The chapter discusses the West's success in gathering intelligence on Putin's war plans in Ukraine, but expresses doubts about their ability to gather intelligence on Xi's intentions in China. They explore whether Xi's intentions and capabilities are secrets or mysteries and the challenges of intelligence gathering in China.
The Cold War started earlier than we think — and maybe never ended at all. Historian Calder Walton says understanding the US-Soviet conflict prepares us for this era of tensions with Russia and China.
This episode was produced by Amanda Lewellyn, edited by Matt Collette with help from Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Patrick Boyd and Rob Byers, and hosted by Noel King.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained
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