Russian nursery-school children ‘taught to fly drones’ & reviewing controversial thriller 'The Wizard of the Kremlin'

Day 1,517.


Today, amid another exchange of drone and missile strikes between
Ukraine and Russia, we report on growing speculation that the
European Union’s €90 billion loan for Kyiv could finally be
approved as early as tomorrow. We also examine Ukraine’s efforts
to develop its own alternative to US-made Patriot air defence
systems. Then, later, we take a deep dive into a major new
Western film, The Wizard of the Kremlin, exploring how accurately
it portrays Vladimir Putin’s rise to power – and the wider
questions raised by telling Russia’s story through a pre-war,
fictional lens.


Contributors:


Adelie Pojzman-Pontay (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @Adeliepjz
on X.


Francis Dearnley (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @FrancisDearnley
on X.


With thanks to Chief Film Critic at The Telegraph Robbie Collin
and political scientist Anna Colin Lebedev.


NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD
FOOTAGE:


Every episode is now available on our YouTube channel shortly
after the release of the audio version. You will find it here:
https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineTheLatest  


CONTENT REFERENCED:


Exclusive interview: World faces new nuclear arms race (The
Telegraph):


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/20/world-faces-new-nuclear-arms-race-head-of-un-atomic-agency/ 


Former tank commander reviews Challenger 3 (Hamish de
Bretton-Gordon in The Telegraph):


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PLOyJKtGKw 


Russian nursery-school children taught to fly drones (The
Telegraph):


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/04/21/russia-nursery-school-children-fly-drones/ 


Jude Law as Vladimir Putin? It’s a strangely flattering choice
(Robbie Collin in The Telegraph):


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/review-wizard-kremlin-putin-jude-law/ 


(Hom)mage du Kremlin, Anna Colin Lebedev: 


In French: https://colinlebedev.fr/2026/01/22/hommage-du-kremlin/


In English:
https://www.europe-solidaire.org/spip.php?article77848


Personal Website: colinlebedev.fr


Jude Law plays Putin in a film shot in Riga. Latvian officials
say it serves Kremlin propaganda (Meduza):


https://meduza.io/en/feature/2026/03/07/jude-law-plays-putin-in-a-film-shot-in-riga-latvian-officials-say-it-serves-kremlin-propaganda 


The History Bureau, Putin and the Apartment Bombs (BBC):


https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/m002q5dk


Ukraine pushing to produce home-grown ballistic defense system
'within a year,' Zelensky says (Kyiv Independent):


https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-pushing-to-produce-home-grown-ballistic-defense-system-within-a-year-zelensky-says/


EMAIL US:


Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk . We continue to
read every message, and seek to respond to as many on air and in
our newsletter as possible.


HIGHLIGHTS:


 Russian nursery-school children ‘taught to fly drones’

Reviewing new film 'The Wizard of the Kremlin'






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