Hardtalk

Stephen Sackur speaks to journalist Mikhail Zygar, who has written a book about the powerful groups of people around Russia’s president Vladimir Putin and their influence on decision making. President Putin has been criticised in the West as a ruthless authoritarian ruler determined to revive imperialist ambitions. But is it a mistake to invest him with such transformative power and strategic vision?

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Roberto Azevêdo, the Director General of the World Trade Organisation, an institution dedicated to banning protectionism and freeing up global trade. But maybe the WTO is out of step with the spirit of the age. From Donald Trump’s protectionist messages to the Brexit vote in Britain. There seems to be a backlash against economic globalisation. So, is the WTO swimming against a powerful tide?

Stephen Sackur speaks to Kieran Conway, the former director of intelligence for the IRA. He joined the group in 1970 and was part of a unit in England which engaged in armed robbery to help fund the organisation. He spent time in prison in Northern Ireland and soon after his release in 1974 was put in charge of IRA intelligence. Just weeks later bombs planted by the IRA killed 21 people in two pubs in Birmingham, England. What does he know about those responsible for the bombings and how does he justify his past?(Photo: Kieran Conway)

There is a select group of fiction writers whose next book is eagerly anticipated by legions of fans around the world. Presenter Stephen Sackur speaks to a writer who has been in that club for two decades. Patricia Cornwell can lay claim to have invented the whole genre of crime scene, forensic detective fiction. Her investigator Kay Scarpetta has featured in two dozen novels, and inspired a host of imitators. The author herself talks of her determination to confront and control her fears - do her books tell us what she's frightened of?(Photo: Patricia Cornwell in the Hardtalk studio)

Stephen Sackur talks to Steven Ciobo Australia's Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Australia is having pre Brexit talks with the UK while negotiating a big free trade deal with the European Union. But with the recent demonstrations against similar deals with the United States and Canada, Stephen Sackur asks if the public tiring of globalisation and big trade deals. Could Australia feel the fall out from growing disillusion with globalisation?(Photo: Steven Ciobo speaks at a press conference in Sydney, 2016. Credit: William West/AFP/Getty Images)

Stephen Sackur speaks to Bulgaria's foreign minister, Daniel Mitov. If a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, then the European Union has reason to worry about Bulgaria. Once a redoubt of the Soviet Empire, Bulgaria is by many measures the poorest, most corrupt member of the European Union. It also happens to be a key player in two of the great challenges facing the EU, the migration crisis and the hostile relationship with Russia. Can Brussels rely on Bulgaria?

Stephen Sackur speaks to one of Ireland’s most successful businessmen Michael O’Leary – the chief executive of the low cost, no frills airline, Ryanair. In terms of passenger numbers it is Europe's biggest airline, carrying more than a hundred million passengers per year. But what impact will the UK's looming departure from the European Union have on Ryanair and the Irish economy?(Photo: Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair, holds a press conference with Boeing, 2014, New York. Credit: Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

Brexit isn't the only threat to the coherence of the European Union. Think about Hungary for a second. The populist Government of Victor Orban rejected the EU's agreed response to the external migration challenge. The prime minister held a referendum in a bid to assert Hungary's right to ignore EU rules. Other EU member states have accused Hungary of threatening the Union's future. Hardtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Hungarian foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó. Why won’t Hungary play by Europe’s rules?(Photo: Hungary's Minister of External Economy and Foreign Affairs, Peter Szijjarto. Credit: Attila Kisbenedek/AFP/Getty Images)

Stephen Sackur speaks to Riek Machar, former South Sudanese Vice President turned rebel leader. For the people of South Sudan five years of independent nationhood have brought little more than impoverishment, violence and suffering. The world's newest nation is again racked by internal conflict. More than a million people have been forced from their homes and the country's president Salva Kiir, and his nemesis Riek Machar are again at each other’s throats. Has South Sudan been betrayed by its leaders?(Photo: South Sudan's rebel leader Riek Machar gestures as he holds a press conference in Kampala, 2016. Credit: Isaac Kasamani/AFP,Getty Images)

With voters from around the world are expressing their disgust with politics, she is going to be a key player in next year’s French presidential elections. Could Marine Le Pen, leader of the National Front party send shockwaves around the world and actually win the French presidency? Picture: Marine Le Pen, Credit: Patrick Kovarik/AFP/Getty Images

There are writers of world renown whose reputation rests on one great book. There are others who write more prolifically but always in the same territory. And then there's Margaret Atwood whose output fizzes with energy, diversity and experimentation. She is best known for her novels, the Handmaids Tale, the Blind Assassin, Oryx and crake. But she has also written poetry, blog fiction and this year a superhero comic book. She has a worldwide legion of fans. So what keeps her creative juices flowing?(Photo: Author Margaret Atwood at the 18th Annual LA Times Festival Of Books 2013. Credit: Imeh Akpanudosen/Getty Images)

The Influential Conservative tax campaigner Grover Norquist talks to Stephen Sackur. Why does he think Donald Trump's policies will help him win the race for the White House?

Stephen Sackur speaks to South African satirist, Pieter-Dirk Uys. Leaders who routinely abuse their power cannot stand to be laughed at. Satire is a potent political weapon. That is a truth Pieter-Dirk Uys has exploited for 40 years. He styles himself as "the most famous white woman in South Africa." Thanks to his alter ego Auntie Evita - a character he created to poke fun at the white Afrikaner establishment during the apartheid era, and which he now uses to lampoon Jacob Zuma and the ANC. But are there dangers in playing South Africa's recent history for laughs?(Photo: South African satirist Pieter-Dirk Uys in the Hardtalk studio)

Stephen Sackur speaks to Avi Dichter, Chair of Israel's Foreign Affairs & Defence Committee. Think of Israel's turbulent history since the 1967 war and you might think first of the political leaders, Golda Meir, Menachem Begin, Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres and now Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Other crucial figures in Israel's story spent more time in the shadows, like Avi Dichter, who was head of the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service from 2000 to 2005. Only later did he enter politics and is now a parliamentary ally of prime minister Netanyahu. How does this gatekeeper of Israel’s security see his country's future?

Shaun Ley speaks to Okechukwu Enelamah, Nigerian Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment. Nigeria's economy is contracting for the first time in 25 years. The north-east is threatened by famine and President Buhari has promised renewed efforts to tackle the 'cancer' of corruption. Okechukwu Enelamah wants to break his country's dependence on oil. But with foreign investors pulling out and blaming hostile policies, has Nigeria left it all too late?(Photo: Okechukwu Enelamah, Nigerian Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment)

In an interview recorded in 2016, Stephen Sackur speaks to Meat Loaf, a rock'n'roll legend who broke the rules of the music business. He was never cool, never a pin-up, but his songs and performances have always been much larger than life. Meat Loaf shot to fame four decades ago with Bat out of Hell, an album which became one of the biggest sellers of all time. Since then his career - in music and acting - has been a crazy mix of highs and lows. How close did he get to self-destruction?(Photo: Musician and actor Meat Loaf. Credit: Getty Images)

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Turkish author, Ece Temelkuran. Two months ago Turkey's elected Government managed to survive a botched military coup. A triumph for democracy? Not necessarily - not if you regard freedom of expression and an independent judiciary as prerequisites of a genuine democracy. Thousands of judges, journalists and civil servants have been locked up or sacked since the coup. Ece Temelkuran is a prominent author and journalist who knows how difficult it can be to speak out in Erdogan's Turkey. Is silence the only option?

Sarah Montague speaks to the President of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, Sam Rainsy. The UN, US and Europe all say they are worried about what is going on in Cambodia. More than a dozen opposition figures are in prison, the party's vice president has not left their headquarters in four months for fear of being arrested, and the opposition leader Sam Rainsy fled the country to avoid jail. They want to replace Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has been in power for more than 30 years and whom they claim has rigged past elections. They have threatened mass demonstrations if the intimidation continues. But can their leader make a difference to life in Cambodia when he is in self-imposed exile in Europe?(Photo: Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy, 2014. Credit: Tang Chin Sothy/AFP/Getty Images)

Manfred Weber is an MEP for Germany's Christian Social Union and leader of the largest political group in the European Parliament, the EPP. German voters have made it clear they are unhappy with their Chancellor Angela Merkel. In two regional elections this month her conservative party, the Christian Democratic Union, suffered a humiliating defeat. The EPP isn't happy with her either, warning of a split unless she changes policy on immigration. Is this the end for Angela Merkel? And what effect has her refugee policy had on the way Germany will be governed?

Stephen Sackur speaks to Nigel Farage, former leader of the UK Independence Party. For the foreseeable future British politics is going to be dominated by one issue - Brexit. What will our future relationship with the EU look like and how will it affect Britain's political and economic future?(Photo: Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP), 2015, London. Credit: Rob Stothard/Getty Images)