Sunflower Seeds
It’s a few hours short of four days since Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Defying his expectations and everyone’s fears, he has failed to take its capital quickly, and the valiant example of Ukraine’s president and people is rallying the world to its cause. Far from weakening them, Putin’s actions could end up strengthening NATO and the EU. But the situation remains fraught with the potential of escalating into something far worse, with Putin today putting Russia’s nuclear defences on alert in response to the West’s sweeping economic sanctions, and Belarus reportedly committing its ground and air forces to his cause. Kyiv could yet fall. Every night Europe is holding its breath.
Understanding the war in Ukraine.
There is no safe place any more.
Put sunflower seeds in your pockets.
Putin thought the war would be easy. He learned the lesson from the wrong Afghanistan war.
Many Western commentators repeated Putin’s narrative. Time for a reset. Russia is an oligarchy, not a plutocracy. A deleted state media story gave the game away.
Empty atrocity talk prepares the way for full atrocity. Isolation.
Russian warship, go fuck yourself.
Volodymyr Zelensky, 2006 winner of the Ukrainian version of Dancing with the Stars.
The awkward truth about the UK’s sanctions. The UK home office can’t lift visa requirements for Ukrainians because its asylum system is a mess. Brits are refusing to leave Ukraine because they don’t have faith the Home Office will allow their spouses to come over.
A mother brings a stranger’s children to safety.
Fact-checking the information war. How to avoid sharing bad information.