History in the Making: The War in Ukraine

We've hit an inflection point in the so-called ceasefire talks: What will Trump do? "Walk away" as he has threatened, continue to provide some support to Ukraine, or even "arm Ukraine to the teeth" as he and others in his team have likewise threatened. Now that he has expressed some level of anger towards Putin just in the last few weeks, should we be more optimistic? Tune in to find out. We will...

This is Part 2 of my interview with Svit, where we dive into exactly what happened in Bucha and Irpin—and uncover the real story behind the Ghost of Kyiv. If you haven’t already, make sure to listen to Part 1, where we explore the critical battles just north of Kyiv that helped save the city—and the country—during those pivotal early hours and days of the invasion. You can find more information ab...

Hostomel, Moschun, Bucha, Irpin - these suburbs just a few kilometers northwest of Kyiv have become known around the world given what happened there in the first month of the war. From the heroic battles defending Kyiv from the Russian invaders to the unspeakable war crimes the Russians committed, hear it all from a man dedicating his life to informing the world of these victories and atrocities,...

From Bucha to the Hague - hear the inspiring story of Yana Rudenko, a survivor of the Russian occupation in Bucha in February/March 2022, who then fled Ukraine and settled in The Hague, Netherlands. Understand what it's like to live under Russian occupation, no contact with the outside world, no internet or phone connection, no power, 24-hour martial law and the constant uncertainty over your pers...

Drones, Europe stepping up, Trump, ceasefire talks, George Orwell, why Trust is stranger than Fiction, the information war, the importance of the internet...we talked about nearly everything under the sun. My favorite quote - "Pacificism is a privilege" by a Bucha survivor commenting on the peaceniks in the West simply calling for "peace" at any cost in Ukraine.  Enjoy the show with one of Uk...

What is the outlook for Russia's current offensive? Can the front be stabilized in the coming months? And if US support is stopped, what happens with Starlink and air defense? Will European support be adequate? Ukraine's own drones?   In this episode, Pavlo Narozhnyi - a renowned Ukrainian military expert - shared stories from the frontlines in the war, while also describing where the war is...

Will Norway tap its massive Sovereign Wealth Fund and provide Ukraine what's needed to win the war? Norway has enjoyed both higher volumes and prices of gas exports to Europe once Russia stopped sending gas to Europe in 2022. And as a founding NATO member with a border with Russia, Norway not only has the financial capacity to help Ukraine win the war, but also the political and security motivatio...

Angel, soldier of the Ukraine Foreign Legion. Rest of his profile is unavailable in order to protect his and his family's identity. Storm troopers fulfill what are assuredly the most dangerous and difficult tasks of anybody in the military. And the survival rate is not good. What do they do exactly? What does a day look like for them? How do people become storm troopers? This week we took a break...

Please note that this episode was recorded on Saturday March 22, before ceasefire talks in Saudi Arabia As we enter talks between the US, Russia, and Ukraine (potentially among others), its worth stepping back and understanding the historical approach to talks by the Kremlin as well as the White House.  What are some of the major continuities in foreign policy between the Soviet Union and Put...

Please note that this was recorded on Tuesday evening, March 18 Kyiv time, so events could have developed significantly by the time of publication. Is NATO dead? Will Russia honor the ceasefire and work towards peace?  Is Putin playing Trump?  Can Europe protect Ukraine without the US? These are the questions of the day and the answers will define the next generation. General Sir Richard...

Considering Trump's hostility towards Ukraine and Europe, and consistent concessions to Russia, we've reached an extremely worrying point in the war. Where do talks go from here? Has Europe gotten the message that they must take care of their own security? Will Europe step up to protect Ukraine? Has the US done permanent damage to its standing in the world and in its relations with Europe? Listen...

So what happens now? Trump now has suspended aid to up the ante in the talks over the rare earth mineral deal. How will Zelenskyi respond and where will things go? This was recorded on Tuesday morning Kyiv time March 4th so hope its not out of date by the time of publication hopefully by Thursday/Friday.  I remain still cautiously optimistic - the incentives remain for both sides to sign this...

Formal talks are now imminent, and US rhetoric in the lead-up to that has unfortunately caused alot of worry, and justifiably so. But it is only a start in what will be a long process.  In this episode, I provided my quick view on how we should interpret what has transpired over the past week, including at the Munich Security Conference. And yes, I remain cautiously optimistic.  To conne...

Now that we know who the US president is and more about US policy towards Russia, I brought back on the show again my professor from graduate school, John Harper. Last time we spoke late in 2024, we didn't know who would be in the White House, much less what the US policy towards the war would be this year. Now we do know, so what know? What does history tell us as we enter this inflection point i...

“Jake Sullivan used to give the bully (Putin) his lunch money. We’re not going to do that” - Mike Waltz, US National Security Advisor Comforting words shared on my latest podcast! Good to have a former Green Beret instead of a lawyer driving US foreign policy. I had the pleasure of sitting down with Steven Moore, a DC insider fresh off of trips to DC and Davos, where he’s gained a solid understand...

Approaching the 4th year of this war, polls have consistently shown that an overwhelming majority of Russians still support the war. How do Russians stay supportive of the war despite everything – not only the unending atrocities inflicted on Ukrainians but also the extreme level of Russian casualties?  What is it about the Kremlin’s ideology that convinces tens and tens of millions to contin...

And in the 2nd part of this episode, we will dive into the question: Who is set to emerge as the new leader of Europe? My guest and I have some ideas... I had the pleasure of interviewing my former colleague and Europe political and economic expert, Martin Belchev, to discuss Europe's future and its policy towards Ukraine security future in this Trump era? Europe couldn't be weaker than it is is a...

We've heard enough about Trump, but what about Europe and its policy towards Ukraine? And what about Europe's own security future in this Trump era? Europe couldn't be weaker than it is is at the moment. Weak economies across most of the primary countries while political crises are flourishing. A leaderless Europe in political disarray now faces an aggressive Russia trying to destroy the Western o...

Did you know Kyiv is nearly 1,000 years older than Moscow? Did you know Ukrainian is far older than the Russian language? Did you know Russians can’t understand Ukrainian? Did you know Russia even stole its name “Russia” from Ukraine? In this episode, I greatly enjoyed speaking with Igor Osypenko, the director of OLOS-Foundation, which is devoted to the development and popularization of Ukrainian...

This one is a bit of a Christmas special, recorded right before the holidays and touches on a number of remarkable – perhaps  mystical – moments of a soldier at war. Listen to the story of Angel (his call sign, not revealing his real name to protect his and his family’s identity), a soldier who joined the Ukraine foreign legion at the outset of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. He had...

2.5 years as a POW under Russian captivity. Daily beatings and humiliation. A bombing of his barracks by Russians while in captivity. And even met Steven Seagal, who challenged a Ukrainian POW to a fight...only to then back down... And now that Gennady has been released, you'll be amazed to hear what he's going to do next.  Gennady Kharchenko, Soldier of Azov Battalion. Born in Zaporizhzhya,...

What is the corruption situation like in Ukraine and what does the future look like? Will Ukraine be successful in reducing corruption in the coming years and become more like a Western nation? In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Oleksandra Keudel, who is a renowned expert in politics and governance, about the corruption environment in Ukraine historically and where things sta...

The psychological damage to children has been one of the most underreported stories of this horrific war here in Ukraine. How are children coping, especially those who have lost parents and other family members? In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Oksana Lebedeva, the founder of the NGO Gen. Ukrainian, which is devoted to the mental rehabilitation of children and adolescents who h...

Did you know Russia starved to death at least 4 million Ukrainians in a single year? The Ukrainian man-made famine of 1932-33, known as the Holodomor in Ukrainian, is recognized by most Western nations as an act of genocide conducted by Moscow on the Ukrainian people.  In light of the annual commemoration of the Holodomor on November 23, 2024 (always the 4th Saturday of November), I spoke w T...

Who's going to win the US elections, and what will the impact be on Ukraine? Could we be moving towards peace in 2025? And ultimately why do we in the West need to even care about supporting Ukraine? To answer these questions, I did something a little bit different in this episode and had my old co-worker and friend Martin Belchev, Practice Leader at FrontierView, interview me on the the outlook f...