logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2024
51m 24s

614. Is the U.S. Sleeping on Threats fro...

Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
About this episode

John J. Sullivan, a former State Department official and U.S. ambassador, says yes: “Our politicians aren’t leading — Republicans or Democrats.” He gives a firsthand account of a fateful Biden-Putin encounter, talks about his new book Midnight in Moscow, and predicts what a second Trump term means for Russia, Ukraine, China — and the U.S.

 

  • SOURCES:
    • John Sullivan, former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and former U.S. Ambassador to Russia. 

 

 

Up next
Yesterday
How to Make Your Own Luck (Update)
Before she decided to become a poker pro, Maria Konnikova didn’t know how many cards are in a deck. But she did have a Ph.D. in psychology, a brilliant coach, and a burning desire to know whether life is driven more by skill or chance. She found some answers in poker — and she’s ... Show More
58m 7s
Jul 4
639. “This Country Kicks My Ass All the Time”
Cory Booker on the politics of fear, the politics of hope, and how to split the difference. SOURCES:Cory Booker, senior United States Senator from New Jersey. RESOURCES:"'When Are More Americans Going to Speak Up?'" by The New Yorker Radio Hour (2025)."Cory Booker’s Marathon Floo ... Show More
53m 46s
Jun 27
638. Are You Ready for the Elder Swell?
In the U.S., there will soon be more people over 65 than there are under 18 — and it’s not just lifespan that’s improving, it’s “healthspan” too. Unfortunately, the American approach to aging is stuck in the 20th century. In less than an hour, we try to unstick it. (Part three of ... Show More
54m 53s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2025
Vance Threatens Military Action to Push Russia on Ukraine Deal
A.M. Edition for Feb. 14. Vice President JD Vance tells the Journal that the U.S. could send troops to Ukraine if Moscow fails to negotiate to end the war there in good faith. But President Trump’s decision to hold direct talks with Russia is a win for President Vladimir Putin, a ... Show More
12m 30s
Feb 2024
The Romance Between The American Right, Russia And Putin
For half a century, during the Cold War, every U-S president painted Russia as the dominant threat. America's ideological opposite, a hostile and nuclear-armed power. Ronald Reagan went so far as to call the Soviet Union an Evil Empire. So the events of recent days have been note ... Show More
12m 57s
Dec 2024
Exclusive: Russia Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Describes the War With the US and How to End It
Russia’s longtime foreign minister describes the war with the United States and how to end it. (00:00) Is the US at War With Russia?(12:56) Russia’s Message to the West Through Hypersonic Weapons(17:47) Is There Conversation Happening Between Russia and the US?(23:18) How Many Ha ... Show More
1h 24m
Nov 2024
Andrei Kelin: Is Vladimir Putin reshaping geopolitics?
Stephen Sackur speaks to Russia’s ambassador in London, Andrei Kelin. Thanks to the war in Ukraine and allegations of Russian hybrid warfare in Europe and beyond, diplomatic relations between Moscow and the West are poisonous. Is Vladimir Putin right to think he’s reshaping geopo ... Show More
22m 58s
May 2018
Why Putin Matters
On The Gist, the mainstream media is too buttoned-up when describing the Trump administration’s shenanigans.There is no Russian Federation as we know it without Vladimir Putin. Former Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul explains how parts of Russian society are eager for new lead ... Show More
35m 25s
Sep 2024
Why Russians are still backing Putin
Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk region of Russia represented another sign that Vladimir Putin’s invasion is not going to plan. But numerous setbacks, and the sanctions regime imposed by the west, have so far failed to loosen the Russian leader’s grip on power. Gideon discusses ... Show More
28m 47s
Feb 2025
Former British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace
For the past week, Donald Trump has publicly aligned the United States more with America's adversary, Vladimir Putin, than with its allies, Ukraine and the rest of the Europe. With the next German chancellor talking about having to seek security independence from the United State ... Show More
1 h
May 21
Trump Said Peace in Ukraine Would Come Easy. It Hasn’t.
President Trump once approached the challenge of ending Russia’s war in Ukraine as a straight-ahead deal that he could achieve easily. But after months of trying, he’s signaling that he might actually walk away.Michael Crowley, who covers U.S. foreign policy for The New York Time ... Show More
24m 27s
Mar 2025
Putin Agrees to Help Trump Broker Nuclear Talks With Iran: Bloomberg Exclusive
Russia agreed to assist President Donald Trump’s administration in communicating with Iran on issues including the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program and its support for regional anti-US proxies, according to people familiar with the situation. Trump relayed that interest directl ... Show More
10m 37s