Steve Rosenberg: Russian Paper: “The Election’s Over. It’s Time for Unpopular Measures.”

Sep 28, 2026 | Today one Russian newspaper writes: “The parliamentary elections are over. The time has come for unpopular measures.” Another reports on contacts between the Kremlin and the far-right AfD.

Steve Rosenberg: "What Should I Do If I Need My Motherland, But She Doesn’t Need Me?”

Sep 27, 2026 | “What should I do if I need my motherland, but she doesn’t need me?” Superheroes, special operations and “shaping the mindset of children.”

I Know the Secret of Why Trump Truly Fears Putin | The Daily Beast Podcast

Sep 14, 2026 | Luke Harding, author of the new book Betrayal: Trump, Putin and The New Age of Conquest, speaks with Joanna Coles about the decades-long relationship between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, and the Russian intelligence operation that Harding argues helped cultivate Trump as a potential target for influence.

Harding traces Trump’s early connections to Moscow, the murky financial dealings that followed, and the compromising information that may give Putin leverage over the president, including what could have been captured during Trump’s visits to Russia. He also explains why Russia viewed Trump’s 2016 victory as a historic intelligence triumph, how Trump’s approach to Ukraine has benefited Putin, and why Russia and China see an opportunity to reshape the global order.

Harding reveals what he experienced first-hand while reporting in Moscow, including the surveillance and intimidation campaign that ultimately led to his expulsion, before turning to the startling possibility that Russian state television has used Melania Trump as a warning to her husband.

Steve Rosenberg: Ahead, Russia Has Not Peace, But War": Today's Russian Newspapers

Sep 25, 2026 | Today one Russian newspaper doubts that Vladimir Putin will attend the G20 summit in Miami and predicts “an even tougher and bloodier phase of the Ukraine conflict this winter.” Its headline: “Ahead Russia has not peace, but war.”

Steve Rosenberg: Russian Newspaper Warns of the "Deterioration of the Economic Situation" in Russia

Sep 14, 2026 | Today’s Russian papers write about “the deterioration of the economic situation in Russia”, where “housing construction is deep in the red” & “increasingly expensive groceries & petrol are making people worry more about inflation.”

Ukraine’s ‘Unprecedented’ Attack on Moscow as Russia Strikes Back

Sep 20, 2026 | Ukraine launched over 1,000 drones towards Russia and said it put a key oil refinery out of action in what Moscow's mayor called the biggest drone attack yet on the city and surrounding region. Officials said three people were killed.

Meanwhile, Russia kept up its attacks on Ukraine, with eight people killed and dozens more injured and Kyiv has come under further attack from drones.

It didn't stop the final day of Russia's elections going ahead, though the only anti-war party had been banned from standing.

Russia: Pessimism, Rising Prices and Voices from the Street

Sep 20, 2026 | From the Russian newspapers: the “Special Election Operation”, a giant tuna and rising prices. Also: “In Russia there’s been a record rise in pessimism.” And Muscovites tell what they believe constitutes a “great country.”

WTF’ Trump Family’s Russian Money Scandal ‘Stinks’ — and iI Will Only Get Uglier | Sir Bill Browder

Sep 15, 2026 | Sir Bill Browder joins Maddie Hale for an in-depth analysis of Donald Trump Jr.’s Putin-linked wedding scandal, what it could reveal about Trump family corruption, Trump’s pressure on Ukraine to stop striking Russian oil refineries, and how his trade war with Canada could leave America increasingly isolated.

North Korea Considers Deploying 50,000 More Troops Directly to Ukraine | Michael Evans

Sep 14, 2026 | “There's now reports that they may be considering sending 50,000 more North Korean troops, presumably to Ukraine rather than Kursk.”

The North Koreans’ previous deployment to “take a slice” of Kursk did not go well for them, but Kim Jong-un is still considering mobilising an unprecedented 50,000 troops to assist his ally Vladimir Putin, says The Times’s former defence editor Michael Evans.

Russia Hits Train in Ukraine after Boris Johnson, Top European Officials Leave Station | BBC News

Sep 14, 2026 | A Russian drone has hit a train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and top European security officials had passed through.

No casualties were reported after the strike at Yahodyn, which hit the train's engine. All the passengers had been evacuated, Ukrainian authorities said.

Johnson and other European national security advisers, including the UK's Jonathan Powell, had passed along the same line on a different train on their way back from a conference in Kyiv.

Russia said it had struck "railway infrastructure" in western Ukraine, but Ukraine's state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia said that "quite possibly, the target of this drone could have been the diplomatic train".

Steve Rosenberg: Russia: a 'Holy War', a Subway Station and the Mood on the Street

Sep 13, 2026 | In Moscow I visit a new Metro station that references the war in Ukraine, a museum that heroises Russian & North Korean soldiers and I try to gauge the mood on the streets.

Steve Rosenberg: "Hole in Russia's State Budget" Bigger Than Expected

Sep 10, 2026 | In today’s Russian papers: “hole in the state budget” bigger than expected; “growing demand in Russia for insurance cover for drone attacks”. And a senior official claims: “Russia can survive only as a great power. We’re either a great power, or nothing.”

Steve Rosenberg: What Are Today's Russian Papers Saying about Russia's Economic Problems?

September 8, 2026

Steve Rosenberg: Diplomacy of the Doomed": What the Russian Papers Are Saying about US Talks with Putin

Sep 7, 2026 | "Diplomacy of the Doomed" is how one of today's Russian papers sums up Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner's talks with Vladimir Putin, adding "Their mission was doomed to underachievement from the outset."

Steve Rosenberg: Russia: Change, Apples and a National Idea

September 6, 2026 | What has been changing in Russia? What were the Russian papers writing about last week? Plus, memories of Soviet TV.

US-Iran Conflict Has ‘Makings of a Tinderbox’ as Putin Assures Iran of Russia’s Support

Sep 2, 2026 | “This really has the makings of a possible tinderbox.”

The US has struck Iran after Putin expressed solidarity with Tehran which means that the US-Iran conflict can get “particularly out of hand”, says former US colonel Cedric Leighton.

Steve Rosenberg: Modi Calls on Putin to Move towards Peace. How Should We Interpret the Response?

Sep 1, 2026 | Yesterday Prime Minister Modi of India urged Vladimir Putin to move towards peace in Ukraine. What are today’s Russian newspapers saying about that? And how should we interpret the Kremlin leader’s response?

Steve Rosenberg: “The Destruction of the World Order Can No Longer Be Stopped,” Warns Russian Paper

Aug 31, 2026 | Today’s Russian papers report on Russia’s economic problems: “Stagnation in industry” & “Investment downturn significantly worse than expected.” But it's not just Russia that has problems, thinks one paper: “The destruction of the world order can't be stopped.”

Steve Rosenberg: Russia’s Anti-drone Cages for Buildings: What Are They Like?

Aug 28, 2026 | The Russian press continues to discuss John Ratcliffe’s surprise trip to Moscow. One paper: “The visit of a CIA chief is not a sign of peace & not a sign of war. It’s a sign normal channels are no longer effective and that the heavy artillery is required.” Plus, Russian cages for protecting buildings from drone attack.

How Putin Seized the Oligarchs' Billions | Martin Sixsmith

Aug 4, 2026 | “By the end of the 1990s, the oligarchs were essentially running the government.”

Former Russia correspondent at the BBC and author of 'Suing the Kremlin: The Battle for Putin’s Billions' Martin Sixsmith reveals the process undertaken by Vladimir Putin to retrieve money and power from Russia’s oligarchs.