Trump’s plan for “Peace” in Ukraine only pleases Putin + The Politics of Modern Love
Pod Save the UK
Pod Save the UK
4.6 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 20 February 2025
⏱️ 50 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
As Europe looks on in disbelief, Donald Trump has been throwing his geopolitical weight around. A monumental meeting with Russia to discuss ending the war in Ukraine was held without Ukraine or Europe.Trump then branded Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “dictator” and accused Ukraine of starting the conflict.
Keir Starmer has said he is “ready and willing” to put UK troops on the ground in Ukraine. But is this the answer? And as shares in major arms manufacturers soar, who’s profiting? Nish and Coco chew it over.
And from war to love - loneliness is on the rise but according to journalist and author Shon Faye, the problem isn’t us, it’s capitalism. Phew! She joins Nish and Coco to discuss the highly politicised terrain of modern romance - and why it eludes us.
Later, Tortoise tech reporter Patricia Clarke calls in to discuss what the government can do about our unhealthy social media habits and if the Online Safety Bill holds up.
And Starmer has been ambushed by tractor-driving farmers blasting out… “Sandstorm” by Darude. Yes, Darude.
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Useful Links
Love in Exile by Shon Faye https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/453476/love-in-exile-by-faye-shon/9780241605981
Guests
Shon Faye
Patricia Clarke
Audio Credits
The Guardian
The White House
UK Government
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, this is Pod Save the UK. I'm Nish Kumar. And I'm Cocoa Khan. Today, Trump's foreign policy shift |
| 0:07.6 | has left Europe reeling. But is Stama's vision of sending peacekeeping troops to Ukraine the answer? |
| 0:14.1 | I don't know about you, Coco, but I would say troops on the ground in Ukraine doesn't sound |
| 0:17.5 | particularly peaceful to me. No, I know. I'm hearing a lot of the word front line on the radio today, which doesn't |
| 0:22.6 | make me feel great. And also, immediately after you hear these words, Frontline, you hear this |
| 0:27.2 | tidbit from a former military chief who basically says we don't have enough money. We don't have |
| 0:32.3 | enough resources in the army to actually run a front line. All of it's adding up to me holding a gun, which no one wants. |
| 0:39.1 | That does not make me feel secure on a national level, Nish. |
| 0:42.4 | Also, I don't look great in green. |
| 0:44.9 | Oh, but elsewhere, a petition to ban children under the age of 16 from social media |
| 0:49.8 | is doing the rounds. |
| 0:51.2 | Tortoise tech reporter Patricia Clark is here to tell us whether this will |
| 0:54.7 | really save the children. And we'll be joined by author and journalist Sean Faye to understand |
| 0:59.4 | why so many of us feel unlucky in love and to ask who's profiting. Now this week has seen a |
| 1:07.0 | monumental meeting between Russia and the United States to discuss the future of Ukraine. |
| 1:12.2 | It was held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, blindsiding leaders in Ukraine and Europe who were cut |
| 1:17.3 | out of the negotiations. And earlier in the week, Donald Trump suggested European security |
| 1:21.6 | can no longer be the primary focus of the American military. And in doing so, plunge the future |
| 1:26.3 | of the transatlantic relationship into question and undermined an 80-year-long military alliance. European leaders hastily convened a |
| 1:32.9 | meeting to discuss their response. Here's Prime Minister Kirstama speaking after the meeting. |
| 1:36.7 | I'm prepared to consider committing British forces on the ground, alongside others, if there is a lasting peace agreement. But there must be a US |
| 1:49.6 | backstop because a US security guarantee is the only way to effectively deter Russia from attacking |
... |
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