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US President Donald Trump has pledged to “plant the stars and stripes on the planet Mars”, China could send its first crewed mission to Mars within a decade, and Elon Musk wants people to actually settle on Mars, transforming the human race into an interplanetary species.
In a new series of Tech Tonic, the FT’s Peggy Hollinger asks if we’re really about to land, and even live, on the red planet.
Free to read:
Three days with America’s rocket chasers
Tech Tonic is produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval. The senior producer is Edwin Lane. Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio.
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Gideon interviews Britain's deputy prime minister David Lammy at the Labour Party conference at a meeting hosted by the Tony Blair Institute. They discuss how the Starmer government, which has had a tough first year in office, can turn things around, as well as the Gaza peace plan, ties with the Trump administration and how to fight 'the politics of grievance'. Clip: Keir Starmer
Free links to read more on this topic:
Starmer urges Labour to launch ‘patriotic’ fight against Reform
How Donald Trump’s Gaza deal came together
Trump goes mainstream on the Middle East
‘Lost the plot’: Tony Blair’s Gaza role prompts incredulity — and some hope
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Gideon talks to Matt Duss, former adviser to Senator Bernie Sanders and executive vice-president of the Washington-based Center for International Policy. They discuss recent curbs on free speech, former president Joe Biden’s foreign policy mistakes, and how identity politics has been used to distract voters from the ever widening gap between rich and poor. Clips: DRM News; Forbes
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Jimmy Kimmel hits out at ‘anti-American’ threats to free speech as show returns
Inside Disney’s decision to bring back Jimmy Kimmel
America’s accelerating exit from itself
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon talks to former Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis about Russia’s recent drone incursion into Polish airspace. What message should Europe and Nato take from this? How worried are the Baltic states about a possible expansion of Vladimir Putin’s war aims? And how vulnerable are they to attack? Clips: BBC, BFBS
Free links to read more on this topic:
What is Vladimir Putin’s game plan against Nato’s eastern flank?
Russians lose internet access as Ukrainian drones hit close to home
Baltic states know Russian occupation is never temporary
Moscow holds Ukrainian children at hundreds of sites across Russia
Europe turns to Ukrainian tech for ‘drone wall’ against Russia
Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon talks to journalist Anshel Pfeffer about Israel’s ‘strongman’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. They discuss how his ‘brazen disregard’ for international norms has helped him to cling to power, but also left him at the mercy of more and more extreme forces in Israel. This episode is an edited recording of an event organised by Intelligence Squared that took place in central London earlier this month. Clips: LBC; CNN; BBC
Free links to read more on this topic:
Israel unbound: was Qatar a strike too far?
EU moves to freeze some funding to Israel over war in Gaza
Israeli annexation of the West Bank would be ‘red line’ for UAE
Netanyahu’s disastrous plan to take control of Gaza
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon talks to Albanian academic Lea Ypi about her book Indignity. In the book, she describes how living first under the Ottoman empire, then as part of fascist Italy and later in a post-war communist state affected the lives of her grandparents. They discuss possible parallels between the first half of the 20th century and the times we are living in today and ask what lessons can be drawn from this history to avoid making the same mistakes. Clip: AQSHF
Free links to read more on this topic:
Albania’s ‘old sheriff’ on course to win fourth term as prime minister
Why the EU’s migration dilemma is pushing the bloc further right
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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The longheld US position to defend Taiwan’s independent status in the face of Chinese aggression is looking shaky under the Trump administration, in spite of Taiwanese efforts to court the American president. This week, Gideon talks to analyst and author James Crabtree - former director of the Asia office of the International Institute for Strategic Studies - about why the US now seems more interested in doing a deal with China than showing support for Taiwan. They also discuss the broader implications that this, and other issues, might have for US alliances across the Indo-Pacific region, including relations with South Korea, Japan, Australia and India.
Clips:
Amazon Prime
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Taiwan raises defence spending by 23% under US pressure to counter China threat
Donald Trump blocks Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te from New York stopover
US cancelled military talks with Taiwan
Trump is the gift that keeps giving to China
The geopolitics of chips: Taiwan’s ‘Silicon Shield’
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Clare Williamson. Sound design is by Breen Turner. The executive producer is Flo Phillips.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon discusses the outcome of the recent Alaska and Washington summits with Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Has Russia emerged as a clear winner? What can be achieved without more pressure on Vladimir Putin? How effective would western security guarantees be to prevent future Russian aggression?
Clip: Sky News
Free links to read more on this topic:
Ukraine talks expose Trump’s dreadful attention to detail
Donald Trump says US could play role ‘by air’ in Ukraine security guarantee
Donald Trump says US to ‘co-ordinate’ Ukraine’s security with Europe
‘Stab in the back’: Kyiv reels as Trump embraces Putin’s terms
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design by Breen Turner. The executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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The Trump administration has hit India with 50% tariffs. And just after a short military conflict between India and Pakistan, President Trump played host to Pakistan’s army chief of staff at the White House. Gideon discusses what this means for India and for the region with Tanvi Madan, author of a noted history of the US-India relationship. Clip: WION. Weekend Festival link
Free links to read more on this topic:
Donald Trump tariffs threaten Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ drive
How Pakistan wooed Trump — and rattled India
Narendra Modi tells Indian farmers he will ‘never compromise’ in face of 50% US tariffs
India’s Russian oil conundrum: yield to Donald Trump or face tariff backlash
Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Manuela Saragosa.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Zbigniew Brzeziński was one of the most influential statesmen of the cold war. But many of the geopolitical problems he wrestled with in Russia, China and the Middle East, have returned with a vengeance. Among his many prescient ideas, ‘Zbig’ as he was known, predicted that American hubris might lead to an ‘alliance of the aggrieved’ between Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. Gideon discusses his life and legacy with FT colleague Ed Luce, who has written an acclaimed biography of the Polish-born strategist. Clip: Voice of America
Free links to read more on this topic:
A new cold war with China won’t help the US
The World of the Cold War — timely reading in an age of US, Russia and China tensions
The last grand strategists: what Brzezinski and Kissinger could teach Trump
King of Kings — the 1979 revolution that changed Iran and the world
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Jean-Marc Eck and the executive producer is Manuela Saragosa.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Israel has demonstrated its capacity to strike at its enemies far and wide since the Hamas attacks of October 7 2023. But what will it do with this military dominance? The FT’s Charles Clover puts this question to Palestinian historian Yezid Sayigh. They discuss the weakness and instability of neighbouring Arab states and how the Netanyahu government’s moves to prevent Palestinian statehood represent the biggest threat to peaceful coexistence in the region. Clips: France 24; Channel 4 News
Free links to read more on this topic:
Has Gaza tested the limits of Donald Trump’s support for Benjamin Netanyahu?
UK to recognise Palestinian state unless Israel ends Gaza crisis
Israel’s quiet war in the West Bank
The world is failing the Palestinian people
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Presented by Charles Clover. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Humans have never been healthier or better fed. We’re living longer, but having fewer children - and many countries’ populations are now shrinking. Gideon discusses these trends with demographer Nicholas Eberstadt. Have smartphones played a role in our declining fertility? How will we look after our elderly people? Is migration the answer? Clip: CBC
Free links to read more on this topic:
The fight to revive Europe’s shrinking rural areas
Population undercounting threatens public policy, scientists warn
Japan urged to use gloomier population forecasts after plunge in births
The unspoken truth about the baby bust
Brain ageing is the best predictor of longevity, scientists find
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Israel’s military victories have brought little comfort to Israelis who are focused on the fate of those hostages still in Gaza. Sasha Polakow-Suransky, FT executive opinion editor, talks with Dahlia Scheindlin, Israeli pollster and author of The Crooked Timber of Democracy in Israel: Promise Unfulfilled about what Israelis want. Why has widespread opposition to many of the Netanyahu government’s policies so far failed to translate into political change? And why do Israelis seem unable to sympathise with the plight of the Palestinians who are also caught up in the conflict? Clips: Reuters; France 24
Free links to read more on this topic:
Israel strikes Syrian military headquarters in Damascus
Benjamin Netanyahu’s government teeters as ultra-Orthodox party quits coalition
EU weighs sanctions on Israel as concerns mount over Gaza aid deal
Israel’s quiet war in the West Bank
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Presented by Sasha Polakow-Suransky. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Russia’s attacks on Ukraine are escalating, both on the front lines and across urban centres. Ben Hall, the FT’s Europe editor, talks to military analyst Franz-Stefan Gady about Ukraine’s battle to hold onto territory until a ceasefire can be agreed. Clips: Channel 4; ABC
Free links to read more on this topic:
Russia attacks Ukraine’s draft offices
Russia hits Ukraine with biggest air attack of the war
Nato’s summit cannot disguise Ukraine’s plight
Kyiv’s sleepless nights under fire
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Presented by Ben Hall. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon talks to Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund and author of a new book: How Countries Go Broke. They discuss the size of the US debt and what history tells us about identifying warning signs. Clip: CBS
Free links to read more on this topic:
Is Donald Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ a political curse for Republicans?
Fears over US debt load and inflation ignite exodus from long-term bonds
Donald Trump’s big, beautiful act of self-harm
The fall in the dollar is not scary
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon discusses whether the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran can hold with Vali Nasr, Professor of Middle East Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Can anyone claim victory from the war? Where does this leave the battered regime in Tehran and its nuclear ambitions? And what will the US need to do to ensure that intense fighting doesn’t break out again? Clips: Channel 4 News; BBC
Free links to read more on this topic:
Best summer books of 2025: Politics
How Donald Trump brokered a shaky Israel-Iran ceasefire
Gulf expat bubble punctured by missiles
Where is Iran’s uranium? Search continues for 400kg stockpile
Iran’s supreme leader faces his defining moment
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Simon Panayi and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Israel has launched an aerial bombardment of Iran, with the aim, it says, of ending Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Gideon talks to Philip Gordon, who was national security adviser to former US vice-president Kamala Harris, about how realistic Israel’s aims are, Iran’s capacity to fight back, and whether the US is about to be drawn into another conflict in the Middle East. Clips: Channel 4 News, The Independent
Free links to read more on this topic:
War on Iran is splitting Trump’s Maga movement
Can an American bunker-buster destroy Iran’s nuclear mountain?
Could strikes on Iran cause a nuclear disaster?
Let them kill us’: millions of Iranians refuse to leave Tehran
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon talks to Oana Lungescu, Nato's former and longest-serving spokesperson, about what to expect from this month’s summit and what's at stake? Can Europe convince the Trump administration that Russia is a risk they need to take seriously, and will an agreement to increase defence spending be enough to satisfy the US president? Clips: Sky; Channel 4, Aljazeera
Free links to read more on this topic:
Europe, the US and the question of values
Europe confronts Trump’s triple threat on Ukraine, Nato and trade
Europe has a weaker hand than it thinks on Ukraine
Nato defence ministers to discuss path to 5% military spending
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Simon Panayi and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Gideon Rachman and China historian Rana Mitter discuss the evolution of Xi Jinping from internal exile, to party apparatchik, to strongman leader. What motivates Xi and what’s behind his friendship with the Russian leader? This episode is an edited recording of an event organised by Intelligence Squared that took place in central London late last month. Clip: CGTN
Free links to read more on this topic:
Donald Trump says China’s Xi Jinping is ‘hard to make a deal with’
Xi’s history shapes China’s diplomatic strategy
Chinese defence minister set to skip security forum in Singapore
China’s Xi Jinping likens ‘US hegemony’ to ‘fascist forces’ ahead of Vladimir Putin summit
Xi and Putin are the greatest beneficiaries of Trump’s chaos
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Presented by Gideon Rachman. Produced by Fiona Symon. Sound design is by Breen Turner and the executive producer is Flo Phillips.
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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In a special six-part series of The Economics Show, Martin Wolf, the FT’s chief economics commentator, and Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman discuss the economic events reshaping the world in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s election.
Subscribe and listen to this series on The Economics Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Episodes will also be available on the FT’s YouTube channel.
If you’d like to get in touch and ask Martin and Paul a question, please email economics.show@ft.com
Read Martin’s FT column here
Subscribe to Paul’s substack here
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