In The News

The latest round of Ukraine-Russia peace talks have been the most complex and lengthy since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia began in February 2022.The latest round of talks started two weeks ago with a leaked 28-point draft peace proposal which alarmed Ukrainian and European officials who said that it was weighted too much in Moscow’s favour. The proposal would have seen Ukraine cede territory to Russia, Russia readmitted to the G8 and Ukraine banned from joining Nato.There followed a 20-point plan, and then a 27-point plan. The talks – with the US represented by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner – moved from Geneva to Moscow where, on Tuesday, five hours of talks with Russian president Vladimer Putin around the table yielded no agreement. Talks are currently taking place in Miami.Putin has been clear, Russia is winning the war and while he is willing to come to the table to negotiate, there is no urgency. Ukraine has indicated it too is keen for a deal – but not on any terms. While in Washington, the US president has been making hopeful noises, reflecting the widespread belief that he just wants to get a peace deal done.Meanwhile at home Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been rocked by a corruption scandal that has seen his chief of staff, who had led the Ukrainian delegation at peace talks, resigning on Friday.Irish Times Europe Correspondent based in Kyiv, Dan McLaughlin, explains how the talks evolved and what next for the war.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair.

Uniformed gardaí are being issued with Taser guns as part of a six-month trial.It has long been a point of pride in Ireland that the police force are not armed unlike their European counterparts. And while these guns fire electric shocks and not bullets, this is change in how the gardaí police the streets.So does this move bring closer the day when the Garda will be an armed force? How will it change the way the gardaí interact with the public? And why now?Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally explains.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

In a major military operation that began in September, the US administration continues to put pressure on Venezuela with navy warships massing in the Caribbean Sea.US president Donald Trump claims the air strikes on boats in the region are not acts of aggression but enforcement operations to prevent alleged drug trafficking.To date it is estimated that 83 people have been killed but it has not been made clear by the administration the intelligence that led up the attacks proving the boats were indeed carrying drugs.So is this a “war on drugs” or is it part of a broader plan to oust Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro?And with Trump now saying the country’s air space should be shut down, is a ground offensive on the horizon?I speak to professor of Latin American history and migration studies at Vassar College, Daniel Mendiola.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

New figures from the Residential Tenancies Board are stark: the number of eviction notices issued by landlords in the third quarter of this year increased by 35 per cent on the same period last year.This at a time when rents have never been higher.The reason given most frequently by landlords is that they are selling up. Why?New rent regulations which improve the rights of long-term tenants are set be introduced in March 2026. Could this be the reason landlords are getting out of the market?And why are small landlords more likely to want to exit the market than big institutional investors who dominate the private rental sector?Irish Times housing reporter Niamh Towey has talked to landlords and estate agents to get a clearer picture.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair.

Gerry Hutch, also known as The Monk, is eyeing up the Dáil seat left vacant by the resignation of Paschal Donohoe.Already it is believed that the convicted criminal, encouraged by his near success in last year’s general election, is using what will be a long build-up to next year’s byelection to get his campaign in order and to register hundreds, even thousands, of new voters in Dublin’s north inner city.So will his €800,000 tax bill from the Criminal Assets Bureau put a stop to his political ambitions and could the man named as the head of the Hutch organised crime group become a TD?I talk to Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally who has long covered Hutch’s career in crime.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

By Friday, the death toll in the Hong Kong apartment complex inferno had reached 128 with many more people unaccounted for.A blaze that began in one 32-storey apartment block on Wednesday quickly spread to seven of the eight towers in the densely populated complex. So how did one of the city’s deadliest ever blazes spread so quickly.The Kwong Fuk Estate, a public housing development, was undergoing refurbishment and the buildings were covered in bamboo scaffolding and netting. New cladding had been installed and now that the rescue operation is over, attention is turning on investigating why and how the fire took hold.As the death toll grows and questions around building standards mount, Irish Times Beijing correspondent Denis Staunton, who reported from London in 2017 sees clear parallels with the Grenfell Tower disaster.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

Ireland has been slow to name its airports after people. Streets and housing estates, yes, but as Ronan McGreevy points out, the State is more inclined to honour those who died for Ireland rather than those who lived for it.A Bill to rename Dublin Airport after former taoiseach Seán Lemass has been brought forward in the Dáil.It is not the first time the suggestion has been made; four years ago Taoiseach Micheál Martin proposed it, but talk of it fizzled out.For McGreevy, an Irish Times journalist and historian whose next book is on Lemass, the former taoiseach and leader of Fianna Fáil (1959-1966) is a clear choice.He tells In the News how Lemass was a great moderniser and as minister for industry and commerce when the airport opened in 1940, was a a supporter of facilitating air travel both in and out of the country.The proposed legislation was introduced on Tuesday by Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, who said the airport “owes much to his policies and foresight”.So will the Seán Lemass Dublin International Airport Bill 2025 succeed? And why are we so reluctant to honour our former taoisigh? He points out that Cork’s Jack Lynch Tunnel is the only piece of State infrastructure named after a former leader.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and John Casey. 

Heart disease is the leading causes of death of women in Ireland but yet, many of us still consider it a male illness.Cardiovascular disease claims more women’s lives than breast cancer, while women are more than two times more likely than men to die after a heart attack. The risk of heart disease substantially increases during menopause and yet, women and their doctors often underestimate the severity of their symptoms.Why is that?Years of poor research into women’s cardiac health, combined with the perception often promoted through film and TV that heart attacks solely happen to men, has created a distorted image of this disease and resulted in a health system primarily designed to cater for the needs of men, not women.For decades, scientific experts presumed the results of cardiac trials designed using the male anatomy would also hold true for women. Women’s hormonal fluctuations during periods and menopause often excluded them from heart disease trials.And while research into heart disease among women has improved in the past decade, many women have no idea the risks they face, particularly during and after menopause.So, what are the heart attack warning signs women need to watch out for? And what changes can they make early to try to avoid heart disease?Today, on In The News, cardiovascular nurse Shirley Ingram reflects on her personal experience of suffering a heart attack. And Dr Sharon O’Donell and Dr Deidre Daly from Trinity College discuss how the university’s international Caramel project hopes to transform how women understand this disease.Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

Black Friday – a Thanksgiving shopping extravaganza imported from the US – isn’t just one day any more. Retailers, both online and in the shops, started advertising their Black Friday deals as soon as the Halloween decorations came down. And it’s set to continue into December.Irish shoppers have taken to bargain hunting with enthusiasm: a survey by PwC, which looked at Black Friday shopping habits in five European countries, found the Irish spend an average of €329, way more than our more frugal neighbours in Germany, France and Italy.Two-thirds of that is online which opens the digital door for scammers to get in.Irish Times consumer correspondent Conor Pope explains why Black Friday, with its “unbeatable bargains” and countdown clocks is a gift for scammers. He also tells how to beat the scammers at this distracting time of the year.And are their bargains to be had? Pope advises the best time to buy and how to spend you money so you’ll get the best bargains.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.