Sep 9, 2026 · 42 min · 12 segments
Russia’s confrontation with the West extends far beyond the battlefield in Ukraine. From assassinations and sabotage to espionage, political interference, and disinformation, how has Russia’s shadow…
Gordon CoreraGuest
Zoe SwanwickHost
I suppose that the invasion of Ukraine and British support for Ukraine since then has become quite a defining aspect of britain's role i suppose in the world stage today and has sort of settled it into a kind of post-brexit uh identity in a way um but that's not really i suppose where the direct russian threat for britain or british students comes today and i suppose the question is do you think that has been conveyed to the public enough and what the public the public are well aware of what's going on in Ukraine, for example, and why the UK is supporting Ukraine.
And it's not about that, you know, Putin's men are on the door about to invade and land on the beaches.
It's been interesting that British support for Ukraine has been remarkably strong and stable for more than four years now.
I mean, this issue about whether we're aware enough of the Russian threat, I think is a really interesting one.
Because if you go, I spend a reasonable amount of time in places like the Baltic states and Poland where it's so acute and you can feel it.
I mean, you know, I was a couple of months ago, I was on the Russian, very close to the Russian border in Estonia on that case.
because otherwise they'd switch to the russian networks could be about a mile from the russian border and then i don't sure if that was whether because we'd get a massive roaming charge or whether they'd spy on our phones but you know that's what you know you're that close and you can feel it there you know you can feel the proximity and they are very aware of it they're spending lots on defense um The further you go on the whole, you know, the saying is the further you go, the less awareness of the threat there is from the Russian border.
Here in the UK, actually, I think we are relatively aware of it because we've had things like Salisbury.
We've had, you know, nerve agent Novichok used on the streets of a British city, you know, leading to the death of an innocent person.
We're quite attuned historically to Russian espionage and Russian interference.
I think there are obviously voices in the defence community who want more defence spending and who will talk up the threat and kind of say, well, we could be at war in a year or two.
I suppose that the invasion of Ukraine and British support for Ukraine since then has become quite a defining aspect of britain's role i suppose in the world stage today and has sort of settled it into a kind of post-brexit uh identity in a way um but that's not really i suppose where the direct russian threat for britain or british students comes today and i suppose the question is do you think that has been conveyed to the public enough and what the public the public are well aware of what's going on in Ukraine, for example, and why the UK is supporting Ukraine.
And it's not about that, you know, Putin's men are on the door about to invade and land on the beaches.
It's been interesting that British support for Ukraine has been remarkably strong and stable for more than four years now.
I mean, this issue about whether we're aware enough of the Russian threat, I think is a really interesting one.
Because if you go, I spend a reasonable amount of time in places like the Baltic states and Poland where it's so acute and you can feel it.
I mean, you know, I was a couple of months ago, I was on the Russian, very close to the Russian border in Estonia on that case.
because otherwise they'd switch to the russian networks could be about a mile from the russian border and then i don't sure if that was whether because we'd get a massive roaming charge or whether they'd spy on our phones but you know that's what you know you're that close and you can feel it there you know you can feel the proximity and they are very aware of it they're spending lots on defense um The further you go on the whole, you know, the saying is the further you go, the less awareness of the threat there is from the Russian border.
Here in the UK, actually, I think we are relatively aware of it because we've had things like Salisbury.
We've had, you know, nerve agent Novichok used on the streets of a British city, you know, leading to the death of an innocent person.
We're quite attuned historically to Russian espionage and Russian interference.
I think there are obviously voices in the defence community who want more defence spending and who will talk up the threat and kind of say, well, we could be at war in a year or two.
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