For 20 years the Russian President Vladimir Putin was happy to lurk in the shadows, trying and occasionally succeeding to manipulate the rest of the world into doing what he wanted them to do.

But this year he chucked that out the window.

His invasion of Ukraine has turned global security and the global economy upside down. In this episode we ask, why did he do it?

Guests:
Philip Short - Former BBC Moscow Correspondent; Author of Putin: His Life and Times
Dr Yevgenia Albats - Chief Editor of The New Times
Dr Mykhailo Minakov - Philosopher; Editor in Chief of Focus Ukraine blog from the Kennan Institute at the Wilson Center
Dr Paul Dibb - Emeritus Professor of Strategic Studies at ANU; Former Director of the Australian Joint Intelligence Organisation
Simon Shuster - Reporter for Time Magazine; author of an upcoming biography of Volodymyr Zelenskyy

RUSSIA | S07 E1 - How war weakened strongman Putin

The world is on fire. There's a coup. A former president is being indicted. Inflation is through the roof, and AI is taking our jobs. What does it all mean? Each week, Matt Bevan explains the biggest story in world news while hiding in his basement from assassins and authoritarian regimes.

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Politics

Australia's first domestic violence shelter Elsie opened in the 1970s, and researchers have been analysing the problem ever since.

In the last three decades more than 1,500 women have been killed by intimate partners in Australia and we're still no closer to finding out why.

Campaigner Rosie Batty has compared domestic violence to terrorism, and called for similar levels of funding.

Is that comparison extreme, or is it the best way to get us closer to fixing the problem?

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[Helplines]

Should we treat domestic violence like we treat terrorism?

Michael Cohen is the star witness in the Trump 'hush-money' trial.

He was once Trump's personal attorney and said he would "take a bullet" for his boss, but then everything changed.

He has served years in prison for lying, tax fraud, bank fraud and campaign finance violations.

But he thinks everything he's gone through will be worth it if he can take Trump down.

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Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqPubAjtbc4

The man who destroyed his life to try to put Trump in jail

Plans for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics are not going well.

It's a political quagmire, with plans for billion-dollar stadium upgrades or massive new venues being thrown around like confetti.

There are concerns that Brisbane is going to blow its budget.

Fifty years ago, the 1976 Montreal Olympics suffered a financial disaster so massive it nearly heralded the end of the Olympic Games.

Is Brisbane repeating the mistakes of the past?

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Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VRUVQz-Dlw

Is Brisbane repeating the Olympic mistakes of the past

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust.

He is doing everything he can to stay in office, because if he holds office, he can't be thrown in jail.

Sound familiar? It's a bit like Donald Trump's situation in the United States.

But Netanyahu's case has an old-school flavour. It's a fierce battle between media tycoons, and it even involves Australian media nepo baby James Packer.

It's a rollicking tale. But with a military campaign against Gaza and tensions with Iran rising, it could also change the fate of the war in the Middle East.

For more on Benjamin Netanyahu's history, check out this episode: Can Israel rescue the hostages?

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Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25NndMbkhVE

Could Benjamin Netanyahu go to jail?

Narenda Modi loves to promote India's status as the largest democracy in the world, and experts agree that the country's elections are free and fair for all. Modi is now an unbackable favourite to win a third term as Prime Minister in the weeks ahead, with polls suggesting he is heading for another  victory. So why is he so sensitive to criticism, and aggressive in pursuing his detractors? In this final episode, Avani learns of the consequences of her own reporting on Modi after so many months searching for the truth.

RUSSIA | S07 E1 - How war weakened strongman Putin

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