Download Q&A: Kyiv strikes, Putin's legitimacy and China's nuclear stance
There have been multiple civilian casualties in Kyiv after sustained Russian airstrikes on the Ukrainian capital overnight. The UK Foreign Office has told Moscow to "stop this senseless killing" and earlier summoned Russia's ambassador in the UK to protest. But will these latest attacks have any bearing on international attempts to broker a peace deal?
To examine the fallout, Jamie and Vitaly are joined by Ukraine correspondent James Waterhouse and BBC Verify’s Olga Robinson. They also discuss Vladimir Putin’s legitimacy under the Russian constitution, Poland’s place in the conflict, and whether China could take a more prominent diplomatic role as Russia's president prepares to travel to Beijing.
You can fill out our audience questionnaire here: bit.ly/ukrainecastfeedback
Today’s episode is presented by Jamie Coomarasamy and Vitaly Shevchenko.
The producers were Laurie Kalus and Polly Hope. The technical producer was Dafydd Evans. The social producer was Sophie Millward. The series producer is Tim Walklate. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
Email Ukrainecast@bbc.co.uk with your questions and comments. You can also send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp, Signal or Telegram to +44 330 1239480
You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord
Published on Thursday, 28th August 2025.
Available Podcasts from Ukrainecast
We are not the BBC, we only list available podcasts. To find out more about the programme including episodes available on BBC iPlayer, go to the Ukrainecast webpage.