The Geopolitical Pickle

Make Královec Czech Again

Královec is a historic territory located where current day Kaliningrad stands - a strategically vital part of modern day Russia.
What's the deal with the region and how does it relate to the current war in Ukraine? Find out about exclaves, how they are governed from their home territory, and more with special guest Bohumil Doboš (@BohumilDobos) of Charles University.

2022 Year in Review - Part 2

Welcome back to the second part of our 2022 year in review. If you haven't listened to the first part, we suggest that you do that first.
In this two part series we aim to break down some of the major developments across the world including of course the war and its ramifications as well as some of the other big stories that may have been overshadowed due to the ongoing conflict. 
This  episode covers Southern Africa and Asia, as well as looking at some of the effects of climate change and developments in the Cyber and Space domains. I am sure there is some things that we missed so why not let us know your top 5 geo-politically important events of the year? Instagram Facebook Twitter Linktree 
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year however you may celebrate.
We are your hosts Juan Francisco Muñoz (@jacom95JF) & Ronan Wordsworth (@ronanwords) and we wish to thank the rest of the team for their help in the massive amount of research that needed to be done to pull these episodes together!
Alex Perry - @yrrepxxela
Milos Dangubic - @mdang44 
Lía Rodríguez - @liarguezz
Paula Gómez  - @pauulagomz
Luca Spiller - @ben_spill
Diana Argumedo - @dianaargumedo

2022 Year in Review - Part 1

2022 has been a crazy year with huge geopolitical developments around the globe in the midst of the first large scale war on the European continent since WW2.
In this two part series we aim to break down some of the major developments across the world including of course the war and its ramifications as well as some of the other big stories that may have been overshadowed due to the ongoing conflict. 
This first episode covers Europe, North and South America, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and West Africa. I am sure there is some things that we missed so why not let us know your top 5 geo-politically important events of the year? Instagram Facebook Twitter Linktree 
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year however you may celebrate.
We are your hosts Juan Francisco Muñoz (@jacom95JF) & Ronan Wordsworth (@ronanwords) and we wish to thank the rest of the team for their help in the massive amount of research that needed to be done to pull these episodes together!
Alex Perry - @yrrepxxela
Milos Dangubic - @mdang44 
Lía Rodríguez - @liarguezz
Paula Gómez  - @pauulagomz
Luca Spiller - @ben_spill
Diana Argumedo - @dianaargumedo

Sportswashing and the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar

The Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup has put the focus on a phenomenom called "sportswashing". Today we will talk about how sports are used by actors as a form of soft-power to create an image to the world. Is the World Cup an example of sportswashing? How does it fit into the historical context which has played out through the 20th Century?
Tune in to hear our discussion on sportswashing spanning a multitude of sports and different eras, how sport can play on people's emotions to create memories, and how how it's increasingly become an arena where geopolitical battles are fought for hearts and minds!
 
What are your thoughts on sportswashing? Should Qatar have been awarded the World Cup and what do you think of their hosting? Get in touch and let us know your thoughts and we would love to include some comments in a future episode. All our contact details are available at: https://linktr.ee/thegeopoliticalpickle
 
The Geopolitical Pickle jar included:
Juan Francisco Muñoz - @jacom95JF : Host 
Ronan Wordsworth - @ronanwords : Host 
Milos Dangubic - @mdang44 
Owen Sutherland - @osutherland99
Luca Spiller - @ben_spill
 
 

Charles University’s Geopolitical Conference roundtable

We are back at the 11th Annual Geopolitical Conference in Charles University, Prague, and this time with three of the speakers of the event: Dr. Peter Eltsov, Mr. Eeben Barlow and Dr. Bohumil Dobos.
In this panel-discussion, they each gave us their thoughts on the present and future of the international order in the wake of the war in Ukraine.
Organized by the MA in Geopolitical Studies, this year's conference topics delved on the Power Shifts on the Contemporary World. 
If you want to know more about the conference and the MA in Geopolitics follow them on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/geopoliticalstudiesinPrague
Or see more info about the masters on their website:
https://fsv.cuni.cz/en/admissions/masters-degrees/geopolitical-studies-gps?utm_source=Keystone&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=Keystone_readmore
Our guests: Peter Eltsov - National Defense University, USA
Eeben Barlow - Executive Outcomes, South Africa on Twitter: @EebenB
Bohumil Dobos - Charles University, Czech Republic on Twitter: @BohumilDobos
 
Follow as on every platform!
Instagram: @thegeopoliticalpickle
Twitter: @thegeopickle
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGeoPickle
 
The Geopolitical Pickle jar included:
Juan Francisco Muñoz - @jacom95JF : Co-host and research
Alex Perry - @yrrepxxela : Co-host and research
Luca Spiller - @ben_spill
 
Disclaimer: All views of the interviewees are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of this channel.
 
Music:
Intro: Catch it by Coma-Media from Pixabay
Outro: Brazilian by SergeQuadrado from Pixabay

A crash course on the Brazilian elections

Brazil is a massive country of over 200 million people and 8.5 million km2, the 5th largest in the world. Because of it's massive size and richness, it is the major international player in South America by far, and has historically had an important position in the international arena. Today, we´re joined by Felipe Simoni from Espetinho Internacional. We dive into the latest electoral results in Brazil, where the leftist candidate and Former President Lula da Silva defeated by a narrow margin President Bolsonaro from the far-right. We discuss the current political situation, the reasons behind the result, the socioeconomic composition of the country, its foreign policy and more...
If you want to know more about our guest, you can follow him at:
Felipe Simoni @flipsimoni
Or subscribe to his Podcast (Portugese) at https://linktr.ee/espetinhointernacional
 
As always get in touch with us at: https://linktr.ee/thegeopoliticalpickle
 
The Geopolitical Pickle jar included:
Juan Francisco Muñoz - @jacom95JF : Host and research
Alex Perry - @yrrepxxela : Producer 
Federico Caprari - @federicocaprari : Security consultant
Lía Rodríguez - @liarguezz : Research and fact-checking
Paula Gómez  - @pauulagomz : Research and fact-checking
 

Evolution of the Arms Industry during the war in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine has signified a massive shift in European defence thinking as well as the arms industry required to defend the EU and NATO in the eventuality of a war on the continent. In this episode we interview Tomáš Kopečný, Deputy Minister for Defence Industrial Cooperation, Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic.
He gives us insights on the military aid given to Ukraine from the West in the wake of the Russian invasion and how it has developed. We also touched upon the use of drones in modern warfare, the global position of the arms industry and potential spill-overs that the war in Ukraine may have.
Lastly, as always, we asked him about his career development, in the hoped that it might inspire you to follow your own. 
Recorded 02/11/2022
Follow as on every platform!
Instagram: @thegeopoliticalpickle
Twitter: @thegeopickle
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGeoPickle
 
Disclaimer: All views of the interviewees are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of this channel.
 
The Geopolitical Pickle jar included:
Ronan Wordsworth - @ronanwords : Co-host and research
Juan Francisco Muñoz - @jacom95JF : Co-host and research

Is there a far right populist wave sweeping across Europe?

After the elections in Italy and Sweden, many media outlets and people in general have raised their concerns about the far-right gaining quotas of power in the EU. Some analysts are seeing these and other electoral results, as well as certain public speeches all over the EU, as a far-right wave that might threaten the current established system. 
Today we debate about this, and we pose several questions: What is Populism? What characterizes the far-right in the EU? Are these parties a homogenous force? And finally, is there actually a far-right wave in Europe?
 
As always get in touch at: https://linktr.ee/thegeopoliticalpickle

What role does Political Islam play in Middle East and Africa?

We are back with Hussein Solomon, Head of the Department of Political Sciences of the University of the Free State and author of numerous books and articles on Political Islam and jihadist groups.
This is part two of our conversation, so we recommend you listen to part one before this one.
We move the focus onto the role Political Islam in the current power struggle for the Middle East, as well as the impact of this power struggle in Africa and beyond.
 
The conversation isn't just about politics, as Prof. Solomon shares with us his career development and leaves us with some nice advice for the future.
 
Recorded 19/09/2022
 
Follow as on every platform!
Instagram: @thegeopoliticalpickle
Twitter: @thegeopickle
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGeoPickle
 
 
The Geopolitical Pickle jar included:
Ronan Wordsworth - @ronanwords : Co-host and research
Juan Francisco Muñoz - @jacom95JF : Co-host and research
Alex Perry - @yrrepxxela : Research

The growing threat of Jihadist groups across Africa

We are back with Hussein Solomon, Head of the Department of Political Sciences of the University of the Free State and author of numerous books on jihadism and Political Islam.
 
Today, we look at different jihadi groups across West Africa in Mali, Chad and Burkina Faso, as well as other groups operating in Somalia and Mozambique.
 
Recorded 19/09/2022
 
Follow as on every platform!
Instagram: @thegeopoliticalpickle
Twitter: @thegeopickle
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGeoPickle
 
 
The Geopolitical Pickle jar included:
Ronan Wordsworth - @ronanwords : Co-host and research
Juan Francisco Muñoz - @jacom95JF : Co-host and research
Alex Perry - @yrrepxxela : Research