STRIKE THE TRUTH

Four years ago, at around 5am on 24 February 2022, Russia launched the largest land war in Europe since the Second World War. Since that morning, Ukraine has fought with extraordinary resilience. Ukrainians of all ages and backgrounds have stepped forward to defend their country, their identity, and their right to choose a future as a free, modern European nation. Russia, meanwhile, has paid for every centimeter of occupied territory at a staggering human cost, with more than a million men killed or wounded.   In this blog post, I reflect on the past four years, how Ukraine and the wider world have been shaped by this war, how it has affected us personally and collectively, and what the future might hold. Could this be the year peace finally comes to Ukraine? TALKS OF PEACE AND CEASEFIRES Since US President Donald Trump entered office in 2025, he has made securing peace in Ukraine a central focus. Both Ukraine and Russia have sought to demonstrate to Washington that they are w...

We are approaching the fourth anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine. Over these years, Ukrainians have been subjected to relentless terror by Russia through a wide range of means—many of them amounting to war crimes, acts of terrorism, and the deliberate infliction of mass civilian suffering. On the front lines, the fighting has been brutal and unrelenting. Away from them, civilian life has offered little refuge. This is especially true now, as winter temperatures plunge and Russia continues to strike Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, leaving millions without heat, electricity, or basic security. In this blog post, I want to focus on the methods Russia uses to terrorize Ukrainians. History shows that this approach is not new. From the era of the tsars through the Bolshevik revolution and beyond, Russia has relied on a war playbook rooted in brutality: targeting civilians, spreading fear, and engaging in ruthless, unethical tactics. These are actions that we in the West would n...

For centuries, Russia has promoted its culture and language as major global exports and symbols of national achievement. At the same time, other countries have often romanticized Russian history and culture, portraying them as exotic and intriguing themes that capture widespread attention. As a result, when people refer to anything “Slavic,” they frequently default to Russian associations. This can be in personality traits, films, cuisine, or aesthetics. Despite the fact that many countries share Slavic heritage, Russia has become the most prominent and recognizable representative of it. Why does this matter? Because the way Russia and Russian culture are portrayed in music, film, and other forms of art carries implicit messages. Art and culture function as powerful tools of soft power, shaping perceptions and subtly influencing how people think and feel about a nation. In this blog post, I will explore this dynamic and its broader implications, focusing primarily on its relevance to t...

Russia has employed s ome truly hair-raising tactics in its war against Ukraine. Compounding this, much of its equipment looks less suited for the battlefield and more at home in a museum. Together, these factors have turned Russia into something of a global military punchline. We’ve seen aging Soviet-era tanks that seem better suited for World War II, reports of horses and even camels being used to transport supplies, and soldiers disguising themselves as piles of rubble or trash in an attempt to evade Ukrainian drones. In this blog post, I want to move past the mockery and examine a more serious question: despite these shortcomings, Russia remains a powerful and capable axis power. But just how capable is it, really? And could it realistically cope with a full-scale war against the West? HOW DANGEROUS IS RUSSIA, REALLY? For all the images that invite ridicule, it would be a serious mistake to confuse embarrassment with incapability. Take the much-mocked Russian “ penguin ” camouflage...