The Political Periscope

Tigran Khzmalyan, founder and leader of the European Party of Armenia speaks about his country's pro-Russian and pro-Western tendencies, shifts in its current foreign policy, relations with Azerbaijan and his party's attitude towards the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.

The interview was conducted on 14th April 2023 online by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Her Excellency Nargiz Gurbanova, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Republic of Poland  speaks about her country's historical connection with Poland, current economic and political relations and cooperation with the EU and NATO. She also answers questions about the road towards lasting peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia, war in Ukraine and human rights.

The interview was conducted on 13th April 2023 in Warsaw by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Timo Soini, former deputy prime minister of Finland, former minister of foreign affairs, former Member of the European Parliament and for many years leader of the Finns Party summarises the elections in Finland, analyses possible coalitions and their influence on Finland's policies.

The interview was conducted on 3rd April 2023 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz via phone.

Alexandr Vondra – Czech MEP, former deputy prime minister, minister of foreign affairs and minister of defence and the advisor on international affairs to president Vaclav Havel was guest of the Political Periscope. He spoke about the place of Czech Republic in current changing geopolitical situation, cooperation in Central Europe and Three Seas Initiative and Visegrad Group.

The interview was conducted on 24th March 2023 in Warsaw by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Sergej Sumlenny, founder and director of the European Resilience Initiative Center, expert and political scientist, speaks about pro-Ukrainian shift in German foreign policy, difficult relations with Poland and German fear of technology.

The interview was conducted on 20th March 2023 online by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Sebastian Tomasz Plocharski, photographer, documentary filmmaker and volunteer who has been in Donbas evacuating civilians since the April 2022 speaks about his experience in the frontline zone, about people whom he helps and volunteers whith whom he has been working. The interview was recorded via online call, as Sebastian is still in Kramatorsk.

The interview was conducted on 15th March 2023 online by Piotr Mateusz Bobolowicz. 

Janusz Bugajski, senior fellow at the Jamestown Foundation in Washington, D.C. speaks about the meaning of Joe Biden's visit to Poland and Ukraine, pro-Kremlin disinformation on Fox News, Chinese-American relations and American attitude towards the Three Seas Initiative.

The interview was conducted on 24th February 2023 online by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

In this episode of the Political Periscope you will listen to two speakers:
Benedict Rogers co-funder and chief executive of the Hong Kong Watch, author of the book 'China Nexus: Thirty Years In and Around the Chinese Communist Party’s Tyranny'
Jack Herndon, programme manager at the International Republican Institute, expert on China's influence in the world.

They speak about the Wang Yi's, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chinese People Republic, speech in Munich, Chinese-American and Chinese-Russian relations.

The interviews were conducted on 22nd-23rd February 2023 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Ilya Ponomarev, member of the executive council of the Congress of People's Deputies, former member of Russian parliament (2007-2016), a Russian oppositioner speaks about the congress which will take place in Poland, the need and the way to change the political system in Russia, who supports the so called "free Russians" and what will happen with Russia and Ukraine after the war and upcoming revolution in Russian Federation.

The interview was conducted in Warsaw on 15th February 2023 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Fatima Tlis, Circassian activist living in exile in the United States speaks about the history of her people, its links to Polish people, about the Russian genocide committed on the nations who live inside this "prison of nations" and legal possibilities of decolonisation of the Russian Federation.

The interview was conducted on 31st January 2023 in Brussels by Piotr Mateusz Bobolowicz.

Brian Glyn Williams, Full Professor of Islamic History at the University of Massachusetts, author of the book Counter Jihad, speaks about American support for Ukraine, differences in attitude towards this aid between Democrats and Republicans, Russian influences in the US, Donald Trump, Joe Biden and the perspective of decolonization of Russian Federation.

This interview was conducted during the conference "Imperial Russia: Conquest, Genocide and Colonisation. Prospects for Deimperialisation and Decolonisation" in the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium on 31st January 2023 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Piotr Naimski, former Plenipotentiary of the Government of Poland for the strategic energy infrastructure speaks about the attitude of European countries towards energy security questions, green transformation and future perspectives of Polish and European energy sector.

The interview was conducted in Warsaw on 20th January 2023 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Konrad Pawłowski, PhD hab., the head of the Balkan Team of the Institute of Central Europe in Lublin explains recent protests in North Kosovo, presents possible solutions and peace initiatives of the conflict and speaks about Serbian foreign policy and Russian influence in that country.

The interview was conducted by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz on 16th January 2023 in Lublin.

Franak Viačorka, Senior Advisor to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, assumes the possibility of Belarusian troops joining the war, speaks about relations between Belarusian nation and Ukrainians, political prisoners in Belarus and the possibility of change of the Lukashenka's regime.

The interview was conducted online on 11th January 2023 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Emil Anton, doctor of theology and a journalist of Vatican News Suomi (Finland) speaks about the burial ceremony of the Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the late Pope's views on ecumenical dialogue and how he was viewed in Finland.

The interview was conducted on 5th January 2022 online by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz. 

Ruslan Deynychenko, one of the co-founders of the StopFake fact-checking initiative talks abut Russian disinformation against the Ukraine and the West, how Russian aggression on the 24th of February has changed the credibility of Russian propaganda and how to fight against it.

The interview was conducted on 29th December by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Margareta Cederfelt, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Seucirty and Cooperation in Europe and a member of Swedish Parliament summerises two latests meetings of the OSCE PA and OSCE MC in Poland, speaks about the funtioning of the organisation in times of war and about the help that the members of the PA can bring - and bring - to Ukraine and expresses her hope for ratification of Sweden and Finland's accession to the NATO by Turkey.

The interview was conducted  online on 21st December 2022 by Piotr Mateusz Bobołowicz.

Peter Vesterbacka, Finnish enterpreneur, startup creator, initiator of the SLUSH Startup Event, former CMO of Rovio Entertainment Corporation, speaks about Finnish education system, the great success in the area of startups, leading to many unicorns emerging from this country and the Russian war against the Ukraine.

This interview was conducted in Helsinki, 29th August 2022.

Þórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörð Gylfadóttir, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iceland speaks about her countries help for Ukraine, ministerial council of the OSCE, Icelandic bank crisis in 2008, opening new embassy in Warsaw and respect towards fairytale creatures on Iceland.

The interview was conducted by Piotr Mateusz Bobolowicz on 1st December 2022 in Warsaw.

Yuri Felshtinsky, Russo-American historian, author of such books as "Blowing up Russia", "World War III. Battle for Ukraine" and "From Derzhynski to Putin", which has been recently published in Poland explains why he considers the war already won by Ukraine, how Putin destroyed Russia and what Ukraine needs from the West to ultimately overpower Russia and end the war.

The interview was conducted by Piotr Mateusz Bobolowicz on 25th November in Warsaw, Poland.