The General & The Journalist

As Russia steps up sabotage, interference and intimidation across Europe, how far is Vladimir Putin prepared to go?

Former MI6 chief Sir John Scarlett joins Tom and Patrick to explain what Putin wants in Ukraine, whether Russia could escalate into a direct confrontation with NATO, and why intelligence back channels may be crucial to preventing escalation.

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Guest: Sir John Scarlett, former MI6 Chief and co-founder of SC Strategy

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence.

Producer:Julia Webster, Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia

Image: Kathia Mestanza, Getty

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America has 11 aircraft carriers. So why is the US Navy struggling to deploy more than three at once?

In this bonus video explainer,The Sunday Times’s Mark Urban examines the growing strain on America’s carrier fleet. These 100,000-ton floating airfields have long been symbols of US military power, but delayed ships, lengthy repairs and overstretched crews are making it increasingly difficult to keep them at sea. If Washington cannot reliably deploy the fleet it already has, what does that mean for America’s ability to project power around the world – and are aircraft carriers becoming a symbol not of US strength, but of its limits?

00:00 – America’s aircraft carrier problem

00:53 – Delayed ships and ageing carriers

02:24 – Trump’s proposed carrier redesign

03:25 – Longer deployments, greater strain

04:50 – The carrier gap in the Pacific

06:09 – The $25 billion carrier group at risk

07:30 – The cost to the wider fleet

08:38 – Shipyard decline and military power

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Producer:Yasmin Butt

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More than 25 years after the Good Friday Agreement, Britain remains bitterly divided over how to resolve legacy cases from the Troubles. The government’s new Northern Ireland Troubles Bill would allow some halted inquests to resume and reform the system for investigating legacy cases, with ministers insisting that veterans will be protected from unnecessary repeat investigations.

But former senior SAS veterans Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton and George Simm argue it could reopen the door to repeated investigations that erode soldiers’ trust in the Government and ultimately weaken the SAS itself. Can Britain deliver justice for the past without undermining the soldiers it may need for the wars of the future?

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Guests: Former SAS Squadron Commander Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton and former SAS Regimental Sergeant Major George Simm

Hosts:Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia

Image:Kathia Mestanza, Getty

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Russia is holding its first State Duma election since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but the Kremlin has worked to ensure the outcome is never truly in doubt. Nina Khrushcheva, great-granddaughter of the former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, joins us to examine what the vote reveals about Putin’s rule and how the war in Ukraine is mounting pressure on Putin. With public patience under strain and unease growing among the elite, how much longer can Putin keep pressing this war on?

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

00:55 – Nina Khrushcheva on Putin’s Russia

07:50 – Inside Russia’s rigged election

16:37 – Putin’s mobilisation gamble

23:04 – Russia’s war economy and breaking point

30:04 – Putin’s escalating threat to NATO

Guest: Nina Khrushcheva, professor of International Affairs at The New School in New York City

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence.

Producer:Julia Webster, Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Dan Box, Tim Walklate 

Image: Dana Chan, Getty

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It was one of the most audacious acts of sabotage in modern history - in September 2022, explosions ripped through the Nord Stream pipelines carrying natural gas from Russia underneath the Baltic Sea. The attack reshaped European geo-politics but at the time, no one knew who ordered the bombing, or carried it out. Journalist Bojan Pancevski has spent three years tracing the operation - and says the answers to those questions involve a tiny team of divers, a rented yacht and a former erotic model known only as ‘Freya’. 

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

00:00 – Who blew up Nord Stream?

02:55 – Why Nord Stream mattered

06:39 – Inside the sabotage mission

17:19 – Russia, CIA or Ukraine?

24:00 – Evidence, arrests and who ordered it

Guest: Bojan Pancevski, chief European political correspondent for the Wall Street Journal

Hosts:Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Dan Box

Image: Kathia Mestanza, Getty

Clips: Getty Images, Danish Defence Command

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Across Nato’s eastern flank, defence planners are increasingly focused on one date: 2030. War games, military assessments and troop deployments are being shaped around a stark question – could Moscow be ready to test Nato within the next few years?

The Times’s defence editor Larisa Brown examines why 2030 has become such a crucial deadline for European defence, how Russia could try to probe Nato’s borders and whether the alliance is moving fast enough to deter Vladimir Putin.

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Producer:Jack Feeney

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Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have signed the Mecca Pact, a new defence alliance built around the promise that an attack on one is an attack on all.

Together they bring Saudi money and religious authority, Turkey’s military strength and defence industry and Pakistan’s army and nuclear power. But would any of them really go to war for the others? 

Tom and Patrick are joined by Lieutenant General Sir Simon Mayall to explore why the pact has emerged now. Is it a response to Iran’s decline, growing doubts over America’s reliability or the changing relationship with Israel? Or is the Mecca Pact merely a strategic hedge, or the beginning of a new balance of power in the Middle East?

How do you think the Mecca Defence Alliance will impact the region? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Guest: Ltn Gen Sir Simon Mayall, KBE, CB, retired British Army officer and a Middle East Adviser at the Ministry of Defence.

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn.

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence.

Producer:Julia Webster and Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Dana Chan, Getty

Clips: Getty

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For more than a century, the Middle East has been made and remade by collapsing empires, colonial borders, revolutions, wars and powerful rulers. Now, Iran is weakening, Gulf states are becoming more influential and old alliances are shifting again. 

Historian Simon Sebag Montefiore joins Tom and Patrick to discuss how the modern Middle East was forged and why the forces that shaped it are still at work today. Who is gaining power, who is losing it, and are we watching the birth of a new regional order?

Who do you think is reshaping the new Middle East? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Chapters:

00:00 — How the modern Middle East was made

13:15 — Colonialism, Sykes-Picot and the birth of “zombie states”

23:45 — Is the term “Middle East” now obsolete?

29:30 — Iran’s regional empire and the October 7 wars

36:45 — Six converging theatres—and reasons for hope

The Cauldron: The Making of the Modern Middle East by Simon Sebag Montefiore is available in stores now

Guest: Simon Sebag Montefiore, British historian and author

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence.

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image:Dana Chan, Getty

Clips: Getty

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Ukraine’s drone campaign is reaching deeper into Russia than ever before, striking oil terminals, ships and targets around Moscow and St Petersburg. As casualties rise and attacks put growing pressure on Russia’s economy and war machine, is Ukraine beginning to change the course of the conflict?

In this bonus audio explainer, The Sunday Times’s Mark Urban examines how Ukraine’s long-range strikes are testing Russia’s defences – and whether Vladimir Putin is approaching a serious turning point in the war.

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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North Korea has supplied Russia with millions of artillery rounds, thousands of troops and workers for its drone factories to support its war in Ukraine. In return, Russian money, food, energy and weapons are reviving Pyongyang’s economy, giving it military battlefield experience and potentially advancing Kim Jong Un’s nuclear and missile capabilities.

Dr Victor Cha, former White House national security official and one of America’s leading Korea experts, joins The General & The Journalistto explain how Russia has made an isolated regime richer and more dangerous. How powerful has North Korea become? Why have decades of denuclearisation diplomacy failed? And could talks with Washington loosen Kim’s alliance with Putin?

Should the West accept a nuclear North Korea? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Chapters:

Guest: Dr Victor Cha, president of the Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department and Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence.

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Dana Chan, Getty

Clips: Reuters, Getty

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Mossad has spent decades building intelligence networks inside Iran, using spies, cyber operations and covert technology to penetrate the regime at the highest levels.

Yossi Cohen, former director of Mossad, joinsThe General & The Journalistto reveal how Israel’s spies recruit agents, operate behind enemy lines and target Iran’s leadership. How far is Mossad willing to go? And can Israel’s intelligence successes ultimately bring about regime change in Iran? And where does covert action cross the line?

The Sword of Freedom: Israel, Mossad, and the Secret Warby Yossi Cohenis available at Harper Collins.

Guest: Yossi Cohen, former director of Mossad

Host:Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster and Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Getty

Clips: BBC

How should Andy Burnham approach the UK’s relationship with Israel? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Could Britain replace billion-pound warships with fleets of uncrewed vessels – and what happens when the technology fails?

In this bonus audio explainer, The Sunday Times’s Mark Urban examines Britain’s £5 billion bet on uncrewed warfare, shaped by the lethal lessons of Ukraine. Military planners hope networks of specialised drones and automated platforms can cut costs, protect personnel and transform the battlefield.

But with major conventional programmes still competing for funding, is Britain building the armed forces of the future or creating dangerous new vulnerabilities? 

Producer:Stephanie Bosset 

Image:Dana Chan, Getty

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Pete Hegseth has turned the Pentagon into a stage for warrior bravado – renaming it the Department of War, ordering testosterone screening for troops over 30, and cheering on a US Navy jet's ultra-low flypast over a packed Florida beach.

Former RAF Air Vice-Marshal Sean Bell joins Tom and Patrick to give his verdict on Hegseth's shake-up of the US armed forces and to ask whether a similar culture could take hold in the British military. 

Chapters:

Guest:Sean Bell, Former Air Vice-Marshal in the Royal Air Force

Host:General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence.

Producer: Elle Scott & Julia Webster

Exec Producer:Priyanka Deladia

Clips:US Department of War.

Image: Shaun Parkinson, Getty

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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President Volodymyr Zelensky has sacked his defence minister and army chief after a bitter struggle over Ukraine’s military strategy triggered widespread street protests. 

Natia Seskuria of RUSI examines the clash between reformers and the old guard, and the consequences for Zelensky’s democratic reputation. Could this upheaval at the top change the course of the war with Russia?

Should Zelensky reinstate Mykhailo Fedorov as minister of defence? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Chapters:

00:00 – Zelensky's Political Crisis

01:42 – Why Zelensky Fired Mykhailo Fedorov and Oleksandr Syrskyi

08:56 – Civilian Control vs. Military Command in Ukraine

14:37 – RUSI Expert Natia Seskuria on Kyiv's Power Struggle

32:13 – Listener Q&A: The Red Sea Crisis and China's Role in Djibouti

Guest: Natia Seskuria, Head of Russia and Eurasia Programme at RUSI

Hosts:General Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Patrick brings his experience as a former head of the British Army to the podcast. He is also a Conservative peer and advises the party on defence. 

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Kathia Mestanza, Getty

Clips: Getty, Reuters

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The collapse of the Iran ceasefire has pushed oil prices higher and left Tehran using the Strait of Hormuz as its most powerful leverage. With American casualties rising and roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply at risk, Washington faces a stark choice – keep bombing, attempt to force the strait open or start looking for a way out. 

Kirsten Fontenrose, former White House national security advisor, joins The General & The Journalistto assess Trump’s options. Can the US reopen the strait without triggering a wider war? And can Trump pull back before Iran becomes America’s next forever war?

Is a military showdown in the Gulf inevitable?Send in your thoughts to generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Chapters: 

Guest: Kirsten Fontenrose, former Senior Director for Gulf Affairs at the National Security Council

Hosts:Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Shaun Parkinson, Getty

Clips: C-SPAN, US Central Command, Getty

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The pressure is mounting on the Kremlin, both militarily and economically. With Ukraine keeping a stranglehold on Putin's crown jewel, Crimea, the chances of a Russian escalation are growing. Could it become the beginning of the end for Vladimir Putin?

Russia expert Mark Galeotti joins The General & The Journalist to analyse Russia's capacity to lash out, the likelihood of a new mobilisation wave, and critically, when it might happen.

Is an escalation by Putin inevitable? Send in your thoughts to generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Guest: Mark Galeotti, expert on on transnational crime and Russian security affairs

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: John Silva, Getty

Clips: Reuters, Getty

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Following the NATO summit in Ankara, American allies face an uncomfortable question – can they still rely on Washington to lead?

Donald Trump is demanding more from Europe, NATO is trying to adapt and countries like Britain must decide whether to step up or become spectators in a world shaped by others. 

This week, John Bew joins The General & The Journalist to discuss NATO, Donald Trump, Britain's defence strategy and the future of transatlantic security. Drawing on his experience advising four UK prime ministers, he explains what the summit means for UK national security, military spending, foreign policy, and Britain's role in a changing world.

Should NATO be trying to keep the US on board or should they plan for a future without their support? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Guest: John Bew, Professor of History and Foreign Policy at the Department of War Studies, King's College London

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Getty

Clips: Reuters, CBS News, Simon Walker/No 10 Downing Street

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Britain says its long-awaited Defence Investment Plan will strengthen its role in NATO. But after months of delays, funding rows and warnings from allies, does the money go far enough? 

Admiral Sir Keith Blount, the former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe at NATO, joins Tom and Patrick to assess what the plan gets right, where it falls short and why Britain risks losing influence in the alliance if it fails to deliver. 

As NATO leaders prepare to gather in Ankara next week – with Russia threatening Europe, Donald Trump demanding more from the alliance, and countries such as Poland, Denmark and Germany moving faster on defence – is Britain still leading NATO or falling behind? 

Do you think the government has sufficiently funded UK defence? Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Guest: Admiral Sir Keith Blount, former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe to NATO

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Getty, Dana Chan

Clips: Reuters, Forbes, Sky

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For The General & The Journalist’sfirst anniversary, Tom and Patrick return to the question at the heart of the podcast – is the world becoming more dangerous?

Recorded live at the Nevill Holt Festival, they look at Ukraine’s fightback, Putin’s next moves, the Iran ceasefire, China’s advantage, the threat to Taiwan and the crisis in Britain’s defences. Patrick warns that we may be entering a new Cold War and Tom asks whether Britain is moving fast enough to protect itself. 

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: William Blakesley-Herbert

What are your thoughts on the state of British defence spending?Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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H.R. McMaster served as Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser and saw firsthand how he makes decisions about war, peace and American power.

As his former boss is tested by crises from Iran to Ukraine, China, NATO and Venezuela, he explains how the president really thinks. Does Trump have a grand strategy, or is he driven by instincts, deals and the search for a quick win? And will fragile US-Iran peace deal force a lasting peace or end in disaster?  

Guest: LTG HR McMaster, former US National Security Advisor (2017-2018)

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Dana Chan and Getty

Clips: PBS, WPLG, Reuters, Getty

What are your thoughts on the US/Iran deal?Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Cuba is running out of power, fuel and patience. As blackouts spread and anger grows, Donald Trump is turning up the pressure on Havana, blaming the regime for the island’s collapse while Cuba points to decades of US sanctions. 

The historic US indictment of former president Raúl Castro has raised the stakes and a bigger question – is Trump trying to use his Venezuela playbook on Cuba? With US military power visible in the Caribbean, can Washington force change in Havana or would intervention in America’s Caribbean neighbour could end in catastrophe?

Guest: 

Hosts:Tom Newton Dunn

Producer:Julia Webster

Executive producer: Priyanka Deladia 

Image: Paul Brookbanks and Getty

Clip: USA TODAY, Getty

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Nearly four years into Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine is trying to change the course of the war with drones, AI and battlefield innovation. What began as improvised technology has become central to Kyiv’s strategy, helping Ukraine defend the front line and strike deeper into Russia. But can drones really help Ukraine break the deadlock? And what does this mean for the future of war? Patrick and Tom speak to leading military analyst Dr Jack Watling about the reality on the front line, the rise of AI-enabled warfare and the ethical questions it raises.

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest:Dr Jack Watling, Senior Research Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute

Producer:Shabnam Grewal and Julia Webster

Executive producer:Priyanka Deladia

Image:Dinesh Mehta and Getty

Clip: CNN

Can drones and AI help Ukraine break the deadlock or make the war more dangerous?Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Two weeks after British paratroopers landed on Tristan da Cunha, one of the world’s most remote inhabited islands, the rescue team are finally heading home.

Their mission was extraordinary – reach a critically ill Briton on a tiny British Overseas Territory with no runway, no quick route by sea, and no easy way in. Within hours, 16 Air Assault Brigade was mobilised, sending paratroopers, military medics and vital supplies into the South Atlantic.

Brigadier Ed Cartwright, who planned the operation, tells General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn how the daring rescue unfolded and what it says about Britain’s duty to protect its citizens and remote territories. But could the UK really defend these far-flung outposts from disaster or attack?

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest:Brigadier Ed Cartwright, Commander, 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team

Producer:Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer:Priyanka Deladia

Image:Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Nearly three months after the Iran war began, there is a ceasefire, but no settlement. The Strait of Hormuz remains a global pressure point, Iran’s nuclear programme is unresolved, and Donald Trump is still demanding progress.

But the biggest question may be inside Tehran. After war, assassinations and stalled diplomacy, power appears to be shifting away from the clerics and towards the Revolutionary Guards. Has the West weakened the Islamic Republic or helped make it harder to deal with?

Patrick and Tom speak to Iran analyst Alex Vatanka about the rise of the IRGC, the myth of division inside Tehran, and what comes next.

Hosts:General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest:Alex Vatanka, Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute

Producer:Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer:Fiona Leach, Priyanka Deladia

Image:Getty

Who holds the upper hand in the Iran war?Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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As President Trump lands in Beijing for his summit with Xi, Patrick and Tom are joined by China analyst, Sam Olsen, to discuss whether Iran has flipped the balance of power between the rivals.

Sam argues the war has degraded America's weapons stockpile, recast China as the reliable global partner, and given Beijing a ringside seat on the US military playbook - gifting China with the strategic edge.

And, if Trump needs Xi's help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, will he be willing to sell-out Taiwan in return, with potentially even greater consequences for the balance of power?

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Sam Olsen

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Estonia's foreign minister, Margus Tsahkna, says Putin will flood Europe with the criminals he recruited to fight in Ukraine once the war ends.

With Russia unable to reintegrate thousands of 'psychologically crazy' ex-combatants, they will be used for Wagner-style sabotage operations on a scale European governments have yet to grapple with.

In Patrick's words, 'the moment of maximum danger could be when the fighting ends.'

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Foreign Minister of Estonia, Margus Tsahkna

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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General Christopher Cavoli was NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) until July 2025. He was responsible for the defence and security of 981 million people across 32 countries. Ooph.

While on a flying visit to London, he dropped into the General and the Journalist studio to see his old friend Patrick and get grilled by Tom on the UK's parlous defence expenditure.

But, mostly, he was here to talk about NATO and why, as a proud and patriotic American, he sees the Alliance as critical to America's own defence and security.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: General Christopher Cavoli

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Clips: Fox news

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Dr Fiona Hill is a former deputy assistant to President Trump and served as director for Russian Affairs on the US National Security Council from 2017-19.

She joins Tom and Patrick to chew over the lessons from the Iran war - that the US is no longer a reliable partner, other alliances must urgently be formed, and the world economy can be held to ransom at will.

But it's in her capacity as one of the authors of last year's UK strategic defence review that Fiona's lessons from the Iran conflict most hit home.

'It's time to level with the population that the UK is under siege, it just doesn't know it'. The Government must prepare now for attacks on critical infrastructure and supply lines, and ensure the NHS could respond to a mass casualty event.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Dr Fiona Hill

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

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From Russia's nuclear threat to satellites, the prospect of a permanent lunar station, and the hopes of Artemis, Patrick and Tom could barely contain their space-geek excitement at speaking with General Whiting, head of US Space Command.

'There cannot be anybody on the planet who has more power in space than that man', gushed Patrick. And for good reason; war is now essentially a space domain, as the the American general explains, determining conflicts from Ukraine to Iran. 

And space, more than any other theatre, is where the cold war with China is most acutely felt. 

In a welcome note of optimism to close the conversation, General Whiting doubled-down on the benefits to both Europe and America of continued military cooperation, and paid fulsome tribute to his Nato allies.

We hope you love this conversion half as much as Patrick and Tom did!

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: General Stephen Whiting, head of US Space Command

Producer: Micaela Arneson and Harry Stott

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Having first demanded that Iran 'open the fucking strait', President Trump followed up with a post vowing 'an entire civilisation will die tonight' if it did not do so. 

But could any such order ever be legal, and would the American military even agree to carry it out?

Patrick and Tom chew over these and other questions, including whether it's time for America's long-standing allies to bail on it, if bombing a country into submission ever works, and what the sacking of the head of the US army tells us about the state of the country's military and, perhaps, its constitution. 

But first up, in a week which saw possibly the finest rescue mission ever carried out, John Nichols recalls his experience in the first Gulf War of being shot down over enemy territory, attempting to evade capture, and waiting for the infantry to arrive. 

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: John Nichol

Producer: Micaela Arneson

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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For their Easter special, Tom and Patrick turn the entire show over to you. They answer as many listener questions as possible that have landed in the General & Journalist inbox since Christmas. Among them: whether Europe could defend itself in the events of an immediate Russian incursion, and whether the Iran war has changed Xi's calculus over taking Taiwan - and many more. 

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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The Kremlin's treasury runneth-over with oil revenues, Moscow's military is being treated to a lesson in the latest US warfare in real time, and the world's eyes are averted from Ukraine. 

Trump's war with Iran has been a boon for President Putin. And yet rumours of paranoia, deserting elites, and strange defections abound. 

To decipher what exactly is going on in Moscow, Patrick and Tom are joined by Russia-watcher extraordinaire, Mark Galeotti. 

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Mark Galeotti

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Listen here to Mark's podcast, In Moscow's Shadows

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World-renowned historian Peter Frankopan joins Tom and Patrick to dissect the escalating conflict in Iran through the lens of ancient history and shifting civilisations. The Silk Roadsauthor argues the war is less a standalone event and more the continuation of a century-long struggle for control over the "spine of the world" and its vital resources, namely oil.

Upending international law, decades-long alliances, and the norms of democracy, Frankopan posits that the war has buried multilateralism for good, and is as consequential for geopolitics as either the fall of the Berlin Wall or 9/11.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Peter Frankopan

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

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We are in the second week of a war that was supposed to be over by now. Yet the world is facing soaring oil prices, rising inflation and a regime which doesn't seem ready to capitulate. 

While President Trump continues to threaten Iran, he faces the limits of what air power, alone, can achieve and increasing pressure at home. 

Recording on Day 12 of the conflict, Patrick and Tom are joined by Sir Simon Gass, former Ambassador to Tehran and Chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee, to dissect the rise of a new Iranian dynasty and the high-stakes search for an off-ramp that no one seems able to find.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Sir Simon Gass

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Clips: War.gov

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President Trump has given numerous reasons for America's war on Iran. But if a clear objective cannot be defined, can that war be won?

Admiral James 'Sandy' Winnefeld is a former vice-chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. Until last year he headed the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, overseeing planning for American strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

He joins Tom and Patrick to talk US tactics, Iranian response and a possible end-game.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Admiral James 'Sandy' Winnefeld

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: Getty

Clips: Whitehouse.gov, Reuters, USA Today, @WION.

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Two years ago, Al Carns was a colonel in the Royal Marines and, though he can never confirm or deny it, had also commanded the Special Boat Service. 

He pivoted to politics when he realised that the country's military leadership did not fully grasp the seismic shift in warfare brought about by drones and AI - but he did.

Having risen at breakneck speed to become armed forces minister, Al talks candidly to Patrick and Tom about the need for the country to prepare for war with Russia in "three to five years."

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Al Carns DSO OBE MC MP

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Image: courtesy of Al Carns

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Beginning with the annexation of Crimea in 2014, but accelerated by the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Poland has super-charged its military to become the third largest in Nato, behind only Turkey and the US.

It spends more on defence as a proportion of national wealth than even America and is soon to have more large tanks than the UK, Germany and France combined.

So how did this happen, what are the implications, and are there lessons to be learned for the UK? 

Host:Tom Newton Dunn

Guests: Oliver Moody and Bartosz Kielak

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Photo: Getty Images

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If the UK is to present a credible deterrence to any adversary, its armed forces need to be sufficiently large. They are not. And the fastest, most economical, way of plugging the gap is by growing the reserves.

The Chief of the defence staff recently called for an 'all in mentality', urging civilians to step up to the very real threat posed by Russia.

Not 'weekend warriors', but people from high-tech industries and professions, skills the regular army lacks. He meant all of us. So, who could join the reserves, how quickly, and what would they get out of it?

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guests: Elisabeth Braw and Peter Apps

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Photo: Getty Images

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In the space race and the arms race, only a human could determine an outcome. But what happens in war when AI, and not a human, takes the decision to pull the trigger? If AI can equal human capabilities, Artificial 'superintelligence' is smarter, potentially putting ASI beyond human control.

Jon Wolfsthal worked in the Obama White House on nuclear non-proliferation. He, like scores of others in defence, diplomacy and AI, has signed a petition calling for a ban on superintelligence, unless and until it can be controlled. He joined Patrick and Tom from New York to spell out exactly why we must stop our nuclear and biological weapons being run by machines.

But, don't worry, it gets lighter. Jon is a massive fan of sci-fi. Turns out, so are Patrick and Tom. The three of them swap film and book faves, from Prometheus to Frankenstein, Alien to Terminator, and talk about how they all foreshadowed this artificial intelligence moment.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Jon Wolfsthal

Producer: Sophie McNulty

Clip: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Photo: Getty Images

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Our colleagues at The Times this week launched an American edition of their superb UK politics pod, The State of It. We thought you might want to hear the fabulous first episode.

Welcome to the first ever episode of The State of It: USA. An attack on Iran looks imminent: we reveal what senior military and political figures are saying about it.

Also, is Donald Trump taking a softer line on immigration after the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis?

And get ready for Melania, the movie.

Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist at The Times and The Sunday Times

Gerard Baker, columnist at The Times and editor at large at The Wall Street Journal

Producer: Euan Dawtrey

Executive producer: Molly Guinness

Email us: thestateofit@thetimes.co.uk

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Xi Jinping has effectively removed his last remaining rival power-base in Beijing. Until last weekend, Zhang Youxia was the highest ranking general in the Chinese armed forces and second only to Xi in the military's hierarchy. But having now carried out an almost-total purge of the PLA's leadership, has Xi consolidated his power or, ultimately, undermined it? And what does it mean for a prospective move on Taiwan? Patrick and Tom are joined from Taipei by RUSI's Philip Shetler-Jones, to talk about rumours of a coup and chew over what's left of the PLA's command and control structures.

Watching events in Beijing closely will be Japan, which has recently ditched its post-war pacificism to rearm at breakneck speed. Recognising the reality of Xi's ambition to 'reunite' with Taiwan, and mindful of an increasingly unpredictable America, Tokyo has come off the fence and declared that any attack on Taiwan would automatically draw it into a war with China. But is it too late to deter Xi?

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Producer: Marnie Duke

Executive producer: Fiona Leach

Clips: Al Arabiya English

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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In a week that's marked an inflection point in European history and transatlantic relations, Tom and Patrick discuss whether the two continents' world views are, finally, irreconcilable. And, were America to walk away from Nato, what are the military gaps that Europe would rapidly have to fill? Could it do so, and how fast? 

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Clips: CNN, Irish Mirror

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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While President Trump ponders when, whether and how to take action against Tehran, Tom and Patrick discuss the options available to him, ranging from cyber attacks to assassinations, and ask whether any would improve the lot of ordinary Iranians or simply make a bad situation worse. Joining them is the author and journalist, Hooman Majd, to explain why the absence of any viable opposition raises the spectre of civil war, should the regime collapse.

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Hooman Majd

Producer: Shabnam Grewal

Clips: CBS News, Deutsche Welle and Al Jazeera English

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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With Maduro gone and Venezuela seemingly bending to Trump’s will, the world is now asking who will be next and where will it stop? General Jack Keane knows the President well and has his ear. In a wide-ranging conversation, Tom and Jack discuss the Latin American countries the US now wants to bring to heel, and talk about the likelihood of Trump following through on his threat to take Greenland, by force if necessary.

Host: Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: General Jack Keane

Clip: Fox News

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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In this New Year edition of The General and the Journalist, Tom and Patrick explore the idea of a looming 'polycrisis', a convergence of geopolitical, economic and technological shocks that could peak around 2027. Joined by intelligence expert and China specialist Sam Olsen, they unpack what a simultaneous crisis involving China, Russia, and potentially North Korea and Iran could mean for the West. The conversation moves from worst-case scenarios to practical mitigations, asking whether governments, businesses and citizens truly grasp the scale of the challenge ahead. 

Hosts: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Sam Olsen

Photo: Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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For their Christmas special, Tom and Patrick turn the entire show over to you. They answer as many listener questions as possible that have landed in the General & Journalist inbox since May. Among them: what to do about wayward NATO members who still help Russia, and the state of Britain’s fighting power, and plenty more. 

Vote for The General & the Journalist for People's Choice at the 2026 Political Podcast Awards.

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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This week, we heard two strikingly blunt speeches from the UK’s most senior defence and intelligence chiefs, both aimed at recalibrating how Britain thinks about the threat from Russia. The Chief of the Defence Staff warns that the country is no longer safely distant from conflict, while the new head of MI6 breaks with tradition in her first speech to focus squarely on Putin’s Russia, the “grey zone” between peace and war, and the corrosive impact of technology on truth and power. Tom and Patrick explore what’s changed, why the tone is tougher, and whether this marks a genuine turning point in how the UK talks about war, resilience and national security.

Vote for The General & the Journalist for People's Choice at the 2026 Political Podcast Awards.

Host: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Clips: The Mirror & Dailymotion

Photo: Getty

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Europe is rearming at a pace not seen in decades, from the Baltics to France, where President Macron has called for a new era of “mobilisation,” short of conscription but aimed at readying the nation for darker horizons. This week, Tom and Patrick ask what the UK should do in response, and whether our volunteer army can meet the moment. They’re joined by Oliver Moody, The Times’s Berlin correspondent and author of Baltic: The Future of Europe, to explore how frontline states are preparing their populations for potential conflict. From Finland’s “Total Defence” model to France’s new voluntary service for teenagers, they break down the shifts already underway, and the uncomfortable questions they raise for Britain. 

Vote for The General & the Journalistfor People's Choice at the 2026 Political Podcast Awards.

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Guest: Oliver Moody

Clip: Euronews

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Cyber warfare is played out in the shadows, never declared and never attributed. But, as the General in charge of Nato's cyber operations tells Tom, the west is fighting what amounts to a war on a daily basis. Patrick agrees, recalling his time as Commander of UK Cyber operations, an experience he likens to living under a 'digital Blitz.' 

Host: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Turkish Brigadier General Ümit Ersoy

Photo: NATO 

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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The largest deployment of US naval assets since the Cold War has been sent steaming across the Atlantic to the Venezuelan coast. The CIA has reportedly been given the green light to operate inside the country. And now the Cartel de los Soles has been designated a Foreign Terrorist Organisation, potentially paving the way for strikes against the man the US claims to be its leader, President Nicolas Maduro himself. But what really sits behind Trump's determination to see him off, and how might he do it?

Host: General Sir Patrick Sanders & Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Ryan Berg

Clips: Associated Press, The Sun, PBS News Hour

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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The former chief of MI6, Sir Alex Younger, tells Tom that this is the moment Europe needs to “regain its relationship with hard power”, having been caught on the back foot by an American peace plan widely regarded to have been made in Moscow. As we recorded this bonus episode, Ukraine had just accepted America's modified plan, but Moscow had yet to respond. Sir Alex believes that “Ukraine is still in the game.” But for how long?

Guest: Sir Alex Younger

Host: Tom Newton Dunn

Picture: Getty

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Journalist Annie Jacobsen joins Tom to discuss her bestselling and harrowing book Nuclear War: A Scenario, which maps out in minute-by-minute detail what would happen if a single nuclear missile were launched at the United States. Drawing on rare on-the-record interviews with senior nuclear experts, she reveals how little time a president has to respond, how unreliable missile defenses truly are, and why even a lone strike could trigger global annihilation. Tom and Annie explore the catastrophic aftermath and the grim reality that no nation, however distant, would be spared. With nuclear tensions rising and key treaties expiring, the episode confronts an urgent question: whether nuclear war is becoming inevitable, and what humanity can still do to prevent it.

Host: Tom Newton Dunn

Guest: Annie Jacobsen

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch:  generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Further listening: A new age of nuclear weapons

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It's warfare or lawfare, but it can't be both. Patrick and Tom chat with General Sir Nick Parker, Patrick's friend and mentor of old, to talk about a letter they and six other four-star Generals signed, calling for an immediate end to retrospective legal cases being brought against former servicemen and women.

The cases are not only undermining the very basis of the compact between soldier and state, but it's also jeopardising operations in the field, a fact Patrick and Nick confirm when they discuss the departure of a "significant" number of Special Forces officers who've handed in their weapons rather than risk being dragged before the courts on some as yet unknown charge.

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Guest: General Sir Nick Parker

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Further reading: "Ongoing lawfare risks everything"

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In the space of only three days, President Putin announced the arrival of two new super weapons. Both powered by nuclear reactors, they have no equal in the west. Burevestnik, or Skyfall by its Nato codename, is a low-flying cruise missile with unlimited range and the ability to travel undetected by US defence systems. Poseidon is a torpedo capable of carrying a nuclear payload which, if detonated, could inundate entire US coastal cities with a radioactive tsunami. In response, President Trump called for the immediate resumption of nuclear warhead testing after a three-decade moratorium. Tom and Patrick discuss whether Skyfall and Poseidon actually work or could ever be usefully deployed. But despite the doubts, they agree their arrival poses a serious threat to nuclear arms reduction.

And, while the US may take some comfort from the potential limitations of Skyfall and Poseidon, both Russia and China have pulled ahead where it matters most, hypersonic warfare. Tom and Patrick explain how the west got left behind and why it urgently needs to catch up.

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Clips: 60 Minutes

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Further listening: China's power: The PLA vs the USA

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For three and a half years, BBC correspondent James Waterhouse was the face of the Ukraine war, reporting nightly from Kyiv through air raids, blackouts, and breaking news. In this episode, he joins Tom and Patrick to reflect on the mental and emotional toll of years on the frontline, the strange adjustment to life back home, and the addictive intensity of war. From the first hours of Russia’s full-scale invasion to the blurred battle lines of today, he offers a rare insider’s view of a conflict that continues to redefine modern combat. A gripping conversation about technology, trauma, and the personal cost of telling one of the world’s hardest stories.

Guest: James Waterhouse

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Courtesy of James Waterhouse

Clips: BBC

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Further listening: "Whose wars do we care about and why, with war reporter Anthony Loyd"

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While trade wars hog the headlines ahead of next week's historic meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, it's the potential of a real, kinetic war over Taiwan that's occupying the minds of military analysts the world over. 

Xi has called the reunification of Taiwan and China 'inevitable' and necessary for the realisation of his 'China Dream.' But America has a historic obligation to come to Taiwan's aid if it were attacked militarily. So what would happen if an unstoppable force were to meet an immovable object, some say as soon as 2027? Who would win, and how would it play out? 

Dr. Oriana Skylar Mastro is one of the west's leading analysts of China and author of Upstart: How China Became a Great Power. She also advises the Pentagon, though she's talking to Tom and Patrick in a personal capacity. 

Further listening:

China’s power: The PLA vs the USA (Part 1)

China’s power: How Xi is running rings around the West (Part 2)

Host: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Guest: Oriana Skylar Mastro

Photo: Getty Images

Clips: Reuters

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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While Nato looks up at the skies to Russian drones buzzing its airspace, a far more serious threat lurks below, on our ocean beds. And evidence is mounting that Moscow is already mapping the frontlines in a putative, deniable, attack. As our guest, the former British Defence Secretary, John Hutton, tells Tom, undersea cables are the means by which the economy and society itself survives. And they are vulnerable to sabotage in the form of 'accidental' cutting by shadow-shipping vessels. This could, at a stroke, kill the UK's sources of data, disabling banking, business, communications, and even the UK's 'ability to defend itself.' John Hutton is now a member of the House of Lords and sits on the National Security Strategy committee. Last month, it published a report into the potentially 'catastrophic' consequences of just such an attack and laid bare the UK's lack of preparedness. As John tells us, this would be a 'world of utter chaos, where civil order hangs by a thread.' And hoping for the best, while failing to plan for the worst, would be an absolute derogation of duty on the part of the Government. 

Host: Tom Newton Dunn 

Guest: John Hutton

Photo: Getty Images

Clips: DW News, 60 Minutes, CBC News

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

Further reading: Joint Committee on National Security Strategy Report: “Subsea telecommunications cables: resilience and crisis preparedness”

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As President Trump orders the Texas National Guard into Chicago, America stands poised on the brink of a constitutional crisis. With troops already stationed in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., critics charge that the president is wielding the military as a political weapon. At the same time, Trump is reshaping the upper ranks of the armed forces, sidelining those who have challenged his authority. Authoritarianism and democracy look more finely balanced than at any time in living memory. So, how far does presidential power truly extend when it comes to deploying soldiers on home soil? And to whom do America’s generals ultimately answer?

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Clips: 10 News, BBC, The New York Times, AP, CBS News, The White House, MSNBC 

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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A wave of drones targeting airports, threatening critical infrastructure and potentially endangering the lives of civilians brought a number of Nato countries briefly to a standstill this past month. The presumed gift of President Putin, this deniable activity was straight out of the Kremlin playbook. But was the primary purpose to disrupt for disruption's sake, to probe the weaknesses in Nato's defensive lines or - ultimately - to sow the seeds of a split within the Alliance? As Nato ponders its response, Tom and Patrick explain the 'vertical' and 'horizontal' options available to it, debate whether the West should deter or punish Russia, and ask whether we are now effectively at war?

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Clips: Sky News

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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This week, Patrick and Tom turn their attention to India - the world’s most populous country, a rising military power, and a state determined to hold its ground between East and West. As President Xi Jinping courts Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Washington’s ties with Delhi fray, India’s long-cherished “strategic autonomy” is looking increasingly fragile. With Britain’s Prime Minister preparing a visit and global rivalries intensifying, which way might India lean, and what are the stakes here for the West? To explore these questions, Patrick and Tom are joined by a uniquely placed guest: General Manoj Naravane, India’s former Chief of the Army Staff.

Guest: General Manoj Naravane

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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This week Tom is joined by award-winning war correspondent Anthony Loyd for a special “Journalist & Journalist” edition. Together, they explore why some wars capture global attention while others, equally devastating, remain largely ignored. Drawing on three decades of frontline reporting from the Balkans to Afghanistan, Iraq, and Ukraine, Anthony offers a unique insight into how compassion fatigue, geopolitics, history, and media dynamics shape public awareness. The conversation contrasts Russia's invasion of Ukraine with Sudan’s overlooked civil war. Anthony also reflects on the personal toll of covering forgotten wars, and what it means to keep telling these stories, even when the world isn’t listening.

Recorded August 2025.

Guest:Anthony Loyd

Host: Tom Newton Dunn

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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This week, Patrick and Tom turn from China’s military power to its less visible, but no less powerful, tools of economic dominance. Their guest, Sam Olsen is a geopolitical strategist with decades of experience studying China who argues that the West’s reliance on Chinese supply chains isn’t just about cheap consumer goods, but runs through the very heart of our defence industries. From rare earth minerals to advanced technology, China has a stranglehold over the components needed to build the weapons of the future. The result is a stark assessment: the real question may not be whether the West could beat China in a war, but whether it could fight one at all.

Guest: Sam Olsen

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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The People’s Liberation Army put on one of the largest military displays in China’s modern history this week as the country marked the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in the Second World War. Accompanied by Presidents Putin and Kim Jong Un, President Xi Jinping showed the world the might of the CCP’s forces, but China-watchers disagree over just how battle-ready the PLA would be in any showdown with the West. To shed light, Tom and Patrick are joined by Timothy Heath, a RAND researcher and former US intelligence analyst.

Guest: Timothy Heath

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Clips: DRM News

Get in touch: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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This week, Tom and Patrick take you inside Ukraine’s railways, the country’s lifeline since the full-scale Russian invasion began. With over 20,000 kilometres of track, they’ve evacuated millions, ferried troops and supplies to the front, and turned carriages into mobile hospitals. At the heart of this effort is Oleksandr Pertsovski, the CEO of Ukrainian Railways, who shares how his “Iron People” have kept the nation moving under daily bombardment. From evacuation scenes echoing Dunkirk, to VIP trains shuttling world leaders in and out of the capital, Kyiv, this is the untold story of logistics, resilience and national pride. The interview was recorded in July 2025.

Guest: Oleksandr Pertsovskyi 

Hosts: Tom Newton Dunn & General Sir Patrick Sanders

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Sir Patrick's away this week, so Tom persuaded another four-star General, the UK's former Chief of the Defence Staff, Sir Nick Carter, to join him instead. They discuss whether, in the wake of the Alaska summit between Presidents Trump and Putin, and Europe's mad dash to DC to see off its worst effects, a so-called 'Non-NATO Article 5-style' security guarantee for Ukraine can be any such thing without US boots on the ground to back it up. 

Sir Nick thinks not, and draws parallels with the war Yugoslavia, when UN troops had to stand by and watch as Bosnian civilians were slaughtered by the Serbs. Speaking of history, Sir Nick gives a particularly revealing insight into Trump's own grasp of the subject, disclosed to him while with the President on the 75th anniversary of D-Day in 2019.

Guests: General Sir Nick Carter

Host: Tom Newton Dunn

Clips: Fox News

Photo: Getty Images

Get in touch:generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Tom and Patrick discuss Israel’s new Gaza strategy. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set a controversial new goal - the full occupation of Gaza, starting with Gaza City. His security cabinet has signed off on the first phase, but opposition is growing fast from the international community, and it seems from within Israel’s own military leadership. There are warnings that the plan will deepen Gaza’s already grave humanitarian crisis. Can the plan be achieved militarily? What political calculations are driving it? And could it push the IDF to the limit?

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Patrick and Tom sit down with General James E. Rainey, the head of the United States Army Futures Command, to discuss what the wars of tomorrow will look like. Without doubt we are living through a period of rapid and often unsettling military transformation with everything from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and 3D-printed drones to hypersonic missiles. The AI revolution paired with quantum computing is redefining what's possible on the battlefield, and at breakneck speed. The wars ahead will look nothing like the ones we've known, but does this change the rules of how wars should be conducted? The two generals and the journalist discuss the mechanics, logistics and ethics of future wars.

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It’s been four years since the Taliban retook control of Kabul, marking the end of the UK’s 20-year military presence in Afghanistan. This week, Patrick sits down with James Cowan, CEO of the HALO Trust and a former army officer who led Task Force Helmand from 2009 to 2010. Together, they reflect on the 2021 evacuation, the recent Afghan data leak, their regrets, and whether Britain’s involvement in Afghanistan was, frankly, worth it.

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Tom and Patrick have been in Ukraine updating the story of the tens of thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia following their full-scale invasion. Some have been fostered or adopted by Russian families, but the vast majority are thought to have been funnelled into re-education camps. And now, as some of these children reach adulthood, that means new concerns amongst the Ukrainian authorities. 

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While in Ukraine, Tom and Patrick sit down with President Zelensky’s Head of Office, Andriy Yermak. A long-time friend and trusted advisor to Volodymyr Zelensky, Yermak is also one of the most controversial figures in the country - unelected, immensely influential, and central to Ukraine’s war effort and diplomatic strategy.

In their conversation, Yermak discusses the state of the war, the morale of Ukraine’s exhausted population, and most strikingly, whether President Trump’s dramatic new push for peace could actually bring the fighting to an end.

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Patrick and Tom have both been in countries where there is a very strong feeling that President Putin won’t stop with Ukraine: Tom in Poland and Patrick in Estonia. Nato’s Secretary General, Mark Rutte has gone so far as to say that Putin could launch an attack within the next five years, warning: “Let’s not kid ourselves, we are all on the eastern flank now.” So, they ask: Where will Russia attack next? And does Nato have the military and political strength to defend all its members?

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Patrick and Tom unpack a troubling question - are we entering a third nuclear age? With Iran’s nuclear programme back in the headlines and countries like Poland and South Korea considering building nuclear weapons of their own, the old global order is clearly shifting. Patrick and Tom explore what this means for global security, and whether nuclear proliferation is set to become the new normal.

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A behind the scenes look at the 2025 NATO Summit. The summit was billed as a turning point—Secretary General Mark Rutte even called it a “quantum leap” in collective defence. The Nato allies have now pledged to spend 5% of GDP on defence by 2035. But will that money come fast enough to meet the threat from Russia? And what does it mean for Ukraine? We break down the numbers, the timing—and the politics. And of course much of this summit was less about strategy and more about one man, President Trump and the ceasefire in the Israel-Iran War.

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During an unprecedented war between Iran and Israel, and ahead of the much anticipated Nato summit next week, Lord Robertson, former Secretary General of Nato, joins Tom and Patrick to assess what happens next in the conflict, and what it means for the rest of the world.

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A pattern is seemingly emerging with a series of high profile targeted killings taking place inside Russian territory, blamed on Ukrainian forces. This week, an in depth look at those stories, who may be responsible for them, why they may be happening and what are rules when it comes to assessing wether they are legally and ethically justified.

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Britain unveils a new and ambitious Strategic Defence Review outlining ways to make Britain battle-ready in the years and decades ahead. But is time already running out? With global threats intensifying and much of the review’s ambitions earmarked for the 2030s, Patrick and Tom question whether the UK is truly going to be prepared for full scale war as a result of the review. This week, they break down what they think the review gets right — and what they think it leaves out.

You can reach us at generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Last week, President Trump said in reference to the war in Ukraine: "I think something’s going to happen. And if it doesn’t, I just back away and they’re going to have to keep going". With that very real possibility looming large, General Sir Patrick Sanders and Tom Newton Dunn discuss in detail whether Ukraine can survive without the support of the US - and for how long.

Do get in touch with the show: generalandjournalist@thetimes.co.uk

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Simon Case, the former Cabinet Secretary examines how much Britain should be spending on defence “right now” to protect ourselves against spiralling global threats - including Russia and China. The former leading British civil servant warns the West now faces an axis of rival states that are cooperating ever more closely. Leading them is the technological and military powerhouse of China, which he describes as "the pace setting threat” that will dominate the next 20 years - especially as he says Beijing is now sharing its rapid advances with Russia, Iran and North Korea.

Hosted by two extraordinary individuals with decades of experience in their respective fields, this podcast offers unparalleled insight into the dynamics of modern warfare through General Sir Patrick Sanders, a soldier with 40 years of military expertise. He is joined by Tom Newton Dunn, an award-winning journalist. Together they provide a unique perspective on global conflict.

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A new podcast on the intricacies of geopolitics in an age of uncertainty at a time when conflict is never far from the headlines. Patrick and Tom - the General and the Journalist - examine why wars begin, and how they end - and, crucially how they can be prevented. Unparalleled insights into the dynamics of modern warfare through General Sir Patrick Sanders, a decorated soldier with 40 years of military expertise, and from Tom Newton Dunn, an award-winning former defence correspondent and political editor. Together they provide a unique perspective on global conflict and diplomacy.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.