← Ukraine: The Latest
Ukraine: The Latest
Ukraine drives 10km into occupied territory on two fronts & White House says it 'takes Russia at their word' over Iran intelligence sharing
00:42:16
Loading summary
Transcript102 lines
- [00:04]
Hayden
The telegraph.
- [00:09]
Adam Grant
Hey, this is Adam Grant, host of ted's podcast Rethinking with Adam Grant. Have you heard of Bill? It's the intelligent finance platform that uses AI to help you avoid costly errors and optimize cash flow. In fact, Bill reports that over 90 of the top 100 US accounting firms trust them to manage, move and maximize money proven by over a trillion dollars in secure transactions. Eliminate the friction and start scaling with the proven choice. Visit bill.com proven to talk with an expert about automating your business finances and get a $250 gift card as the thank you. That's bill.com proven terms and conditions apply. See Offer page for details.
- [00:45]
Hayden
Howdy, howdy ho, and welcome to Fantasy Fanfellas. I'm Hayden, producer of the Fantasy Fangirls podcast and your resident lover of all things Sanderson.
- [00:53]
Stephen
And I'm Stephen, your bookish Internet goofball. But you can call me the Smash Daddy.
- [00:57]
Hayden
And we are currently deep diving Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Mistbor. But here's the catch. Steven here has not read Mistborn before.
- [01:06]
Stephen
That's right.
- [01:06]
David Knowles
Hey hey.
- [01:07]
Stephen
So each week you'll get my unfiltered raw reactions to every single chapter.
- [01:11]
Hayden
And along the way we'll do character deep dives, magic explainers, and Steven will even try to guess what's next. Spoiler alert. He'll be wrong.
- [01:18]
Stephen
News flash. I'm never wrong. Episodes come out every Wednesday, and you can find Fantasy Fanfellas wherever you get your podcasts.
- [01:27]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
ACAST powers the world's best podcasts. Here's a show that we recommend.
- [01:35]
Francis Durnley
Michael Gargiulo stalked and slaughtered his female
- [01:38]
Unknown Narrator
neighbors in LA in the 2000s until one survived.
- [01:42]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
She painted a picture that you could never imagine.
- [01:46]
Francis Durnley
In a first on Mind of a Monster, we dive into a case that's still active. Did Michael's murderous rampage start in the 1990s when he was just 17?
- [01:55]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
His impulsivity and his rage was starting
- [01:59]
Anders Rasmussen
to peak around that age.
- [02:00]
Francis Durnley
Listen to Mind of a Monster, the Hollywood Ripper. Wherever you get your podcasts, Acast helps
- [02:07]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
creators launch, grow and monetize their podcasts everywhere. Acast.com. I'm Dom Nichols and this is Ukraine. The latest. Today we report how Steve Witkoff says we can take them at their word. After Russia denies giving intelligence about U.S. forces to Iran and later caveating his optimism by adding, let's hope that they're not sharing. We also look at a Ukrainian deep strike operation and ask, how did Russian air defence allow a loitering drone to film the Whole thing. We provide updates on the Ukrainian counterattacks in the south of the country that do now seem to have coalesced into two defined operations, each punching 10 kilometers into Russian lines. And we have our final postcard from Adelaide. And in Ukraine, and later we hear from a former NATO Secretary General.
- [03:01]
Anders Rasmussen
Bravery takes you through the most unimaginable hardships to finally reward you with victory.
- [03:11]
Unknown Narrator
Russia does not want peace.
- [03:22]
Anders Rasmussen
If I'm President I will have that war settled in one day, 24 hours.
- [03:26]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
We are with you. Not just today or tomorrow, but for 100 years. Nobody's going to break us. We're strong.
- [03:38]
David Knowles
We are Ukrainians.
- [03:40]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
It's Wednesday the 11th of March, four years and 15 days since the full scale invasion began. And today I'm joined by my co host and the Telegraph's Executive editor. For audio, Francis Durnley and Adelie Pojmon Ponte on her way back from Ukraine. We also have an interview that Roland Oliphant did with Anders Rasmussen, a former NATO Secretary General. I started with the latest from the battlefront. These local counterattacks in the vicinity of the Zaporizhzhia Dnipro Petros Oblast border that we've been talking about for some time now. They do seem to have coalesced into separate operations in their own right. Each have punched into Russian lines about 10 to 12 kilometers deep. This is reporting coming out today by the ISW. The Institute for the Study of War, the US based think tank, are citing comments from the Ukrainian 1st separate assault regiment commander, Captain Dmitry Filatov, whose regiment is operating in the vicinity of Heliopol. He says that yesterday his regiment pushed 12 km deep into Russian positions. Then the commander of a Ukrainian airborne assault battalion said his unit had advanced a similar distance a little bit to the northeast in the vicinity of Alexandrivka. Now, somewhat contradicting General Oleksandr Syrsky, Captain Filtov said that Ukrainian offensive operations in Dnipropetrovsk do not mark the start of a new counter offensive. He said these counterattacks just aim to stabilise the front line and improve Ukraine's positions amid Russian troop redeployments in the area. We mentioned some of those redeployments yesterday. Now Ukrainian Airborne Assault Forces commander Major General Early Apostol said the Ukrainian forces have killed two Russian battalion commanders during these counterattacks. Now the Russian mill bloggers have been commenting on this chaos at the front line. They say the mixture with various units being moved around, plus the fog and the snow has allowed Ukrainian forces to conduct mechanised assaults. I mentioned that because we know it's virtually impossible to move vehicles, armoured vehicles around because of the coherent drone defence. Begs the question, why is there no coherent drone defence? Largely comes down to Starlink. A Starlink switch off the head of plans in a Ukrainian drone battalion operating in the vicinity of Lyman up in the Donbass. That's right at the top of the fortress belt. He said the Russian forces have been forced to turn to less effective technological solutions following the blocking of Starlink. That's the WI fi bridges that we've been talking about. But these mostly rely on large antennas which are visible from a long way off and therefore more easily targetable. For instance, a Ukrainian brigade operating in vicinity of Pokrovsk said the Russian forces are placing antennas and communications repeaters on the roofs of high rise buildings in central Minarad. That's made it easier to find and made them easier to find and easier to hit Russian communication systems as well as hunting down the drone operators and drone launch sites. So they're still struggling to get over the problem of the Starlink switch off. So yesterday, 90 of 99 drones were brought down across the country. They still left nine dead, nearly 50 injured. Of course, it's not just drones that's hitting the country. Glide bombs killed two yesterday in Sumy Oblast. There were two more deaths this morning in a meat processing plant in Kharkiv. Four people killed in Donetsk, Russia attacked Zaporizhzhia Oblast 706 times over the past 24 hours, local authorities said. So glide bombs, artillery, etc etc as well as drones. There were no deaths there, amazingly, but there were other civilians killed and injured reported further south in Kherson Oblast. And there are unverified reports I've seen in the last hour or so that says a minibus has been hit in Kherson with 10 injured there. Now into Russia. And President Zelenskyy said yesterday that British supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles were responsible for a strike on a plant in Russia's Bryansk region that manufactures control systems for Russian missiles. This is the Kremny L plant, a major Russian microelectronics manufacturer, Withhold, located in Bryansk. Russian officials confirmed an attack on industrial infrastructure they said in the city. They didn't actually name it, but they said industrial infrastructure and said that there was damage following the explosions. President Zelenskyy said an operation has just successfully taken place. A plant in Bryansk was hit. This plant manufactures control systems for all types of missiles of the Russian Federation. Ukraine's General Staff then said that the attack was part of a systemic effort to reduce the military economic potential of the Russian aggressor. They added that the target was hit and significant damage to production facilities was recorded. Now that plant, the Kremlin El plant produces produced components used in missile guidance and control systems, including Pantsir air defence unit and Iskander ballistic missiles. Post strike satellite imagery that I've seen shows at least five impact points on the roof of the building. Now, the holes are very small and you might think actually there's not been a lot of damage. But I remember when I was crawling all over the Ba'ath party headquarters in Iraq in 2005, there were very neat holes where JDAMs, the joint direct attack munitions, big missiles basically had gone straight through the reinforced concrete and then detonated inside. That's what they're designed to do. So whilst there might be small neat holes on the roof of the building, you can be sure there's absolute devastation inside. Now there's lots of video, some which is dashcam video taken from vehicles in the city of Bryansk, video of the strike. Particularly interesting, I thought, was video that Ukraine released footage that showed the attack taking place. So this footage has come from a loitering drone, drone going around the site just as the missiles come in. So this is not, we've seen like first person view drones of the camera on the drone actually flying into the target or the individual. This was not that kind of situation. This was a separate loitering drone watching the site as the cruise missiles came in. The point is they had a loitering drone up. Ukraine had a loitering drone up 100km inside Russia. So you've got to ask, what was the air defense doing? What was it Russian air defence doing? Now, I had a look at TASS this morning just to improve my mood. The Russian state media outlet, they said that Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that Russia's special military operation must continue in order to prevent attacks like Ukraine's strike on Bryansk. Faultless logic, I think you'll agree, Francis. Now, let's stick inside Russia, Go down south to Sochi on the Black Sea coast. That's come under massive and sustained bombardment in the last couple of days per the local authorities there. The airport's been closed, hundreds of flights cancelled and postponed. Mayor Andre Pushinin said today we encountered an enemy attack unprecedented in length on the resort town of Sochi. It's continued almost a full day with small breaks. Now, there were reports of air alerts across Sochi today and yesterday. But Mayor Prashunin said there'd been no casualties, so no casualties. However, he did say the opponent's attacks today have imposed adjustments to our usual life as residents of Sochi and as guests of the resort. Poor little puppets had their little holidays interrupted.
- [10:48]
Francis Durnley
Reminds me of when there was that selfie that was taken at that Russian holiday resort that was burning behind them. And it was these Russian teenagers who then got in trouble with the regime because they posted all of these images.
- [10:59]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
That was Crimea, wasn't it?
- [11:00]
Francis Durnley
I think it was, yes. You're right. It was Crimea.
- [11:02]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Yeah.
- [11:03]
Francis Durnley
God, it was last year.
- [11:05]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Now, German media outlet Der Spiegel is reporting today that Ukraine is expected to receive 35 PAC3 interceptor missiles. These are the missiles for the Patriot batteries in the coming weeks. There have been critical shortages reported of late. We've heard anecdotal evidence of some of the tubes sitting empty. So no missiles. Now Disch Beagle are saying that German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has secured an agreement with European partners to transfer 30 missiles to Ukraine. Last month Mr. Pistorius said that Germany would contribute five PAC3 missiles from its own stockpiles if other countries could stump up the 30. That seems to have been the case. Hence the number 35. Now, several countries, including the Netherlands, have given a thumbs up to this plan. The German MOD said their planning for the delivery is underway. Der Spiegel says that Ukraine requires about 60 Patriot interceptor missiles each month. You may remember, in fact you quoted him yesterday, I think. Francis, President Zelensky said earlier this week that more than 800 Patriot missiles were fired in the first three days of the Iran war. Yet Ukraine received only 600 in the last four years. So that's all good. Good story there from Der Spiegel. I would much rather be reporting that those 35 missiles have been delivered to Ukraine. So reporting that they're expected to be on their way shortly is halfway house anyway. Maybe I'm just being a bit picky. Francis, what have you been looking at on the diplomatic front?
- [12:27]
Francis Durnley
Lots going on as ever. We were talking about drones yesterday at the beginning of this segment and don't make the joke again, we did it yesterday. But I think it's worth starting there again because we now have confirmat that Ukraine has deployed anti drone soldiers in Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Presumably three of the 11 countries that Zelensky said had requested assistance. Now what we don't know is whether they're also there to assist the Americans in their operations. And they're just being stationed in those countries because that's where some American bases or American personnel may be. It's just not clear. But nonetheless, they are actually on the ground within a matter of days working on this. And just also on the subject of drones, I thought I'd flag an interesting piece in the New York Times about how Ukraine is now making drones with no components at all imported from China. Now, given the context of what's going on in Europe at the moment, the conversations about where to get drone components, China is still a key supplier in that regard as it is for Russia. It's interesting that they, like Russia, are prioritizing self sufficiency, the Ukrainians. And who can blame them, frankly, given the unreliability of their allies in recent months. But anyway to the major stories, details have emerged now of how the US Intends to reduce sanctions on Russian oil, with White House press Secretary Caroline Levitt saying that for now it largely relates to India. Quote, our allies in India have been good actors and have previously stopped buying sanctioned Russian oil. As we work to appease this temporary gap of oil supply around the world, we have temporarily permitted them to accept that Russian oil. Now, whether they intend to go further may depend on how successful their damage control is. Around these accusations that Moscow is involved on the targeting of American personnel in Iran by sharing intelligence of the locations of ships and aircraft with the regime in Tehran. The U.S. special envoy, Steve Witkoff was unable to confirm or deny that yesterday. Just listen to this.
- [14:41]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Do we think that the Russians have shared intelligence about the location of US Military assets? And if they have, why would we be giving waivers on Russian oil sanctions? I'm not an intel officer, so I can't tell you. I can tell you that yesterday on the call with the President, the Russians said that they have not been sharing. That's what they said. We can take them at their word. But they did say that. And yesterday morning, and yesterday morning independently, Jared and I had a call with Koff who reiterated the same. That's a better question for the intel people. But let's hope that they're not sharing.
- [15:20]
Francis Durnley
Because if you can't trust a former KGB officer, who can you trust? Now, Putin is publicly, as one can imagine, relishing these events. Reportedly when he sat down with the heads of Russia's top oil and gas companies late yesterday after our broadcast, he took the opportunity to talk taunt European countries that had spent the last four years weaning their economies off Russian energy supplies. He said if the European companies, European buyers, suddenly decide to reorient themselves and guarantee us consistent and long term cooperation bereft of political overtones. Please do. We never refused. We're ready to work with the Europeans now. As one can imagine, Hungary continues to urge the EU to do just that and purchase Russian energy, though he is coming under incre pressure internationally as a result. And now the Financial Times is reporting today that the Kremlin has launched a disinformation campaign aimed at helping the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban get re elected next month, according to people they say are familiar with the matter. They say Moscow has endorsed a plan by a Kremlin linked media consultancy under western sanctions to bolster Orban's party by flooding social media with messages designed in Russia and posted by influential Hungarians. The campaign frames Orban as the only candidate who can keep Hungary sovereign and treat world leaders as equals, according to a proposal written by the Agency for the Kremlin late last year. Now, as we've been reporting, Orban has made the war in Ukraine and his opposition to President Zelensky an absolute pillar of his re election strategy. Symbolically, the Hungarian parliament voted yesterday in support of a resolution opposing Ukraine's EU accession and continued assistance towards the country. Lawmakers urged Hungary's government to avoid sending money or weapons to Ukraine and instead support international peace efforts. Now that came from the Hungarian government spokesperson Zoltan Kovac, who you may recall I had a rather testy exchange with in an episode last year. We'll have a round two I'm pleased to reveal in the documentary series that will be coming out later this month. I actually got to sit down with him in his office in Budapest and yeah, you won't want to miss it. That's all. I'll now another example of Budapest trying to show itself as coming down hard on Kyiv is of course this story we've been following of the seizure of the gold belonging to that Ukrainian bank that we've been talking about in recent days. I know Dom has been fascinated in this story. So President Zelensky has now accused Budapest of banditry over its seizure of the bank transport and the temporary detention of its Ukrainian crew, urging European leaders not to stay silent about Orban's actions. Now yesterday we were debating whether the gold bars in the photograph released by the Hungarian government were actually real or at least whether they were typical. And a shout out to Goldfinger. Sorry Mark, a listener on Spotify who posted this just for you, Dom. He says, I used to work in a gold mine and actually made the gold bars. So to give some Perspective. The standard looking gold bars seen on TV and in movies like in the Italian Job, etc. Are around 25 kg each. The movies are nonsense. Three bars weigh as much as a grown man and can't be moved in a duffel bag, let alone forklifts picking up pallet loads of gold. It would never happen. It would weigh far more than the forklift trying to pick it up. So a finger sized bar is easily a kilogram. So there's your answer, Dom. Just goes to show, you never know who's listening. And one final story, an interesting long read on the BBC about sex toys, body lotion and massage cushions. Don't get too excited. It's a deep dive into the Russian exploding parcels plot. The first time ever that one of the arrested couriers has actually spoken out about what happened. Basically it's really interesting this, if his account is true, he's talking about how he was approached by a Russian friend who asked him to post four parcels from Lithuania to the UK and Poland being paid about €150 to do. Not sure that if a Russian came up to me and asked me to send some packages without knowing what's inside them, that I would do. But anyway, he says that he was innocent of the accusation, that he knew what was inside. In each parcel there was a sophisticated incendiary device. The tubes of cosmetics had been refilled with a liquid high explosive and the ignition devices were apparently so well hidden inside the cushions that an airport scanner wasn't able to detect them. Hence why there were actually the explosions that took place that very nearly, I think it was only a few minutes before they actually went on board a plane. One of those examples of where, if that actually happened, the whole of European history could have been different if that had taken a plane out of the sky. So one of those huge what ifs in July 2024. So a really interesting story. He says that August he was then arrested and charged and that he actually had no real knowledge of what was going on at all. And that he actually hates Putin, he says, and has wanted nothing to do with any of this. An interesting insider perspective. 22 people are now in custody in relation to this story and it's obviously been concluded by UK counterterror officers that we've been reporting on before that this was an operation run by Russia, something consistently denied by Moscow, but nonetheless run by Russia. And the way that it would work is that you'd recruit these people who wouldn't know the full picture. So rather than you having agents who understand what's. What their operation is? You just recruit people who are essentially disposable, as we've talked about so many times before. But we'll link to that story in the show notes as well. A really interesting deep dive on a familiar theme for us over the years.
- [21:08]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Sorry, I zoned out a little bit there. So what's that got to do with sex toys?
- [21:11]
Francis Durnley
So the sex toys and the massage cushions. What was the other thing? It said body lotion were in the packages that had the explosions.
- [21:20]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Oh, I see.
- [21:21]
Francis Durnley
Are you thinking of ordering something?
- [21:22]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
No, no, I. I couldn't possibly take that story on any further. I know you've researched it extensively. Every time I came past your desk, I saw all the adverts on your news feeds were for laundry and lubricants and things like that. So I know you've done a lot of research into that story.
- [21:35]
Francis Durnley
Don't tell hr.
- [21:36]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
We'll leave it there. Just. I had a question for you. Caroline Levitt. What does she say about India, about something about allowing. What was the quote again?
- [21:46]
Francis Durnley
So she said that we're. So the exact quote. And she keeps saying it's temporary. It's temporary. So as we work to appease this temporary gap of oil supply around the world, we have temporarily permitted India to accept that Russian oil.
- [21:59]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
So I love the framing because the temporary blip caused by the war that you started with Iran. But forget that. The framing. We've permitted India. Firstly, it's up to India. India knows the consequences, Right. The whole secondary sanctions thing. So it's their choice. They could e. Trade in Russian oil. When you say that they. You didn't want them to, and therefore incur the wrath and any sort of sanction that way or not. It's their choice, this idea that we've permitted them. We've permitted them to do this as if they've got no agency. Apart from the point that you're desperate for them to buy the bloody oil to get the price down because of what you've done in the Gulf. I just love that we've permitted. What's the quote again? We've permitted them to get.
- [22:39]
Francis Durnley
Temporarily permitted them to accept that's Russian oil.
- [22:41]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
We've temporarily.
- [22:43]
Francis Durnley
Without the sanctions that were being. Or I suppose she might even just mean not even the sanctions, the tariffs that were on India as a consequence of that, which they claimed was because they were supporting Russia, but really it was obviously a response to the increased trade tensions between the two countries and the fact that Modi hadn't put forward Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, you recall, this is all connected very much with that spat. And by the way, I haven't seen any evidence yet that India is actually doing this because of. Because of anything that the White House has said. Yeah, an extraordinary story. It'll be interesting to see whether, though, the US goes further in trying to reduce sanctions. We'll see.
- [23:19]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Now, a final postcard from Adeli in Ukraine that she recorded over the weekend before she makes her way back to London, where, yes, some tulips will be waiting for her. And if you have no idea what I'm talking about, listen to yesterday's episode. She's in the city of Cherkasy in the heart of Ukraine.
- [23:38]
Unknown Narrator
Hi, London. Today I'm sending a postcard from Cherkasy. It's a bright Saturday morning and we just had a lovely walk by the Dnieper river, which was completely frozen over. There's actually a big reservoir near the city, so it's very wide. You can't really see the end of the lake. It's really beautiful. But do not be fooled. Ukraine has had a very difficult night. We had an air alert from about 10:30 at night until 4 in the morning. I spent a bunch of hours in the shelter. I was actually the only one in the shelter because the Ukrainians at this stage aren't bothered. But there were many drone raids across the country. The drones were flying in herds throughout Ukraine from Chernihiv towards Kyiv. There was a huge herd of about 20 to 25 drones flying exactly over here over Cherkasy, over the village that we're going to go to in a minute, which is called Chornoby and a couple of other villages just a little bit south of here. And they hovered over the city for about a couple days of. Of hours. They were like, as I said, about 20, 25 of them around midnight, all the way until 1 or 2 in the morning, and then they ended up flying away from us, westward, so towards Zhytomyr. I think a lot of the strikes last night hit the Zhytomyr and Viny area. Also Kharkiv, where a residential building was hit. I think there are at least five people killed. There were also a lot of strikes on Kyiv itself with some ballistic missiles, some zircon. They hit a substation, TPP6, which actually there had been a reconnaissance drone flying over TPP 6 a couple of days ago in Kyiv, which I overheard there was a siren as I was walking back from the restaurant at night. So I was in the street and heard the siren Heard the buzzing of the drone, heard the air defense before I made it to a safety place. So it had been really quiet for the last few days. And I found it quite surprising. I wondered to what extent Russia had its eyes elsewhere, maybe on the Middle East. Really, this massive attack overnight on the entire territory of Ukraine was many days in the making. So do not be fooled by the sunshine. Everybody's had a bit of a rough night here. What else can I tell you about Chasy? It's a very lovely town. And actually, historically, it has been a regional center for the country Kosaks. And there are some traces of that here, especially in the way the city memorializes and talks about the current fight against Russians. There are many posters across the street with different Cossack representations saying, one land, one fight, different fighters throughout the centuries. So it's definitely a big part of the city's identity. This postcard is going to be rather short and I hope you'll forgive me, because it is Saturday morning after a long night night and my driver Roman, my producer Natalia, and I decided to have a lovely breakfast of cherry Varenikis. And also I had herring, which is my favorite. You know what? Herring and coffee. It just goes so well together. So, yeah, nice. Saturday morning after a difficult night. And now we're heading to an interview in a nearby village of Chornoby. Talk to you soon, London.
- [26:48]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Thanks, Adelaide. Now let's hear an interview Roland did with Anders Rasmussen, former Prime Minister of Denmark from 2001 to 2009, followed by five years as NATO Secretary General, among other subjects, he reflects on how America's shifting focus is bad news for Europe and why NATO is not getting involved in the Middle East.
- [27:08]
David Knowles
You're a former NATO Secretary General. The world is being torn apart by a war that is outside the immediate NATO area of responsibility. Although Turkey seems to have come under attack and missiles been shot down by NATO air defenses. When you look at this, what do you see and do you fear that this presents risks to Europe and NATO as well as to the Middle East?
- [27:29]
Anders Rasmussen
As pointer departure, No, I don't see an immediate and imminent risk against Europe as such. You have seen incidents in Turkey. We have seen incidents in Cyprus. But as ponder departure, I don't think Europe as such is threatened militarily from the war in Iran, but obviously the economic impact will influence development in Europe.
- [28:01]
David Knowles
I suppose I'm wondering whether when you were Secretary General, tensions in the Gulf fell under your kind of purview. I suppose it's outside the normal NATO kind of umbrella. But is this a situation that you had gamed out or that you're aware of planning for? Is this a situation that you could have imagined?
- [28:19]
Anders Rasmussen
No, first and foremost, because I don't see a NATO role as such in the Middle East. There might be individual NATO allies that will act, but NATO as such is not and will not be involved directly in the military conflict.
- [28:40]
David Knowles
I suppose there's two worries, really. One, that this is. It's taken a huge amount of media attention, is now focused on Iran, and suddenly we're not talking about the enormous land war in Europe which is still going on. And I suppose that's probably also true for lots of Western governments must also be somewhat distracted by this. Do you worry about that?
- [29:03]
Anders Rasmussen
Absolutely. There is a spillover, negative spillover from the conflicts in the Middle east, too, the war in Ukraine, first and foremost, because the United States may give priority to using and delivering weapons to the Middle Eastern conflict. And secondly, because media attention will now turn away from Ukraine to the Iranian war. It's understandable, but it's a fact. And we have seen in the past how Putin has taken advantage of such events to accelerate attacks on Ukraine. And that's actually also what we are witnessing right now.
- [29:49]
David Knowles
Vladimir Putin was speaking to. He had a telephone call with Donald Trump just yesterday. And after he finishes that telephone call, Donald Trump suddenly announces that, oh, maybe the war is about to end, maybe he's finished everything. What does that make you think, that sequence of events? And how do you feel that Russia is exploiting the situation?
- [30:08]
Anders Rasmussen
I suppose, first and foremost, I think Russia is in a very weak position in the wake of the Iranian war. Iran used to be an ally of Russia. Iran has delivered weapons to Russia to be used against Ukraine. And politically, there's also been a strong bond between Moscow and the Tehran. However, when Bush comes to show Russia can do nothing to help and protect its allies, after the Israeli and American attacks on Iran, nothing happened. Russia didn't act. And that sends a very telling, but also message to all allies of Russia. And this sends a very negative signal to everybody that it's a bit dangerous to be ally with Russia because it doesn't protect them in any way. And Russia will not be able to and at least is not willing to help its allies in need. So. So as point of departure, Putin is in a very weak position.
- [31:28]
David Knowles
You're saying that you think Putin is in a weak position right now? Where do you think? You know your old area of responsibility, North Atlantic defense. Europe is as well. One of the things that lots of People are talking about is how this new war in the Middle east is going to absorb huge numbers of munitions, including interceptor missiles and so on, which could be better used perhaps in Ukraine. Where do you see the kind of risk factors for Europe and Ukraine right now?
- [31:57]
Anders Rasmussen
The risk factor is first and foremost that due to our hesitance to deliver to Ukraine what is needed, the war will drag out. If we don't shift gear, we are confronted with what I would call an endless war. The fact is, Putin does not want peace. And as long as he believes that he can win on the battlefield, he has no incentive to engage in peace negotiations. The only way to force Putin into a peace negotiation would be to increase pressure on Putin by delivering more weapons to Ukraine, including long range weapons, and by increasing the economic pressure on Russia by strengthening sanctions and make sure that existing sanctions really bite. Unless we are willing to rearm Europe, deliver more and stronger weapons to Ukraine, I am concerned that we will witness an endless war.
- [33:12]
David Knowles
If oil prices are going through the roof and the west is sending munitions to the Middle east instead of Ukraine and using them at a phenomenal rate. It sounds to me that maybe you fear that Vladimir Putin sees a great opportunity in this moment of destabilization elsewhere.
- [33:30]
Anders Rasmussen
Exactly. I didn't mention the development in the oil price, but it is true that the increased oil price will also increase the covers of Putin. It will make it easier for him to continue financing the war against Ukraine. For him, there are pluses and minuses in the Middle east conflict. The bottom line, on balance, I think the negatives are greater than the positives. But in the short term, the higher oil price will make it easier for Putin to finance continued war in Ukraine. And that, combined with a turn away from Ukraine when it comes to weapon deliveries, can have catastrophic consequences.
- [34:20]
David Knowles
I started asking you about Iran because it's the news of the week and that's what we're interested in. But it sounds to me like you're still very much preoccupied with Europe and Ukraine. And I don't want to put words in your mouth, but it sounds like you still think that really Ukraine is the big strategic question facing Europe. Could you just tell me where you think we are now in that kind of European theater? In the Ukraine war and in, I don't know, this confrontation along the eastern flank. I don't know, are we any closer to a breakthrough or to a peace deal?
- [34:55]
Anders Rasmussen
So in my opinion, we are far away from a peace deal or ceasefire or anything because Putin doesn't want to stop the war and we should not forget that Putin's ambitions go far beyond territory. I know that the media has portrayed the conflict as if we only need to solve the territorial questions, and if that could be solved, then we will have a peace deal or ceasefire. But that's naive. Putin's ambitions go far beyond territory. What he wants is, of course, territory, the eastern part of Ukraine. But he wants much more. He wants a vassal state, a state subordinate to Russia, a Ukraine that doesn't have real sovereignty, doesn't have the right to decide its own future. That's what he wants. To focus solely on territory would be very dangerous. I think the most important issue at all in the peace negotiations is to deliver guarantees to Ukraine against a future Russian attack. Attack. Security guarantees and ironclad security guarantees. Not only security guarantees on paper, but security guarantees backed up by a European military presence on Ukrainian soil, backed by the Americans, not on the front line, but behind the Ukrainian frontline. We could deploy European troops to protect population centers, critical infrastructure, and at the same time, that would act as a deterrence against Russia.
- [36:53]
David Knowles
You talked about the importance of the Americans there. They seem to have their attention elsewhere, to put it mildly at the moment. Do you see, there's the immediate question of do you see them regaining their interest in Ukrainian peace talks after they've dealt with Iraq?
- [37:12]
Anders Rasmussen
The risk is that the Americans will detach from Europe and from Ukraine because they are preoccupied elsewhere for many weeks. We discussed Greenland, that detracted interest and attention from Ukraine. Now we're discussing Iran. Exactly the same. So the Americans seem to be preoccupied elsewhere. So my conclusion is that we in Europe will have to act on our own, irrespective of the American engagement and interest. Obviously, it would be a big advantage to have an American backup of a European reassurance force, obviously. And that could also be done without huge American engagement. I think statements would go a long way in that respect. But the bottom line is we in Europe will have to take care of our own fate. And if we do not act now, our security and stability in European continent is at stake.
- [38:24]
David Knowles
Does that mean that the alliance, the North Atlantic alliance that you represented, that you personified, is now basically dead?
- [38:31]
Anders Rasmussen
No, it's not dead, but it will have to change its structure and face, so to speak. It will be a more European NATO. We will have to strengthen the European pillar within NATO, and we will have to invest much more in defence and also take responsibility for senior military command posts, etc. Within NATO. And that process has already started and we will see that continue. So you will see a continued NATO, but a more European nation.
- [39:10]
Hayden
Activecampaign is the marketing automation platform built
- [39:14]
Francis Durnley
for big swings and big dreams.
- [39:16]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Generate ideas in seconds, import your brand,
- [39:18]
Adam Grant
and create full campaigns with simple prompts. Get started for free@activecampaign.com hey, this is Adam Grant, host of Ted's podcast, Rethinking with Adam Grant. Have you heard of Bill? It's the intelligent finance platform that uses AI to help you avoid costly errors and optimize cash flow. In fact, Bill reports that over 90 of the top 100 US accounting firms trust them to manage, move and maximize money proven by over a trillion dollars in secure transactions. Eliminate the friction and start scaling with the proven choice. Visit bill.compenven to talk with an expert about automating your business finances and get a $250 gift card as a thank you. That's bill.com proven terms and conditions apply. See Offer page for details.
- [40:01]
Hayden
Howdy, howdy ho, and welcome to Fantasy Fan Fellas. I'm Hayden, producer of the Fantasy Fangirls podcast and your resident lover of all things Sanderson.
- [40:09]
Stephen
And I'm Stephen, your bookish Internet goofball. But you can call me the Smash Daddy.
- [40:13]
Hayden
And we are currently deep diving Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Mistborn. But here's the catch. Steven here has not read Mistborn before.
- [40:22]
Stephen
That's right.
- [40:22]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Hey.
- [40:23]
Stephen
Hey. So each week you'll get my unfiltered raw reactions to every single chapter.
- [40:27]
Hayden
And along the way we'll do character deep dives, magic explainers, and Steven will even try to guess what's next. Spoiler alert. He'll be wrong.
- [40:34]
Stephen
News flash. I'm never wrong. Episodes come out every Wednesday, and you can find Fantasy fanfellas wherever you get your podcasts.
- [40:43]
Anders Rasmussen
Cool.
- [40:45]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Let's have a look at final thoughts. I'm going to start now. Earlier on, I was quoting from TAS because I was. I was tired of just sticking drawing pins into my legs. This morning I thought I'd treat myself to even more pain. So I was having a good TASS Russian state media outlet. So Peskov, Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, was speaking to a lot of students yesterday. Apparently a lot of quotes from him in tass. So Russia, they say, or he said, is rapidly losing the toolkit for propaganda work abroad. Okay. He then went on, Peskoff said, this is especially close to our borders. Television is not what it used to be. One click and it's off.
- [41:23]
Francis Durnley
Because back in the old days, you couldn't turn your TVs off. Famously, yeah.
- [41:27]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
He also said the key quality for a journalist is the ability to learn on the job.
- [41:32]
Francis Durnley
That's legit.
- [41:33]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Okay, he said journalism students should be taught. Get this, Journalism students should be taught patriotic creativity. He said the level of education among journalism students is also a challenge. On one hand, we must train students who are ideologically resilient and professionally patriotic. Don't know what he means there, but anyway, he said. But on the other hand, we must teach patriotic creativity so they can formulate and transmit these meanings further. At least they're pretty good. It's literally black and white.
- [42:05]
Francis Durnley
However, at least he's honest.
- [42:08]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
It's not all doom, gloom propaganda and patriotic creativity, though. He said good journalists are worth their weight in gold. Don't talk about how much that would he'd done that already. He said not everyone can be a journalist. Not everyone has the inner potential to absorb, process and deliver information at the required level. In fact, there are few such people. They're the pick of the litter. Put the link in the episode notes so you can have a look at the TAS TAS article. If you too are just having two nights a day or looking for a career change, go on then, as the pick of the UTL litter, what are your final thoughts?
- [42:42]
Francis Durnley
Not sure if this counts as patriotic creativity, but many of you have written in about that spine chilling rendition of Le Marseillaise on that French submarine base the other day. And I just wanted to thank those of you who've sent in other renditions and we play you out today with one recorded by French army officer cadets in the bowels of the memorial at the Verdun battlefield containing the remains of 130,000 soldiers who died in the surrounding area during the First World War. Any similarly stirring renditions from your countries would be gratefully received by us here. Goodbye for now. Sa. Jesus, Ukraine the Latest is an original podcast from the Telegraph created by David Knowles. Every episode featuring us in the studio maps and battlefield footage is now available to watch on our YouTube channel channel. Subscribe@www.YouTube.com crane the latest there's a link in the description. You can also sign up to the Ukraine the Latest newsletter Each week we answer your questions, provide recommended reading and give exclusive analysis and behind the scenes insights plus diagrams of the front lines and weaponry to complement our reporting. It's free for everyone, including non subscribers. You can find the link to sign up in the episode description. If you appreciate our work, please consider following Ukraine the Latest on your preferred podcast app and leave us a review as it helps others find the show. Please also share it with those who may not be aware we exist. You can also get in touch directly to ask questions or give comments by emailing ukrainepodelegraph.co.uk we continue to read every message. You can also contact us directly on X. You'll find our handles in the description. As ever, we're especially interested to hear where you're listening from around the world. And finally, to support our work and stay on top of all of our Ukraine news, analysis and dispatches from the ground. Please subscribe to the Telegraph. You can get one month for free, then two months for just one pound at www.telegraph.co.uk/ukraine. The latest
- [46:04]
Adam Grant
my name is David Knowles. Thank you all for listening.
- [46:07]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Goodbye.
- [46:11]
Adam Grant
Hey, this is Adam Grant, host of ted's podcast Rethinking with Adam Grant. Let me share with you why smart finance leaders turn to Bill. They know that clarity isn't just helpful, it's strategic. As the intelligent finance platform, Bill uses AI to automate the busy work for nearly half a million businesses so they can focus on intentional growth growth eliminate the friction and start scaling with the proven choice. Visit bill.compenven to talk with an expert about automating your business finances and get a 250 gift card as a thank you. That's bill.com proven terms and conditions apply. See Offer page for details.
- [46:43]
Hayden
Howdy, howdy ho, and welcome to Fantasy Fan Fellas. I'm Hayden, producer of the Fantasy Fangirls podcast and your resident lover of all things Sanderson.
- [46:51]
Stephen
And I'm Stephen, your bookish Internet goofball, but you can call me the Smash Daddy.
- [46:55]
Hayden
And we are currently deep diving Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Mistborn. But here's the catch. Steven here has not read Mistborn before.
- [47:04]
Stephen
That's right. Hey hey. So each week you'll get my unfiltered raw reactions to every single chapter.
- [47:09]
Hayden
And along the way we'll do character deep dives, magic explainers, and Steven will even try to guess what's next. Spoiler alert. He'll be wrong.
- [47:16]
Stephen
Newsflash. I'm never wrong. Episodes come out every Wednesday, and you can find Fantasy fanfellas wherever you get your podcasts.
- [47:24]
Francis Durnley
You know what they say.
- [47:25]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
Early Bird gets the ultimate vacation home. Book early and save over $120 with VRBO because early gets you closer to the action, whether it's waves lapping at the shore or snoozing in a hammock
- [47:39]
Hayden
that overlooks, well, whatever you want it
- [47:42]
Adelie Pojmon Ponte
to so you can all enjoy the
- [47:44]
Francis Durnley
payoff come summer with Vrbo's early booking deals. Rise and shine. Average savings, $141 select homes only.