The Interview

• Andrius Kubilius, EU Commissioner for Defence and Space: A new era of defence readiness

  James Copnall, presenter of BBC Newsday, speaks to Andrius Kubilius, EU Commissioner for Defence and Space, about the need for Europe to be able to defend itself.In an interview recorded before the Nato summit on 24/25 June 2025, Mr Kubilius, a former Prime Minister of Lithuania, says peace in Europe cannot be taken for granted and that Europe can no longer rely on American military backing. Therefore, defence readiness must be a priority, meaning increased spending commitments from Nato members, and a unified, quick and clear approach across Europe to building defence capabilities. This, he believes, is the only way to deter the threat of further Russian aggression.But some Nato member states may struggle to meet the proposed increased spending target of 3.5% of GDP on defence. A few still haven’t met the current goal of 2%, set more than a decade ago. However, other European nations are already boosting spending to 5% including countries living in close proximity to Russia, such as Poland, Estonia and Lithuania. Overall, Europe still only accounts for 30% of Nato's total military spending, a figure that has prompted US President Trump to demand a much greater contribution from European members. The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.Presenter: James Copnall Producers: Lucy Sheppard, Ben Cooper and Owen Clegg Editor: Nick HollandGet in touch with us on email [email protected] and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.(Image: Andrius Kubilius. Credit: John Thys/POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

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• Martina Navratilova: 'Women are still judged by a different metric than men'

  Amol Rajan speaks to Martina Navratilova, one of the greatest-ever tennis players, about her life and career. The story of her rise to the top of the game is as remarkable as the number of tournaments she managed to win.Born behind the Iron Curtain in Czechoslovakia in 1956, she was 11-years-old when she watched Soviet tanks roll in to the country as Moscow sought to reassert control and quash political reform.Navratilova, who played in her first tennis tournament when she was eight, rose to both national and international prominence in the years that followed.But in 1975, following the Czech government’s efforts to control her tennis career, she defected. Aged 18, Navratilova sought asylum in the United States, where she later became an American citizen. During the late 1970s and 1980s she dominated the international tennis circuit, and by the time she retired, she had won 59 major singles and doubles titles.But throughout her life, Navratilova has generated headlines on the front pages of newspapers, as well as the back. She came out as being gay in 1981, a rare thing for high-profile athletes to do at the time, and quickly became a prominent figure in the gay rights movement. More recently, however, she has found herself at odds with some groups due to her views on transgender athletes.She has also battled cancer on two separate occasions.Thank you to the Amol Rajan Interviews 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. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.Presenter: Amol Rajan Producers: Ben Cooper, Joel Mapp Sound: Dave O’Neill Editor: Nick HollandGet in touch with us on email [email protected] and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.(Image: Martina Navratilova. Credit: Roy Rochlin/Getty Images)

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• Muhammad Yunus: We dream of creating a new Bangladesh

  Rajini Vaidyanathan, BBC News presenter and correspondent, speaks to Muhammad Yunus, interim leader of Bangladesh.The 84-year-old is perhaps one of the world’s best-known Bangladeshis. Described as the banker to the world’s poor, he gained international recognition as a Nobel prize-winning economist, who founded the Grameen microfinance bank, which delivered small loans to economically deprived people.It was a model applauded by many and is one which now operates across more than 100 countries worldwide. But it’s also a model which was criticised by his political rival - Bangladesh’s former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who accused Mr Yunus of sucking blood from the poor. Her government made a series of allegations against him, including embezzlement, all of which he denies.And it was the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina’s government last August that saw Muhammad Yunus thrust into the political spotlight.Student-led protests saw thousands take to the streets in an uprising against her Awami league government, which was accused of election rigging, human rights abuses and jailing critics.When Ms Hasina fled to neighbouring India, student leaders picked Muhammad Yunus to unite a divided nation. As well as promising to stamp out corruption, he’s also faced the challenges of managing a refugee crisis on his doorstep and navigating cuts to foreign aid.So, after nearly a year in the job, how is he faring? The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.Presenter: Rajini Vaidyanathan Producers: Ben Cooper and Junaid Ahmed Editor: Nick HollandGet in touch with us on email [email protected] and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.(Image: Muhammad Yunus. Credit: Reuters/Yves Herman)

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• Yoshua Bengio: AI’s risks must be acknowledged

  James Copnall, presenter of the BBC’s Newsday, speaks to Yoshua Bengio, the world-renowned computer scientist often described as one of the godfathers of artificial intelligence, or AI.Bengio is a professor at the University of Montreal in Canada, founder of the Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute - and recipient of an A.M. Turing Award, “the Nobel Prize of Computing”. AI allows computers to operate in a way that can seem human, by using programmes that learn vast amounts of data and follow complex instructions. Big tech firms and governments have invested billions of dollars in the development of artificial intelligence, thanks to its potential to increase efficiency, cut costs and support innovation.Bengio believes there are risks in AI models that attempt to mimic human behaviour with all its flaws. For example, recent experiments have shown how some AI models are developing the capacity to deceive and even blackmail humans, in a quest for their self-preservation. Instead, he says AI must be safe, scientific and working to understand humans without copying them. The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.Presenter: James Copnall Producers: Lucy Sheppard, Ben Cooper Editor: Nick HollandGet in touch with us on email [email protected] and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.(Image: Yoshua Bengio. Credit: Craig Barritt/Getty)

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• Mike Huckabee, US Ambassador to Israel: ‘Hamas isn't interested in ending the war’

  James Coomarasamy, presenter of the BBC’s Newshour and The World Tonight, speaks to Mike Huckabee, US Ambassador to Israel. Confirmed in the post two months ago, Mr Huckabee is the former Republican Governor of Arkansas and two-time Republican presidential nominee.He’s an Evangelical Christian, who has backed the presence of Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territories, which are considered illegal under international law - although Israel rejects this.Some opposition politicians in the US have been critical of his appointment and previous statements he’s made about the ongoing war in Gaza.One Democratic senator said Huckabee was "woefully unfit" for the role and accused him of engaging in "brazen denial of the existence of the Palestinian people". But during questioning by a US Senate committee, Huckabee played down some of his past statements, saying he would "carry out the president's priorities", not his, and denied backing the expulsion of Palestinians.He takes up the role amid growing international calls for a ceasefire in Gaza and pressure for more humanitarian aid to reach the territory. Despite a number of proposals put forward by the international community, there does not yet appear to be a realistic prospect of an end to the conflict. The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.Presenter: James Coomarasamy Producer: Ben Cooper Editor: Nick HollandGet in touch with us on email [email protected] and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.(Image: Mike Huckabee. Credit: John Taggart/Bloomberg via Getty Images.)

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