In Moscow's Shadows 163: The Importance of Optimism (even when it comes to Russia)
I spin off two recent books, Elena Kostychenko's, I Love Russia. Reporting from a lost country and Sergei Medvedev's A War Made in Russia, both of which are excellent in their own terms, but also demo...
8 Sep 202450min
In Moscow's Shadows 162: Lavrov's (Living) Obituary
Empty rumours of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's death on the internet yesterday, got me thinking about his shrinking role, and the twilight of Russia's technocrats. Besides, he is already po...
1 Sep 202447min
In Moscow's Shadows 161: What's Going On in Russian Prisons?
After another armed hostage taking by inmates (and bloody response), I consider what’s going on in Russia’s prisons, and what it may tell us about what’s happening in Russia as a whole. And in the las...
25 Aug 202455min
In Moscow's Shadows 160: Kursk as Political Actor and Allegory
As Ukraine's Kursk incursion rumbles on, what does it tell us about the political processes in Russia behind the warfighting? From how Russians really aren't apathetic and however low their expectatio...
18 Aug 202458min
In Moscow's Shadows 159: The Kursk Incursion
I had hoped to not have to record a podcast this weekend, but life does enjoy its little pranks. A slightly shorter than usual episode on Ukraine's unexpected, unfolding and unpredictable move into Ru...
11 Aug 202440min
In Moscow's Shadows 158: A Hectic Week in Russia
Where to start? The prisoner exchange and subsequent furore over released dissidents' statements? More arrests of senior military figures? The bizarre shenanigans over a controversial merger in Russia...
4 Aug 202458min
In Moscow's Shadows 157: No Crime and Much Punishment: the Gershkovich Case and recent books on Russia's prisons
With Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich sentenced to 16 years on what I consider wholly spurious espionage charges (and I explain why I think this), it's a suitable moment first to consider...
28 Jul 202449min
In Moscow's Shadows 156: Are Putin's Praetorians up to the challenges of the future?
The Rosgvardiya, the National Guard, is the final backstop of Putin's rule, the public order force on which he relies to control the streets.* However, facing growing protest at home and engaged in pa...
21 Jul 202457min
