This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler

Podmasters
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  • 4.6 (133)
  • Politics
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Exploring threats to global stability from Ukraine to China to the Middle East with host Gavin Esler – former BBC News presenter, Washington correspondent and host of Newsnight – plus Ukraine-based war reporter Oz Katerji and independent conflict analyst Emma Beals. This Is Not A Drill dives deep into the dangers, corruption, conflicts, disinformation, rivalries and ruthless realpolitik that are making our world ever more dangerous. Support This Is Not A Drill on Patreon from just £3 per month to get each episode early plus bonus material and exclusive merchandise. From Podmasters, the team behind Oh God, What Now?, Paper Cuts and The Bunker.

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  1. 6d ago

    How Putin is playing Trump’s chaotic Ukraine “diplomacy” – with Oz Katerji

    Trump’s erratic actions around Ukraine look less and less like sincere bids to end the war and more like attempts to cosy up to Putin, sell out Ukraine and save himself in the midterms. And Putin is using his increased impunity. Within hours of any meeting between Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and the Russians there’s another devastating Russian missile attack on Ukraine. Is the Trump Administration just chasing its tail on Ukraine? Does any of it matter when Putin flatly refuses to accept that Ukraine deserves to exist at all? And might Witkoff’s many failures actually give the Administration’s pro-Ukraine faction more oxygen after the midterms? Oz Katerji has reported on the Ukraine War on the ground since 2022. He talks to Michael Kimmage – history professor at Catholic University of America and author of The Abandonment of the West – about the Trumpist factions driving the President’s policies and the future for Ukraine when Trump becomes a lame duck president. • Support This Is Not A Drill on Patreon and get early, ad-free episodes, merchandise and more. • Buy The Abandonment of the West through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too. Written and presented by Oz Katerji. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    How Putin is playing Trump’s chaotic Ukraine “diplomacy” – with Oz Katerji

  2. Oct 28 · Subscribers Only

    How Putin is playing Trump’s chaotic Ukraine “diplomacy” – with Oz Katerji

    Trump’s erratic actions around Ukraine look less and less like sincere bids to end the war and more like attempts to cosy up to Putin, sell out Ukraine and save himself in the midterms. And Putin is making good use of his increased impunity. Within hours of any meeting between Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and the Russians, there’s another devastating Russian missile attack on Ukraine. Is the Trump Administration just chasing its tail on Ukraine? Does any of it matter when Putin flatly refuses to accept that Ukraine deserves to exist at all? And might Witkoff’s many failures actually give the Administration’s pro-Ukraine faction more oxygen after the midterms? Oz Katerji has reported on the Ukraine War on the ground since 2022. He talks to Michael Kimmage – history professor at Catholic University of America and author of The Abandonment of the West – about the Trumpist factions driving the President’s policies and the future for Ukraine when Trump becomes a lame duck president. Written and presented by Oz Katerji. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production.

    How Putin is playing Trump’s chaotic Ukraine “diplomacy” – with Oz Katerji

  3. Oct 22

    Cold War – The new battle for the Arctic

    A new Great Game is under way. As the frozen poles start to melt, a new “ice silk road” is emerging in the newly-navigable Arctic Ocean – and it’s subject of intense commercial and military competition between China, Europe, the US and Russia. Trump’s on-off threats to Greenland are still causing consternation across Europe and NATO, China sees a new opportunity for dominance, and to Russia the Arctic is the next military arena.  Will the next major standoff happen at the top of the world? Gavin Esler is talk to journalist and author Rana Foroohar about her book Sea Change: America’s Great Game in the Arctic Circle and how global warming and great power competition are coming to a head in the Far North. • Buy Sea Change through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund the podcast by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Cold War – The new battle for the Arctic

  4. Oct 15

    What Trump’s latest gift to Putin means for Ukraine

    Trump’s sanction-busting diesel deal with Vladimir Putin has sent shockwaves across the world. As Ukraine braces for a Russian winter offensive, have US threats to withhold intelligence and access to weapons sold out the Ukrainian people? Gavin Esler is joined by Steven Pifer, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Center on the United States and Europe and a former US ambassador to Ukraine, to discuss why Trump has struck a deal with the Kremlin, the US reaction ahead of the November’s midterms, and a deepening rift in the transatlantic alliance. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    What Trump’s latest gift to Putin means for Ukraine

  5. Oct 8

    Russia’s Drone War on Europe has begun

    On August 4th a drone strapped with explosives failed to detonate when it struck a Ukrainian plane at Leipzig Airport. German security services investigating the device pointed the blame at Russia’s GRU. Putin is ramping up his hybrid warfare against NATO allies, including cyber attacks, arson, sabotage and drone incursion. Just how far is he willing to go to test Europe? Gavin Esler talks to Dr Ulrike Franke, senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, about the dangers of Russian drones in NATO airspace and how Europe might counter the threat.   • Read Ulrike’s ECFR report ‘Buzzkill: How to defend Europe against drones’ here. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Russia’s Drone War on Europe has begun

  6. Oct 1

    The Middle East’s new choke point – How the Houthis could spark a fresh oil crisis

    A surge in violence in Yemen has seen Houthi forces seize land on the Red Sea coast – reigniting a war with Saudi Arabia and threatening a further global energy shock. The Iranian-aligned group has increased its foothold in Yemen, now locked in civil war for more than a decade, and launched drone attacks on Saudi oil pipelines. With global trade still reeling from the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz and Saudi Arabia’s allies in America constrained by the ongoing Iran conflict, where next in the latest escalation in the Middle East? Gavin Esler is joined by Dr Elisabeth Kendall, expert on Yemen and the region and Mistress of Girton College, Cambridge. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our podcasts every month – and they love our shows. Why not get YOUR brand in front of our influential listeners with podcast advertising? Contact ads@podmasters.co.uk to find out more. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    The Middle East’s new choke point – How the Houthis could spark a fresh oil crisis

  7. Sep 24

    Chaos, rare earths and ethnic cleansing – The major conflict you know nothing about

    The civil war in Myanmar is Asia’s deadliest ongoing conflict – yet despite violence which has killed more than 100,000 people it rarely dominates international headlines. In today’s episode Oz Katerji talks to Matthew Campbell, reporter at Bloomberg Businessweek, about the drivers of this complex, factionalised war, the battle for the country’s rare natural resources, and the reaction of the international community. Read Matthew Campbell’s Bloomberg article  ‘The War the World Forgot’ here. • Find out if you’re owed on car finance at refundclub.co.uk/drill • Refund Club is a trading style of Sandsford Law Limited, authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA no. 8008114). Checking is free. A fee is payable only if your claim is successful. Eligibility: car finance taken out in the UK between 2007 and 2021. The average claim is around £829 per agreement; this is an average and not a guarantee of the amount you will receive. You can also claim yourself for free by contacting your lender or the Financial Ombudsman Service. refundclub.co.uk/drill • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Oz Katerji. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Chaos, rare earths and ethnic cleansing – The major conflict you know nothing about

  8. Sep 17

    New Weapons for New Wars – ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE goes to war

    Completing the four-part series from This Is Not A Drill… Warfare is evolving faster than ever in this dangerous world. Gavin Esler explores a new generation of weapons and how they’ll fight – or prevent – the next wars. This time: Artificial Intelligence is reshaping everything and its effects on warfare are already profound. Hyper-fast intelligent systems can bring together drones, conventional missiles, air power and defences – but at the expense of human judgment. Will A.I.-augmented warfare outrun human control and the rules of war? Will the colossal computing power A.I. requires mean that data centres will become crucial assets? And what happens when A.I. misidentifies a civilian building as a military target?  Gavin Esler talks to: • Major General (Ret.) Mick Ryan of the Australian Army, author of The War for Ukraine and the Futura Doctrina Substack • Michael Horowitz, Senior Fellow for Technology and Innovation at the Council on Foreign Relations • Dr Neda Bolourchi, non-resident fellow at the Institute for Global Affairs • Dr Jessica Dorsey, assistant Professor of International Law and co-director of Realities of Algorithmic Warfare project at Utrecht University.  • Peter Apps, global defense columnist for Reuters, British Army reservist and author of The Next World War Buy books through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund This Is Not A Drill by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too. • ⁠Support us on Patreon⁠ to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. • Find out if you’re owed on car finance at ⁠refundclub.co.uk/drill⁠ • Refund Club is a trading style of Sandsford Law Limited, authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA no. 8008114). Checking is free. A fee is payable only if your claim is successful. Eligibility: car finance taken out in the UK between 2007 and 2021. The average claim is around £829 per agreement; this is an average and not a guarantee of the amount you will receive. You can also claim yourself for free by contacting your lender or the Financial Ombudsman Service. ⁠refundclub.co.uk/drill Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    New Weapons for New Wars – ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE goes to war
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Exploring threats to global stability from Ukraine to China to the Middle East with host Gavin Esler – former BBC News presenter, Washington correspondent and host of Newsnight – plus Ukraine-based war reporter Oz Katerji and independent conflict analyst Emma Beals. This Is Not A Drill dives deep into the dangers, corruption, conflicts, disinformation, rivalries and ruthless realpolitik that are making our world ever more dangerous. Support This Is Not A Drill on Patreon from just £3 per month to get each episode early plus bonus material and exclusive merchandise. From Podmasters, the team behind Oh God, What Now?, Paper Cuts and The Bunker.

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