Intro

Day 1,307.

Today, as the UN Security Council debates Russia’s latest airspace violations, we ask why Estonia held fire – unlike Turkey in 2015 – before hearing frontline perspectives from Ukrainian soldiers with The Kyiv Independent’s Francis Farrell, and exploring Russia’s answer to the Eurovision Song Contest.

Contributors:

Francis Dearnley (Executive Editor for Audio). @FrancisDearnley on X.

Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of Defence). @DomNicholls on X.

Francis Farrell (Report, The Kyiv Independent). @francisjfarrell on X.

JOIN US FOR 'UKRAINE: THE LATEST' LIVE, IN-PERSON:

Join us for an in-person discussion and Q&A at the distinguished Honourable Artillery Company in London on 22nd October starting at 7pm.

Our panel includes General Sir Richard Barrons, former head of UK Joint Forces Command and latterly one of the authors of Britain’s Strategic Defence Review, and Orysia Lutsevych, head of the Ukraine Forum at the Chatham House think tank.

Tickets are open to everybody and can be purchased at: telegraph.co.uk/ukrainelive 

Content referenced:

Francis Farrell’s reporting at The Kyiv Independent:

https://kyivindependent.com/author/francis-farrell/ 

Intervision: Putin’s rival to Eurovision (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/20/intervision-putins-version-of-eurovision/ 

Putin prepares to tax Russia’s rich as war chest runs dry (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/09/19/putin-prepares-tax-russias-rich-war-chest-runs-dry/ 

EU brings forward Russian gas ban after pressure from Trump (Joe Barnes in The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/09/19/eu-brings-forward-russian-gas-ban-after-pressure-from-trump/

SIGN UP TO THE NEW ‘UKRAINE: THE LATEST’ WEEKLY NEWSLETTER:

https://secure.telegraph.co.uk/customer/secure/newsletter/ukraine/  

Each week, Dom Nicholls and Francis Dearnley answer your questions, provide recommended reading, and give exclusive analysis and behind-the-scenes insights – plus maps of the frontlines and diagrams of weapons to complement our daily reporting. It’s free for everyone, including non-subscribers.

NOW AVAILABLE IN NEW LANGUAGES:

The Telegraph has launched translated versions of Ukraine: The Latest in Ukrainian and Russian, making its reporting accessible to audiences on both sides of the battle lines and across the wider region, including Central Asia and the Caucasus. Just search Україна: Останні Новини (Ukr) and Украина: Последние Новости (Ru) on your on your preferred podcast app to find them. Listen here: https://linktr.ee/ukrainethelatest

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