Ukraine destroys Russian speedboat as it tries to land troops & hot mic picks up Putin and Xi discussing immortality

Day 1,289.

Today, as the Coalition of the Willing meets to discuss security guarantees in Paris, we hear live from Prague minutes after the speech of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Then – after the military updates – we assess in greater detail the attendance of other world leaders alongside Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in Beijing: who were they, and what do their motives tell us about the new ‘axis of upheaval?’

Contributors:

Francis Dearnley (Executive Editor for Audio). @FrancisDearnley on X.

Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of Defence). @DomNicholls on X.

James Kilner (Foreign Correspondent). @jkjourno on X.

Content Referenced:

Britain sanctions mother of Chechen warlord for stealing children (Adelie in The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/03/uk-sanctions-mother-chechen-warlord-stealing-children-kyiv/

There is a question no one dares ask about Vladimir Putin (Francis in The Telegraph in 2024):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/12/24/there-is-a-question-no-one-dares-ask-about-vladimir-putin/

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