The phrase “The Great Game” has become something of a lazy cliché when referencing anything to do with Central Asia. Regrettably, therefore, it has never been more apt than today. Much as it was during the days of empire, it is once again a hotbed of political and geopolitical struggle. Where aristocrats, warlords, tribesmen and […]
Central Asia – A House Built on Sand Read More »
‘Bronze President’ is not just another nickname for Donald Trump. It is a Chinese state-sponsored hacking group that has historically operated in the South Asian region, working across Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Burma (Myanmar), to gather sensitive information of interest to Beijing in its own backyard. But there are signs that the group’s targets are
Mustang Panda, Hidden Dragon Read More »
The list of sanctions against prominent Russian figures grows ever longer. In addition to the ‘usual suspects’ of high-ranking political, economic and military figures, the consequences of the war are now becoming a family affair, with Putin’s two adult children and the daughter of Foreign Minister Lavrov included in the latest round for the first
A sanctioned operation Read More »
Of all the questions asked in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, one of the most predominant has been “Where next?”. Whether Moscow’s forces had swept into Kyiv as winners of a lighting battle, or mired as they currently are in a ‘long war’, few expect Putin’s horizons to stop at the Ukrainian
Chisinau is the winter of our discontent… Read More »
There was a brief moment when it looked as if Viktor Orban had changed. As the European Union voted to impose wide-ranging sanctions on Russia in a response to their invasion of Ukraine, Hungary’s representative – so often the EU outlier in his autocratic nature and his naked approval towards, and support of, Vladimir Putin
Wheel Of Misfortune Read More »
While the war in Ukraine rages through expressions of military dominance, elsewhere a far wider conflict is being waged by Russia against, basically, the entire world. As the shutters come down on Russian cultural, economic and political partnerships, Moscow is retaliating by fighting back. While Putin has escalated the war of words with his remark
Unrestricted Economic Warfare Read More »
As the eyes of the world are fixed on Ukraine, the obvious question would be: where next? But not necessarily in a sense of the continuation of Putin’s war further into the former Soviet states. His invasion is proof that no number of international systems and repercussions will ultimately stop one country invading another if
The Grains of Time Read More »
Just as the Covid-19 pandemic imposed the phrase ‘the new normal’ into peoples’ vocabularies, Putin’s war may yet reinforce it. An iron curtain of cultural boycotts and political opprobrium has already descended on Russia, with economic sanctions already being among the strongest, and most unified, in history. The operating environment – not only within Russia
There is trouble looming along the bordering countries with Russia. Well, that is to say there is more trouble to be expected. Eastern Ukraine has been engaged in conflict with Russian-backed separatist forces since the annexation of Crimea in March 2014. The animosity between the two nations is higher than ever and there are some
All is not quiet on the Eastern Front Read More »
Earlier this year, against the backdrop of runaway COVID-19 infections, Russian citizens voted in a referendum that will reset Putin’s residential term limits. The result was never in any doubt. A large public campaign promoting the “Yes” vote and swathes of the opposition banned from campaigning or boycotting the event entirely proved the death knell
Decline and Fall: Democracy in Modern Russia Read More »
