Putin
The return of Actual Badness
In the spring of 2020, I advanced an abnormally hopeful proposition: that one blessing that might arise from a pandemic…
Nuclear war, magic mushrooms and a teenage trip I’ll never forget
Vladimir Putin’s decision on Sunday to put his ‘deterrence forces’ – code for nuclear weapons – in a high state…
Does Putin pass Aristotle’s tyrant test?
Is Putin a tyrant? Aristotle (384-322 bc) might well have thought so. Seeing the turannos as a deviant type of…
Putin’s rage: the Russian President won’t be easy to topple
Despite western hopes, the Russian President won’t be easy to topple
What does it mean to go ‘full tonto’?
The wild one Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said that Vladimir Putin had gone ‘full tonto’. The word tonto is used…
In Lviv, the mood is inspiring – and fanatical
Lviv, Ukraine On the Ukrainian side of the Polish border, near a place called Shehyni where the refugee crisis…
Letters: How the UK should respond to Russia
Soft options Sir: In relation to strengthening the impact of the Russian sanctions package (‘Tsar Vladimir’, 26 February), please may…
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…
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…
'Staying Switzerland' on Ukraine is impossible
The striking thing about the financial sanctions on Russia is not their severity, but just how many countries are joining…
Viktor Orbán has played a perfect game with Putin
On 3 April Hungarians will have their ninth set of free parliamentary elections since the collapse of the communist dictatorship…
Has Putin resurrected the West?
I think Putin will have been surprised. I mean: I was surprised. Weren’t you? Not, necessarily, that Ukraine should have…
The war in Ukraine has divided Putin’s court
It is striking how little enthusiasm there is in Russia for Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine – but for some, it has…
A new Europe is emerging from this crisis
With every hour that Kiev holds out, the geopolitics of Europe changes more. Germany, which so values its prohibition on…
Pipeline politics: what happens if Putin cuts off Europe’s gas?
The price of Brent Crude oil was hovering at $100 a barrel as Germany halted approval of the controversial Nord…
What Putin has in common with Hitler
We are always cautioned against comparing a modern political event with those that led up to the second world war.…
For Russian sanctions to work, they must hurt the West too
No British soldiers will go to fight in Ukraine. The UK’s military involvement will be limited to weapons shipments and…
Why does Macron keep meddling in international crises?
Macron’s global posturing may prove to be his downfall
The West missed its chance to help Ukraine
Yet another east European tragedy is unfolding before our eyes. We have watched this movie for more than 80 years.…
The moral courage of P.J. O’Rourke
Was it Socrates who said that chaos was the natural state of mankind, and tyranny the usual remedy? Actually it…
Vlad the Invader: Putin is trying to recreate the tsarist Russian Empire
To appreciate Putin’s intent, you only have to look at Russian history
Are Russians turning against Putin?
One of the reasons why I judged — wrongly — that Vladimir Putin would not order an all-out invasion of…
To hurt Putin, go for oil and gas – not Swift
Both the British and the Americans have been explicit that it is the Europeans who are blocking Russia being cut…
Will the West shut Russia out of Swift?
You may never have heard of the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications — or at least not by its…
