Russia
Russia’s war on Ukraine: the lessons so far
The sheer complexity – and horror – of Russia’s war on Ukraine makes it difficult to distil the essential points. To take…
How close is Russia to collapse?
Russia is now as closed off to the world as the Soviet Union was before Mikhail Gorbachev made his first tentative steps…
Boris Johnson is operating in a new political reality
Boris Johnson is attempting to carve out a role for himself as the figure who can lead the West in…
Remember the Russians who will really suffer from sanctions
When I was in Russia in the very early 1990s, there was a generic figure who seemed to stand at…
Do Russians support Putin’s war?
Everyone is calling the conflict in Ukraine Putin’s war and insisting that it has nothing to do with the Russians…
The downfall of Russia’s oligarchs
The normal justification for sanctioning oligarchs is that doing so will cost them money, causing them to put pressure on…
The free world’s new reality
We are about to see brutality in Europe on a scalethat will be almost beyond our comprehension. Russia is turning…
The Spectator’s Notes
Much attention has been paid to how Vladimir Putin has learnt from western weakness over his earlier invasions, including into…
What the right gets wrong about Putin
A fracture on the international right may seem small fry given everything that is going on right now. But it…
Strait talk
What the Ukraine war means for China — and Taiwan
Escape from Kiev
My relief – and guilt – at getting out of Ukraine
Teutonic shift
Germany’s attitude to Russia is changing fast
Putin’s rage
Despite western hopes, the Russian President won’t be easy to topple
Barometer
The wild one Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said that Vladimir Putin had gone ‘full tonto’. The word tonto is used…
Diary
Lviv, Ukraine On the Ukrainian side of the Polish border, near a place called Shehyni where the refugee crisis…
Letters
Soft options Sir: In relation to strengthening the impact of the Russian sanctions package (‘Tsar Vladimir’, 26 February), please may…
Portrait of the week
Home Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, said of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia: ‘Never in all my study or…
At least BP and Shell tried to teach Russia true capitalism
BP will offload the 20 per cent stake in Rosneft, the Kremlin-controlled energy giant, that is the residue of 25…
Is Russia Today finished?
As the British authorities debate whether to ban the propaganda channel of a savage imperialist power, Russia Today is making a…
The Russian army is failing – but not enough to lose the war
There have been three major surprises for military analysts since the Russian military invaded Ukraine. The first has been the…
Saboteurs and looters: life in Ukraine’s capital
Lviv, Ukraine Russian troops have yet to reach the centre of Kiev. Instead, locals have two more immediate concerns: saboteurs…
Macron appears unassailable
Emmanuel Macron, the President of France for whom few voters have expressed much affection, is suddenly the leader of a…
Are Poles really against immigrants?
Krakow The invasion of Ukraine is being felt across Europe. Already hundreds of thousands of displaced Ukrainians are spilling out…
The crisis in Ukraine is strengthening the EU
The EU has a knack for turning a crisis into an opportunity. The Eurozone crisis led to the centralisation of…
No-fly zones won’t work, but what about aid to Ukraine?
Vladimir Putin’s forces are encircling the cities of Kharkiv, Kherson and Mariupol, and a 40 mile-long convoy of Russian armoured vehicles…
