

Pushback with Aaron Mate
Pushback with Aaron Maté
A news show hosted by Aaron Maté. Presented by The Grayzone.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 22, 2022 • 53min
US fighting Russia 'to the last Ukrainian': veteran US diplomat
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Chas Freeman, a retired senior US diplomat, analyzes Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the US role, and the geopolitical fallout. "Everything we are doing, rather than accelerate an end to the fighting and some compromise, seems to be aimed at prolonging the fighting," Freeman says.
Guest: Chas Freeman. Veteran U.S. diplomat and public servant who has served in many senior positions, including as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Director for Chinese Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, and as the principal US interpreter during President Nixon’s historic visit to China in 1972.

Mar 15, 2022 • 2h 16min
Former top Pentagon advisor Col. Doug Macgregor on Russia-Ukraine war
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Former senior advisor the Secretary of Defense Col. Doug Macgregor joins Max Blumenthal and Aaron Maté for a live discussion of the Russia-Ukraine war and his time in the Trump administration when an Afghan withdrawal was sabotaged and conflict with Iran and Syria continued.
Guest: Douglas Macgregor, retired US Army Colonel and former Pentagon senior advisor.

Mar 13, 2022 • 35min
How US-backed Maidan coup, Russiagate led to war in Ukraine
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As the wife of key Russiagate figure George Papadopoulos, attorney Simona Mangiante Papadopoulos had a front-row seat to the Trump-Russia saga. Mangiante discusses the role of Russiagate in sabotaging diplomacy with Russia and fueling the post-2014 proxy war in Ukraine, as well her new documentary film, "Ukraine: The Everlasting Present."
Guest: Simona Mangiante Papadopoulos. Attorney and former EU legal advisor.
Join Aaron on Callin today, Sunday March 13, at 5pm ET: https://www.callin.com/room/16-us-russia-trade-dangerous-allegations-in-QtoGDesQtZ
Aaron's article discussed in this segment: https://mate.substack.com/p/as-durham-closes-in-fbis-trump-russia?s=w

Mar 11, 2022 • 40min
US-Russia conflict threatens economic havoc worldwide
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Russia has accused the US of waging 'economic war' as it faces crippling sanctions, the seizure of its foreign reserves, and an exodus of Western corporations. Ben Aris of bne IntelliNews discusses the economic consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, inside Russia and around the world.
Guest: Ben Aris. Founder and editor of bne IntelliNews.
www.bne.eu

Mar 10, 2022 • 47min
The Ukraine tragedy, from US-backed coup to Russian assault
After eight years of civil war in the Donbas triggered by the US-backed, far-right-led Maidan coup and fueled by US weapons, Ukraine is now under a catastrophic Russian assault. Scholar Nicolai Petro on the tragedy of Ukraine.
Guest: Nicolai Petro. Professor of political science at the University of Rhode Island, editor of "Ukraine in Crisis," and the author of the forthcoming "The Tragedy of Ukraine." He is also a member of the board of the American Committee for U.S.-Russia Accord.

Feb 23, 2022 • 43min
Rejecting NATO expansion, Putin recognizes forgotten Donbas civilians
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After weeks of US claims that a Russian invasion of Ukraine was imminent, Vladimir Putin instead recognized the breakaway republics of Luhansk and Donetsk. The decision has triggered a new round of US-led sanctions while bringing attention to rebel-held areas, where, according to UN figures on the Donbas war, 80% of civilian casualties have occurred since 2018.
Professor Richard Sakwa analyzes the factors behind Putin's move, and its likely consequences. Putin's decision, he says, comes after Kiev refused to implement the 2015 Minsk accords, which could have ended the conflict, and a longstanding US-driven project to expand NATO to Russia's borders.
Guest: Richard Sakwa. Professor of Russian and European politics at the University of Kent. His books include “Frontline Ukraine: Crisis in the Borderlands” and his latest, “Deception: Russiagate and the New Cold War.”

Feb 15, 2022 • 1h 36min
Russian UN Ambassador on NATO-Ukraine escalation
Aaron Maté and Max Blumenthal speak with Russia's Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitri Polyanskiy, on escalated tensions on the Russian-Ukraine border, US accusations of an imminent Russian invasion, and the context missing from a US media that refuses to interview Russian officials.
Guest: Dmitri Polyanskiy. Russia's Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations.

Jan 31, 2022 • 24min
Biden's Yemen betrayal: US continues backing Saudi-led war
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As a 2020 candidate, Joe Biden vowed to "end the sale" of weapons to Saudi Arabia "murdering children" and other "innocent people" in Yemen. As president, Biden has continued US support for the Saudi-led war and pushed through new weapons sales. Last week, at least 90 Yemenis were killed in a Saudi attack using a Raytheon-made bomb.
Shireen Al-Adeimi discusses Biden's Yemen betrayal and how Congressional opposition to the Saudi-led war has declined since he took office.
Guest: Shireen Al-Adeimi, assistant professor of education at Michigan State University.

Jan 28, 2022 • 52min
From Ukraine to Yemen, US arms industry reaps the spoils of war
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The US is pouring more weapons into Ukraine amid bellicose threats against Russia and the US-backed Saudi war on Yemen continues to massacre civilians. But not everyone sees a downside: “I fully expect we’re going to see some benefit from it,” Raytheon CEO Greg Hayes said this week of these and other flashpoints.
Andrew Cockburn, Washington editor of Harper’s Magazine and author of “The Spoils of War: Power, Profit and the American War Machine,” discusses the US arms industry’s role in promoting and profiting from today’s global conflicts, from Ukraine to Yemen to Syria.
Cockburn also looks back on his groundbreaking 1988 PBS documentary, made with his wife Leslie Cockburn, “Guns, Drugs, and the CIA,” about the agency’s role in the global drug trade.
Guest: Andrew Cockburn. Washington editor for Harper’s Magazine. His latest book is “The Spoils of War: Power, Profit and the American War Machine.”

Jan 24, 2022 • 45min
US and UK escalate Russia war fever, but NATO splits over Ukraine emerge
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The US and UK are ramping up threats to Russia over Ukraine by sending more weapons, vowing more sanctions, and lodging evidence-free claims of a Russian plot to install a pro-Kremlin leader. But comments by Germany's navy chief that Russia "deserves respect" -- leading to his resignation -- underscore that not everyone is on board with Washington and London's war fever. Scholar and author Richard Sakwa discusses the latest in the Ukraine crisis.
Guest: Richard Sakwa. Professor of Russian and European politics at the University of Kent. His books include “Frontline Ukraine: Crisis in the Borderlands” and his latest, “Deception: Russiagate and the New Cold War.”