Archive
Pieces
PROFILE: Black Spark, the ghosts who infiltrated the death factory at Alabuga
What I find vertiginous in this story is not the sabotage itself. It is the patience it demands. Several months of pretending, of smiling…
INVESTIGATION: The ZIRKA — $2,000, 340 km/h, and Automatic Death for Shaheds
I am struck by this relentless equation: Russia pays a few tens of thousands of dollars for its Shaheds; Ukraine was responding with missiles…
COMMENTARY: The IRGC Fires on a Cargo Ship — Iran Tests How Far It Can Go
Signing an agreement with a regime like the Islamic Republic of Iran without robust verification mechanisms is signing an agreement on the hope that…
EDITORIAL: Scarborough Shoal — China Moves a Pawn, the World Still Hesitates
I am not an expert in international maritime law. But I know how to recognize a pattern when I see one. China at Scarborough…
REPORT: Trump Demands NATO Loyalty — Rutte Walks on Eggshells in Washington
There is something deeply uncomfortable about this image: the leaders of an alliance of sovereign democracies learning to navigate the whims of one man…
DECODING: Putin Rejects Peace — and Explains Why He Cannot Accept It
When a head of state calls his adversary's government a "regime," he is not just playing with semantics. He is signaling that he does…
ANALYSIS: 259 Engagements in 24 Hours — the Ukrainian Front on the Edge of Endurance
I keep looking for words that match what 259 engagements in a day actually means. I can't find them. It's one of those numbers…
FACT-CHECK: Did the DIU Ghosts Unit Really Disrupt Russian Logistics in Crimea?
It is difficult to fact-check a military strike in occupied territory. Sources are by nature limited, partial, or subject to security imperatives. What I…
OPEN LETTER: To the Talion Drone — Welcome to the War for Ukrainian Skies
There is something strange and poignant about writing an open letter to a drone. But what Talion represents goes beyond the machine: it is…