Owen Matthews

Venice deserves Jeff Bezos

21 June 2025 9:00 am

Venetians are once again revolting. Not, this time, against cruise ships, wheeled luggage, over-tourism or rule from mainland Mestre. No…

Why Russia wants war between Israel and Iran

16 June 2025 6:45 am

Israel’s assault on Iran represents a double helping of good news for the Kremlin. Years of two-track diplomacy have allowed…

Who started the Cold War?

14 June 2025 9:00 am

It was America, with its decision to build a global liberal order – not the Soviet Union, with plans to spread communism in Europe, argues Vladislav Zubok

Putin has no interest in peace in Ukraine

6 June 2025 12:41 am

It was Groundhog Day in Istanbul’s Ciragan Palace. On one side of the grand conference room sat a long row…

Putin has no interest in peace

4 June 2025 12:08 am

It was Groundhog Day in Istanbul’s Ciragan Palace. On one side of the grand conference room sat a long row…

How long can Putin openly defy Trump?

27 May 2025 2:10 pm

What happens when you repeatedly defy President Trump’s direct orders? Or lie to his face, again and again? How about…

Why the Trump-Putin dialogue is so dangerous for Ukraine

20 May 2025 11:13 pm

“Look, are you serious? Are you real about this?” That question, according to US vice president J.D. Vance, was the essence…

Putin only wants to talk to one man

15 May 2025 5:10 pm

A week of diplomatic manoeuvring, ultimatums and psychological gambits has ended with a sadly predictable result: Vladimir Putin will not…

Why Trump met Syria’s interim president

15 May 2025 2:34 am

Few career arcs in modern history can be as remarkable as that of Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa – or Abu Mohammed…

Ukraine’s Victory Day drone swarm is dangerous for Putin

8 May 2025 7:40 pm

Russia’s Victory Day celebrations on 9 May should mark a triumphal double apotheosis for Vladimir Putin. Not only will it…

What does Putin want? Whatever he can get away with

3 May 2025 9:00 am

The US general Mark Clark knew a thing or two about dealing with Russians. In the aftermath of the defeat…

How Rome copes with the Conclave

26 April 2025 9:00 am

Ordinary Romans, famous for their cheerful working-class familiarity, loved Pope Francis for his common touch. For the first time in…

‘Vladimir, STOP!’ – Trump is being humiliated by Putin

25 April 2025 3:36 am

Theodore Roosevelt was a believer in speaking softly but carrying a big stick. But where does that leave Donald Trump,…

Why London’s Ukraine ceasefire talks will fail

23 April 2025 5:38 pm

There’s one key thing that one should know about the Ukraine peace talks scheduled to begin in London today, and…

Why London’s Russia-Ukraine ceasefire talks will fail

23 April 2025 4:21 pm

There’s one key thing that one should know about Ukraine peace talks scheduled to begin in London today, and that…

Has the Kremlin talked Trump out of sanctions?

12 April 2025 9:00 am

After a two-hour phone call last month, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin announced that an improved bilateral relationship between the…

Putin has pushed Trump too far

31 March 2025 5:35 pm

Perhaps Donald Trump is not quite the chump the Kremlin has taken him for. Trump is ‘pissed off’ with Russia…

Erdogan’s latest power move could backfire

29 March 2025 9:00 am

Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has never been so weak – nor so strong. At home, he is facing the…

The EU’s ‘re-arming’ plan is unserious

22 March 2025 2:42 am

Hark ye now, O despots of the world and enemies of freedom: as the American beacon of democracy fades, Europe…

Putin has played Trump like a fiddle

19 March 2025 5:24 pm

And so it begins. Welcome to the first episode of the latest season of Putin’s Theatre of Fugazi – the…

What Vladimir Putin really wants from Ukraine

14 March 2025 12:53 am

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have very different negotiating styles. Trump lines up his offer in advance, browbeating all the…

Why Russia should agree to a ceasefire – and five reasons Putin might not

13 March 2025 2:47 am

The main achievement of the US-Ukrainian talks in Jeddah was to produce a ceasefire document that Russia might actually want…

Russian spying has become a pathetic, amateurish business

8 March 2025 6:59 pm

Make no mistake: whatever higher moral authority they may have invoked in their defence, Soviet and Russian spies have never…

Trump’s Ukraine strategy is mad. But it might work

5 March 2025 8:22 am

Will the real Volodymyr Zelensky please stand up? On Sunday, Ukraine’s president defiantly stated that ‘the final deal about ending…

‘Europe plus’ won’t save Ukraine

4 March 2025 1:15 am

Days after the disastrous White House showdown between Volodymir Zelensky and Donald Trump, Sir Keir Starmer has done an undoubtedly…