Foreign Office with Michael Weiss

Investigative journalists Christo Grozev, Roman Dobrokhotov and Michael Weiss have been looking into the Havana Syndrome since 2020. They initially approached the topic skeptically, questioning the capability of any government to carry out such a mass global attack. However, they discovered a document linking a Russian military unit to the Havana weapon, which sparked their investigation. They have been gathering evidence of overlaps between the travel of members of this unit and incidents related to the Havana Syndrome. The journalists have presented a prosecution case, highlighting motive, means, and opportunity, and are calling for the U.S. government to act as a defense attorney for the accused criminals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, reports surfaced of a teacher in Estonia who was charged with spying for Russia. Host Michael Weiss discusses this as well as the state of the Russia/Ukraine war with former President of Estonia Toomas Hendrik Ilves and former CIA Intelligence Officer, Dan Hoffman. Don’t miss this vital discussion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All eyes are on Israel and Gaza as the conflict threatens to spread throughout the region. But how have the key regional actors responded? Michael Weiss is joined by Faysal Itani, the Director of the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy, to dissect what the key players in the Middle East have been doing and what the future could hold for the region. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is Dr. Anthony (Tony) Tingle, Program Director of the Institute for Future Conflict at the United States Air Force Academy where he oversees research on regional conflict and military technology including artificial intelligence, cyber, and biotechnology. Their conversation centers around Ukraine and the extraordinary footage captured by Tony during a recent trip to Ukraine. They touch on what’s working and what isn’t as well as provide an outlook on what to expect over the next 12 months of the war. They also touch on Israel and their battle with Hamas. Don’t miss it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is Australian Retired General Mick Ryan. Mick is a military analyst who served in the ADF for more than 35 years and was commander of the Australia Defence College. He is the author of War Transformed and an adjunct fellow at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC. Michael and MIck discuss the latest developments in the Russia-Ukraine war and what could be in store for the coming months. Don’t miss it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this special episode of Foreign Office, Michael is joined by Roman Dobrokhotov, a Russian investigative journalist, political scientist and former activist and Christo Grozev, a Bulgarian investigative journalist and author and the lead Russia investigator with Bellingcat, focusing on security threats, extraterritorial clandestine operations, and the weaponization of information. The three discuss the alleged assassination of former Wagner Group Leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sweden is set to join NATO as Turkey drops their objections. They’ve also been staunch supporters of Ukraine in the effort against Russia. To understand Sweden’s role on the international stage, Michael speaks with Martin Kragh, Deputy Center Director of the Stockholm Center for Eastern European Studies (SCEEUS) and Senior Research Fellow at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. Kragh's research interests include Russia's economy and history, but also the political development in Russia and the former USSR. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is Calder Walton, Assistant Director of the Belfer Center's Applied History Project and Intelligence Project at the Harvard Kennedy School and author of the book, “Spies: The Epic Intelligence War Between East and West. Michael and Calder discuss the history of espionage between Russia and the United States and they touch on Michael’s upcoming book on the GRU. Don’t miss it! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Michael sits down with Estonia’s Ambassador to Ukraine, Kaimo Kuusk, who has been in the post since 2019. Ambassador Kuusk will soon become the Ambassador to Lithuania, but before he takes his new post, he discusses the Ukrainian counteroffensive, the US decision to send cluster munitions to Ukraine and his thoughts on Russia and Putin after the Wagner Group’s mutiny. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is Pierre Vaux, a researcher specializing in open-source investigations, conducting digital forensic analysis of hostile state activity, disinformation and extremism. As a journalist, he has covered the Ukraine war and the Russian military intervention in Syria since their beginnings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Weiss is on assignment this week. In light of this weekend's events, we're bringing you an episode from the Foreign Office archive. Bellingcat's Christo Grozev on what the latest disclosures out of Bulgaria and Czechia tell us about GRU Unit 29155. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is Pekka Kallioniemi, a postdoctoral researcher working in the field of human-computer interaction at Tampere University. He is the creator and author of Vatnik Soup, a Twitter thread series (and a hashtag!) where he introduces pro-Russian actors and propagandists from around the world, be they so-called "independent journalists", politicians, military personnel or just regular grifters looking to make some easy money. As is typical with Michael’s guests, Pekka brings perspectives that you won’t hear anywhere else. Tune In! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is James Rushton, a journalist at Yahoo News who is covering the Ukraine-Russia war from his home in Kyiv. He’s been reporting amidst air raid sirens and other challenges and is extremely well-placed on the front lines of the war to tell you what is happening in the country. His experience and perspective on all things Ukraine is not to be missed. Tune In. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael’s guest this week is Jennifer Cafarella, the Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). Jennifer and her team of analysts have been providing detailed reports and interactive maps each day since the war began on both Russian and Ukrainian positions. If you’re interested in what’s really happening in Ukraine, don’t miss this conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Michael’s guest is Jack Margolin, an independent journalist and researcher with a particular focus on private Russian military companies, including Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Wagner Group. Michael and Jack discuss the motivation behind Prigozhin’s recent comments on Putin’s military and what is behind his provocations. Jack is one of the leading experts when it comes to Wagner and this conversation is not to be missed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Michael’s guest is Andrei Kozyrev, who was the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation under President Boris Yeltsin. In his position, he was credited with developing Russia's foreign policy immediately after the fall of the Soviet Union. Now living in the United States for the past 12 years or so, he’s been an outspoken critic of Putin and the War in Ukraine. His precise location remains a secret, but through the magic of Zoom, Michael spent 45 minutes discussing the current state of the war. HIs perspectives are definitely worth a listen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a brief hiatus, host Michael Weiss is back, fresh off a trip to Ukraine. He, along with special guest, former CIA Intelligence Officer Marc Polymeropoulos, discuss what's actually happening in Ukraine from interviews with military sources who are actually fighting the battles. Don't miss this timely, insightful conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, host Michael Weiss sits down with Sir Lawrence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies at Kings College, London and author of a new book, “Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine,” to discuss the latest in the Ukraine War. Sir Lawrence has written numerous articles about war strategy in general and his commentary and analysis on the war in Ukraine has been highly sought after. Don’t miss this insightful conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Weiss discusses the strategic importance of Bakhmut and the large Ukrainian military strategy with Mykola Bielieskov, Research Fellow at National Institute for Strategic Studies under UA President/senior analyst at Come Back Alive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The former Illinois Representative talks war — both abroad and at home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices