logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2018
26m 39s

In Donald Trump V. International Law, Wh...

Global Dispatches
About this episode
Harold Hongju Koh is one of the America's leading scholars of international law. He is the Sterling Professor of International Law at Yale Law School, where he formerly served as the dean. He's also served as the Legal Advisor in the State Department and was the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.  
Professor Koh is the author of the new book that examines the Trump administration's relationship with international law. His book, called "The Trump Administration and International Law" surveys issues in which the Trump administration has clashed with international law, including immigration and refugees, human rights, and climate change. Professor Koh concludes that forces of international law are far more resilient than we might expect, and in fact, Trump's power has been constrained by international law. 
 
Professor Koh explains the process through which international law has so far been able to blunt some of Trump's more aggressive impulses. 
Up next
Yesterday
How to Prevent Catastrophic Climate Change | Global Catastrophic Risks
Today's episode is produced in partnership with the Global Challenges Foundation. The Foundation is dedicated to raising awareness of global catastrophic risks and strengthening global governance to address them. Global Challenges Foundation's 2026 Global Catastrophic Risks repor ... Show More
30m 18s
Mar 9
The War in Iran Comes to the UN | To Save Us From Hell
We cover a lot of ground in this week's episode of To Save Us From Hell! There are two new entrants to the race to succeed António Guterres as the next UN Secretary-General; Cindy McCain announced she is stepping down as head of the World Food Programme, meaning there will soon b ... Show More
24m 14s
Mar 4
How Does The Iran War End?
Things are obviously moving very fast in the Middle East. When I caught up with my guest today, Dalia Dassa Kaye, the war was in its second day. Bombings in Iran and throughout the region continued at a rapid clip, and there was little sense of when, if, or how it might end. Regu ... Show More
31m 43s
Recommended Episodes
Nov 2024
Trump’s National Security Team Takes Shape
Tommy and Ben process Trump’s reelection and the role foreign policy played in the outcome, highlight some awkward reactions from global leaders, and walk through what we know about Trump’s choices for top positions like Secretary of State, National Security Advisor and CIA direc ... Show More
1h 27m
Oct 2025
The Ceasefire and the Business of Trump’s Diplomacy
<p>The Washington Roundtable examines the fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire and the uncertain road ahead, asking to what degree the Trump family’s business interests in the Middle East are shaping American foreign policy. The panel discusses the financial relationships between Qatar ... Show More
39m 19s
Feb 2025
Trump’s proposal to ‘take over’ Gaza
Today on the show, Fareed speaks with Richard Haass, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, about President Trump’s foreign policy, from his proposal to “take over” Gaza, to the potential for a new nuclear deal with Iran.    Next, President of the International R ... Show More
40m 45s
Apr 2025
Will Trump abandon his efforts to end the war in Ukraine?
The US President's patience is running thin. Washington's efforts to end the war in Ukraine are making little progress, and the Trump administration is threatening to walk away. Will the warning push Russia and Ukraine to engage seriously to end the conflict now in its third year ... Show More
24m 35s
May 2025
Tracking Trump's Global Grift
Tommy and Ben are on the Trump corruption beat, including Vietnam’s fast-tracking of a Trump golf project for favorable treatment, the administration pushing Elon Musk’s Starlink on foreign countries, the president’s grotesque dinner for buyers of his memecoin, and Cory Booker’s ... Show More
1h 40m
Feb 2025
Would a US takeover of Gaza be against international law?
In a social media post earlier today, US President Donald Trump seemed to double down on claims his country would fight to control the territory of Gaza. He had also suggested recently at a press conference that Palestinians should leave the region and be taken in by neighbouring ... Show More
47m 28s
Apr 2025
Israel's new Gaza corridor and Hungary's ICC exit
Hundreds of thousands of Gazans are seeking shelter after one of the biggest mass displacements of the war. Hungary is leaving the International Criminal Court. Gulf Co-operation Council countries were largely spared from US President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs on Wednesda ... Show More
5m 57s
Dec 2024
South Korean President Declares Martial Law
Tommy and Ben discuss President Yoon Suk Yeol’s sudden declaration of martial law in South Korea, how Trump and his team will approach the Syrian civil war, and why Kash Patel, Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, is so dangerous. They also talk about Trump’s nepotism hires, more troubl ... Show More
1h 22m
Mar 2024
The role of international law and justice in a fragmented world
<p>The wars in Ukraine and Gaza have led questions of international law and justice to filter into everyday discourse. Both conflicts are deeply rooted in complicated and at times controversial discussions concerning the validity of territorial claims, the permissibility of use o ... Show More
40m 56s