Should the Nord Stream saboteurs be extradited to Germany?
The identity of the saboteurs who blew up the Nord Stream pipelines in September 2022 was for years the western…
Trump doesn’t understand what Putin wants
Is Donald Trump’s peace process in Ukraine moving forward – or it is merely going around in circles in a…
Moldova has been saved from Russian influence, but at what cost?
The European Union, guardian and champion of democracy, rightly takes a dim view when ruling parties ban their opponents, refuse…
The ‘shadow fleet’ tanker raid was pure theatre
The news footage was satisfyingly reminiscent of Mission: Impossible. Masked French commandoes swarmed up the side of the rusty oil…
Trump has called Europe and Ukraine’s bluff
Has Donald Trump just announced the most consequential foreign policy reversal of his presidency? If so, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky…
Trump takes a pass on brokering peace in Ukraine
Has Donald Trump just announced the most consequential foreign policy reversal of his presidency? If so, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky…
The Kremlin had nothing to gain from sending drones to Poland
Provocation, mistake, or something in between? Either Putin sent Russian drones into Poland’s airspace on Tuesday night to test Nato’s…
Putin’s trap: how Russia plans to split the western alliance
Though you wouldn’t know from the smiles around the table at the White House this week, a trap has been…
The Ukraine summit ignored the difficult questions
What a lovely meeting Volodymyr Zelensky and his European allies had with Donald Trump. The US President complimented Zelensky on…
The 12 minutes of the Trump-Putin summit that shook the world
The Trump-Putin press conference in Anchorage was 12 minutes that shook the world. Putin got precisely what he wanted, which…
Trump’s Alaska meeting is a gift for Putin
From the Kremlin’s point of view, holding a US-Russia summit in Anchorage, Alaska is an idea of fiendish brilliance. The…
Trump and Putin fundamentally misunderstand each other
Let the trolling begin. Chicken Kiev was the airline meal served to the first planeload of Russian diplomats, government officials…
Giorgia Meloni’s Italian renaissance
Rome Last weekend, Rome hosted nearly a million young pilgrims to celebrate the Papal Jubilee of Youth. Part Woodstock festival,…
What Putin wants from his meeting with Trump
With just a day to go until the expiry of his ultimatum to Vladimir Putin to halt the war on…
Zelensky’s war on Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies is a disaster
Cries of ‘Shame!’ rang out in the Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, today as lawmakers from Volodymyr Zelensky’s Servant of the People…
Ukrainians have lost faith in Zelensky
Donald Trump this week boosted Ukraine’s air defences with new Patriot batteries, threatened Vladimir Putin with sanctions if he does…
For Trump, solving Ukraine won’t be as easy as Iran
For the moment, at least, the world seems to be going Donald Trump’s way. Instead of setting the Middle East…
Venice deserves Jeff Bezos
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
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?
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
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
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?
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
“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
A week of diplomatic manoeuvring, ultimatums and psychological gambits has ended with a sadly predictable result: Vladimir Putin will not…
