Day 1,450. Today, as world leaders arrive in Germany for the Munich Security Conference, we report on expectations ahead of this weekend’s gathering and what it could mean for Ukraine and European security. We assess reaction to announcements made at the latest meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Rammstein), and examine Russia’s move to supply Cuba with oil amid growing geopolitical tensions. Plus, we bring you our regular update on resistance activities in the Russian-occupied territo...
Feb 13, 2026•51 min
Day 1,449. Today, as Ukraine’s security services claim responsibility for the longest-range strike yet on Russian oil and gas infrastructure since the start of the full-scale invasion, we examine reports of a surge in Russian army casualties and what that could mean for Vladimir Putin’s war effort. Then we bring you the latest from the NATO summit in Brussels, where allies are discussing military support for Ukraine and European security, before returning to the escalating controversy at the Win...
Feb 12, 2026•40 min
Day 1,448. Today, we assess where things stand after mixed messaging has left Kyiv, Moscow and Western capitals confused over whether President Zelensky will use the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion to announce presidential elections or a referendum on a possible peace deal. We report on Russia’s fury over the reported Starlink switch-off, a communications crisis compounded by the Kremlin’s tightening restrictions on Telegram, and continue to follow the Olympic controversy surrounding Ukr...
Feb 11, 2026•48 min
Day 1,447. Today, amid growing rumours that Ukraine may be preparing a new counteroffensive, we discuss how the Kremlin is attempting to play down expectations and undermine confidence in the ongoing peace talks. We then report on Japan’s move to join the PURL initiative, examine a diplomatic row that has erupted at the Winter Olympics, and sit down with Romania’s Foreign Minister, Oana Țoiu, to hear how the war in Ukraine is being viewed from Bucharest, on NATO and the EU’s eastern flank. Contr...
Feb 10, 2026•50 min
Day 1,446. Today, in a rare public outburst against the Trump administration, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accuses the United States of “backtracking” on the so-called Anchorage Agreement, under which Washington allegedly agreed to pressure Ukraine into ceding parts of the Donbas that Russian forces have failed to capture after nearly four years of war. We examine President Zelensky’s comments suggesting that a new White House peace deadline may be linked to Donald Trump’s US midterm e...
Feb 09, 2026•59 min
Day 1,443. Today, after an apparent assassination attempt on a senior Russian general in Moscow, we examine the major Russian bombardments across Ukraine that followed the second day of peace talks in Abu Dhabi. Are the United States, Ukraine, and Russia any closer to a ceasefire? We then hear from an NGO delivering vital humanitarian supplies to Ukraine’s frontline cities, and speak to the head of a hospital in President Zelensky’s hometown. Contributors Francis Dearnley (Executive Editor for A...
Feb 06, 2026•42 min
Day 1,442. Today, as reports suggest Russian troops are in turmoil across the frontline after being denied access to Starlink satellite communications, we return to Abu Dhabi for the latest developments in the ongoing trilateral peace talks between the United States, Ukraine, and Russia. We then hear live from Kyiv with firsthand reactions and descriptions of the situation on the ground, before turning to the Russian press for insight into the state of Russia’s economy – and an extraordinary sto...
Feb 05, 2026•48 min
Day 1,441. Today, as Donald Trump claims Vladimir Putin has “kept his word” by not striking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, we report on the resumption of trilateral peace talks in Abu Dhabi involving the US, Ukraine, and Russia. We examine whether French President Emmanuel Macron’s call for Europeans to “restore their own channels of communication” with Moscow will deliver any tangible results, and assess whether the recent drop in the price of gold could weaken Putin’s war economy. And later,...
Feb 04, 2026•46 min
Day 1,440. Today, as Ukrainians endure temperatures of minus -20 degrees Celsius and Russia marks the end of its so-called “energy ceasefire” with a new mass aerial attack, we ask what is stopping Donald Trump from simply urging Vladimir Putin to spare Ukraine’s energy infrastructure for another week. We report on NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s address to Ukraine’s parliament, examining what he meant by the “difficult choices” Kyiv may face in pursuit of peace. And later, with the START nuc...
Feb 03, 2026•50 min
Day 1,439. Today, as Vladimir Putin’s so-called “energy ceasefire” is reportedly broken once again, we report on another weekend of devastating Russian strikes on Ukraine – including an attack that killed 15 miners when drones hit their bus during a near Dnipro, and a strike on a maternity hospital in Zaporizhzhya that injured at least six. We then examine mounting claims that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was not only close to the Kremlin, but may have acted as a foreign agent on Russi...
Feb 02, 2026•42 min
Day 1,436. Today, as Donald Trump announces an “energy ceasefire” we ask: what it means, has it started and can it hold. Our correspondent in Turkey tells us China is supplying critical components of Russia’s nuclear-capable Oreshnik missiles and have our regular fortnightly update about resistance activity in the occupied areas. Plus later, we hear about a new adaptation for the theatre of a Ukrainian story that blends folklore with contemporary themes of power, superstition and women’s struggl...
Jan 30, 2026•48 min
Day 1,435. Today, as President Zelensky warns that Russia is preparing “a new massive strike”, we examine growing speculation that an undeclared truce may be in place regarding strikes on energy infrastructure. We then turn to the Russian press, where a local war memorial in the Urals appears to have inadvertently revealed the true scale of Russian casualties, and an unlikely scandal involving a baker that has caused fresh embarrassment for Vladimir Putin. And finally, we report on the launch of...
Jan 29, 2026•48 min
Day 1,434. Today, as Russia kills five civilians in a drone attack targeting a passenger train in Ukraine, we report on how a senior European diplomat has said the world must call this what it is: terrorism. As President Zelensky urges all “decent people of the world” not to remain silent in the face of Russian war crimes, we examine a new US assessment which concludes that Russia has suffered more military losses than any major power in any conflict since the Second World War. We also ask wheth...
Jan 28, 2026•51 min
Day 1,433. Today, amid increased Russian military pressure in the Donbas, and as Ukraine faces what the NATO Secretary General calls its “harshest winter for a decade”, we bring you the latest from the Ukraine peace talks, where the United States is understood to be increasing pressure on President Zelensky’s government to concede territory to Russia before Washington grants any security guarantees. But is Moscow’s position under Vladimir Putin softer than it appears, as some allege? Then we dis...
Jan 27, 2026•40 min
Day 1,432. Today, as Kyiv endures sub-zero temperatures, we report on Russia’s latest mass aerial attack on the city, carried out even as trilateral so-called peace talks were taking place in Abu Dhabi over the weekend. We examine Steve Witkoff’s latest visit to Moscow – he has still yet to travel to Ukraine – and ask why Russia is now pushing the opaque “Alaska formula” in a bid to secure territory it has failed to seize by force. And later, Francis Dearnley and Hamish de Bretton-Gordon visit t...
Jan 26, 2026•59 min
Day 1,429. Today, as President Trump prompts further outrage with his claim NATO troops “avoided the frontline” in Afghanistan, we consider whether President Zelensky was right to call out Europe in his speech at Davos ahead of the first trilateral talks of the war. Then we ponder whether the Greenland saga can be put to bed, or if it’s truly indicative of a historic shift, before returning to the topic of resilience with the second half of our interview with former British army officer Ash Alex...
Jan 23, 2026•55 min
Day 1,428. Today, as President Zelensky savages Europe’s leaders at Davos, especially for blocking the use of frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine, we assess President Trump’s apparent retreat from his threat of tariffs against NATO allies after agreeing what he called a “framework for a future deal” over Greenland. We hear reaction from the island itself, before speaking to the author of a new book on building mental resilience – an antidote to these stressful times. Contributors Dominic Nicho...
Jan 22, 2026•57 min
Day 1,427. Today, as Donald Trump heads to Davos with what he calls “good news” about Greenland, we examine prime minister of Canada Mark Carney’s extraordinary speech at Davos where he warned that we cannot “live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination”. We also report on Moscow’s representative to the IAEA dismissing global concern over Russia’s strikes on Ukraine’s nuclear power plants as overblown. And later, we speak to ...
Jan 21, 2026•48 min
Day 1,426. Today, as Moscow reportedly tests thermobaric munitions on ground-based drones, and strikes on substations connected to Ukrainian nuclear power plants continue, we turn to the World Economic Forum in Davos, where world leaders have gathered for what was meant to be a week of diplomatic breakthroughs for Kyiv. Instead, the agenda has been seized by President Trump and his threats over Greenland; we hear the latest from the island, before speaking to the author of a new report on Russia...
Jan 20, 2026•45 min
Day 1,425. Today, amid the gravest crisis for the transatlantic alliance in decades over the fate of Greenland, we examine the implications of Russia considering strikes on substations supplying Ukraine’s nuclear power plants. Then we assess the options available to NATO allies seeking to placate President Donald Trump, before hearing about a Ukrainian robot that supposedly held the line against Russian troops for 45 days, and offering an update on how Moscow is deploying Orthodox nuns as an ins...
Jan 19, 2026•56 min
Day 1,422. Today, as Trump is finally gifted a Nobel Peace Prize – just not quite the one he wants – we hear how Germany has denied a Russian shadow-fleet tanker access to the Baltic Sea, and assess Emmanuel Macron’s claim that France is now supplying two-thirds of Ukraine’s strategic military intelligence, as he and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni suggest the time may be right to begin talks with Vladimir Putin again. Plus, we discuss the findings of a major new report on the occupied territories, and b...
Jan 16, 2026•57 min
Day 1,421. Today, as President Zelensky declares a national emergency over the energy crisis triggered by Russian attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure, we ask what Europe’s strategy is now, before examining reports Russia has forced African recruits into suicide missions on the battlefield. Then we assess how events in Iran and Venezuela could reshape global energy prices, and whether those shocks will ultimately help or hinder Vladimir Putin. Contributors Francis Dearnley (Executive Editor for A...
Jan 15, 2026•46 min
Day 1,420. Today, as reports emerge that a Russian air-defence missile has struck a residential building in the city of Rostov-on-Don, we examine claims that France is pushing to prevent Ukraine from purchasing American weapons, then look at the criminal charges brought against a prominent figure in Ukraine’s modern history. Later, we turn to Moscow’s media landscape to hear how the Russian press is interpreting potentially momentous developments in Iran, Venezuela, and Greenland. Contributors F...
Jan 14, 2026•48 min
Day 1,419. Today, as much of Kyiv continues to live without power, so too does a region of Russia, as the United States accuses Moscow of making a mockery of peace through its continued attacks. Then, we explore the emerging phenomenon of so-called ‘dark tourism’ in Ukraine, and what it reveals about how the war is being remembered. Later, in an exclusive interview, we speak to Moldovan President Maia Sandu, who reflects on a tumultuous five years in office – including last year’s dramatic elect...
Jan 13, 2026•51 min
Day 1,418. Today, as thousands remain without power in Kyiv, we examine President Zelensky’s pledge to carry out more operations “inside” Russia and analyse Moscow’s latest tank and weapons innovations. We then unpack an extraordinary outburst from a Russian spokesperson, who dismissed the “wet dreams of British perverts”, before considering what the fall of Iran’s regime would mean for the war in Ukraine. Later, we return to the issue of Ukraine’s stolen children, with new details on the milita...
Jan 12, 2026•56 min
Day 1,415. Today, the world responds to Putin’s latest outrage that has seen a nuclear-capable ballistic missile fired by Russia hit Ukraine just 50km from Nato’s border, with one leading European politician saying the pressure on Putin must now be “turned up to the maximum and made unbearable.” We hear from the man who recently interviewed Oleksandr Kamyshin, a key aide to President Zelensky and get Francis’s final thoughts from Hungary. Later, we interview the commander of Operation Interflex,...
Jan 09, 2026•56 min
Day 1,414. Today, as yet another Russian shadow fleet tanker makes the news, but this time after an explosion by a suspected Ukrainian drone in the Black Sea forced it to divert to Turkey, we hear live from Ukraine where overnight strikes left two regions without power as temperatures plummet below zero. We report how the value of defence company shares have surged after comments by Donald Trump - but not if they’re based in the US - and we hear from Ukraine's International Legion about proposed...
Jan 08, 2026•38 min
Day 1,413. Today, we report on the details of the latest Coalition of the Willing summit in Paris, asking how significant was the strong US presence and input. We get an update from Francis in Hungary and, later, we have an interview with Sir Ben Wallace, Britain’s former defence secretary who says it's just wishful thinking that Donald Trump would put any weight behind a backstop because Putin knows, in Sir Ben’s words, that he's got a guy in the White House aligned to Russia. Contributors Domi...
Jan 07, 2026•53 min
Day 1,412. Today, as military and political chiefs from the Coalition of the Willing meet in Paris, President Zelensky continues to reshuffle his top team, including the replacement of the man behind Operation Spiderweb, a move that has been criticised in Ukraine. We have a look at how 2026 is being reported in the Russian media and, later, we speak to an analyst from the RAND corporation about how AI is now being fielded on drones in the war. Contributors Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of D...
Jan 06, 2026•49 min
Day 1,411. Today, as the world reacts to America’s operation in Venezuela over the weekend, we explore Moscow’s notably muted response - a silence that hints at the tension inside the Kremlin between defending an ally and condemning US action, risking Donald Trump’s wrath, or quietly applauding an example of international intervention. We also hear from Hungary, where Francis puts questions to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Contributors Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of Defence). @DomNicholls ...
Jan 05, 2026•47 min
