This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler

The geopolitical shocks of 2025 have the potential to reverberate for decades to come. Trump’s America first agenda and the new US national security strategy risk European unity, security and the rise of far right politics; Trump's trade wars have served to increase the pressure on states looking to balance relations with the US, China and also a rising India, and Israel’s assaults in Iran, Gaza and Lebanon have changed the balance of power in the Middle East.  In the final episode of the year, Gavin Esler talks to Mark Leonard, co-founder and director of the European Council on Foreign Relations, to examine how the geopolitical balance has shifted in 2025. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the world pivots from fossil fuels and demand for electricity rises, who will control the new levers of power? The critical minerals and rare earths that tech depends on are the ultimate resources in a new “Great Game” between China, the US, Europe and Russia. What does the race to control the supply of these minerals mean for the future of the environment, security and global competition? To unpack the geopolitics of future energy supply and rare earths, Emma Beals is joined by Dr Patrick Schröder, senior research fellow at the Environment and Society Centre, Chatham House. • This episode of This Is Not A Drill is supported by Incogni the service that keeps your private information safe, protects you from identity theft and keeps your data from being sold. There’s a special offer for This Is Not A Drill listeners – go to https://incogni.com/notadrill  to get an exclusive 60% off your annual plan. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Emma Beals. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump’s push for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine looks as far away as ever after failed talks this week – can anyone move Putin closer to a realistic agreement?   To  make sense of the US-led peace process so far and how a potential deal might realistically be achieved, Gavin Esler is  joined by Steven Pifer, former US ambassador to Ukraine, an affiliate of the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University, and the author of The Eagle and the Trident: U.S.-Ukraine Relations in Turbulent Times. • This episode of This Is Not A Drill is supported by Incogni the service that keeps your private information safe, protects you from identity theft and keeps your data from being sold. There’s a special offer for This Is Not A Drill listeners – go to https://incogni.com/notadrill  to get an exclusive 60% off your annual plan. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Donald Trump claims a record of peace agreements spanning from Asia to the Americas. Do these claims hold up?  What can we learn about Trump’s efforts to resolve conflicts, and can his deals hold and achieve lasting peace? And what does his transactional approach mean for global security and America’s role in the world? Emma Beals talks to Richard Haass, former advisor to both Bush administrations and President Emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, and Samir Puri, director of the Global Governance and Security Centre at Chatham House. • This episode of This Is Not A Drill is supported by Incogni the service that keeps your private information safe, protects you from identity theft and keeps your data from being sold. There’s a special offer for This Is Not A Drill listeners – go to https://incogni.com/notadrill  to get an exclusive 60% off your annual plan. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Emma Beals. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As conflicts and tariff wars disrupt the global order, is political division preventing urgent action to protect the planet?A decade ago world leaders gathered at COP 21 in Paris to discuss the climate crisis - 194 countries signing a breakthrough agreement to limit global warming. By this year, as COP 30 meets in Brazil, the 1.5 degree target on global warming has been breached. Joining Gavin Esler to discuss the future for climate action and whether countries can find consensus to meet the biggest challenges of our time, is Nick Mabey, founding director and CEO of independent climate change think tank E3G - and also the founder of London Climate Action Week.  • This episode of This Is Not A Drill is supported by Incogni the service that keeps your private information safe, protects you from identity theft and keeps your data from being sold. There’s a special offer for This Is Not A Drill listeners – go to https://incogni.com/notadrill  to get an exclusive 60% off your annual plan. • Support us on Patreon to keep This Is Not A Drill producing thought-provoking podcasts like this. Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Executive Producer Martin Bojtos. Managing Editor Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. This Is Not A Drill is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices