A Russian oligarch seems to have everything: private jets, enormous yachts, villas in several countries, companies worth billions, and access to the Kremlin. From the outside, he looks powerful enough to influence presidents. That is why many people in Russia and the West assumed that oligarchs were the true rulers of the country—that Putin depended…
Every army has deserters. But when thousands of soldiers begin leaving, hiding, escaping across borders, choosing prison over the front, or disappearing into civilian life, this is no longer just a discipline problem. It is a crisis. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has pulled hundreds of thousands of men into the trenches. Some are defending…
When listening to Russian officials, you may wonder: why can’t they just face the truth? Admit that Russia is losing the war it started in Ukraine. That its economy keeps taking damage from sanctions and the ongoing war. That the fuel shortages are spreading across regions and there’s no clean resolution in sight. Instead, they…
Russia’s war in Ukraine is damaging the country in almost every possible way. It is burning through men, money, equipment, infrastructure, labor, markets, and the last remains of normal life. It has made Russia more dependent on China, more isolated from Europe, more militarized, more corrupt, and more afraid of its own future. So the…
On July 18, Ukrainian drones struck two enormous Wildberries logistics centers: one in Elektrostal near Moscow and another in the Tambov region. Eight workers were killed. Dozens were injured. The warehouses burned—and with them burned merchandise belonging not only to one giant corporation, but to tens of thousands of Russian entrepreneurs. Then the attacks continued….
Russian oil refineries are burning. Not only in border regions. Ukrainian drones are reaching deep into Russia and hitting the infrastructure that keeps the country moving. And this creates a very simple question: How is this possible? Russia calls itself a superpower. It sells itself as a fortress surrounded by enemies. For years, state television…
Russia likes to present itself as a food-security fortress. It takes pride in producing most of its own food and ranking among the world’s largest exporters of grain and vegetable oil. And yet, just as farmers need to bring in the harvest, they are facing an awkward question: where are they supposed to get fuel…
For years, many Russians managed to make one psychological arrangement with the war: it was happening, yes, but not really to them. It was on television. Life inside Russia adjusted. People learned which words not to say, which news not to notice, and how to keep scrolling. And then reality began to crumble into everyday…
