THE WEIGHT OF CHAINS PODCAST

Tonight’s guest is commentator and analyst Jake Julius. Through his videos and discussions on geopolitics, culture, and religion, Jake has built an audience interested in questions many mainstream conversations tend to avoid — the role of Christianity in Western civilization, the cultural shifts taking place across Australia, Europe and North America, and how these developments intersect with geopolitics. Recently Jake visited Serbia — a country where Christianity, particularly the Orthodox tradition, remains deeply intertwined with national identity and historical memory. The Balkans offer a fascinating lens through which to examine these questions: a region shaped by empires, conflicts, and competing civilizations, but also one where religion continues to play a visible role in public life. At a time when global tensions are rising — from the growing confrontation between the United States, Israel, and Iran to broader geopolitical shifts affecting Europe and the Balkans — debates about culture, faith, and civilizational identity are increasingly intersecting with politics. Tonight we’ll talk about Jake’s visit to Serbia, the place of Christianity in the modern world, and whether Western societies are undergoing a deeper cultural transformation. Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljević - vpx Media

Tonight’s guest is geopolitical commentator Aaron Palacios — an American analyst who has drawn attention online for his commentary on global politics, Western foreign policy, and the Balkans. Aaron’s story is an unusual one. As an American who developed a strong interest in Serbia and the wider Balkan region, he began researching the history of the Yugoslav wars, the Dayton framework, and the political situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As he started speaking publicly about these topics — especially Republika Srpska and the way the region is portrayed in Western media — he also faced significant pushback and even the loss of social-media platforms, something he has discussed openly in Serbian interviews. Today the Balkans remain tied to larger geopolitical shifts — from tensions between global powers to debates about sovereignty, international intervention, and media narratives about the region. At the same time, the world is witnessing escalating crises elsewhere — from the growing confrontation involving the United States, Israel and Iran to political upheaval in places like Venezuela. Tonight we’ll talk about Aaron’s personal journey into Balkan politics, the controversies he encountered along the way, and how events in places like Bosnia, Republika Srpska, and Serbia fit into the broader geopolitical landscape. Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljević - vpx Media

Tonight’s guest is someone who has spent decades studying war, peace, and the dangerous space in between. Jan Øberg is a peace researcher, author, and co-founder of the Transnational Foundation for Peace and Future Research in Sweden — an independent think tank dedicated to conflict analysis, diplomacy, and alternatives to militarized foreign policy. At a moment when global tensions are escalating — from the dangerous confrontation involving the United States, Israel, and Iran to rising military spending across Europe and the Middle East — voices calling for diplomacy are becoming increasingly rare. Øberg has long argued that the international system has moved away from preventing conflicts and instead focuses on managing them once they explode. Tonight we’ll look at what’s driving the current wave of geopolitical confrontation, the erosion of international law, and the growing role of military alliances in shaping global politics. But we’ll also bring the conversation closer to home — to the Balkans — where the legacy of intervention and international oversight still shapes politics today, particularly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the authority of the High Representative continues to raise questions about sovereignty, democracy, and long-term stability. In a world that seems to be drifting further from diplomacy and closer to confrontation, we’ll ask whether peace thinking still has a place in international politics — or whether the world has already entered a new era of permanent geopolitical rivalry. Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljević - vpx Media

Tonight’s guest is one of the most direct and informed voices on international affairs. Dr. Marcus Papadopoulos is a historian, author, and commentator specializing in Russia, the former Yugoslavia, and European politics. He’s the editor of Politics First magazine and a regular on international media outlets. With a PhD in Russian and Soviet history, he’s spent years exposing the deeper forces behind the headlines — from NATO’s expansion to the West’s selective use of international law. He’s also the author of Arise, Rossiya: The Return of Russia to World Politics, a deep dive into how Russia clawed its way back onto the world stage. Marcus is known for challenging the mainstream Western narrative — whether on Ukraine, Syria, or the Balkans — and backing it up with serious historical perspective. Tonight, we’re talking about the geopolitical storm surrounding Ukraine and Russia, America’s shifting role, and the EU’s growing contradictions. But we’re also zooming in on the Balkans — especially Bosnia, where the High Representative’s attempt to disrupt democracy has raised serious questions about sovereignty and foreign overreach. Is Western policy in the region evolving — or repeating old mistakes? And more importantly, what should the world brace for in the months ahead? Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljevic

Our guest tonight is someone who’s been exposing the hypocrisy of Western foreign policy long before it became fashionable — or even allowed. George Szamuely is a senior research fellow at the Global Policy Institute, author of the book Bombs for Peace: NATO’s Humanitarian War on Yugoslavia, and a relentless critic of the so-called ‘liberal order’ that somehow always seems to justify war, while preaching peace. Szamuely’s work is essential for understanding how NATO's 1999 bombing of Yugoslavia laid the groundwork — not for stability, but for a dangerous precedent: one where international law is applied selectively, and ‘humanitarianism’ is just a cover for geopolitical ambition. We discuss NATO’s long march eastward, the EU’s deep entanglement in the Ukraine conflict, and how Brussels — for all its talk about transparency and democracy — continues to shield its own corruption while posturing as a moral authority. And of course, we dig into the Balkans — from the High Representative’s unaccountable power in Bosnia to the international pressure campaign against Serbia and Republika Srpska. Whether you agree with him or not, George Szamuely pulls no punches. He challenges the manufactured consensus. And in a world where dissent is increasingly treated as disloyalty, that makes his voice not just valuable — but vital.

Tonight’s guest is Irfan Peci, a former radical Islamist radical — once involved with Al Qaeda & jihadist circles in Europe — who later turned away from extremism and became a security expert, author, and outspoken critic of radicalization and Islamist extremism in the Balkans and Europe. Raised in Germany, Peci underwent a dramatic transformation: from being part of radical networks to cooperating with German security services and dedicating himself to exposing extremist networks, their financing, and ideological underpinnings. In recent years he has spoken and written widely — warning about the resurgence of radical Islamism in parts of the Balkans, analyzing Islamist militant recruitment, and criticizing how certain narratives (for example around the war in Bosnia) shape radicalization and collective memory. Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljevic

Alex Christoforou is a geopolitical analyst, writer and media entrepreneur, best known as the chairman and one of the leading voices of the outlet The Duran. Based in Cyprus, Christoforou has built a following as an honest and straight‑talking commentator who challenges mainstream Western narratives on diplomacy, war, and economic power. He has analysed the strategic realignment of China, Russia and the Gulf states, and taken aim at what he sees as Western hypocrisy in foreign policy. For our podcast — where we explore the Balkans, global conflicts, diplomacy and power shifts — Alex’s background makes him a particularly suited guest. We’ll dive into issues like the EU’s stance on Kosovo vs Cyprus, the legacy of NATO’s intervention in Serbia and how it relates to the war in Ukraine, the troubled state of Bosnia, the China‑U.S. rivalry, and what individuals should watch (and maybe invest in) in an unpredictable world of trade wars and sanctions. Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljevic

Lord Robert Skidelsky—British economic historian, author, and member of the House of Lords—is best known for his definitive three-volume biography of John Maynard Keynes. But for many in the Balkans, he’s also remembered as one of the rare voices in the West who stood against the NATO intervention in Yugoslavia in 1999. With intellectual courage and a deep understanding of the consequences of international power politics, Skidelsky argued that the bombing campaign undermined global security and set a dangerous precedent. He’s been a long-time critic of NATO’s eastward expansion and a vocal advocate for a more balanced and historically grounded understanding of European security—a perspective that resonates powerfully in a region all too familiar with the costs of great power games. Today, we dive into his views on sovereignty, intervention, and the long shadows of Cold War realignments—perspectives that challenge the dominant Western narrative and offer listeners a rare sense of recognition and nuance. Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljevic

Our very first guest is Scott Horton — American author, podcaster, and leading non‑interventionist voice in U.S. foreign policy. He is the director of the Libertarian Institute, editorial director of Antiwar.com, and host of the Scott Horton Show. His latest book, “Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine” (2024) argues that the war in Ukraine was the accumulated result of decades of U.S. policy — from NATO expansion to “color revolutions” to missile defense systems. For audiences with a strong interest in the Balkans and geopolitical fault‑lines, our conversation will link Horton’s thesis to the legacy of the Yugoslav wars, the role of external interventions, the uneasy stability in Bosnia, and what lessons America might learn from Ukraine and the Balkans. Buy Scott Horton’s new book: https://www.amazon.com/Provoked-Washington-Started-Catastrophe-Ukraine/dp/1733647376 Host: Boris Malagurski Video, Editing & Design: Pavle Vasiljevic