SOAS in the Media: September 2026

Geopolitics led SOAS media coverage this week, with Professor Steve Tsang’s commentary appearing across international outlets, Dr Nick Westcott speaking to ABC Radio National about the changing role of the UN, and Avinash Paliwal writing in the Hindustan Times about BRICS+ and the West’s decline. 

Geopolitics and the changing global order 

• In its coverage of the 2026 BRICS summit, The Indian Express cited research by Professor Ha-Joon Chang and José Miguel Ahumada on how patent regimes, sanctions and trade policies affect developing countries. 

• Avinash Paliwal wrote an opinion piece for the Hindustan Times, arguing that Western concerns about BRICS+ say as much about the West’s own decline as they do about the growing influence of the bloc. 

• Dr Ali Alavi told Al Jazeera that US President Donald Trump’s claim that Iran was prolonging the war to influence the midterm elections was aimed at a domestic audience. Dr Alavi said it offered Trump a way to explain why his Iran policy appeared to be failing before the vote. 

• Dr Nick Westcott, Professor of Practice, joined ABC Radio National’s The Radio National Hour to discuss why geopolitics has ‘gone freelance’, how the UN’s role has changed and why international diplomacy has become harder. 

Hong Kong and Taiwan 

• Professor Steve Tsang told the Financial Times that Hong Kong’s economic dynamism had historically depended on the entrepreneurial spirit of its people and limited government interference, as the territory prepares its first five-year plan. 

• Speaking to AFP about Hong Kong’s Northern Metropolis technology hub, Professor Tsang said the national security law had effectively ended the ‘one country, two systems’ framework and that greater integration with mainland China would logically follow. His comments were carried by AGI, CNA, Le Media+, Newswav, CNN Business Arabic and other outlets. 

• Professor Tsang was also quoted by The Western Journal on the circumstances in which China might use force against Taiwan and the allies the US would need if it intervened. 

Politics and energy in South Asia 

• Visiting scholar Vignesh Rajahmani wrote for the East Asia Forum about how the Bharatiya Janata Party is reorganising Indian politics. 

• Professor Mushtaq Khan was quoted in a report carried by LexisNexis on Bangladesh’s energy crisis. He said the crisis should be understood through two connected issues: short-term problems with energy supply and longer-term structural and production problems. 

The Crusades and their political legacy 

• Mohamad El-Merheb speaks to Deutsche Welle Arts and Culture about the enduring legacy of the Crusades and how crusading imagery and symbolism continue to be appropriated in contemporary politics, including recently by far-right movements and politicians in Europe and North America. In the interview, he discusses how memories of the Crusades have been repeatedly reinterpreted for modern political and ideological purposes, from secular Arab nationalism and Islamist movements to contemporary Western politics. 

European responses to Israel and Palestine 

• Yair Wallach told Stockholm News that Europe’s sharply different responses to Ukraine and Palestine suggest clear double standards. 

• Professor Nimer Sultany was quoted in the Palestine Chronicle, News.Az, Anadolu Agency and other outlets after more than 130 legal experts said UK sanctions on Israeli settlements fell far short of the UK’s obligations under international law. Professor Sultany said the occupation was not a flaw in the system but an essential feature of it. 

Institutional news 

• China Education Online reported that the Beijing Foreign Studies University-SOAS Joint Institute has been approved by China’s Ministry of Education. It will offer an undergraduate programme in Regional Studies and master’s programmes in Regional Studies and Asian and African Studies. Total enrolment will be 480 students, with the first intake planned for 2027. 

China and international relations

• Director of the SOAS China Institute Professor Steve Tsang spoke with The Sun, The Atlantic, and other publications to discuss the latest on China’s international relations, following Xi Jinping’s visit to the US. 
• Professor Tsang’s forthcoming book was also referenced with the Financial Times. 
• Tsang also discussed how political friction and potential conflict between China and Taiwan could affect global economy.

The UK’s trade ban on illegal Israeli settlements

• Dr Nimer Sultany was interviewed on TRT World’s The Roundtable programme, on the UK government considering a trade ban on illegal Israeli settlements.
• Professor of Practice Dr Nick Westcott spoke to LBC Radio and Arise TV Nigeria on the wider announcement and developments of the trade ban.

Jamaica, the UK and reparations 

• Professor Olivette Otele shared commentary with Al Jazeera on Jamaica seeking reparations from the UK.

Development in Latin America

• Dr Fernando Rugitsky featured in Phenomenal World’s newsletter, exploring styles of Development across Latin America. 

North Korea’s nuclear enrichment

• Research Associate Professor Hazel Smith spoke on BBC World Service’s Newshour on North Korea’s enrichment of uranium.

Looking back on the US-Iraq conflict

• Emeritus Professor Gilbert Achcar was interviewed by international publication Qantara on the impacts of the US and Iraq conflict. 

The future of television entertainment in Taiwan

• Research associate Dr Ming-yeh Rawnsley wrote for the Taipei Times on what is next for television and entertainment in Taiwan. 

More on memoirs, memory and heritage 

• Professor Fareda Banda and Dr Katayoun Shahandeh contributed to The Conversation’s round-up of perspective-shifting memoirs.