Decades of warfare against drug cartels and armed guerillas have provided Colombia with a valuable asset. Countries across Latin America are sending their troops and police to learn the techniques of its elite Jungla unit.

Carl Bildt represents a small country involved in most key international issues. Since becoming foreign minister in 2006, Sweden has participated in the Nato-led operations in Afghanistan and Libya, acted as the president of the EU and is the chairman of the Arctic Council until 2013. In a career spanning over four decades, Bildt has served as the leader of the Moderate Party and as prime minister. He is also known for his verbal agility. In response to the Wikileaks telegram in which an official at the US embassy to Sweden reportedly described him as a “medium-sized dog with big-dog attitude”, Bildt shrugged, saying that he, at least, is not a poodle.

In October TV4-Gruppen will launch the only 24-hour news channel in Sweden, headed by Göran Ellung, news and current affairs director of programmes at the main network. It’s hoped it’ll draw in an audience of news-hungry Swedes.

The view from London after the recent riots, plus why Portugal wants more pensioners, and Switzerland's impending election.

The challenges facing Bogota's new mayor, a Canadian waterfront drama, and a Q&A with the head of the group spearheading Manhattan's transformation.

Thailand's first female PM Yingluck Shinawatra gets the once over for our Style Leader, and we report on Hanoi's urban masterplan and Japan's pay rise for its football heroines.

The substantial motorcade of the 'humble' Ugandan president, Norway looks to turn Quatar's desert green and a new bridge betwen Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

With the sudden exit from Mogadishu of Islamist insurgents, life in the Somali capital has shifted yet again. Just as war has abated, famine has arrived. Who can fix this ravaged city?

News from the islands, a highspeed rail link between Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney, and fruit prices go bananas in Australia.

The one part of Yemen that's still paradise, plus the US creates a new naval base in Singapore.

Pakistan says thank you with mangoes, Lithuania gets into a sticky spot over street names, and Monocle heads to Hanoi to meet the Palestinian ambassador to Vietnam.

The Algiers casbah has fallen into dilapidation. But now there are plans to restore its warren of streets. Is this government generosity or a bid to discourage discord in this traditionally revolution-minded neighbourhood?

While post-industrial towns such as Detroit languish in a ‘rust belt’, Pittsburgh is bucking the trend, teeing itself up as a major hi-tech hub and an alternative to California’s Silicon Valley. Monocle visits its thriving East Liberty neighbourhood.

Canadians go south for cheap flights, Shanghai gets virtual supermarkets in its subways, plus Melbourne's laneways get some investment.

Alexander Lebedev, former politician and owner of the UK’s ‘Independent’ and Russian opposition title ‘Novaya Gazeta’, is not your average oligarch. Here, he tells us why his management style is definitely hands-off.

In the rush into digitalisation, US media giants hastily abandoned many of their core values, says the veteran journalist and former foreign editor of the ‘Chicago Tribune’. Elsewhere, old-fashioned values are thriving. We meet the players with successful business models.

Book, film and music reviews, plus culture editor Robert Bound on what makes an icon.

This month sees the international art world flock to London for the ninth edition of Frieze Art Fair (13 to 16 October). With more than 170 galleries taking part, and an estimated 60,000 visitors attending, it has become one of the most important events in the art calendar, and is set to launch a New York edition next year. Here we meet five figures involved with the fair, and discuss their experiences of Frieze week.

Internet advertising that knows exactly who you are, an Istanbul magazine delivered by bicycle - by the editor, plus more media news.

Hilversum was the centre of Dutch broadcasting for the best part of a century, a model media city of daring architecture. Hit hard by changes in the industry, a period of self-reflection has the city searching for new relevance in the digital media age.

The world has been using typefaces for hundreds of years – but only now has the first bricks and mortar shop started selling fonts. e-Types, the Copenhagen branding company behind the move, is hoping it’s the start of something big.

Renowned textile artist Kay Sekimachi has lived in her California home for over 50 years. And while it may not say much on the outside, indoors it’s a warm celebration of furniture and fabrics in which life very much imitates art.

New projects, products and news from the design world.

A leafy getaway spot in central Japan is the backdrop to our autumn menswear shoot. Here’s our pick of warm coats and jackets and knitwear to keep you cosy as temperatures begin to fall.

The beautifully preserved town of Obuse in Nagano prefecture is home to old sake breweries and silk farms. It’s also where we parade this season’s womenswear.

This month Monocle’s most desired products include a training kit to master wine aromas, an oversized skateboard made from a 19th-century library table and two must-have items for coffee addicts.

On Monocle’s world tour this month are a Long Island hotel that takes you back to those summer camp days, cocktails and kebabs from Israel’s finest chef and coffee couture in London.

The ‘made in Switzerland’ tag is more associated with precise timekeeping than carpets. But one firm in the village of Altbüron is showing that delivering a high-quality product can go a long way – and it’s happy to stick to the domestic market too.

Erskineville’s ascension to the perfect address for urban professionals hasn’t stripped it of its character and community feel. The old workers’ cottages provide creative living spaces and Erskineville Road offers attractive shops, restaurants, bars and a prized bakery.

The Sea Horse warms hearts with its simple Finnish comfort food. Here’s how to cook a cosy feast.

The Danish designer chooses a historic restaurant, full of personal memories, in his adopted US hometown as the venue for his hypothetical ‘farewell banquet’.

Rolling news is a euphemism for cheap reporting, drama over content and daft presenters. Tyler Brûlé knows the solution

Operating out of Brazil’s business and finance capital, ‘Folha de S.Paulo’, which dates back to the 1920s, is a newspaper success story. With a nose for an exclusive and a band of dedicated journalists, it continues to set the news agenda within the country.