To understand Russian President Vladimir Putin, we must see the world through his eyes September 14, 2020 One of the most valuable analytical lessons of all was explained to me succinctly by my foreign policy tutor during my happy days at St. Andrews. As he put it, the key to political risk analysis is not to imagine what you would do if you were in Fidel Castro’s shoes, but rather to empathize [...]
US budget deficit hits record $3tn due to coronavirus spending September 12, 2020 The US budget deficit has reached a record high after topping $3tn (£2.3tn) as the government’s mass spending on coronavirus relief continues. The treasury department said it spent more than $6tn in the first 11 months of its financial year, which included $2tn on Covid-19 programmes. It means the figure outpaces the $3tn it took [...]
Microsoft: Russian hackers target US election again September 10, 2020 Hackers linked to Russia, China and Iran are attempting to spy on people tied to both President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden, Microsoft has said. The tech firm has said that both presidential campaigns are at risk from hackers as the Russian group which hacked the 2016 Democratic campaign is again involved in [...]
Putin holds all the cards in Belarus September 7, 2020 One of the greatest problems in political risk analysis is that the heart so often gets the better of the head. Because we want a political outcome to happen, we think that it will. Karmic justice must apply to all situations in history, with the good rewarded and the bad punished. But this is to [...]
Russian opposition leader Navalny was poisoned with Novichok, says German government September 2, 2020 Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny was poisoned with the Novichok nerve agent, the German government has said. Last month Navalny was admitted to hospital after suffering severe symptoms of suspected poisoning. Tests of Navalny’s blood samples conducted at a German military laboratory produced “unequivocal evidence” that the Russian opposition critic was poisoned with Novichok, according to [...]
Facebook and Twitter take down Russia-backed accounts September 2, 2020 Facebook and Twitter have taken down a small network of accounts that were backed by a Russian influence operation, linked to interference in the 2016 US election. Facebook said the accounts were linked to Russia’s Internet Research Agency (IRA), which is close to the Russian government and accused of interfering in the 2016 US election. [...]
Tenet film review: Can Christopher Nolan save cinema with his latest time-bending blockbuster? August 29, 2020 Inception filmmaker Christopher Nolan is one of the few remaining directors whose name alone can draw in a crowd. His post-Batman films stand as outliers in this industry – adult-targeted, original stories with no potential for sequels or spin-offs. In fact, Warner Bros have such confidence in the director’s brand that all but the most [...]
Boris Johnson calls for a ‘transparent investigation’ into Alexei Navalny poisoning August 26, 2020 Boris Johnson has called for a “transparent” investigation into the poisoning of Russian political activist and Vladimir Putin critic Alexei Navalny. The Prime Minister said the UK “stands in solidarity” with Navalny and that the country would “join international efforts to ensure justice is done”. Navalny, who is one of the Russian government’s most prominent [...]
Japan Sees its First Crypto Seizure As Binance Helps Take Down Money Laundering Group August 25, 2020 This week the price of Bitcoin (BTC) moved sharply up and surpassed the $12,000 mark to hit a high shortly above it. The price has since declined to a weekly low at $11,500, before recovering to $11,750, according to data from CrpytoCompare. Ether (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, started the week at $425 [...]
Alexei Navalny supporters accuse Kremlin of blocking his evacuation to Germany August 21, 2020 Allies of critically ill Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny accused the Kremlin of thwarting his medical evacuation to Germany today and said the move puts his life in mortal danger because the hospital treating him in Siberia is under equipped. Navalny, a fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, is in a serious condition after drinking [...]