The Great Russian Firewall: Putin’s unplugging his country from the internet February 11, 2019 Russia is preparing to detach itself from the rest of the world by briefly disconnecting from the internet, as it readies for future cyber warfare. The test, due to be held before 1 April, will keep all data circulating between Russian citizens and organisations within the country's borders rather than passing through international routes. The move [...]
Putin suspends missile treaty and pledges to build more weapons February 2, 2019 Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that Russia has suspended a cold war era treaty to limit missile building after a similar move by the US. Putin told a meeting with foreign and defence ministers that Russia had suspended the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty which limits land-based missiles with ranges of 310–3,420 miles. Putin [...]
Bill Browder attacks British establishment for allegedly accepting Russian money laundering bribes January 30, 2019 Financier and prominent Putin critic Bill Browder has launched an incendiary attack on "members of the British establishment" for allegedly accepting bribes linked to Russian money laundering. Browder, the chief executive of Hermitage Capital Management, alleged that an investigation into money laundering had uncovered evidence that members of the House of Lords have received bribes [...]
US Treasury lifts sanctions on aluminium and power firms linked to Putin ally Deripaska January 28, 2019 The US treasury has lifted sanctions on three companies linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska – an ally of President Vladimir Putin – despite efforts by Democrats to maintain trade restrictions on the companies. Aluminium giant Rusal, En+ Group and power firm JSC EuroSibEnergo are beneficiaries of the department’s decision to lift restrictions, after Republicans [...]
Public trust in Putin falls to new low as disposable income falls, new figures show January 21, 2019 Public trust in President Vladimir Putin has fallen to its lowest level in 13 years as Russians contend with new taxes and a sluggish economy. Confidence in Putin fell to 33.4 per cent last week, down more than 30 percentage points since its high in 2015 after the annexation of Crimea, according to state-owned polling [...]
Russia denies ‘rubbing hands with glee’ at Brexit uncertainty after May’s deal rejected by parliament January 16, 2019 Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has denied his government is rubbing its hands with glee at Britain’s turmoil over the terms of Brexit. Lavrov said Russia actually prefers a united European Union to a news conference earlier today. Read more: Russia detains American on spying charges in Moscow “We won’t and aren’t saying anything about Brexit, [...]
Editor’s Notes: Brexit: An Uncivil War was a five-star blockbuster for Channel 4 January 11, 2019 Brexit drama may be playing out all around us but it had its own silver screen moment earlier this week when Channel 4 aired its much-hyped drama, Brexit – The Uncivil War, by acclaimed writer James Graham. The drama drew heavily on the masterful account of the referendum campaign, All Out War, by Tim Shipman. [...]
Vladimir Putin says UK and Russia must break ‘deadlock’ in sour relations December 20, 2018 Vladimir Putin has held his annual press conference in which he said Russia and Britain must get out of the "deadlock" in the sour relations. The Russian president said he was interested in restoring "full relations" with Britain, which has imposed sanctions on Russia over the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter [...]
The Ghost of Christmas Past could tell us where the negotiations all went wrong December 19, 2018 In Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, Scrooge finds being haunted by the Ghost of Christmas Past unbearable. He begs it to stop. The Ghost replies: “These are the shadows of things that have been. That they are what they are, do not blame me.” It might almost be the Prime Minister speaking about the whole [...]
Rigged and ready: After recent gains, are oil prices set to recover? December 4, 2018 The oil market has had a tough time this year, with prices sliding since October. And yet, there’s been a radical turn of events over recent days, with the picture looking drastically different as the markets opened for trading this week. In fact, one of yesterday’s biggest market movements was oil, with brent crude surging [...]