In Moscow's Shadows 67: Why September is the Month to Watch, and 'Putin, Ukraine and the Revenge of History'
When are Russians really going to start feeling the pressure of the shooting war in Ukraine and the economic/political one with the West? I explain why I think September is when they will really start...
18 Mai 202246min
In Moscow's Shadows 66: Silovik, Nuclear, Criminal and Religious - a Choice of Victories
A week before Victory Day, I consider some different constituencies' notions of victories. For Patrushev and the hard-liners, they could win politically not despite failing in the war, but thanks to ...
1 Mai 202253min
In Moscow's Shadows 65: Fabian Burkhardt on Russia's Elites, Coups and Rumours
For an experimental change in format, this episode is given over to a long conversation with Fabian Burkhardt of IOS-Regensburg, who works on Russian elites, institutions and authoritarian politics. H...
22 Apr 20221h 4min
In Moscow's Shadows 64: Dvornikov, Mishustin, Scenarios and Traitors - more about Ukraine
Who is General Dvornikov, the new Russian operational commander for the war in Ukraine? Will Prime Minister Mishustin and the other technocrats be able to prevent the militarisation of the Russian eco...
16 Apr 202252min
In Moscow's Shadows 63: Terrible Crimes, Terrible Rulers, Terrible Dilemmas
Another brief and unedited podcast trying to track some of the latest Ukraine-related Russian stories, all distinctly depressing: - the war crimes of Bucha (and the Kirill Shamiev twitter thread I me...
3 Apr 202228min
In Moscow's Shadows 62: Ukraine: A New Strategy, An Absent Shoigu, An Angry National Guard and a Medieval Lithuanian Comparison
A brief and thoroughly unedited look at four particular issues relating to Ukraine:- the 'new strategy' of concentrating on the Donbas- where's Shoigu?- fear and loathing in the National Guard- a comp...
26 Mar 202229min
In Moscow's Shadows 61: Ukraine: When Autocracy meets Technocracy - Putin's War, Info War, Spook War
Rather than try and follow the day-by-day, I tackle one of the tricky conundra: not just why the Russians have done so badly, but why the Ukraine war hasn't been fought the way the Russian army is mea...
12 Mar 202246min
In Moscow's Shadows 60: Ukraine: Nuclear Options, National Morale, and How Kyiv Can Save Moscow
What can one say about the unfolding horror in Ukraine. In this podcast I alight on a few specific issues: Putin's nuclear signalling (at least I hope that's all it is), the idiocy of 'No Fly Zones' i...
27 Feb 202231min
