Explainer-in-brief: Dialling down the temperature in Ukraine December 8, 2021 US President Joe Biden and Russia’s strongman Vladimir Putin were on the phone yesterday about what on earth are Russian troops doing on Ukraine’s borders. There’s been bad blood between the two presidents, with Biden previously calling Putin a “killer”. The relationship between Russia and Ukraine has historically been complicated. Europe’s magnetic attraction is at [...]
Japanese billionaire joins growing list of wealthy entrepreneurs heading for space December 8, 2021 Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa has today joined the growing list of wealthy entrepreneurs in heading to space. Maezawa’s first launch, which will see him spend 12 days on the International Space Station, forms part of his goal to go to the Moon on SpaceX’s Starship in 2023. On the trip, via a Russian rocket, the billionaire [...]
Gas prices jump amid escalating Ukraine-Russia tensions and threats of US sanctions December 7, 2021 Gas prices are on the rise again amid growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, with traders weighing up the risk of fresh sanctions from the US.
Truss doubles down Ukraine support in meeting with Russian counterpart December 2, 2021 Foreign secretary Liz Truss has met with her Russian counterpart today to double down on support for Ukraine. Russia, which annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, has been accused of trying to destabilise its eastern European neighbour state. “The Foreign Secretary expressed concern about rising tensions across Europe and re-stated the UK’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, [...]
Davis Cup: Britain face Germany tonight for place in semi-finals November 30, 2021 Great Britain’s knock-out path to attempted Davis Cup glory has begun in the same way as it did last time the competition ran, in 2019. The British team topped their group to earn a quarter-final tie with Germany, the same side they overcame in the last edition of the Cup. The two teams play tonight [...]
Pipe down: Kremlin tells US to stop interfering in Nord Stream 2 project November 29, 2021 Russia has warned the US not to put further pressure on any party over the certification of the $11bn Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
Davis Cup: Feliciano Lopez’s heroics in vain as Russian defeat helps Novak Djokovic’s Serbia reach quarter-finals November 29, 2021 Feliciano Lopez’s heroics were in vain as the Russian Tennis Federation eliminated holders Spain from the Davis Cup Finals and helped Novak Djokovic’s Serbia reach the quarter-finals. Forty-year-old Lopez, now ranked 106, thrilled a partisan crowd in Madrid by beating world number five Andrey Rublev 2-6 6-3 6-4 to give Spain hope of making the [...]
More Russian diplomats set to leave US as geopolitical tensions mount over pipeline November 28, 2021 27 diplomats and their families were expelled from the US and would leave next month according to Russia's ambassador to the US.
Victory for Roman Abramovich as judge rules claim he bought Chelsea FC after order from Putin is defamatory November 24, 2021 The High Court has ruled that claims that Roman Abramovich acquired Chelsea FC on Vladimir Putin’s orders in order to gain influence in the West are defamatory. The 55-year-old billionaire is suing journalist Catherine Belton over her best-selling book Putin’s People: How The KGB Took Back Russia And Then Took On The West, which was [...]
Supping with the devil: Germany must wake up about Nord Stream 2 November 19, 2021 As far back as the 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer put it very well in political risk terms when he said in “The Squire’s Tale” of Canterbury Tales, “He who sups with the devil should have a long spoon”. In mercantilist Germany’s case—where its foreign policy is all too often only an excuse for its export-driven [...]