6: Inside Iran: Does it really want to take on the West?

British-Lebanese journalist and film maker Oz Katerji speaks to David Patrikarakos from Damascus to explain the latest developments there.  Oz shares what the atmosphere is like just days after the fall of the Assad regime, how appalling the scale of the regime's torture is, what will happen with the ISIS prison camps dotted across Syria and just how serious a strategic defeat this is for Russia and Iran. Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Buddy Peace Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Syrian rebels' advance in Aleppo and Hama has been nothing short of astonishing. But what does it mean for the conflicts and tensions around the world, and especially for Russia? In this episode of 90 Seconds to Midnight David talks to chemical weapons expert and long time visitor to Syria Hamish de Bretton Gordon to understand just what Putin's collapsing 'Southern Flank' in the country means for the war in Ukraine and his personal position. Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Izzy Bougeard  Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of 90 Seconds to Midnight, David Patrikarakos talks to US investigative journalist Michael Weiss to discuss the huge escalation in the war in Ukraine over the last week. The pair unpack what Russia's launch of a hypersonic missile for the first time ever really means, if Putin may just be saving face and why the new Trump administration's appointment of the likes of Elon Musk is so dangerous for the conflict. Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Izzy Bougeard  Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of 90 Seconds to Midnight, David Patrikarakos sits down with Iraqi political expert Lawk Ghafuri in Kurdistan, Northern Iraq to discuss the dangerous situation in the country. Ghafuri explains just how significant Iran's influence in the country is, what the incoming Trump administration may mean and why the planned US withdrawal of all remaining troops is a major geo-political flashpoint for 2025. Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Alex Graham  Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode David is in Tbilisi, Georgia to speak with former Prime Minister and opposition leader Giorgi Gakharia about the country's recent heavily disputed election result. David and Gakharia discuss everything from intense Russian interference in the country, why Georgia is a key battleground State between Western and Russian influence and what the election of Donald Trump may mean for both sides. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After perhaps the most extraordinary election result in US history, David Patrikarakos speaks to famed historian Sir Simon Schama to unpack what on earth happens next.    The pair also discuss how a second Trump term will push America toward authoritarianism and why Ukraine may be the biggest casualty of the result. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On the eve of the US Presidential election the foremost chronicler of Trump’s first term, Michael Wolff, speaks with David Patrikarakos to share what is really going on in Trump’s camp; what is really driving the former President and why his son-in-law may become one of the most influential figures in global geo-politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Despite years of intense sanctions, regimes like Russia and Iran are not only surviving but thriving at keeping the money rolling in.    What makes it worse is that we can’t blame it all on Tehran or Moscow. The uncomfortable truth is that much of this network of corrupt finance was created by us in the West… London being a primary culprit.    In this episode David Patrikarakos speaks to Pulitzer Prize winning historian Anne Applebaum about how these countries are using shadow financial networks to earn and launder hundreds of billions every year, how it's having an increasingly dangerous effect on global geo-politics and why the West is partly to blame.   Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Alex Graham  Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

David Patrikarakos speaks to Iran expert Holly Dagres to unpick one of the most complex countries on earth – Iran. The two discuss whether the Islamic Republic really wants to wipe out the West; just how stable it is; and, why its huge Gen Z population may prove to be the most significant factor in long term geopolitics of the Middle East. Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Alex Graham Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

One year on from the October 7th attacks on Israel, David Patrikarakos is in Tel Aviv to hear how that day sparked one of the most dangerous and uncertain periods in the recent history of the Middle East. First, David talks to IDF spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Reserve Peter Lerner to get the latest on the Israel’s military operations in both Gaza and Lebanon, before sitting down with former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to hear why he thinks Benjamin Netanyahu is the biggest obstacle to a peaceful resolution of the conflict and the safe return of the hostages still held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.  Producer: Max Bower  Editor: Alex Graham Executive Producer: Bella Soames  Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini  Host: David Patrikarakos Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices