It is extremely worrying. A few days ago Novaya gazeta, relying on the Guardian and the Daily Telegraph, reported the attempted assassination of the former Russian GRU (military intelligence) officer Sergei Skripal' through the administration of some kind of nerve agent. It appears that Skripal' moved under diplomatic cover to the Foreign Ministry in the late … Continue reading The Importance of Trust Even Between Adversaries

It is not usual to see President Putin directly criticised in the mainstream Russian press for anything. And the only indirect criticisms usually relate to the management of the economy. But Nezavisimaya gazeta has published an article under the title 'Vladimir Putin has refuted the laws of physics.' This follows Putin's address to the Federal … Continue reading Putin Attacked for Overstating the Capability of New Weapons Systems

Yesterday we learned from the Western media that the Russians had broken into the secret cryptographic systems of the German Foreign and Defence Ministries, probably in 2017, soon after Trump won the US presidential elections, within months of attacking the Democratic National Committee's systems in the United States and only a year after the Russians … Continue reading A Hole in One or an Own Goal? Double-Dealing in Russian Foreign Policy

Only last week the Russian press waxed lyrical over comments from the woefully naive socialist foreign minister of Germany who gushed over the prospect of cutting sanctions against Russia but ignored the need for any precondition that would require respect for Ukrainian sovereignty. This occurred at the Munich security conference. Instead, according to Aleksandr Grishin … Continue reading Britain and Germany at Odds over Russia

The massive destruction of Syrian government forces through three hours of sustained bombardment by the United States Air Force  - B52s, F-15s, MQ-9s, Ac-130s, AN-64 Apache helicopters - on the night of 7-8 February resulted in the deaths of at least a hundred Russian mercenaries, if not more (figures of 300 or more are being … Continue reading The Bombing of Russian Mercenaries in Syria: The Reaction, Embarrassed Silence

Most Russian citizens, unlike the family of Boris Yeltsin and their friends, lost out on the national lottery of privatisation. They viewed the share certificates issued by the industries that employed them as valueless and promptly sold them for a handful of roubles. These were scooped up en masse by the Russian oligarchs of the … Continue reading More Bad News for Mr Putin

All too often in history Great Powers waste money and men for far too long before they are finally forced to concede defeat in a troublesome area of the world that wiser minds warned them to keep away from. Somehow, if they can just get themselves to walk away, they will see that life can … Continue reading Unforeseen Consequences