Borealis Threat & Risk Consulting
In this podcast, retired Canadian intelligence analyst Phil Gurski discusses the subject of terrorism: what it is (and isn’t), trends, developments and more. Author of six books on terrorism, Phil is not shy to wade into controversial matters and provide his perspective honed from more than three decades in intelligence.
Episode 329 – How easy is it to create a terrorist group? You would think the world already has enough terrorist groups. While jihadi ones like Al Qaeda and Islamic State – and their affiliates, provinces and wannabes – predominate, there are others out there as well. And in what is an interesting development, new […]
Episode 328 – Violence abroad rarely stays abroad Well, the world is in a state these days, isn’t it? War in Iran. War in Gaza. War in Lebanon. Closure of the Straits of Hormuz. An ongoing civil war in Yemen. And that is just the Middle East! When it comes to terrorism in the West, […]
Episode 327 – Will Ireland see the resurgence of nationalist violence? For decades, the one Western nation that seemed most beset by terrorism was Ireland, as the IRA (Irish Republican Army) was bent on using violence to coerce the six counties of the north to join the Republic. The Troubles, as they were known, stretched […]
Episode 326 – What kind of intelligence does the US President consume and does it make a difference? Imagine you are the one on the hotseat who has to tell the President of the US what is happening in the world – on a daily basis. What do you tell him? Where do you get […]
Episode 325 – Could Afghanistan pose the same terrorist threat it did a quarter century ago? For two decades NATO members, including Canada, were at war in Afghanistan. More than 3,000 allied soldiers died (among whom were 158 Canadians) and when the last US troops left in 2021 Afghanistan went back to the status quo […]
Episode 324 – Even when the public wants immediate answers, police need time to do their jobs If you watch enough crime dramas on Netflix (or the streaming platform of your choice: my wife and I are watching the quirky Annika on PBS now), you are led to believe that solving crimes is a matter […]
Episode 323 – I can tell you and not have to kill you! If there is one profession that is badly misunderstood – or not understood at all – it is espionage. Oh sure, there are spy novels and James Bond films and all that, but these are fictional and do not portray the world […]
Episode 322 – What ever happened to Canada’s values? Thanks to US President Trump Canada is forced to diversify its trade relationships. One of those partners, not new but enhanced, is China, and the government of Prime Minister Carney is busy signing deals with the PRC. One of those agreements is to bring in Chinese […]
Episode 321 – Can Iran rely on another Arab ally? Most people think little of Yemen, a desperately poor state at the heel of the Arabian Peninsula. Wracked by civil war and a poor economy, it has nevertheless punched well above its weight, forestalling a Saudi-UAE effort to unseat its government, and launching missiles at […]
Episode 320 – Will Canada’s true north finally be strong…and free? Canada proudly proclaims that it is the ‘Great White North’, a reference to our long border with the Arctic (and sometimes interminable winters – like this one!). But does it really treat the region as a national security priority (it did during the Cold […]