The Ambassador Has Left the Building
Russia has had no ambassador in London since at least July 2026, and the Kremlin seems in no hurry to name one. By one count, only 35 of its 58 diplomatic posts remain, and its intelligence stations are reportedly close to collapse. Yet Moscow is threatening Britain with "catastrophic consequences".
Between Sartre and Levinas: Critical Thinking, Jewish Identity, and Anti-Semitism
Sartre explained Jewish destiny through the anti-Semite. Levinas objected that Judaism is not a result of anti-Semitism. Both rejected liberal abstraction, for opposite reasons. The same fork reappeared in 2022: in Putin's rhetoric of denazifying Ukraine and in an open letter from Ukrainian Jews to Israel.
A Pyramid Instead of a Sphinx: How the Lubyanka Is Destroying Russian Diplomacy in the Middle East
Aidar Aganin, a leading Arabist who reopened Russia's embassy in Tripoli, was the natural choice for Cairo. The post is instead going to a Turkologist who ran the Foreign Ministry's information security department, a field long tied to the FSB and SVR. Since Bogdanov left, security men have been taking over the Arab desks.
The Story of One Emigration, or How to Go On Living in Russia While Outside Its Borders?
A former Russian diplomat leaves Russia over the war with a newborn son and ends up on twelve-hour factory shifts in Galilee. A smartwatch full of English words gets him into a doctoral program. Now he asks why Russians abroad still face their troubles alone, and proposes a way out.
Putin’s “Epic Abstention” vs. Trump’s “Epic Fury”
On March 11, 2026, Russia could have vetoed a UN resolution condemning Iran, its strategic partner, and chose to abstain. Meanwhile Russia nearly doubled its oil exports to Asia, filling the gap left by Iranian barrels. And Ukrainian crews were shooting down Iranian drones over the Gulf.
The UN Is on the Brink of Collapse. But Should We Worry?
In 2014, Sudanese soldiers raped over 220 women and girls in the Darfur village of Tabit, an hour's drive from UN peacekeepers. The largest peacekeeping mission in UN history, costing over $1.5 billion a year, said it had found no evidence. Soon after it left, Darfur faced its second genocide in twenty years.
The “Master of the East” and His Executioners, or The Peculiarities of Clan Warfare in Putin’s Foreign Ministry
In July 2025, Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia's deputy foreign minister for the Middle East and Africa, was abruptly dismissed. Shortly before, his closest aide had been sent to Lefortovo on charges of high treason. Now Bogdanov himself is reportedly a suspect, and his old department is being handed to outsiders.
The Myth of the Three Percent, or Why You Don’t Have to Be a Hero?
Many believe a dictatorship falls once 3.5% of the population takes to the streets. Even Erica Chenoweth, whose research gave rise to the figure, now calls protest size an unreliable predictor of success. The outcome is decided by whether the army and police agree to shoot, and in Russia they will.
A Network Superpower, or Unobvious Lessons from Somaliland’s Recognition for Global Politics
On December 26, 2025, Israel became the first UN member state to recognize Somaliland, which broke away from Somalia in 1991. The African Union and the Arab League condemned it, but no sanctions followed. Somaliland lies across the Gulf of Aden from the Houthis, and there is already talk of an Israeli base there.
Trump the Peacemaker: Many “Finished” Wars, One Result
In June 2025, Donald Trump hailed a peace deal between Congo and Rwanda, but the M23 rebels never signed it and kept fighting. His Gaza plan was approved without the Palestinians, and the truce between Thailand and Cambodia collapsed by December. What do these failures mean for a peace deal in Ukraine?
Africa 2025: Why Do Electoral Autocracies Hold Elections?
In October 2025, Tanzania's president won 97.66% of the vote after the main opposition party was barred from the election. That same month, 92-year-old Paul Biya won an eighth term in Cameroon, and 255 people were arrested in Côte d'Ivoire for disputing the count. Elections here no longer change power. They confirm it.
A Country in Hell: Why the War in Sudan Has Already Lost Its Purpose, but the Unbridled Violence Has Not
In October 2025, the Rapid Support Forces stormed El Fasher, the last major city in Darfur still held by Sudan's army. Most of those killed were Masalit, Fur and other African peoples, and the UN has warned of signs of genocide. The UN Security Council has yet to adopt a single resolution condemning it.
The Story of the Canceled Summit, or the End of Russian Influence in the Middle East
Moscow invited the leaders of all 22 Arab League states to its first Russian-Arab summit, set for October 15, 2025. Five days before, the Kremlin announced a postponement. According to Bloomberg, only Syria's president and the Arab League's secretary-general had agreed to come. Why did Russia lose the Arab world?
A Dozen Stars, Three Arrows, and One Enormous Dream of an Ancient People
Near Novorossiysk there is a tiny village called Ubykh, named after a Circassian tribe that once lived on this coast. In 1864, after decades of war, Russia completed the destruction of Circassia, and hundreds of thousands fled to Turkey. Could a revived Circassia now offer southern Russia a way out of Putin's war?
Storm in the Gulf, or What to Expect from Iran’s Arab Neighbors After Its War with Israel?
In June 2025, Iran fired a missile at a US base in Qatar, and the Gulf monarchies found themselves one step from a regional war. They condemned Israel's strikes, and Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman barred the US from using their bases against Iran. Now they are planning a joint missile defense system worth over $85 billion.
The Bear and the Dragon in the Sands of Southern Arabia, or the Role of Russia and China in Supporting the Yemeni Houthis
In April 2025, Washington sanctioned a Chinese company for supplying the Houthis with satellite images of ships in the Red Sea. Russia, too, reportedly passed them satellite data through Iran. Moscow's contacts with them go back to the early 2010s, when a Russian intelligence officer in Sana'a met Houthi representatives.
Putin’s Next War: Who’s Next on His List?
In August 2025, Belarus proposed allowing martial law if Russia is attacked, as Russian troops came for the Zapad-2025 drills. NATO's chief believes Russia will be ready to fight the alliance within five years. The Baltics, Transnistria, the Caucasus and Kazakhstan are possible targets, but Russia itself may face China.
The Jihadist Banner over the Sahel, or What to Do When Terrorism Becomes a Homeland?
By mid-2025, the jihadist group JNIM controlled vast areas from central Mali to northern Benin, with some six thousand fighters. It runs Sharia courts, collects taxes and protects villagers, so many locals see it as a lesser evil than the army. Its emirs now call Russia, which backs Mali's junta, the new crusader.
Analyzing the First Iran–Israel War (June 2025): Causes, Consequences, and Future Scenarios
On June 13, 2025, Israel struck Iran's nuclear sites and killed top commanders, turning a long cold war into open conflict. Nine days later, the United States bombed Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. After the June 24 ceasefire, Iran's nuclear program is halted, but what comes next: new escalation, a real truce or regime change?
Israel Strikes: The Laser Wars Begin
In 2024, Israel became the first country to use a combat laser in war, shooting down about 40 Hezbollah drones. Each interception costs a few dollars of electricity, against tens of thousands for an Iron Dome missile. But the Light Shield only works at short range and in clear weather.
How to Lose Friends and Stop Wielding Influence in the Middle East: A Masterclass by a Veteran Geopolitician
In December 2024, the Assad regime, which Russia had propped up since 2015, collapsed while Russian forces did nothing. Six months later, Washington and Brussels lifted sanctions, and Syria's new rulers are talking of peace with Israel. How did Moscow manage to lose its closest Arab ally?
Turkish Rook on the Libyan Board, or What to Do When Both Opponents Now Play with Pieces of the Same Color?
After losing its bases in Syria, Russia turned eastern Libya into its main foothold, flying in troops and building up airbases. But in April 2025, Haftar's army signed a defense deal with Turkey, Moscow's rival for influence in the region. Will Ankara now push Russia out of Libya altogether?
The Algorithm of Regime Collapse — or a Bit of Scientific Statistics on the Fall of Dictatorships
Since 1950, only four heads of state have come to power through purely peaceful protest. Far more dictatorships have fallen to coups: in one study, 102 of 201 autocracies were toppled by insiders. What does this mean for Putin's regime and for a Russian opposition that still relies on peaceful marches?
A Quarter of the World in the Crosshairs: Nuclear Escalation Without Restraint
On April 22, militants killed 26 people in the Kashmiri town of Pahalgam. Within days, India suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, and Pakistan suspended the Simla Agreement. Each side holds about 170 nuclear warheads, and Pakistan's defense minister has already spoken of using them.
Russia Abandons Its Own: The Story of a Forgotten Ally
In 2022, Russian billionaire Ruben Vardanyan gave up his citizenship, moved to Nagorno-Karabakh and became its state minister. In September 2023, Azerbaijani forces seized him as he fled with other refugees, and Moscow did not intervene. In April 2025, the International Court of Justice refused to protect him.
Unwanted Allies: Why the West Denies Asylum to Putin’s Opponents?
Since 2022, hundreds of thousands of Russians have fled Putin's war, most of them young, educated and politically active. Yet in 2022, Russians filed only about 18,400 asylum claims in Europe, and fewer than a third were granted. Many ended up in Armenia, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Israel instead.
Russian-Sudanese Roulette
In April 2025, Sudan's Rapid Support Forces seized an airstrip at the Al-Atrun oasis in Darfur and pushed toward Libya. A route to the border would let them receive weapons from Marshal Haftar and export the gold that funds their war. Russia has dealt with both sides, trading weapons for access to Sudan's gold.
Mali’s Pivot to Russia Reshapes West African Geopolitics
Mali, a former French colony, has turned away from Paris and toward Moscow. Russian instructors, many of them Wagner veterans of the war in Ukraine, now help its army fight insurgents. In return, Moscow is eyeing Mali's gold, uranium and lithium. Is this sovereignty or a new dependence?
Russia and Algeria: The Untapped Reserve of Partnership
Russia and Algeria have been close partners since 1962, yet their trade in 2020 came to only about $3 billion. Russia sends wheat, steel and chemicals, while Algeria sends citrus fruit, dates and olive oil. Sanctions push Russia toward new markets, and Algeria wants to depend less on Europe.
3G — Gold, Guns, and Geopolitics: Is There Still Hope for Peace in Sudan?
In 2025, Sudan's army drove the Rapid Support Forces out of Khartoum after two years of civil war. The war has displaced 14 million people inside Sudan, and more than three million have fled abroad. Behind the two generals stand foreign powers chasing gold and a foothold on the Red Sea.
Donald Trump and the Shadow of Vladimir Putin
Garry Kasparov sees Trump's second term as the Putinization of America, with Elon Musk as its leading oligarch. Alexander Dugin welcomes the same changes and calls Trump Putin's ideological twin. Both agree that Trump's America is starting to look like Putin's Russia. They differ only on whether that is a disaster.
Axis of Destabilization: Russia – Hamas – Iran
In March 2023, a Hamas delegation visited Moscow, and months later Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. Russia and Iran arm Hamas and other militants, while Iranian drones fly for Russia in Ukraine. Every flare-up in Gaza lifts oil prices, filling the war chests of Moscow and Tehran.
Infiltration and Deception: How Russia Develops Hybrid Warfare Tactics
In recent months, Europe has seen a coup plot in Romania, a blast at a Spanish defense factory and sabotage on a German frigate. All have been linked to Russian intelligence. While fighting openly in Ukraine, Moscow wages a quieter war against Europe through sabotage, cyberattacks, bribery and propaganda.
Black Day and Its Aftermath: The Results of a Three-Year Conflict
In 2022, many in the Russian opposition believed that Ukraine's victory would quickly bring down Putin's regime. Three years later, the Russian economy has survived sanctions, and the West avoids a direct clash with a nuclear power. Would a bad peace be better than endless losses?
How One War Resounded in Four Languages?
When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Israel's newspapers covered the war in four languages and in four different ways. Hebrew papers condemned Russia with caution, English ones spoke of a barbaric invasion, and Arabic ones barely noticed the war. Russian-language outlets were free of Kremlin propaganda.
Donald Trump and the “One-Week Plan”: How a Lack of Understanding of a Complex War Leads to Political Failure
Donald Trump promised to end Russia's war against Ukraine in a week by pressuring Kyiv into concessions. When Zelensky refused, Trump called him a dictator and began repeating Kremlin talking points. Yet Congress, the defense industry and Europe may well stop him from abandoning Ukraine.
High Ranks and Low Principles: Portrait of a Modern Russian Diplomat
Sergey Kozlov, Russia's ambassador to Saudi Arabia since 2017, organized the Russian side of the Riyadh talks with the United States. Earlier, as ambassador to Yemen, he pocketed his staff's pay, billed for receptions that never happened and took cuts from construction deals. Then he was promoted.
Is a Spoon Useful for a Cold Meal? Or Why Does Russia Need a Military Base in Sudan?
On February 12, Sudan's foreign minister announced a deal with Moscow on a Russian naval base in Port Sudan. But his government, at war with the Rapid Support Forces, no longer even controls Khartoum. And after its losses in the Black Sea, does Russia's navy still need a base so far away?
Four Perspectives on a Single Invasion: Russia’s Attack on Ukraine as Reflected in the Israeli Press
In February 2022, 16 Israeli outlets in Hebrew, English, Arabic and Russian covered Russia's invasion of Ukraine differently. All but the Arabic press sided with Ukraine and focused on Jewish refugees, but none urged a break with Moscow. Why did one war look so different in one country?
The Luster of Blood on Sudanese Gold
In 2017, near Sudan's Abu Hamad gold mine, Wagner mercenaries reportedly shot dead at least 73 protesters, including children. Prigozhin's firm mined gold with near-forced labor and mercury, helping Omar al-Bashir evade sanctions. Now Sudan lies in ruins after a civil war that has displaced 11 million people.
Raising the Banner of Freedom: The Struggle for the Novorossiysk Republic
In December 1905, as its governor and his deputy fled, Novorossiysk declared itself an independent republic without firing a shot. Its elected council brought in an eight-hour workday, freed political prisoners and taxed big business. Two weeks later, troops arrived and the republic was gone.
Nothing matches that.