A fortnight ago Nezavisimaya gazeta appeared with a fascinating leader about Putin and the people that shows every sign of last minute, heavy editing. Without venturing into the grim reality that elections have long been fixed in Putin's favour, with independent journalists liquidated along with political opponents and censorship now an uncontrovertibly unpleasant fact of … Continue reading The Undoubted Limits to Putin’s Power

War to conquer as much of Ukraine as it can get has shattered decades of Russia's commerce with NATO states. And, as the outlook for a speedy settlement of that conflict recedes ever further into the distance, Moscow has been wrestling with alternatives, however costly. The high rhetoric about turning to China and away from … Continue reading Russia Turns South for Trade Alternatives

In a most unusual article published today by Komsomol'skaya pravda Russian weapons specialists compare in some detail the combat effectiveness and cost of their theatre range systems with those NATO has supplied to Ukraine. These include the US Javelin vis-a-vis the Russian Kornet, the US Stinger vis-a-vis the Russian Verba, the US Howitzer M777 vis-a-vis … Continue reading Russians Assert Their Ground-Launched Weapons Systems More Effective in Ukraine

It is striking that the Russian press now openly refers to the conflict in Ukraine as a "war". Indeed, after fighting and suffering so many losses since February it would look utterly ridiculous if it were referred to in any other way. And the outlook is very gloomy; so much so that one commentator, while … Continue reading War in Ukraine: Russia Loses, China Wins

One way of reporting the truth in today's censored Russia is to quote the statement of a foreign news organisation or foreign statesman without actually affirming its accuracy. This is what Kommersant' has done by quoting the German chancellor to the effect that Putin fears "the spark of democracy" spreading into Russia. Kommersant' : 20.06.2022, … Continue reading Russian Newspaper Reiterates Putin’s Fear of Democracy

The Russians look at the American non-reaction to repeated attacks on their positions in Iraq and Syria by the usual forces backed by Tehran - the Russians say 30 since last October - and they, like the Israelis, see weakness. Since Biden took office, the White House has been distancing itself from Israel and Saudi … Continue reading Russia and Biden’s Appeasement of Tehran

It has been evident for some considerable time that whereas the United States and Britain have had incompetents managing the Federal Reserve Bank, the Bank of England, the US Treasury and HM Treasury, who dithered while the rate of inflation climbed inexorably and now make transparent excuses that everything and everyone else were somehow responsible … Continue reading Time for a Rethink: Russia Stabilises the Rouble

https://issforum.org/reviews/PDF/AR966R.pdf

Putin's war of aggression against Ukraine inadvertently inaugurated a new era in international relations; but not quite the one he expected. The Russian president has achieved a great deal without meaning to while failing to achieve the one goal he had set himself for a place in history worthy of Catherine the Great. The most … Continue reading Kazakhstan and Turkey Find Common Cause

It did not take long for the hardliners in Russia - in the military-industrial newspaper - to call for a purge of higher education and the media under the slogan "The Denazification of Ukraine Makes No Sense Without the De-liberalisation of Russia." The demand appears beneath a caricature entitled "Words Can Kill." The social sciences … Continue reading The Call For Purges in Russia