trial in Turkey. As the pressure on the house of Saud mounts, will the kingdom’s partners in the West take punitive action? Stephen Sackur speaks to Alan Duncan, Minister of State in the UK Foreign Office. Has the time come for Britain to stop lucrative arms exports to Saudi Arabia?(Photo: Alan Duncan MP in the Hardtalk studio)