Several million rubles can change the scale of a person’s life overnight. For a Russian man who has spent decades living on an ordinary salary, such money does not feel like a bonus. It feels like an escape hatch. Debts that seemed permanent can disappear. A neglected apartment can finally be repaired. A family that…
For years, Russia has built its entire story of this war around one simple idea: sooner or later, Russia will win. After Ukraine’s dramatic successes in 2022, Russia mobilized hundreds of thousands of men, expanded military production, poured enormous amounts of money into the army, and gradually regained the initiative. The advances were painfully slow,…
A Russian general celebrates his birthday at an expensive restaurant in central Moscow. His family is there. His guests are there. Security is outside. Then a woman approaches carrying a package. Seconds later, the package explodes. The general survives. Others do not. And suddenly one of the most important privileges of Putin’s ruling class begins…
Imagine that tomorrow the war in Ukraine ends on Putin’s terms. Russian television interrupts its programming. Putin addresses the nation. Fireworks explode over Moscow. Commentators announce that Russia has defeated not only Ukraine, but the entire collective West. For a few days, the country celebrates, and then comes the much more interesting question: What happens…
Russia currently has around 720,000 troops committed to the war against Ukraine—more people than the entire population of Boston. Who are these men? What brings them to the recruitment office? Do they believe Ukraine is ruled by Nazis? Do they still believe Putin after seeing the front? Or are they there because the state…
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…
