Donald Trump is talking about rare earth elements like they are magic rings with the power to unlock world domination. 

The US President is on the brink of signing a multi-billion dollar deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, that would give the US access to Ukraine's rare earth minerals in exchange for financial security and continued military support in the war with Russia. Rare earths are critical for manufacturing electronics, batteries, magnets, and military weapons. 

But are these rare earth elements actually as rare and valuable as Trump has been led to believe? 

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Donald Trump’s sudden shift on Ukraine has come as a massive shock to most countries in America’s orbit. European leaders who have long banked their national security on US military protection are beginning to lose confidence in their most powerful ally. But there is one American ally that has been planning for this potential eventuality for decades. 

France has long been sceptical of how much America can be trusted and now they may be the only safe refuge for countries looking for new security guarantees. So how did they see this about-face coming? And what capacity does Paris have to be the new security guarantor for global democracy?

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Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/SkEn86RIsOk?si=-APXjdvpRF5RAeM0

And if you're a Newcastle fan come see If You're Listening live with Matt Bevan on Sunday 6th April at 4pm at the Conservatorium of music concert hall - Tickets are free! Find out more: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/

Since he took office, Donald Trump has made a lot of decisions that fly in the face of traditional US foreign policy. He’s left Ukraine high and dry, he’s abandoning Europe, he’s slapped tariffs on America’s allies, and he’s floated the idea of seizing new territory in Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal. 

And the big one: President Trump seems to have a great deal of time and respect for Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

So what’s the deal with Putin and Trump - is what we’re witnessing now just the beginning of their grand plans for a new world order? And what hints can we get on how things might unfold from a conference that happened 80 years ago between US president Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin in a little town called Yalta?

This week on If You’re Listening, will Putin’s dream of an emboldened Soviet sphere come true? 

And if you're a Newcastle fan come see If You're Listening live with Matt Bevan on Sunday 4th April at 4pm at the Conservatorium of music concert hall - Tickets are free! Find out more: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/

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In the United States, there are laws constraining the President’s power. The Attorney General and everyone who works at the Department of Justice aren’t meant to just do whatever the President tells them; they’re in charge of enforcing the law, whatever it is. 

So what will they do when enforcing the law doesn’t align with Donald Trump’s policies? 

In Trump’s first term, the Attorneys General and Justice Department staff prioritised the law over Trump’s desires, because that’s how democracies work. Is there any chance that will happen this time?

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Throughout Donald Trump’s campaign he declared that the Justice Department and the FBI were weaponised against him. 

Now that he’s US President, he’s making huge changes to both, putting loyal supporters in charge. 

Over two episodes, If You’re Listening looks at the massive transformation underway in the US federal criminal justice system, starting with the appointment of Kash Patel as Director of the FBI. 

For almost 50 years, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover used the bureau as a political weapon, and successive Presidents let him. 

The 50 years since his death have seen the FBI aim for independence from the President. Now, with Patel’s appointment, that work is at risk of being undone, with potentially terrifying consequences.

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Billionaire Elon Musk is at the helm of US President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, established to slash massive amounts of government spending as fast as possible. 

In just weeks they’ve dismantled agencies, cancelled programs and attempted to lay off tens of thousands of government workers. 

Everyone agrees that the US government is a mess, that it’s spending more than it earns and something should be done. And yet, there are mass protests across America against what Musk is doing. 

This week on If You’re Listening, can DOGE do what Musk and Trump say it will do? 

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Newcastle you can find details for our live show on April 6 here: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/

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When US President Donald Trump announced his plan for America to take over the Gaza Strip, everyone was stunned. That includes the man standing next to him, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 

President Trump says everyone he’s spoken to loves the idea. But who has he spoken to? In his first term as president, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner led efforts to broker peace in the region, and his approach makes this latest announcement make a lot more sense. 

This week on If You’re Listening, how Kushner and Trump turned geopolitics into property development.

Are you in Adelaide? On March 1 we're performing live, with all new stories at the Adelaide Festival Writers' Week. Tickets are selling fast: https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/events/2025-writers-week/if-you-re-listening/

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Donald Trump started his presidency by picking a fight with Colombia. The US threatened its Central American neighbour with massive tariffs if it didn't accept planes full of handcuffed deportees. 

Colombia backed down — and that has serious implications for the rest of the region. President Trump is gearing up for negotiations over deportations and his new favourite issue, ownership of the Panama Canal. 

This week on If You're Listening, can one of the most divided, violent and vulnerable parts of the world find a way to fight back against President Trump's agenda? 

Are you in Adelaide? On March 1 we're performing live, with all new stories at the Adelaide Festival Writers' Week. Tickets are selling fast: https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/events/2025-writers-week/if-you-re-listening/

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Donald Trump has liked the idea of tariffs for a long time, since before his first term as president. Now that he’s back in office he’s using them to do all sorts of things — threaten other countries, crack down on drug importation and bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States. 

He’s starting with a 25 per cent tax on imports from Canada and Mexico, a move that would have huge implications for America’s economy and its relationship with its closest neighbours. 

President Trump is promising it’s just the beginning, and that this won’t make goods more expensive for Americans. It’s been a long time since most developed countries have used tariffs in this way, but there is one US ally with a recent memory of something like it. 

In this episode of If You’re Listening, what can we understand about tariffs from Australia’s recent past?

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The people of Georgia are in the streets of Tbilisi, protesting the ruling party’s recent election win. At the heart of the fight is whether the country should appease Vladimir Putin, or oppose him. 

For years Georgia was moving closer to the European Union, but the war in Ukraine changed everything. Now, billionaire oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili and his Georgia Dream party are betting on a relationship with Putin, hoping to save the country from a fate similar to Ukraine’s. 

Today on If You’re Listening, the story of a democracy at the crossroads of the West and the East, fighting over whether to be afraid of Vladimir Putin or not.

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