Putin turns on his own war cheerleaders & Russia builds new naval base for Black Sea fleet

Day 1,363.

Today, after a 17-year-old girl was killed and 9 others injured in an overnight Russian missile attack in Kharkiv Oblast, we return to the dire situation in Pokrovsk, before asking why Vladimir Putin is targeting his own war cheerleaders in his latest clampdown. Then we look at the First World War medical condition being reported on the frontlines in Ukraine, and hear from an American serving in the Ukrainian army.

Contributors

Francis Dearnley (Executive Editor for Audio). @FrancisDearnley on X.

Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of Defence). @DomNicholls on X.

Verity Bowman (Journalist). @VerityBowman on X.

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon (Chemical Weapons Expert and former Tank Commander). @hamishdbg on x.

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Each week, Dom Nicholls and Francis Dearnley answer your questions, provide recommended reading, and give exclusive analysis and behind-the-scenes insights – plus maps of the frontlines and diagrams of weapons to complement our daily reporting. It’s free for everyone, including non-subscribers.

CONTENT REFERENCED:

Gas gangrene returns to Ukraine in echoes of First World War trench warfare (Verity in The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/gas-gangrene-ukraine-war-russia-trenches-europe/ 

‘Coffin on wheels’ saves wounded Ukrainian soldier from no-man’s land (Verity in The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/17/robot-coffin-on-wheels-saves-ukrainian-soldier-trapped/ 

Russia suspected of blowing up Polish railway line (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/17/russia-suspected-of-blowing-up-polish-railway-line-ukraine/ 

Putin goes after his own war cheerleaders (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/16/putin-goes-after-his-own-war-cheerleaders/ 

Putin is eating his own supporters. This is how dictators fall (Hamish in The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/17/putin-z-bloggers-suppression-supporters-russia-war-ukraine/ 

Key government representatives advise Zelensky to release Yermak (Ukrainian Pravda):

https://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2025/11/18/8007753/ 

EU eyes €90 Billion Ukraine grant (Bloomberg):

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-11-17/eu-pitches-90-billion-ukraine-grant-if-russian-asset-loan-fails 

Construction Accelerates at Planned Russian Navy Base (Bellingcat):

https://www.bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-europe/2024/07/30/construction-accelerates-at-planned-russian-navy-base-in-disputed-abkhazia/

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