Russia was a week into its War on Ukraine and internal repression on media was intensifying. The staff of Dozhd, Russia’s independent TV station, were having a crisis meeting on 1 March at their Moscow offices when a member of their security staff ran in, interrupting the meeting. He told …
The man behind Salad Money has a colourful past Alan Campbell is a complex entrepreneur whose many hats sit uncomfortably on the same head. He is best known as the promoter of the activist organisation Debt Hacker, which he set up in 2018 to assist consumers of payday loan companies. …
Russians bombed the memorial to Babu Yar yesterday. This is dedicated to today’s victims By Yevgeni YevtushenkoTranslated by Benjamin Okopnik, 10/96 No monument stands over Babi Yar.A steep cliff only, like the rudest headstone.I am afraid.Today, I am as oldAs the entire Jewish race itself. I see myself an ancient …
Government reacts to Ukraine invasion
Western law enforcement under huge pressure to police new marketplaces The decision of the EU, UK and US governments to disconnect a number of Russian banks from the SWIFT interbanking system will cause considerable disruption to the Russian economy. The key damage will impact energy companies supplying gas to Western …
An alarming scenario has just been outlined to me by a Asian politician with no skin in the Ukrainian game which envisages China putting into affect its long term startegy to regain Taiwan while the US and Europe is focused on Russia’s Ukraine adventure. This alarm gains some credibility as …
Dangerous ambiguity of power and money Disclosure is at the heart of honest politics. If you don’t know the factors that affect politicians before they make a decision, you cannot trust the decision. A decision, for example about state procurement or an appointment to government, will be tainted if it …
A tailor’s Tale It all started when a taxi driver told me he had recently had a Russian tailor in the back of his taxi who had asked him to take him to a house on the Bishop’s Avenue in North London. The then President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, had …
Russian security services allegedly target Winter and Paralympic games Russians and Eastern Europeans more generally are the primary conveyors of viruses and Trojans that sit in computers of soft and unsuspecting Westerners, working in offices or playing at home. The cold war with the East is waged in virtual space …
Pandemic has brought everyone closer to their computer; a relationship that was once distant and casual has become of necessity umbilical and even affectionate. If you cannot do without something, you are likely to become close to it, even trusting. Once you buy everything off the internet, especially if you …
