On traditions, ties with India and trade talks

Happy Monday after Matariki. I hope everyone in Aotearoa had a lovely long weekend, even though we couldn’t see the stars here in Poneke Wellington.

I spent Matariki morning with my incredible friend whanau, where we had a big feast and established a new tradition: We jumped over a log (it was not on fire as it was in the middle of Ingrid’s living room) and made wishes for the year ahead — a mash-up of Scandinavian and pagan rituals, with a hint of Persian Nowruz. This year, however, we broke with our Matariki tradition of a swim in the sea — mostly because of the red LAWA warning, even in the harbour. I confess I was relieved as I was already wavering on account of the icy weather.

Over the past five years or so, podcasts have become my preferred medium for news and entertainment, and I love going on the radio (as regular listeners to Radio NZ will have gleaned.) In fact, I’ve often wondered why I’m still 100 percent print when I’ve become such an audio person.

Well this week, that changes. I’m delighted to tell you that from this Saturday, I will be joining the award-winning team at The Detail, a Newsroom-Radio NZ co-production, to host a weekly episode about geopolitics with a New Zealand lens. Just like what I’ve been doing here on Substack, but with jingles and clips and production values.

I’ll be recording my first episode tomorrow, and it will air on Saturday morning at 6:30am on Radio NZ and appear in your podcast feeds the same morning. I really enjoy listening to The Detail for their deep dives into a single issue each day, and I’m really excited to turn my hand to broadcasting and learn from the best. (Literally the best — they’ve won best News and Current Affairs podcast at the Radio and Podcast awards three years in a row.)

My work for The Detail is made possible thanks to a grant from the generous trustees at the Peter M. Acland Foundation.

You can follow The Detail and listen to all their excellent episodes here.

• Beyond cricket and the Taj Mahal, Modi visit reveals reality of NZ ties with India. This excellent piece by Asia New Zealand Foundation CEO Suz Jessup argues for deeper links with India, outside the transactional trade relationship. “Part of the challenge is that New Zealand’s relationship with India has historically been warm but relatively shallow,” she writes.

• There have been some alarming developments concerning nationalist leaders this past week (and no, I’m not talking about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan giving vintage revolvers, along with live ammunition, to NATO leaders.) I’m talking about Reform UK leader Nigel Farage’s electoral stunt, and Marine Le Pen’s announcement she’s running for the French presidency next year after a reduction in the election ban imposed after she was convicted of embezzling public funds. In this FT podcast, Gideon Rachman and former Paris bureau chief Victor Mallet, who’s written a book about France’s far-right, discuss her chances, and the implications for France and the EU: What would a far-right government in France look like?

• Why America has fallen for Erling Haaland, football’s most likeable superstar. I have paid hardly any attention to the FIFA world cup, but even I’ve heard of Erling Haaland. This fun piece charts his rise from kid who missed the goal to endearing personality of this world cup — even if Norway lost to England at the weekend. From The Athletic via the New York Times (gift link.)

• Smaller trading nations that are stepping up to defend the rules on which New Zealand’s prosperity relies, with Trade Minister Todd McClay preparing to chair the second meeting of the global Future of Investment (FIT) Partnership in Auckland on Friday, according to Fran O'Sullivan in the New Zealand Herald.
  “In effect, this small economies club is endeavouring to build something the WTO is not delivering: a practical mechanism for countries that still believe trade rules matter,” she writes.
  Let’s hope they can make some progress — since the existing global trading regime is looking increasingly fragile.

Thanks again for reading — and I hope you’ll tune in to The Detail this weekend. Let me know how I do!

-anna