About this episode

The episode discusses the evolving dynamics of the Ukraine war, including Ukraine's deep strikes into Russia and Russia's intensified military campaign against Ukraine.

Brussels Sprouts is back after our summer hiatus, and we’re jumping right back into Ukraine.Over the past several weeks, the war has entered a more dynamic and dangerous phase. Ukraine has expanded its campaign deep inside Russia, striking military and industrial targets, logistics hubs, and infrastructure supporting the war effort while continuing efforts to isolate Crimea and raise the costs of the war for ordinary Russians. Russia, meanwhile, is intensifying its own campaign against Ukraine. As Kyiv grapples with a growing shortage of air and missile defenses, Moscow has increased the pace and sophistication of its long-range strikes, relying on a larger number of ballistic missiles designed to overwhelm Ukraine’s increasingly constrained defenses. At the same time, Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukraine’s ports, grain infrastructure, and commercial shipping, threatening one of Ukraine’s most important economic pillars, just as the country enters another harvest season.The military partnership between Moscow and Pyongyang also continues to deepen, with Russia employing improved North Korean ballistic missiles and reports suggesting that North Korea could send additional…

Topics covered

• Ukraine conflict
• military strategy
• Russia
• North Korea
• air and missile defenses
• hybrid warfare

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Center for a New American Security, North Korea

Places: Ukraine, Russia, Crimea, Europe

More episodes of Brussels Sprouts

• A Report Card for Europe’s Defense Industry · September 4, 2026 · 56 min
• A Surprise Moscow Visit and Russia vs. the West with Hanna Notte · August 28, 2026 · 54 min
• Ukraine's Command Shake-Up: Fedorov Out, Drapatyi In · July 24, 2026 · 52 min

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