Ancient to Recent

How did the West help create Vladimir Putin's Russia, and why has it struggled to stop him? Award-winning Bloomberg journalist and author Stephanie Baker joins Joseph Parkinson to explore the rise of the Russian oligarchs, Putin's transformation of Russia into a mafia state, and the failure of Western governments to contain the Kremlin.

In this episode of Ancient to Recent, we examine how the collapse of the Soviet Union created a new class of Russian billionaires, how Western governments helped facilitate their rise, and how Boris Yeltsin's controversial loans-for-shares deal laid the foundations for Russia's oligarchic system.

We explore the West's repeated miscalculations over Putin, from the optimism of the 1990s and George W. Bush's famous meeting with the Russian president to Obama's failed Russia reset. Why did Western governments repeatedly turn a blind eye to Russian aggression, corruption and authoritarianism?

We also examine the international sanctions imposed following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Have they actually weakened Putin's war machine? How has Russia evaded sanctions through China, India and its shadow fleet of oil tankers? And could frozen Russian assets in Europe finally be used to help Ukraine?

Stephanie Baker is an award-winning journalist and the author of Punishing Putin, a detailed examination of the international effort to use financial sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. She previously reported for The Moscow Times and Radio Free Europe and is currently a journalist at Bloomberg.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Introduction
00:48 The collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise of the oligarchs
02:10 The loans-for-shares scandal
04:19 Why the West believed Russia would become a democracy
06:34 Putin's mafia state and the security services
07:11 The West turns a blind eye to Putin
09:23 The turning point: Putin's Munich speech
10:12 Why were Western sanctions against Russia so weak?
14:18 Bush, Obama and the failed Russia reset
18:09 How the West underestimated Putin
19:04 Russia invades Ukraine: the sanctions response
20:32 Freezing Russia's central bank reserves
22:45 Why won't Europe give frozen Russian assets to Ukraine?
26:14 Are Western sanctions actually working?
27:08 Russia's oil revenues and the shadow fleet
30:27 How Russia gets around Western technology sanctions
31:57 How China and India are helping Russia
33:41 Trump's approach to Russian sanctions
35:00 Could American businesses benefit from a rapprochement with Putin?
37:43 What happens if Democrats win the US midterms?
39:58 Russian interference in European elections
42:20 Does Putin pose a threat to NATO?
45:14 Could Russia deliberately provoke a NATO crisis?
45:58 What would it take to cripple Russia's war machine?
48:53 What could the West have done differently in the 1990s?

ABOUT ANCIENT TO RECENT

Ancient to Recent explores the history behind today's biggest political, historical and international events through conversations with leading historians, journalists, authors and experts.

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BOOK: Punishing Putin

#Russia #Putin #UkraineWar #Sanctions #Geopolitics

France is facing growing political divisions, social unrest and economic challenges. In this episode of Ancient to Recent, Joseph Parkinson speaks with Louis Sarkozy about the recent riots in France, the history of public protest, immigration and integration, and the future of French politics.

With the 2027 French presidential election approaching, they discuss Marine Le Pen's chances of winning, the frustrations driving French politics, and the wider implications for Europe. They also explore France's relationship with Russia and the security challenges facing the continent.

Is France approaching a turning point and what could happen next?

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#France #LouisSarkozy #FrenchPolitics #FranceRiots #FrenchHistory

As a child he saw his uncles empire collapse, as a young man he was consumed by dreams of glory and as an adult he turned those dreams into reality.

This is the story of Louis Napoleon, the last Emperor of France.

A story of intrigue and delusion, of ambition and deceit of honour and shame as a man with nothing but his name rises to an imperial throne.

In this episode Joseph Parkinson is joined by renowned historian Edward Shawcross, author of The People's Emperor, the Unlikely Rise and Spectacular Fall of Louis Napoleon.

We discover how he seizes power, tried to heal Frances social ills and restore France as the premier nation of Europe.

How Louis Napoleon embarks on an ambitious program of social change at home, transforming Paris into one of the world capitals.

And also how he embarked on reckless adventures in Mexico and Italy that brought disaster for France.

How, against all the odds he made and lost an Empire.

Episodes of Ancient to Recent are out every Saturday and are available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcast.

#france #louisnapoleon #history #prussia #frenchhistory

With peace comes a new policy direction from Washington.

President Grant wants to find a new approach to dealing with the native peoples of the West but ambition, greed and dreams of empire drive the United States and the Lakota onto a collision course as promises are broken and different visions of the West Clash.

Imperial arrogance leads George Armstrong Custer onto the battlefield of the Little Bighorn with devastating effects for the 7th Cavalry but military victory for the Lakota cannot stop the advance of a new kind of state. 

Join Joseph Parkinson as we explore the world of the Lakota between the late 1860s and the 1870’s as an empire is humbled and a new West born. 

New episodes of Ancient to Recent are available every Saturday on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts 

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#Lakota #Sioux #AmericanHistory #USHistory 

As the United States descends into civil war the Lakota continue their expansion.

But troubling news is brought west by the Lakota’s Sioux cousins the Dakota. 

The United States government signs treaties forcing the Dakota to give much of their land away in return for a reservation but as more settlements come more demands follow.

The Dakota rebel and Washington settles on a policy of military force.

The Dakota seek refuge with their Sioux cousins the Lakota which draws United States forces further west.

Join Joseph Parkinson as we explore the world of the Lakota between 1861 and the late 1860’s as personal ambition, greed and ideology drive the United States and Lakota on a collision course that has unexpected consequences.

New episodes of Ancient to Recent are available every Saturday on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts 

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#Lakota #Sioux #AmericanHistory #USHistory 

In the middle years of the 19th century the Lakota reach ever greater heights of power.

They command a vast domain teaming with bison and they project their military might in all direction carried on the back of their powerful war horses.

But North America is a land of constant change.

The European empires may be a thing of the past but the United States continues its western expansion.

War with Mexico and the scandalous Treaty of Guadalupe adds vast tracks of land to the American domain.

Discovery of gold brings Americans rushing west causing tension with the Lakota to rise and the United States struggles to grapple with the issue of slavery.

Join Joseph Parkinson as we explore the world of the Lakota between 1816 and 1861 as treaties are broken, hardline new leaders like Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull emerge and the Lakota struggle to hold their world together under constant American pressure.

New episodes of Ancient to Recent are available every Saturday on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts 

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#Lakota #Sioux #AmericanHistory #USHistory 

Napoleon has a dream of the restoration of French imperial power in the Americas.

But his dream is dashed by the collapse of French power in Haiti and France sells Louisiana to the US for pennies.

The United States believes it has acquired an empire but soon finds out that the land was not for sale. 

The Lakota are enjoying their moment in the imperial sun, dominating trade networks as the US begins exploring and asserting control over Louisiana and war breaks out between Britain and the United States that will have a profound impact on the future of North America and the Lakota.

The European rivalries for American domination come to an end as the United States and the Lakota are set on a collision course.

Join Joseph Parkinson as we explore the world of the Lakota between 1800 and 1815

New episodes of Ancient to Recent are available every Saturday on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts 

Follow @ancienttorecent

#Lakota #Sioux #AmericanHistory #USHistory 

The Lakota are on the rise.

For generations, the Sioux had possessed one enormous advantage: numbers. But numbers alone were not enough.

The Lakota lacked the horses and firearms necessary to turn their strength into military power. Caught between rival European empires and powerful Indigenous nations, their expansion had repeatedly been checked.

Now, everything is about to change.

In this first episode of our new series, we trace the transformation of the Lakota as they encounter two technologies that will reshape the Great Plains: the gun and the horse.

We travel back to the seventeenth century, exploring the Lakota's encounters with French traders, the Iroquois, Cree, Ojibwa and other Indigenous nations competing for control of the continent.

As France and Britain battle for North America, both seek Indigenous allies.

The Sioux need guns.

The Europeans need warriors.

But the Indigenous nations have their own ambitions, rivalries and political calculations.

Then comes the horse.

Reintroduced to North America by the Spanish, it begins spreading across the interior. For the Lakota, it will be revolutionary.

Mobility, firepower and access to the vast buffalo herds of the Great Plains begin transforming Lakota society.

But the Lakota are not entering an empty wilderness. They face the Crow, Pawnee, Cree, Assiniboine, Mandan, Arikara and many other powerful peoples.

Smallpox devastates the peoples of the Missouri River, shattering societies that had long acted as a barrier to Lakota expansion.

As the old balance of power collapses, the Lakota move west.

The Black Hills become increasingly important. The Missouri becomes a highway rather than a boundary.

And the Lakota begin combining the things they need most: mobility, firepower, numbers and the buffalo.

Meanwhile, Britain defeats France and emerges as the dominant European power in North America.

Then, as Britain and its American colonies go to war, another great power begins to emerge.

In 1776, as the American colonists declare independence, the Lakota are establishing their dominance across the Black Hills.

Two peoples are declaring themselves to the world.

Two nations whose futures will become inseparably intertwined.

And the collision between them is only beginning.

🎧 New episodes every Saturday

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#Lakota #Sioux #LittleBighorn #AmericanWest #NativeAmericanHistory #IndigenousHistory #GreatPlains #AmericanHistory #USHistory #AmericanRevolution #LakotaHistory #HistoryPodcast #HistoryDocumentary

The first attempt has failed.

Trotsky has survived the machine-gun assault on his home. But Stalin's campaign to destroy his old rival is entering its final stage.

In this final episode, we follow Ramón Mercader as he moves deeper into Trotsky's inner circle, slowly gaining the trust of those closest to him.

As Trotsky's world contracts behind fortified walls, he begins to reflect on the revolution he helped create, and the extraordinary path that brought him to Mexico.

Meanwhile, in Moscow, a new plan is taking shape.

This time, there will be no army.

No machine guns.

No dramatic assault.

Just one man, one carefully constructed identity, and one final opportunity to silence the last prophet.

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#Trotsky #RussianRevolution #HistoryPodcast #SovietHistory #Stalin #NKVD #RamonMercader #Trotskyism #Communism #SovietUnion #MexicanHistory #HistoryDocumentary

The assassin is already in position.

As Leon Trotsky settles into his fortified compound in Mexico, Stalin's campaign to destroy him enters its final and most dangerous phase.

In this fifth episode, we follow the NKVD's hunt for Trotsky and the extraordinary operation designed to penetrate his inner circle.

We meet Ramón Mercader, the young Spanish communist who would eventually become one of the most notorious assassins of the twentieth century.

Under the identity of "Jack Mornard", Mercader begins a carefully constructed romance with Silvia Ageloff, a Trotskyist who unknowingly becomes the key to his access to Trotsky.

As Mercader slowly works his way towards Mexico, the NKVD prepares multiple teams and infiltrates Trotsky's organisation from within.

But while Stalin's agents close in, Trotsky himself begins to confront a more personal enemy: doubt.

The revolutionary who once believed Marxism was an inevitable scientific truth now looks around the world and sees capitalism surviving, fascism advancing and the Soviet Union transformed into the Stalinist dictatorship he had spent years fighting.

For the first time, Trotsky is forced to ask whether the revolution, and perhaps his entire life's work, had been a mistake.

Yet his faith survives.

As Trotsky writes his final testament and reflects on his life, the NKVD prepares to strike.

In May 1940, an armed force led by the Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros launches a daring assault on Trotsky's compound.

Machine guns tear through the house.

The guards are overwhelmed.

Trotsky and Natalia hide beneath the hail of bullets.

And yet, somehow, Trotsky survives.

The first attempt has failed.

But Stalin is not going to give up.

The next assassin will not come with twenty men and machine guns.

He will come alone.

He will come as a friend.

🎧 New episodes every Saturday

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#Trotsky #RussianRevolution #HistoryPodcast #SovietHistory #Stalin #Mexico #NKVD #RamonMercader #Trotskyism #SpanishCivilWar #Siqueiros #GreatTerror #HistoryDocumentary