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Lebanon. Syria. Iran. Hezbollah. Israel. Russia. Few people on Earth can connect all of these threads from firsthand experience—Ambassador David Hale can.

In this special holiday edition of the Restricted Handling Podcast, hosts Ryan Fugit (former Army & CIA officer) and Glenn Corn (34-year CIA veteran, multiple-time CIA Chief of Station) sit down with one of America's most accomplished diplomats for a no-nonsense deep dive into the Middle East power shift unfolding right now.

With 40 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, Ambassador Hale has served as U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan, Lebanon, and Jordan, including three tours in Lebanon, giving him rare longitudinal insight into how U.S. policy, Iranian influence, and regional conflicts truly evolve over time.

🎙️ In this episode, we cover:

• Why Lebanon is at a historic inflection point after decades of Syrian and Iranian dominance

• The real status of Hezbollah's degradation—and why persistence is everything

• How Iran was finally disrupted, and the danger of U.S. disengagement

• Assad's fall and the hard truths about Syria's new leadership

• Why Israel is expanding security belts—and where it clashes with U.S. policy

• Russia's long game in the Levant—and why Moscow ultimately abandons its allies

• Whether U.S. or French troops in Lebanon would stabilize or explode the situation

• The future of American diplomacy—and whether young people should still pursue the Foreign Service

This conversation is a masterclass in strategic realism—how intelligence, diplomacy, and military power intersect when theory collides with reality. Ambassador Hale also pulls back the curtain on how U.S. administrations repeatedly surge, retreat, and leave vacuums adversaries are happy to fill.

If you want to understand: ✔️ Middle East geopolitics beyond headlines ✔️ U.S.–Iran confrontation dynamics ✔️ Lebanon, Syria, Israel, and Hezbollah in context ✔️ How policy decisions are actually made

…this episode is essential.

📘 Featured Guest & Host Links

Ambassador David Hale

• Institute of World Politics – Faculty Profile https://www.iwp.edu/faculty/ambassador-david-hale/

• Wilson Center – Distinguished Fellow https://www.wilsoncenter.org/person/david-hale

• Book: American Diplomacy Toward Lebanon: Lessons in Foreign Policy in the Middle East https://www.amazon.com/American-Diplomacy-Toward-Lebanon-Institute/dp/0755652223

Glenn Corn

• Institute of World Politics – Faculty Profile https://www.iwp.edu/faculty/glenn-corn/

• Great South Bay Inc. https://greatsouthbayinc.com/

⏱️ Time Stamps

• 00:00 – Intro

• 02:15 – Lebanon's Turning Point: Hezbollah on the Ropes

• 06:05 – Iran's Strategy: Why Silence Is Dangerous

• 10:30 – Can Lebanon Prevent Hezbollah's Return?

• 14:55 – Syria After Assad: Hard Truths About the New Regime

• 20:10 – Israel's Security Strategy & U.S. Policy Tensions

• 24:40 – Russia's Role: Why Moscow Abandons Its Allies

• 28:45 – Why America Always Walks Away

• 32:50 – Should Young Americans Still Join the Foreign Service?

• 35:45 – Final Thoughts & Holiday Send-Off

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restrictedhandling.substack.com/subscribe

📩 Subscribe for Daily Intel - PDB-Style for FREE at ⁠⁠⁠restrictedhandling.com⁠⁠⁠.

Stay ahead of the world's most critical flashpoints with the Restricted Handling Daily Intelligence Brief — a PDB-style summary covering Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and the Middle East. You'll also get two companion daily podcasts focused exclusively on Russia and China.

Today's Episode

Get ready for an eye-opening, on-the-ground breakdown from former CIA officers Ryan Fugit and Glenn Korn as they dive deep into Glenn's latest trip to Ukraine, the evolving Russia–Ukraine war, shifting U.S. national security strategy, and the global geopolitical chessboard shaping 2025 and beyond.

Fresh off his eighth trip to Ukraine, Glenn shares raw, unfiltered observations from Kyiv and Lviv, including the mood of the Ukrainian people, the Midas corruption scandal shaking political leadership, Russia's escalated airstrikes, critical shortages in air defense systems, and what Ukraine truly needs to withstand the winter.

The conversation then shifts into the explosive 28-point peace plan, the stalled Moscow meeting with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Putin's classic diplomatic power plays, Russian disinformation, European hesitations, China's strategic position, and how the new U.S. National Security Strategy reframes threats in the Western Hemisphere, Eurasia, and beyond.

If you care about geopolitics, intelligence analysis, or understanding the reality behind headline narratives, this episode is an absolute must-watch.

🎯 Topics Covered

• Glenn's firsthand insights from Ukraine

• How Russia is adjusting tactics on the battlefield

• Ukrainian political turmoil: the Midas corruption case

• Europe's role: UK, France, Germany, Baltics, Nordics

• Why Russia made Witkoff & Kushner wait 5 hours

• China's influence inside Russia

• How the new U.S. national security strategy shifts America's priorities

• What Putin fears most

• Why the West must communicate directly to the Russian people

• Timeline

  • 00:00 — Opening + Introductions

  • 00:26 — Glenn returns from Ukraine: trip overview

  • 00:51 — Conditions on the ground in Kyiv & Lviv

  • 01:54 — How Ukrainians are coping with winter + political scandal

  • 04:30 — The stalled 28-point plan & Moscow visit fallout

  • 06:21 — Russia's propaganda tactics & disrespect signals

  • 07:21 — Europe's support: who's helping, who's not

  • 08:30 — EU frozen Russian assets debate explained

  • 11:07 — What the U.S. should do next with Russia

  • 13:04 — Why "win-win-win economics" doesn't work with Putin

  • 14:47 — New U.S. National Security Strategy: Glenn's take

  • 18:00 — Western Hemisphere focus & Maduro–Putin developments

  • 21:00 — How Europe interprets the new strategy

  • 23:59 — Why Russia is applauding the strategy document

  • 26:09 — Disinformation, media accountability & the BBC case

  • 28:36 — Value of NATO and European partnerships

  • 30:00 — China's threat and why Russia won't break from Beijing

  • 31:48 — Who actually has influence over Putin today?

  • 34:38 — Any hope of breakthroughs before year-end?

  • 35:50 — Final thoughts: Why Ukraine needs unwavering U.S. resolve

Want more deep-dive episodes with Ryan Fugit & Glenn Korn? Drop your questions in the comments!

🕵️‍♂️ Find Glenn Corn Online: ⁠https://greatsouthbayinc.com/⁠

• Former Senior CIA Operations Officer, Member of the Senior Intelligence Service, and Adjunct Professor of Russian/Soviet Studies

• With 34 years across the CIA, Defense, and State Department, he's served in some of the hardest locations as a multi-time Chief of Station.

• Today, he advises on global intelligence, risk, and strategic security challenges while teaching at the Institute of World Politics.

Find Ryan Fugit Online: Ryan founded Restricted Handling to highlight some of the authoritarian regimes.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restrictedhandling.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of the Restricted Handling Podcast, Ryan speaks with Mike and Dolyna, two Ukrainian soldiers fighting on the front lines of the war in Ukraine—where survival depends on speed, adaptability, and constant innovation.

📩 Subscribe for Daily Intel - PDB-Style for FREE at ⁠⁠⁠restrictedhandling.com⁠⁠⁠.

Stay ahead of the world's most critical flashpoints with the Restricted Handling Daily Intelligence Brief — a PDB-style summary covering Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and the Middle East. You'll also get two companion daily podcasts focused exclusively on Russia and China.

Delina commands a research and development drone unit, responsible for designing, testing, and deploying FPV, UAV, and signal-support drones directly into live combat. Mike, who once studied abroad in Europe, now operates in a battlespace defined by drones, electronic warfare, and rapid tactical evolution. Together, they offer an unfiltered, first-hand look at how modern warfare is being rewritten in real time.

🕵️‍♂️ Find Glenn Corn Online:⁠ ⁠https://greatsouthbayinc.com/⁠⁠

• Former Senior CIA Operations Officer, Member of the Senior Intelligence Service, and Adjunct Professor of Russian/Soviet Studies

• With 34 years across the CIA, Defense, and State Department, he's served in some of the hardest locations as a multi-time Chief of Station.

• Today, he advises on global intelligence, risk, and strategic security challenges while teaching at the Institute of World Politics.

Find Ryan Fugit Online: Ryan founded Restricted Handling to highlight some of the authoritarian regimes.

Takeaways

• Delina is involved in drone R&D, focusing on aerial technology.
• The unit was moved to Zaporizhzhia after defending Kyiv.
• FPV drone development started in 2023.
• The unit aims to outperform the enemy in impact.
• FPV drones can impact targets 35 km away.
• Delina's team works on manufacturing and IT development.
• Russian tactics have changed, using fog and small units.
• Fiber optic cable drones are used in foggy terrains.
• Maintaining a steady supply of drones is challenging.
• FPV drones strike targets up to 35 km away.

Timeline

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:00:11 Delina's Role in Drone R&D
• 00:00:19 Combat Experiences and Unit Movements
• 00:01:49 FPV Drone Development
• 00:03:22 Technological Advancements and Challenges
• 00:03:55 Day-to-Day Operations and Team Structure
• 00:05:25 Pre-War Backgrounds and Command Selection
• 00:06:38 Russian Tactics and Adaptations
• 00:07:38 Drone Technology and Strategic Use
• 00:08:31 Challenges in Drone Supply and Operations
• 00:09:38 FPV Drone Capabilities
• 00:10:37 Morale and Combat Successes
• 00:11:43 Enemy Countermeasures and Tactical Changes
• 00:13:06 Russian Production and Adaptation
• 00:14:27 Social Media and Public Engagement
• 00:14:56 Future Plans and Post-War Goals
• 00:16:38 Final Thoughts and Messages to the Audience

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restrictedhandling.substack.com/subscribe

📩 Subscribe for Daily Intel - PDB-Style for FREE at⁠ ⁠⁠⁠restrictedhandling.com⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Dive into one of the most consequential and fast-moving geopolitical moments of the year as former CIA and US government veterans Ryan Fugit and Glenn Corn break down the surge of leaks, diplomatic maneuvering, battlefield realities, and Russian cognitive warfare shaping the Russia–Ukraine war right now.

In this gripping episode of the Restricted Handling Podcast, Ryan and Glenn cut through the noise to deliver insider-level clarity at a moment when the global information space is being deliberately manipulated.

Recorded on December 2nd, the conversation comes as U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow, a swirl of leaked documents rocks global capitals, and Russia intensifies its information AND battlefield campaigns.

Ryan and Glenn unpack:

• The infamous 28-point plan allegedly reflecting U.S.–Russia discussions

• The Ukrainian-refined 19-point version

• Leaked phone transcripts between U.S. envoys and top Kremlin intermediaries

• Why Glenn believes the Russians intentionally leaked them, and what psychological and geopolitical effects Moscow is chasing

• How the Kremlin uses leaks to sow distrust, fracture U.S.–EU unity, and undermine Kyiv

• The cognitive warfare parallels to their previous discussion with Natalia

• Moscow's obsession with remaining on the "front page" of global attention

• What's actually happening in Krasnohorivka and other hotspots

• Russia's evolving infiltration tactics

• How FPV drone superiority has shifted advantages

• The truth about Russian morale: mutinies, looting their own dead, and staggering casualty numbers

Ryan walks through the hard numbers:

• Inflation surging (likely higher than Moscow admits)

• Interest rates at 16.5%

• Oil revenue down 70%

• VAT increases hitting everyday Russians

• Factories moving to 4-day weeks as budgets deteriorate

• The labor and conscription crises coming to a boil

• How Kyiv views the leaks and negotiations

• Why corruption scandals won't break Ukrainian will

• Glenn's message to Ukraine and the West:

  "Take a breath. Don't fall for Moscow's psychological traps."

• What to expect from the Witkoff–Kushner–Putin meetings

• Why Putin will likely stall, signal openness, but reject major concessions

• How Moscow uses negotiations as another form of pressure, not a path to peace

• Ryan Fugit – Former U.S. Army officer and CIA operations officer with years of service in global conflict zones.

• Glenn Corn – 30-year CIA veteran, senior leader in counterterrorism, foreign intelligence, and international negotiations.

Their combined experience gives viewers rare access to the kind of analysis traditionally confined to intelligence and policy circles. (Transcript Source: )

Want the same daily intel brief Ryan and Glenn use to stay ahead of world events? Get it free at: RestrictedHandling.com

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⭐ INSIDE THIS EPISODE🔥 The Explosive Leaks🎭 Russia's Information Warfare Machine💣 The Real Situation on the Battlefield📉 Russia's Fragile Economy🇺🇦 Ukraine's Resolve🕊️ What Happens Next?⭐ WHO ARE RYAN FUGIT & GLENN CORN?

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🕵️‍♂️ Find Glenn Corn Online: ⁠https://greatsouthbayinc.com/⁠

• Former Senior CIA Operations Officer, Member of the Senior Intelligence Service, and Adjunct Professor of Russian/Soviet Studies

• With 34 years across the CIA, Defense, and State Department, he's served in some of the hardest locations as a multi-time Chief of Station.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restrictedhandling.substack.com/subscribe