The legendary historian Max Hastings on NATO, China, democracy — and whether today’s world resembles 1914.

In this episode of Switzerland, Tom Switzer is joined by Sir Max Hastings — one of Britain’s most distinguished military historians, journalists, and former newspaper editors — for a wide-ranging conversation about war, power, and the fate of the Western order. They explore whether today’s fractured international system bears dangerous similarities to 1914, the impact of Donald Trump on U.S. foreign policy, Europe’s strategic vulnerability, NATO’s future, the rise of authoritarianism, and the challenges posed by Russia and China. Drawing on decades of scholarship and reportage, Hastings reflects on nationalism, Brexit, technology’s growing political power, and the enduring strengths — and vulnerabilities — of democratic societies in an age of renewed great-power rivalry.

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The discussion ranges across Israel’s war in Gaza, the wave of protests in Western cities, debates over free speech and community relations, and Australia’s own tensions following the Bondi attacks and the political controversy surrounding Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s response. Future episodes feature Nicholas Eberstadt on global depopulation and Sir Max Hastings on global disorder

Does sharp criticism of Israel’s conduct in Gaza inevitably shade into antisemitism? In the days after the December 14 Bondi terror attacks, Australian leader Anthony Albanese faced fierce criticism -- from the conservative opposition at home and from Benjamin Netanyahu abroad -- over how his government had responded to rising tensions and Jewish community fears. Those scenes, including the angry public reception the Prime Minister received at Bondi, have become emblematic of how raw and polarised the atmosphere has become.

All of this is unfolding alongside a conflict in Gaza that generated mass protests across cities from London to New York to Sydney -- demonstrations that supporters describe as humanitarian, and critics fear can blur into hostility toward Jews. These matters are put to Professor John Mearsheimer from the University of Chicago and former Singaporean diplomat and policy maker Kishore Mahbubani. Future episodes feature Nicholas Eberstadt on global depopulation and Max Hastings on global disorder.

Tom Switzer is a journalist and broadcaster who has been a prolific commentator on politics and international affairs. His writing and commentary have appeared in outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times (international), The Australian, and across ABC and Sky News, where he has been a regular presenter and panellist. For 30 years, since 1995, he has worked at the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute, the Australian Financial Review, The Australian, the London-based Spectator magazine, and the Sydney-based Centre for Independent Studies, which he headed from 2017 to 2025. He is the host of Switzerland, a long-form interview series exploring global politics, modern history, and the ideas shaping the world.

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Donald Trump says Greenland must become American -- by consent if possible, by force if necessary. Europe has responded with a flat refusal, warning that any American land grab could trigger the unravelling of NATO itself.

In the third of his new YouTube program, Switzerland, Tom Switzer puts questions to Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of the National Interest in Washington, and professors Kishore Mahbubani from Singapore and John Mearsheimer from Chicago. Subjects include the future of NATO, the decline of Europe and French President de Gaulle’s prediction that the US would withdraw its military forces from the continent.

Tom Switzer is a journalist and broadcaster who has been a prolific commentator on politics and international affairs. His writing and commentary have appeared in outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times (international), The Australian, and across ABC and Sky News, where he has been a regular presenter and panellist. For 30 years, since 1995, he has worked at the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute, the Australian Financial Review, The Australian, the London-based Spectator magazine, and the Sydney-based Centre for Independent Studies, which he headed from 2017 to 2025. He is the host of Switzerland, a long-form interview series exploring global politics, modern history, and the ideas shaping the world.

Join Tom's Exclusive Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/cff5e11f69a3/switzerland-with-tom-switzer

Read Tom's Substack: https://substack.com/@tomswitzer

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