The Interview

‘I compare the erosion of international humanitarian law with bankruptcy it happens gradually at first and then all of a sudden instantly. This is what is happening with the Geneva Conventions at the moment. You look away, you look away, you look away, you increase your tolerance level until all of a sudden you realize we've crossed the line. We've crossed the red line, and we've done so collectively, because these things are happening under international watch.’

Imogen Foulkes meets Mirjana Spoljaric, the first woman to lead the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The ICRC is 163 years old. It works in war zones around the world, with one central mission: to uphold the Geneva Conventions, the rules designed to preserve some humanity, even in war.
All 196 states have ratified the conventions, They established fundamental protections: civilians should not be targeted; hospitals and health workers must be protected and humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those who need it.
But in practice, Mirjana Spoljaric says, those rules are increasingly being flouted. She talks about the growing lack of accessing war zones, the ICRC being denied visits to prisoners of war, and what happens when even the most basic rules of war are ignored.
The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with the head of the World Meteorological Organisation, Celeste Saulo, the former Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard and the author Maggie O’Farrell. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presenter: Imogen Foulkes
Producer: Farhana Haider
Editor: Justine Lang
Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
(Image: Mirjana Spoljaric. Credit: Joel Saget/Getty)

“This is one of the exact aspect of hybrid warfare of Russia… They are targeting us specifically to create dissensions, to create and to prop up artificially some voices in our societies that otherwise would be quite marginal and create dissensions. So they want to attack us and make sure that our democracies are more fragile, because the more fragile we are, the less we're able to counter their aggressive actions.”
Evan Davis speaks to David Vigneault, Chief Intelligence Officer at Strider Technologies and former director of Canada’s intelligence services, about the geopolitical instabilities and technologies that are re-shaping the world order.
Between 2017 and 2024, he was responsible for the operations of CSIS, the country’s foreign intelligence and security agency. This period presented a number of challenges for Vigneault and his organisation, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the rise of AI, and an unpredictable Trump presidency across the border.
You’re going to hear his take on current tensions around the world, what keeps him up at night, and why he thinks cooperation is key.
Thank you to the PM team for their help in making this programme.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with Ukrainian intelligence chief Vadym Skibitsky, the World Health Organisation’s Hanan Balkhy, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presenter: Evan Davis
Producers: Rosie Seed and Ben Cooper
Editors: Justine Lang and Farhana Haider
Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
(Image: David Vigneault. Credit: Reuters)

Lyse Doucet, the BBC’s chief international correspondent, meets Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi as the Taliban seeks greater international recognition. The Taliban returned to power five years ago but Russia is still the only country to have formally recognised their rule.

Afghanistan is pushing for stronger diplomatic relations, but their treatment of women and girls remains one of the biggest obstacles. We ask the foreign minister why Afghan women and girls are facing growing restrictions on education, work and public life.
“The conduct with women shouldn’t be looked at through the glasses of western culture and tradition. Afghan values should be considered... You can wander around Afghanistan, in Kabul in the cities, see the way women work, do business or go to elementary schools or to Madrassas, the situation isn’t the way it can be interpreted,” he says.
Afghanistan also needs more aid and investment in the midst of a deepening humanitarian and economic crisis. Are the Taliban prepared to do more to achieve full international recognition?
(Image: Amir Khan Muttaqi. Credit: Reuters)
Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with the UN secretary General Antonio Guterres, the former Chilean President, Michelle Bachelet and the film director Christopher Nolan. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presenter: Lyse Doucet
Producer: Farhana Haider

“I had hired a CEO for the last two years. The company was at a place where revenue had plateaued. I wasn’t someone who could look at a spreadsheet 50 tabs wide and tell my CFO what to do. I was definitely out of my league and I didn’t like that job, and a lot of different things happened before we ended up filing for bankruptcy.”

Leanna Byrne speaks to Sophia Amoruso, founder of online fashion retailer Nasty Gal.

What began as a one-woman eBay shop selling vintage clothes became one of online fashion’s most recognisable brands. Within a few years, Nasty Gal was valued at $350 million, bringing expectations that it would grow like a technology company and become a billion-dollar business.

Sophia reflects on feeling out of her depth running the company, criticism of its workplace culture and the decisions that led to bankruptcy.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with Sundar Pichai and Julia Gillard.

You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Leanna Byrne
Producer: Osman Iqbal
Editor: Farhana Haider and Damon Rose
(Image: Sophia Amoruso. Credit: Araya Doheny/Getty)

“We don’t have another way for surviving, because we are an independent state, it's our territory, it's our land, it’s our culture, it’s our history, and we must fight to prevent the full occupation by the Russian Federation our territory.”
Dan Johnson speaks to Vadym Skibitsky, deputy chief of the GUR, Ukraine’s military intelligence service, about the ongoing war with Russia.
Formed shortly after Ukraine declared independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, the GUR is tasked with defending the country at home and abroad through the use of political and military intelligence.
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the service has played a key role in holding off and pushing back Kyiv’s larger neighbour through activities including intelligence gathering, espionage and sabotage. As the war gears up to enter another harsh winter with no obvious end in sight, both sides continue to look for new ways to break the deadlock.
In this exclusive, wide-ranging interview, Skibitsky discusses Russia’s use of North Korean troops and military hardware in the war. He also talks about Ukraine's latest strategy of deep-range drone strikes thousands of kilometres into Russia, and how its military plans to grind down Moscow.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with journalist Dmitry Muratov, former Sudanese leader Aisha Musa, and Ukrainian drone commander Robert Brovdi. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presenter: Dan Johnson
Producer: Anastassia Levchenko
Editor: Damon Rose
Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
(Image: Vadym Skibitsky. Credit: Vitalii Nosach/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)