The Battle for the Heart and Soul Of Ukraine

Iran says it will brief China this week in advance of a third round of talks with the United States on its nuclear programme. This, as Iranian officials separately accused Israel of seeking to “undermine and disrupt the diplomatic process”.  And let’s not forget President Donald Trump’s take on things; threatening to attack Iran unless it reaches a new deal swiftly that would prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon. It’s been a long time since we imagined a mushroom cloud hovering over some far horizon, but given these latest clashes between agitated nuclear powers could we be staring down the barrel of WWIII? In this episode, we’ll gauge the latest threat level with Ali Ansari, Professor in Modern History with reference to Iran at the University of St Andrews, and then crossing the Atlantic to speak to Seyed Hossein Mousavian, who served on Iran's nuclear diplomacy team - he’s currently a Middle East security and nuclear policy specialist at Princeton University to garner their thoughts. Follow us on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram @apocalypsenowpod, and you can get in touch via email at [email protected]  Take our show survey here:  https://ex-plorsurvey.com/survey/selfserve/550/g517/250305?list=18   Presenter:  David Patrikarakos Producer: Philip Wilding Editor: Chelsey Moore Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini Executive Producer: Bella Soames    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week’s episode comes with a warning: there are graphic and disturbing depictions of rape and sexual violence in today’s programme. Make no mistake, the so-called Russian Rape Machine turns sexual assault and violence into weapons of war. It’s as integral a part of their assault on Ukraine as boots on the ground, drones, and artillery. Conflict-related sexual violence is their stock in trade.   On this latest episode, we go on the ground to Ukraine to talk Alisa Kovalenko, a founding member of SEMA Ukraine about the testimonies she's received from victims of rape and sexual assault at the hands of the invading Russian forces.    Plus, we speak to Noble Peace Prize recipient Oleksandra Matviichuk - one of Ukraine's leading human rights lawyers and activists. She’s spent years highlighting Russia's use of rape, torture, and crimes against humanity as part of their arsenal when it comes to waging war. Follow us on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram @apocalypsenowpod, and you can get in touch via email at [email protected]  Take our show survey here:  https://ex-plorsurvey.com/survey/selfserve/550/g517/250305?list=18   Presenter:  David Patrikarakos Producer: Philip Wilding Editor: Chelsey Moore Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini Executive Producer: Bella Soames    A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular  If you or anyone you know has been a victim of rape or sexual assault, you can get help at Rape Crisis England & Wales, go to: https://247sexualabusesupport.org.uk/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What does tie China and America together, but pulls them both apart? Two superpowers irretrievably opposed, culturally, psychologically, politically, but both led by headstrong leaders with despotic tendencies. They get along – begrudgingly – but is this moment in history as much about the struggle for world dominance as it is about the financial implications for both countries? And let’s not forget the question of pride: not only are both sides refusing to back down, but Trump is delighting in nations now coming to him - or so he says - pleading for tariff deals. While a spokesman for the Chinese has made it clear that they’re in this fiscal fistfight until the end.  What to do? Who can possibly win? If anyone… In this week’s episode, we look both east and west as we get the American perspective from Edward Alden, economics guru and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and the view from China from Professor Steve Tsang, Director of the China Institute at The School of Oriental and African Studies. Follow us on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram @apocalypsenowpod, and you can get in touch via email at [email protected]  Take our show survey here:  https://ex-plorsurvey.com/survey/selfserve/550/g517/250305?list=18 Presenter:  David Patrikarakos Producer: Philip Wilding Editor: Chelsey Moore Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini Executive Producer: Bella Soames A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Head high, clean hands” was once a slogan of the far-right, anti-immigration National Rally party to distance itself from what it called greedy traditional politicians’ crooked ways. But this week, a political earthquake has sent shockwaves that are almost certain to end Marine Le Pen’s ambitions for the 2027 presidential election and throws her far-right party into chaos just as it was setting its sights on taking power in France. The conviction of Le Pen and 24 other party members for embezzlement of European parliament funds is a huge blow to a far-right party that has long tried to present itself as the squeaky-clean alternative to old-school politicians with their hands in the till. In this week’s episode, we’re on the ground in Washington DC with Bernard-Henri Lévy, noted public intellectual and political commentator and in Paris with Anne-Elisabeth Moutet, a French journalist, writer and columnist to ask if this really is the end for Marine Le Pen. Follow us on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram @apocalypsenowpod, and you can get in touch via email at [email protected]  Take our show survey here:  https://ex-plorsurvey.com/survey/selfserve/550/g517/250305?list=18 Presenter:  David Patrikarakos Producer: Philip Wilding Editor: Chelsey Moore Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini Executive Producer: Bella Soames A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A week is a long time in politics, but for the Trump administration it only seems to take about 48 hours to set the world on its ear. In this week’s episode, we’re on the ground in Washington DC to talk to a former US Diplomat who served under President Obama and a defence expert about spilling military plans on Signal and ask the question; can Ukraine survive without America’s help?  Those guests in full: Brett Bruen, President, Global Situation Room Agency, and Ex-Global Engagement Director at the White House & former US diplomat, and Patrick Tucker is the Science and Technology Editor for Defense One. He’s also on Signal… Follow us on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram @apocalypsenowpod, and you can get in touch via email at [email protected]  Take our show survey here:  https://ex-plorsurvey.com/survey/selfserve/550/g517/250305?list=18 Presenter:  David Patrikarakos Producer: Philip Wilding Editor: Chelsey Moore Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini Executive Producer: Bella Soames A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It could be a conversation that will change the world as we know it. This week, President Trump and President Putin had a phone call to discuss “dividing up certain assets”, including land and power plants in Ukraine. So, where are we as drone attacks continue to rain down across Ukraine and Russia and the White House promises peace at any cost?  Dmytro Kuleba is the former Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs and member of the National Defense and Security Council of Ukraine. A man who was describing Putin as a ‘war criminal’ as far back as 2022, and at the heart of Ukrainian power for a number of years, what does he make of this latest twist in the power struggle for his homeland? And we speak to a soldier who has spent months in mortal combat with Russian and North Korean forces, telling us what life is really like on the bloody frontline. Follow us on Twitter, Tiktok and Instagram @apocalypsenowpod, and you can get in touch via email at [email protected]  Presenter:  David Patrikarakos Producer: Philip Wilding Editor: Chelsey Moore Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini Executive Producer: Bella Soames   A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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