Putin’s Real Enemy Isn’t Ukraine (#313)

2026-08-04 · 20 min · episode 313 · 14 entities

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Episode description as stored

Why would the world’s largest country risk everything to destroy a smaller neighbor? What is it about Ukraine that poses a greater threat to Vladimir Putin than any army? Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and The Atlantic writer Anne Applebaum has spent decades studying Russia, Ukraine, and authoritarian regimes. She argues that the war is being fought over far more than territory and that the outcome will reshape democracy, military power, and global politics. She discusses: ● What Putin was really trying to prevent when he invaded Ukraine ● Why nearly everyone underestimated the Ukrainian people ● How architects, engineers, and entrepreneurs began reinventing modern warfare ● What drones have revealed about the future of war ● The first warning sign that a democracy is beginning to fail ● How modern propaganda works without persuading anyone ● Why leaders often become dramatically richer as democracy weakens The maps don’t tell the whole story of this war. Anne Applebaum explains what’s actually at stake, why Putin hasn’t achieved what he expected, and what Ukraine may reveal about the hidden strengths of democracy.