Buckle up, because this episode of The Restricted Handling Podcast dives straight into one of the most intense 24-hour cycles in global security this year. Russia is flexing hard, Europe’s nerves are fraying, and Ukraine just delivered one of its deepest strikes inside Russian territory yet — all while Washington, Brussels, and Tehran make moves that could reshape the next phase of the war. 

We start with Moscow’s latest stunt: Russia is rolling out “Phase Zero” — the information and psychological groundwork for a potential future conflict with NATO. The Kremlin’s Foreign Intelligence Service is spinning up wild claims that the U.K. is planning a false-flag naval attack using pro-Ukrainian Russians and Chinese-made underwater drones (yes, really). The point isn’t truth — it’s chaos. Between these bizarre accusations and a wave of drone sightings over Germany, Norway, and Denmark, Russia’s turning Europe into a stress test for hybrid warfare. 

Meanwhile, Dmitry Medvedev is back on Telegram acting like an end-of-the-world villain, threatening that Europeans should “feel the danger of war.” Germany’s closing airports, Britain’s jamming its satellites, and the EU just voted to restrict Russian diplomats’ movement after a surge in espionage and sabotage ops across the continent. Europe’s waking up — and Moscow’s clearly nervous about it. 

Over in Ukraine, Kyiv’s hitting back with precision and pride. On Vladimir Putin’s birthday, no less, Ukrainian drones flew 2,000 kilometers inside Russia to strike the Tyumen Oil Refinery — one of the deepest and boldest attacks of the war. Add in massive hits on the Sverdlov explosives plant and the Feodosia oil terminal in occupied Crimea, and it’s clear Ukraine’s drone campaign is rewriting modern warfare. 

The United States, meanwhile, is playing the “wait and see” game. President Trump said he’s “sort of made a decision” on whether to supply Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles but doesn’t want to “escalate the war.” Translation: the world’s watching how far Kyiv’s reach will go without Washington’s green light. 

And if that wasn’t enough, a leaked deal shows Iran planning to buy forty-eight Su-35 fighter jets from Russia — the biggest arms sale Moscow’s pulled off since the invasion began. The axis of sanctions is alive and well, and it’s arming up. 

It’s hybrid warfare, energy disruption, espionage, and psychological chess — all playing out in real time. This episode breaks it down with intensity, wit, and a bit of swagger.