Podcast / American Prestige / Feb 21, 2025

US-Ukraine Tension, the RSF in Sudan, and Trump’s Proposed Defense Budget Cuts

On this episode of American Prestige, headlines from around the globe.

The Nation Podcasts
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US-Ukraine Tension, RSF in Sudan, and Trump’s Proposed Defense Budget Cuts | American Prestige
byThe Nation Magazine

Danny and Derek are back with the news, but without much of a choice. This week's American Prestige News Roundup: the US and Russia meet in Riyadh to discuss future bilateral discussions to end the war in Ukraine (0:38); Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump feud in public comments (3:38); The Daily Telegraph reports on a US mineral rights deal that Zelenskyy rejected (8:22); in Israel-Palestine news, Saturday’s hostage exchange was successful (12:49) and Hamas offers an expedited hostage release schedule (15:08); Israel decides to ignore the withdrawal deadline in Lebanon (19:26); the US State Department decides to change the wording on a fact sheet about Taiwan and China responds negatively (21:58); in South Korea, former president Yoon goes on trial (24:43); the RSF militia in Sudan attempts to form a government and controversy ensues (26:35); in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, M23 (supported by Rwanda) takes Bukavu while continuing to advance north and south (31:10); Argentinian president Milei is accused of a rug pull after the cryptocurrency he endorsed collapses (33:34); and in the United States, Trump and Musk fire National Nuclear Security Administration workers without understanding what their jobs meant (35:34), and Trump proposes cutting the defense budget (39:09).

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Displaced Sudanese wait for buses transporting people on February 10, 2025 from Port Sudan to the Jazira state, which was retaken by the Sudanese army from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitaries last month.

(AFP via Getty Images)

On this week’s American Prestige news roundup: The US and Russia meet in Riyadh to discuss future bilateral discussions to end the war in Ukraine (0:38); Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump feud in public comments (3:38); The Daily Telegraph reports on a US mineral rights deal that Zelenskyy rejected (8:22); in Israel-Palestine news, Saturday’s hostage exchange was successful (12:49) and Hamas offers an expedited hostage release schedule (15:08); Israel decides to ignore the withdrawal deadline in Lebanon (19:26); the US State Department decides to change the wording on a fact sheet about Taiwan and China responds negatively (21:58); in South Korea, former president Yoon goes on trial (24:43); the RSF militia in Sudan attempts to form a government and controversy ensues (26:35); in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, M23 (supported by Rwanda) takes Bukavu while continuing to advance north and south (31:10); Argentinian president Milei is accused of a rug pull after the cryptocurrency he endorsed collapses (33:34); and in the United States, Trump and Musk fire National Nuclear Security Administration workers without understanding what their jobs meant (35:34), and Trump proposes cutting the defense budget (39:09).

The Nation Podcasts
The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

How the New Deal Invented the National Security State w/ Andrew Preston / American Prestige
byThe Nation Magazine

Danny and Derek speak with historian Andrew Preston about the origins and development of the American national security state as we know it. They discuss the original meaning of “national security” in the early days of the republic; the idea of free security; the New Deal and the relationship between social security and national security; World War II, the Cold War, and the expansion of the security state; liberalism and American empire; and what national security looks like moving forward.

Be sure to grab a copy of Andrew’s book on the subject, Total Defense: The New Deal and the Invention of National Security.

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Daniel Bessner

Daniel Bessner is an historian of US foreign relations, and cohost of American Prestige, a podcast on international affairs.

Derek Davison

Derek Davison is a writer and analyst specializing in international affairs and US foreign policy. He is the publisher of the Foreign Exchanges newsletter, cohost of the American Prestige podcast, and former editor of LobeLog.

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