William Taylor, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine and Vice President, Russia & Europe at the U.S. Institute of Peace, talks to Chuck about Ukraine’s history and why Russian President Vladimir Putin’s push to control Ukraine could backfire.

As Russian aggression at its Western border reaches a newfound high this weekend, NBC News Pentagon Correspondent Courtney Kube joins Chuck to detail the possible looming timeline of a 190,000-troop march up to Kyiv. 

Matthieu Aikins, journalist and author of the new book, “The Naked Don't Fear the Water: An Underground Journey with Afghan Refugees,” talks to Chuck about what he saw during the fall of Kabul. In his new book, we tells the story of Omar, a friend and translator, who Aitkins accompanied in 2016 as he tried to escape to Europe, first through Turkey and then Greece.

Chuck Klosterman, cultural critic and author of “The Nineties” talks to Chuck Todd about how life was different in the last decade before the internet was everywhere, and why Gen X might be, in his words, “the least annoying” of the generations that are still alive.

John Della Volpe, author of, “Fight: How Gen Z is channeling their fear and passion to save America” talks to Chuck about how Gen Z differs from generations that preceded them and what campaigns need to understand about the newest voters.

Russia is now poised for a full-scale invasion of Ukraine if they want one, with diplomacy talks taking place this week between Russia and France, Russia and the U-K, and of course, Russia and NATO. Meanwhile, the U-S diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics looks like a non-issue. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Australia, negotiations continue with Iran over a nuclear agreement.

Chuck talks with John Hudson, National Security Reporter at the Washington Post and Abigail Williams, producer and off-air reporter for NBC News at the State Department.

Helene Cooper, New York Times Pentagon correspondent, joins Chuck to discuss an interview with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, the rising military tensions between Russia and Ukraine, and the American diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

Tensions between Russia and the West remain high but what happens next is something of a mystery — in part because Vladimir Putin’s playbook is designed to be unpredictable.

David Remnick, the editor of the New Yorker, author and former Moscow correspondent, talks to Chuck about what might be motivating the Russian president.

Leon Panetta, former Secretary of Defense and Director of the CIA during the Obama administration and  White House Chief of Staff to Bill Clinton, talks to Chuck Todd about “the shadow of the New Deal” and what Vladimir Putin really wants. 

As Russian troops remain at the Ukrainian border, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) talks about a possible diplomatic resolution. NBC News correspondent Carol Lee joins Chuck to talk about the latest.