The Foreign Desk The best of 2025
Dec 27, 2025
Guest
Vladimir Kara-Murza
Guest
Quinton Lucas
Guest
Gaiath Alomari
Guest
Salome Zourabichvili
Guest
Mamuka Mamoulashvili
Guest
Kyriakos Mitsotakis
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Greece, discusses Europe's strategic autonomy and warns against relying on U.S. guarantees. Mamuka Mamoulashvili offers frontline insights on Ukraine's military strategies against Russian tactics. Salome Zurabichvili highlights Georgia's democratic decline and the need for EU support in the Black Sea. Gaiath Alomari presents practical steps for a Palestinian state, while Quinton Lucas shares concerns about federal interventions in U.S. cities. Vladimir Kara-Murza reflects on his return to Russia and the path to democratic change.
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Episode notes
Fund Defence With Common Instruments
- Finance defence now using common instruments and fiscal flexibility to avoid relying solely on the US.
- Consider shared projects and loans to build defence capacity across EU members.
Weapons, Not Willpower, Could Turn Tide
- Georgian fighters and volunteers see the war as winnable with sufficient long-range Western arms.
- Mamuka Mamoulashvili insists 2,000 long-range missiles could halt Russian offensives quickly.
Russian Tactics Reflect Brutal Calculus
- Russia treats soldiers as expendable and favors mass assaults, signalling a willingness to accept heavy casualties.
- This pattern suggests Russia may not stop at Ukraine and poses a wider threat to Europe.