You know, was there an incident or something in particular that prompted them in the first place?

We're kind of in the fourth week.

It began last month when students began protesting for better conditions in, in their schools.

And, uh, they were arguing for, um, more teachers because they were sick and tired of having casual teachers who they said didn't turn up.

They had, uh, an argument that, um, schools in wealthier areas were better looked after by the government compared to schools in poorer areas, so there was this sort of inequality argument.

Some of the arguments were simply about the fact that the, the toilets weren't working in their schools.

I mean, basic infrastructure didn't seem to be functioning.

Based on what you've witnessed on the ground and what you've been reading, do you reckon that's accurate, that these really could be the biggest student protests since those very famous protests?

Well, it's interesting that you mention there the messaging to other countries, because a Ukrainian colonel has said that these new jet-powered drones aren't just a problem for Ukraine, they're a problem for, I'm gonna quote him here, "The entire civilized world." So do you think he was putting the rest of us on notice that this is just the new frontier of warfare? You know, might army chiefs from other parts of the world be looking at what's happening and what you're seeing the aftermath of there in Ukraine with perhaps not alarm, but a realization that there's a new type of enemy with regards to weapons, I guess?

Yeah, I've been thinking about that a lot because when I, I came into Ukraine on the overnight train from the Polish border and then went straight into a big event in Kyiv where there were a lot of people, diplomats, military chiefs, uh, Ukrainian army officers and others all talking about what's happening in Ukraine today, and one of the big themes there was this necessity for the West to scale up in the face of what is a greater Russian threat.

Uh, David Petraeus, the former CIA director, I found to be very interesting as a speaker because he was... he's totally connected and aware of what's happening in the Ukraine military.

He says that the Russians are gonna manufacture 10 million drones this year.

He says that the Ukrainians are hoping to increase their manufacturing from 8 million to 10 million.

And this highlights an arms race of course, but it also highlights the fact that every country now needs to be totally across this kind of technology with the ad- advent of turbojet, uh, engines, which are manufactured in China by the way, so you know, it's something for us to be aware of.

This is, this is not limited to Europe as a technology.

if not a stalemate, then not much movement on each side, right? So is this sort of a real upper hand moment potentially, or could it become one for Russia, or is it just not that much necessarily of a game changer?

part of the German electorate, do they also want this return to some glorified past that the AFD is promoting?

I think it's important to recognize that there is something deeper going on.

It's not only about the political leaders who are making the headlines.

And that's true in the United Kingdom where I see Nigel Farage always in the news, but I always try to remember that what's really happening is what matters is what's happening at his support base in the community.

It's the same in France, it's the same in Germany.

There are issues that the community sees that they're very unhappy about.

They're angry about the direction of their countries and they are reflecting that in their votes.

And back to the domestic realities in Germany, you alluded to this before, because there's a chance that this AFD result in the Eastern state, it won't hold, right? And that the AFD actually won't be able to assume power because some rival parties have vowed not to support an AFD government, right? Can you just tell us a little bit about that?

So tell us, I guess, a bit more about what's happening in UK politics right now that they are very likely to choose this man as, as the next leader of the Labour Party and therefore the prime minister.

Yes, by the way, we should really be cautious and say they're very likely to choose him.

But at the moment, there is no challenger to him.

Starmer has announced he's going.

Andy Burnham has put up his hand.

One of the other challengers who might have put up his hand, Wes Streeting, former health secretary, has decided not to enter the race and is backing Burnham and is probably going to get a cabinet ministry.

I think he would be a very natural choice as Chancellor of the Exchequer, but let's see how that goes.

So what's, what's your feeling, Crowe? What's the feeling in Britain there about Andy Burnham, you know? That he'll similarly be churned out, or is he gonna be the, the stayer?

Is it all about Albanese's personal popularity? Is it about the Labor policy offering? Or is it more disillusionment with Peter Dutton and the Coalition? David, what do you think?

I think the Peter Dutton factor was real and it was something that the Coalition underestimated because clearly they didn't position him better going into this.

If they wanted to get Australians to get to know Peter Dutton as a family man and so forth, they should have been doing more on that front last year.

But really it was about, I think, the core offer from Labor.

And I think this goes back to something that I know Paul's been talking to Labor people about for ages and so have I.

We all knew that...

Labor felt they couldn't win if it was going to be about the last three years.

And there has to be, over the next few months or maybe even year, a period where there's no focus on opinion polling and just focus on how do we get ourselves to be a governing party again.