China’s secret nuclear expansion revealed as Trump threatens to ‘annihilate’ Iran

Donald Trump has told reporters at the UN General Assembly he faces a critical decision: strike a deal with Tehran or “annihilate the Islamic Republic,” while Masoud Pezeshkian insists Iran’s nuclear program will proceed.

On today’s episode of Iran: The Latest Sophia Yan and Roland Oliphant examine the escalating military picture across the Red Sea and the high-stakes diplomacy in New York. As Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian takes the UN stage, Iranian forces warn they are prepared to deliver “crushing blows” against US threats. Meanwhile, AP reports reveal Iranian Revolutionary Guard advisers are directly guiding Houthi forces on the ground in Yemen.

Plus, as Chinese leader Xi Jinping is set to arrive in Washington today for a high-profile state visit, geospatial intelligence analyst Renny Babiarz breaks down a Telegraph investigation into Xi’s secret expansion of seven nuclear weapons sites across China and what Beijing’s ‘breathtaking’ nuclear breakout means for global security.

00:00:00 – Iranian IRGC Advisors Directing Houthi Forces on the Ground
00:02:37 – Trump Threatens Obliteration vs. Secret Indirect UN Talks
00:05:28 – Iran’s Conditions to Reopen the Strait of Hormuz
00:07:53 – Iranian President Pezeshkian Speech at UN General Assembly
00:09:49 – Saudi Arabia Restarts East-West Pipeline & Supertanker Costs Surge
00:12:47 – Xi Jinping Touches Down in US for Historic Summit with Trump
00:14:52 – Telegraph Investigation: China’s Massive Nuclear Weapons Expansion
00:17:28 – Will Trump Push China on Global Nuclear Arms Control Treaties?
00:21:57 – Nuclear Expert Breakdown: China’s Rapid Military Breakout Attempt
00:31:20 – US-China Relations: Cold War Confrontation & The Taiwan Flashpoint

Highlights
Pezeshkian demands ‘no limitations’ to the expansion of Iran’s nuclear capabilities
Expert on geospatial intelligence warns of the ‘breathtaking scale’ of China’s secret nuclear expansion

CONTRIBUTORS:
Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant
Sophia Yan, co-host and senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan
Renny Babiarz, geospatial intelligence analyst and vice president at AllSourceAnalysis @RennyBabiarz

CONTENT REFERENCED:
Revealed: Xi’s nuclear weapons expansion at seven secret sites https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/china-secret-nuclear-weapon-sites-xi/

Trump is making a fool of himself over Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/09/22/trump-making-fool-of-himself-over-iran/

Winner Best News and Analysis Podcast – Publisher Podcast Awards 2026
Nominated Podcast of the Year – Society of Editors News Podcasts Awards 2026
Nominated Best News, Politics and Current Affairs – British Podcast Awards 2026
The Telegraph, Winner Podcast Publisher of the Year 2026 – Publisher Podcast Awards 2026

Video Producer: Max Bower
Audio Producer: Peter Shevlin
Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh
Studio Operator: Andy Watson
Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey

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7 comments

  1. beijing netherlands covid new variant spread by russian spies and Benjamin netanyahu genocide to Palestine

  2. Its Amazing how the US and Israel can openly talk about genocide, ethnic cleansing and mass murder and everyone sits there quietly. Morals are pretty cheap to forget

  5. Israel is the only country in the Middle East allowed to wield nuclear weapons, because the West says so. Well, maybe the west shouldn't be so surprised that some people have a feeling about that

  7. This is the kind of bad anti-American reporting that many independent news outlet broadcast. Nearly all Western outlets have been predicting that it will take many months to restore oil supplies through the Saudi pipeline, but it was restored in a few days. Bad reporting. They don't even have the courtesy to say that they were wrong and say sorry. Good that Telegraph was good enough to acknowledge it

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