logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2022
22 m

Drone warfare and the battle to control ...

Financial Times
About this episode

Governments and militias around the world, from Ukraine to Ethiopia, have a new and powerful weapon at their disposal: armed drones. Gideon talks to Ulrike Franke of the European Council on Foreign Relations about how this is changing the balance of power and causing growing concern about civilian casualties.

Clips: WSJ, CBS,Sky News


Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Jul 2
Lebanon peace deal: can it hold?
The war in Iran triggered a new round of conflict between the Hizbollah militia in Lebanon and the Israeli army. More than 4,000 people have been killed and about a million displaced. Lebanon and Israel signed a peace deal in Washington at the weekend to end the fighting, but wit ... Show More
20m 54s
Jun 28
Bonus episode: Rahm Emanuel on how to fix America
In this special edition of the Rachman Review, Edward Luce, the FT's Washington commentator, talks to Rahm Emanuel, former White House chief of staff for Barack Obama, about where the Democratic party has gone wrong in recent years and how to win back the confidence of middle Ame ... Show More
27m 57s
Jun 25
America's waning power
What are the repercussions of the Iran war for American power? How will the outcome be viewed by America’s allies and the leadership in Beijing? Gideon discusses these questions with Kevin Rudd, the former prime minister of Australia, Katherine Thompson, who until recently was a ... Show More
26m 28s
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2025
Drone wars
An ominous buzzing in the sky. Swarms of killer AI drones. Fields of fiberoptic grass. The weird future of drone warfare is here. The conflict in Ukraine has proven to be a testing ground for the next generation of weaponry. How will the proliferation of these small, cheap device ... Show More
20m 46s
Nov 2025
Drones: Who is making the new weapons of war?
From Ukraine and Russia to Gaza and Sudan, drones have become a key weapon of war. Which companies are making them, and profiting from this rapidly expanding but controversial sector within the defence industry? We hear from a woman in Ukraine who used to own a flower shop in Kyi ... Show More
17m 43s
Aug 2023
Game of drones: can Ukraine pull ahead?
<p>Three months into the counteroffensive, the military is reaping the fruits of several months of drone development. But as the war continues, will it be able to <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2023/08/27/inside-ukraines-drone-war-against-putin?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_me ... Show More
25m 20s
Sep 2025
Ukraine's high-tech war of attrition, with Christopher Miller
<p>The war in Ukraine has entered a dangerous new phase, with Russia sending bigger, more powerful drone attacks across the border nearly every day. Gone are the tanks, columns of troops, and heavy artillery from the early days of Moscow’s full-scale invasion. Now, tens of thousa ... Show More
27m 17s
Aug 2023
Game of drones: can Ukraine pull ahead?
<p>Three months into the counteroffensive, the military is reaping the fruits of several months of drone development. But as the war continues, will it be able to <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2023/08/27/inside-ukraines-drone-war-against-putin?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_me ... Show More
25m 20s
Nov 2021
Drone Wars
Unseen, they stalk their targets from thousands of feet in the air. Operators are piloting them from military bases halfway across the world. At any moment, they could launch a strike that comes without warning. The attack drone was supposed to be a symbol of the era of precision ... Show More
1h 1m
Oct 2024
Ukrainian Long-Range Drones
Outmanned and outgunned, Ukraine must work creatively to make a dent in Russia's war machine. Long-range drones that strike deep inside Russia are one of those innovations. Correspondent Fred Pleitgen was given exclusive access to one top-secret drone unit, and brings us a report ... Show More
59m 11s