Will Tolkachev fall at the final hurdle and land in the hands of the KGB? How do the CIA go about protecting their assets in the field? And, does it really take a spy to catch a spy?
As we reach the final instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev, the plot reaches its dramatic crescendo. Tolkachev has now been working for the CIA for over half a decade and ... Show More
Apr 17
148. Can Europe Salvage its Relationship with Trump?
Is there anyone telling Trump, ‘No’? Is Trump’s use of power getting more unhinged? And should Europe have done more to open the Strait of Hormuz? Listen back to David and Gordon live on YouTube with Washington Post columnist and author, David Ignatius, to discuss the latest on T ... Show More
36m 36s
Oct 2025
True Spies - Brief Histories: Counterintelligence
From the lagoon of Venice to revolutionary Russia, counterintelligence has always been an important aspect of statecraft. In Brief Histories, the new monthly special from True Spies, series producer Joe Foley is your guide to this secret world - alongside a treasure-trove of stor ... Show More
25m 48s
Mar 2024
Fatal Neutrality: Lumumba, the CIA, and the Cold War
In 1960, the Congo gained independence from Belgium. Patrice Lumumba was elected prime minister and Joseph Kasavubu president. Within a year, Lumumba was deposed and assassinated. This week on Deconstructed, executive editor of Foreign Affairs and author Stuart Reid joins Ryan Gr ... Show More
46m 10s
Jan 2024
120. Is Putin looking for a Ceasefire?
In our second Battleground podcast of 2024 Saul and Patrick return to the war in Ukraine, as in the past week has seen a tit for tat of missile and drone strikes – the majority, needless to say, fired from Russia. They also discuss both the possibility and the feasibility of rece ... Show More
35m 23s
Feb 2025
True Spies Classic: Blinking Red | CIA
In this True Spies Classic, CIA analyst Gina Bennett shows Vanessa Kirby the origins of America's most infamous enemy. Throughout the 1990s, Osama bin Laden launched a series of attacks on American interests at home and abroad. Operating in the man's world of counter-terrorism, G ... Show More
50m 28s