Has the Middle East stepped back from the brink—or is this simply a ceasefire with an expiry date?

In this episode of The Side Quest Podcast, we examine the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, the landmark 2026 agreement between the United States and Iran that halted three months of direct military conflict.

We break down:

• Why the agreement was negotiated in Islamabad
• The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and its impact on global shipping and oil prices
• Iran’s commitment to dismantling high-level nuclear enrichment
• The tightly controlled economic relief package and Qatar’s escrow system
• Why Israel remains deeply sceptical of the agreement
• The unresolved disputes over ballistic missiles and Iranian-backed proxy groups
• Whether this deal creates lasting peace—or merely delays the next confrontation

While markets have welcomed the de-escalation, the deeper ideological and regional conflicts remain unresolved. Is this a genuine diplomatic breakthrough, or just a fragile truce buying time for both sides?

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#Iran #UnitedStates #MiddleEast #Geopolitics #StraitOfHormuz #NuclearDeal #WorldNews #InternationalRelations #TheSideQuestPodcast

How did a Prime Minister with a bold economic vision become the shortest-serving leader in British history?

In this episode of The Side Quest Podcast, we dive into the remarkable political journey of Liz Truss—from her left-wing upbringing and Oxford years to her rapid rise through Conservative politics and her dramatic 49-day premiership.

We explore:

• How Truss climbed to the top of British politics
• The infamous 2022 “Growth Plan” and why financial markets reacted so violently
• The pension crisis, soaring borrowing costs, and the Bank of England’s emergency intervention
• Why her authority collapsed so quickly inside her own party
• What Liz Truss is doing now and how history is likely to remember her

Was Liz Truss simply ahead of her time, or did ideological conviction collide with economic reality?

Join us as we unpack one of the most extraordinary political collapses in modern British history.

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#LizTruss #UKPolitics #ConservativeParty #BritishPolitics #Economics #PrimeMinister #CurrentAffairs #TheSideQuestPodcast

She was alive when the Titanic sank. She buried a brother lost at Gallipoli, sailed alone to India at 18, ran a nursery school in Hong Kong, drove a vintage Triumph until she was 97 — and beat COVID-19 at age 110. Meet Ethel Caterham: born in a Hampshire village with no electricity in 1909, now the world’s oldest verified living person. She’s outlasted six British monarchs and seen 19 different people hold the U.S. presidency across 21 separate terms — from Taft to Trump. In this episode, we trace her journey through over a century of history and ask what her remarkably simple philosophy on life might actually teach the rest of us about living long and living well.