Haaretz Podcast

Susan Glasser has been one of the most prominent journalists covering Washington's political dramas in the Obama, Trump and Biden years. But earlier in her career, as an American reporter stationed in Moscow, she witnessed the rise of a man who has had just as much influence on world affairs over the years: Vladimir Putin.

On this episode of Haaretz Weekend, Glasser joins hosts Allison Kaplan Sommer and Amir Tibon to discuss Putin's evolution from "an obscure KGB officer" to a murderous autocrat who is challenging the entire world order. Sharing an incredible story from her first ever meeting with Putin, she explains why many in the West misread him for a reformer before realizing who they were truly dealing with. 

She also comments on Biden's response to the war, Trump's embrace of Russian talking points, and the anger in Washington over Israel's hesitant approach since the start of the fighting.

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More than a month into the Ukraine war, is it too soon to call the Russian invasion a failure? What impact will it have on America's international standing, and why has it increased Iran's motivation to acquire nuclear weapons? Retired Israeli general Amos Yadlin, former head of Israel's military intelligence, joins the podcast to discuss these questions amid reports of Russian war crimes on the outskirts of Kyiv.

Yadlin tells host Amir Tibon that Putin's "barbaric" war is a reflection of Russia's failure to "march into Kyiv and be greeted as liberators." Putin, in his view, "lost the war he planned," but can still win another, more brutal one. Listen to the full conversation, which also touches on Israel's ties with China, and the Biden administration's approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Read more of our Ukraine coverage:

* Russian War Crimes in Ukraine Are Exposed. Will That Change Anything?  

* Why Jewish Refugees From Ukraine Are Choosing Germany Over Israel 

* How D.C. Emboldened Putin, According to Key Trump Impeachment Witness 

* Opinion: Why Most Israelis Blame Putin, but Most Palestinians Don't 

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Former U.S. National Security Adviser, retired General H.R. McMaster, joins Haaretz Weekend for a frank conversation about Ukraine, Iran and the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship. 

McMaster told host Allison Kaplan Sommer that Israel “ought to be embarrassed” for failing to “fully support” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his fight against the Russian invasion. 

The Ukrainian situation “is at least a little bit analogous to the situation of Israel” having been “attacked without provocation from a more powerful neighbor,” McMaster said. “This idea that you hedge [your bets] with Vladimir Putin to compensate for concerns that the American administration might attenuate or lessen support for Israel – that’s part of a long pattern and it’s always been wrong.” 

A longtime harsh critic of the Biden White House’s decision to withdraw from Afghanistan last summer, McMaster is certain that “you can draw a direct line from the humiliating surrender to a terrorist organization and withdrawal from Afghanistan to Putin’s decision to attack Ukraine.”

McMaster also explains why he thinks the chances that Biden’s Iran negotiators will ever be able to improve the terms of the nuclear deal are “zero,” and that Iran will never give up its fight to “place a proxy army on the border of Israel and to threaten Israel with destruction.” 

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The images from the north-central city of Hadera on Sunday sent many Israelis back in time to the dark days of the second intifada: two terrorists, armed with multiple weapons, standing in the middle of a busy street and opening fire.

The fact that the perpetrators turned out to be Arab citizens of Israel who had pledged allegiance to ISIS, and that an attack by another Arab-Israeli ISIS supporter took place just days earlier in the south of the country, made the situation even more shocking. Haaretz's senior defense analyst Amos Harel joins the podcast to explain the background to these attacks, and why they are so concerning in the eyes of Israel's security services.

Later on this episode, Israeli foreign policy expert Ksenia Svetlova, a former member of the Knesset, talks with host Amir Tibon about the war in Ukraine, a month after Putin's tanks first invaded the country. What has caused the Russians to get stuck in the mud, how is Putin trying to suffocate the Ukrainian economy, and what should Israel do differently in its response to the refugee crisis? Listen to the full conversation, starting at time code 12:40. 

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Tom Dine, executive director of AIPAC from 1980-1993, is extremely worried that the organization’s controversial decision to endorse and fund congressional candidates who refused to certify the 2020 election will prove to be an “existential mistake.” 

The pro-Israel lobby has “walked into a trap they set themselves” and are now being seen as supporting “antidemocratic” forces, he tells host Allison Kaplan Sommer on Haaretz Weekend. The current AIPAC leadership's efforts to defend their choice with “no apologies” is “bullshit,” he says bluntly.

“There is no compromise when it comes to democracy,” Dine says. “If you get too many people saying AIPAC ought to go out of business, it's no longer relevant – then you don't have the grassroots support that I think is essential.”

Also on the show, Haaretz reporter Judy Maltz explains why it seems that just as many – or more – Ukrainian Jews fleeing the war in their homeland are heading to Berlin instead of immigrating to Israel. With Germany offering them free housing, and a community of former Soviet Jews already settled there to welcome them, “for many of them it makes more sense to go to Germany.”

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As the war in Ukraine rages on, Vladimir Putin's army is being exposed as less effective than previously thought, argues Haaretz senior correspondent Anshel Pfeffer on this week's episode. Joining from Kyiv, where he has been covering the war with photographer Ohad Zwigenberg, he shares what "normal life" currently looks like in the bombarded Ukrainian capital, explains what it takes for a journalist to enter Ukraine these days, and offers a grim assessment about the possibility of the war ending via diplomatic negotiations. 

Later on this episode, senior Haaretz analyst Alon Pinkas joins host Amir Tibon to discuss China's role in the war, and why Beijing's position is of such great interest to U.S. President Joe Biden. Can China stop Putin from further escalating the situation? Does it even want to? Listen to the full conversation starting at time code 18:24.

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Read more of our Ukraine coverage:

* With Machine Guns From a Museum, Kyiv Takes the Fight to Russia 

* Zelensky Tells Israeli Lawmakers: Russsia Is Plotting 'Final Solution' Like the Nazis 

* Why Jewish Refugees from Ukraine Are Choosing Germany Over Israel 

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Israel's attempts to mediate between Russia and Ukraine represent an important shift in the country's foreign policy, says Eran Etzion, a former senior Israeli diplomat and previously the deputy head of Israel's national security council. A country that for decades was clearly aligned with the U.S. and the West, says Etzion, has been drifting toward a more neutral position in the global arena, but now it must choose between the democratic world and an authoritarian axis trying to destroy it. Listen to his full interview with host Amir Tibon.

Later on the show, we hear from Anat Peled, co-author of a recent Haaretz article on Israelis who have gone to Ukraine to fight with the Ukrainian military against Putin's invasion. What brings young Israelis to leave everything behind for this war, and how does the government view the phenomenon? The conversation with her starts at time code 28:20. 

This week, because of the Purim holiday, there will not be a new episode of Haaretz Weekend. See you next week. 

Read more of our Ukraine coverage:

* Anshel Pfeffer reports from Odessa, the city that believes it is Putin's next target.

* Putin wanted another Crimea. He may get another Chechnya instead.

* Israel plans to airlift tens of thousands of Ukrainian Jews.

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Journalist Julia Ioffe was born in the former Soviet Union, immigrated to the U.S. as a child, and returned many times since to Russia as a reporter covering the country's politics, wars and relations with the world. On this episode of Haaretz Weekend, she explains why Vladimir Putin was surprised by U.S. President Joe Biden's tough sanctions, but why the economic damage caused to Russia won't deter him from continuing his cruel war in Ukraine. Putin, she warns, is cornered, and is far from the strategic genius some analysts make of him. But that doesn't make him any less dangerous.

Also on this episode, host Allison Kaplan Sommer talks to immigration attorney Yadim Elam about Israel's policy toward Ukarinian refugees, which is casuing tensions within the government. His phone hasn't stopped ringing since the start of the war, with people telling desperate stories about trying to enter the country and facing endless beuarucratic hardships. He explains who are the Ukrainian refugees arriving to Israel, and voices his disappointment and frustration with the welcome they're receiving. 

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What is it like to cover the Ukraine war from inside the beleaguered country? Who are the people escaping the Russian onslaught? And is Israel doing enough to help the refugees arriving at its gates?

Haaretz correspondents Yarden Michaeli and Judy Maltz, who recently returned from Ukraine and Moldova, respectively, share their experiences on the ground, offer a dark assessment of the war's next steps and end with some optimistic stories of resilience and generosity despite the enormous crisis. Listen to their full conversation with host Amir Tibon, starting at time code 10:30.

But first up, our national security analyst, Amos Harel, delivers an update on Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's attempts to broker a cease-fire in Eastern Europe and tries to answer the most frightening question of all: What will it take for a cornered Vladimir Putin to turn this conflict into a nuclear one?

Read more of our Ukraine coverage:

* 'I Fled the Nazis, Now I'm Fleeing the Russians': Jewish Refugees From Ukraine Find Shelter in Moldova

* This Ukrainian Synagogue Survived World War II. Now It’s Trying to Stop the Russians

* Time Is No Longer on Putin's Side  

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Dani Dayan, chairman of Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Center, joins host Allison Kaplan Sommer to discuss the war in Ukraine and how it affects his organization's main mission, preserving the memory of the Holocaust. He finds reason for concern in some recent developments: “Both sides are trivializing and distorting the Holocaust. I regret that both sides are using their propagandistic comparisons to the Holocaust that are completely inaccurate and completely improper.” 

Dayan chose to speak out after Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed the invasion is aimed at “denazification,” and a Kremlin spokesman mocked Yad Vashem and promised to organize a visit to “mass graves” in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, meanwhile, accused Moscow of “killing the victims of the Holocaust for the second time." Dayan also addressed criticism directed at his organization for signing a letter asking the United States not to sanction Russian billionaire and major donor Roman Abramovich.

Later on the show, Haaretz deputy-editor-in-chief Noa Landau explains why multimillion-dollar gifts to Yad Vashem, like the recent controversial donation by Abramovich, must end. She advocates a law that would require Yad Vashem be fully funded by the Israeli government so it can refuse private donations that could affect its mission.

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