The World Today

The World Today is the magazine from Chatham House, one of the world’s most prestigious international affairs think tanks. With its formidable convening power and rigorous research, Chatham House brings together leading policymakers, politicians, thought leaders and businesspeople to debate and offer solutions to the world’s greatest challenges. 

The World Today takes its readers into the heart of those debates. In each edition, world-renowned authorities, journalists and Chatham House experts contribute to the magazine’s sharp and influential mix of analysis and commentary, interviews and original reporting.

Recent contributors have included: International Crisis Group president Comfort Ero; European Commissioner for Defence Industry and Space Andrius Kubilius; and Baroness Catherine Ashton, the EU’s former top diplomat, among other high-profile figures.

In the free trial issue, read about Sapphire Mining in Madagascar, Somalia and Ethiopia caught in a quagmire, The Kurdish Question, Private Security Companies in Iraq, the ANC Leadership issue in South Africa, and The Bali Climate Conference and Forests. 

Welcome to the summer issue of The World Today. This month’s Nato summit in The Hague is crunch time for the alliance and European security. As one of our contributors puts it, President Donald Trump will ‘blow up’ the gathering – and Nato itself – if he isn’t happy with allies’ commitments to increase defence spending. But even with the right promises, where and how should that money be spent? And is Europe able to build enough missiles and drones to support Ukraine and deter further Russian aggression?We have gathered an array of experts to answer these questions and more. Part of the answer focuses on Europe’s nuclear deterrence capability – we assess how Britain and France might extend their nuclear ‘umbrellas’.
As the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Japan approaches, Ankit Panda asks whether we are entering a dangerous ‘third nuclear age’ of nuclear proliferation. What might remain of the rules of global trade following America’s bewildering tariffs policy? Creon Butler sorts through the wreckage. 
Elsewhere, as many states cut their aid budgets, Justine Greening, the former international development secretary, warns donor countries that they need to embrace ‘aid realpolitik’. Funding is an urgent challenge for the BBC World Service, as well – yet its director Jonathan Munro argues that its independent journalism is needed more than ever to counter the forces of disinformation.
Much else awaits you in our bumper 68-page issue, including stories on Estonia’s Russian-speaking community, the future of Hezbollah and India’s complex relations with China.
Mike Higgins, Editor