Your hosts
Military historians, veterans, and analysts.
Samuel P.N. Cook
West Point graduate (Class of 2000) and U.S. Army Cavalry Officer with two Iraq deployments, including service under COL H.R. McMaster during the Battle of Tal Afar. Sam taught Russian military history at West Point, studied Russian History at NYU, and moved to Kyiv in 2018. He founded the Borderlands Foundation two days after the full-scale invasion to ensure Ukraine’s heroes are never forgotten. A combat veteran who has openly spoken about overcoming PTSD, Sam brings both the scholar’s lens and the soldier’s perspective to every conversation.
Rob Lee
Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, U.S. Marine veteran, and one of the most cited analysts covering the war in Ukraine. Rob lives in Kyiv and regularly visits front-line units, updating his analysis based on what soldiers actually report. He co-publishes the 2Marines Substack with Dmytro Putiata.
Dmytro Putiata
Ukrainian Marine veteran and military analyst who has served on the front lines of the current war. Dmytro brings the perspective that no outside observer can — what infiltration, drone warfare, and counter-battery operations look and feel like from the Ukrainian side. He co-publishes the 2Marines Substack with Rob Lee.