On today’s Espresso Martini and season seven finale, Matt & Chris look at the puzzlingly short tenure of the Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang; they unpack some hot gossip surrounding last month’s Wagner mutiny and discuss updates on the war in Ukraine, both at sea and on land. In the last story, they look at AI's potential threat in the 2024 US Elections and the 2025 UK general election.



On Extra Shot, immediately following this show on Patreon, Matt & Chris ask Is it time to most expeditiously take a hammer to your smart watch? They also discuss friend of the pod Dan Kaszeta’s legal victory over Downing Street, have a spoiler-free-ish chat about Christopher Nolan’s new Oppenheimer biopic, and then indulge in some flagrantly irresponsible speculation about the next Bond movie.



— Extra Shot —

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We want to wish listeners a happy Summer and hope you have a great time. The podcast will return on Saturday, 9th September, unless world events force our hand.





Links to articles discussed in Espresso Martini



Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang removed from post after only 7 months

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/07/25/china-foreign-minister-qin-gang/



Russia’s Spies Say Putin Faces More Coups

https://theins.ru/en/politics/263596



US Navy Backs Away From Ukraine’s Proposal To Protect Grain In NATO Waters

https://gcaptain.com/us-navy-backs-away-from-ukraines-proposal-to-protect-grain-ships-nato-waters/



West must focus on preparing Ukraine’s troops – or we will all pay the price

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/23/west-must-focus-on-preparing-ukraines-troops-or-we-will-all-pay-the-price



Intelligence nominee warns generative AI poses threat to 2024 elections

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/07/20/intelligence-chief-nominee-warns-of-threats-from-ai-to-2024-elections-00107375





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Find out more about Matt and his book “Active Measures”

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