Silicon Curtain

Edition No20 | 16-10-2023 Day 600 of Putin's War in Ukraine has brought a flood of news, from delivery and deployment of ATACMS, to Ukraine's successes in the Black Sea, and Russia's floundering offensive in Avdiivka, using the same wasteful tactics that have failed time and again since the war began. ~~~~~ SUPPORT THE CHANNEL: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain https://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain ~~~~~ RUSSIAN RECRUITMENT ADS: https://twitter.com/yarotrof/status/1703762022582612247 https://twitter.com/Biz_Ukraine_Mag/status/1605314907418886145 ~~~~~ NEWS LINKS: Kyiv Independent https://kyivindependent.com/ https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-uses-atacms-in-strikes-against-russia-first-time-missiles-used-in-battle/ https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-war-latest-intelligence-says-russia-gives-hamas-weapons-captured-in-ukraine/ https://kyivindependent.com/reintegration-ministry-over-67-000-people-evacuated-from-liberated-kherson-kharkiv-oblasts/ https://kyivindependent.com/lithuania-repairing-leopard-tanks-damaged-in-ukraine/ https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-war-latest-oct-16/ https://kyivindependent.com/parliament-approves-measure-strengthening-financial-monitoring-of-politicians/ https://kyivindependent.com/proving-our-worth-ukraines-female-soldiers-and-their-fight-for-equality/ https://kyivindependent.com/exit-poll-polands-ruling-party-wins-parliamentary-elections-but-loses-majority-to-liberal-opposition/ ~~~~~ The Moscow Times https://www.themoscowtimes.com/ https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/10/16/putin-speaks-to-netanyahu-over-conflict-with-hamas-kremlin-a82783 https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/10/17/russia-says-no-proof-north-korea-sending-weapons-a82790 https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/10/17/half-of-russian-soldiers-wounded-in-ukraine-require-amputation-official-a82798 https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/10/17/ignoring-russian-colonialism-has-deadly-consequences-a82795 ~~~~~ The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/15/russia-avdiivka-offensive-failing-top-ukrainian-officer-donetsk ~~~~~ Business Insider https://www.businessinsider.com/sea-baby-ukraine-experimental-sea-drone-russia-black-sea-fleet-2023-10?r=US&IR=T ~~~~~ Russian Media Monitor https://twitter.com/JuliaDavisNews ~~~~~

Ukraine really matters - why Ukraine must achieve complete victory in order to get justice for crimes committed against it by Russia Georgijs Ivanovs started the Ukraine Matters channel in 2007, and it has garners 11.5 m views. He started the channel to explain the situation surrounding the war in Ukraine in simple terms. Like myself, he is not Ukrainian, nor is he a military expert. But he has been to Ukraine many times and seen it almost fully (except for Odesa region). He has a lot of good friends in Ukraine, and in fact his wife is Ukrainian, and so feels extremely connected to the invasion that scaled up in February 2022. https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineMatters

Andrey Buzarov is a political advisor and expert on international relations. He has a PhD in Social philosophy and philosophy of history as well as a Master's degree in Ukrainian Foreign Policy. He is a researcher at the Department of Public Administration and Political Sciences at Klaipeda University (Lithuania). Andrey Buzarov has worked on various political projects and collaborates with individual public figures, as well as writing analytical articles, speeches, interviews, arranging contacts with the media, as well as contacts with international organizations. ---------

Historically, U.S. firms dominated the private security company market, in places like Afghanistan and Somalia. But in recent years they have been emerging in other countries. Warlords and militias have restyled themselves as private security companies, and in Russia we have seen the incredible consequences of PMC Wagner rising as a force to challenge the reputation of the regular military. Wagner is also active in Africa, building a private military empire and extracting resources to fuel Russia’s global power ambitions. The proliferation of private military forces is having a profound effect on international relations, meaning the twenty-first century may have more in common with the twelfth century than the twentieth. This poses significant risks to democracies across Africa. ---------- SPEAKER: Beverly Ochieng is an experienced journalist and commentator on socio-political, economic and security developments in Sub-Saharan Africa. She analyses political developments in the region, as well as security developments in West Africa and the Sahel. Beverly is a Senior Digital Journalist and Africa Specialist at BBC Monitoring. ----------- LINKS: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beverly-ochieng-267469143/ https://twitter.com/BeverlyOchieng

Ukraine is Fighting for Universal Values, like the Rule of Law, committment to truth as a concept, and democracy; not only its survival, freedom and independence. ---------- SPEAKER: Nicolas Tenzer is a French civil servant, academic, writer, and editor. Tenzer is a graduate of the École normale supérieure (1980–1982), Sciences Po (1980–1982) and the École nationale d'administration (1984–1986). He has taught political philosophy at Sciences Po (1986–2004) and since 2014 he teaches Science of Government. As a civil servant, Tenzer is the former head of the Commissariat général du Plan (1994–2002), a former member of the staff of France's minister of Economy and Finance (1987–1988). He is currently the editor of the journal Le Banquet and is the founding president of the Centre d’étude et de réflexion pour l’action politique (CERAP), a position he has held since 1986. He was a director of the Aspen Institute from 2010 to 2015 and has acted as its treasurer and president. Nicolas Tenzer is a member of the Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur and the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. LINKS: https://tenzerstrategics.substack.com/ https://twitter.com/NTenzer https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolas-tenzer-07390617/ ----------

Edition No19 | 10-10-2023 How degrading the rule of law around the world, and weakening the Western 'rules-based order' benefits Russia's business model. ~~~~~ SUPPORT THE CHANNEL: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain https://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain ~~~~~ RUSSIAN RECRUITMENT ADS: https://twitter.com/yarotrof/status/1703762022582612247 https://twitter.com/Biz_Ukraine_Mag/status/1605314907418886145 ~~~~~ NEWS LINKS: The Moscow Times https://www.themoscowtimes.com/ https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/10/06/russia-doesnt-care-about-the-fight-fgainst-fascism-a82684 ~~~~~ Kyiv Independent https://kyivindependent.com/ https://kyivindependent.com/venice-commission-criticizes-draft-law-that-bans-members-of-pro-russian-parties-from-future-elections/ https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-war-latest-russia-kills-51-people-in-single-deadliest-attack-against-civilians-this-year/ https://kyivindependent.com/russias-landmines-are-highly-advanced-and-increasingly-difficult-to-clear/ https://kyivindependent.com/kuleba-if-ukraine-loses-war-it-will-be-end-of-europe/ https://kyivindependent.com/duda-hamas-attack-diverts-worlds-attention-from-ukraine/ ~~~~~ Russian Media Monitor https://twitter.com/JuliaDavisNews ~~~~~ USEFUL LINKS: Vatnik Soup https://twitter.com/P_Kallioniemi http://www.medbat.org.ua/en/ Real World News https://kyivindependent.com/ https://www.kyivpost.com/ https://english.nv.ua/ https://www.themoscowtimes.com/ https://meduza.io/en https://meduza.io/ https://novayagazeta.eu/ https://www.newsweek.com/topic/russia... Analysis https://www.ft.com/russia https://www.economist.com/ https://www.foreignaffairs.com/ https://cepa.org/ https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/ https://www.theatlantic.com/search/?s... YouTube Channels / @timesradio1 / @khodorkovskyru / @popularpolitics / @macknack / @plushev / @tvrain / @fake_news / @feyginlive ~~~~~

Tetyana Filevska, an art manager and researcher specializing in 20th-century Ukrainian art, passionately discusses the cultural struggle between Ukraine and Russia. She uncovers how Russia's manipulation of modernist artists aimed to control historical narratives. Tetyana highlights the importance of reclaiming identities of artists like Kazimir Malevich, emphasizing the need for cultural diplomacy in these tumultuous times. The conversation touches on art's role amidst conflict and how creativity can resist oppression, revealing the deep connections between art, identity, and politics.

Welcome to the third of our monthly conversations with Konstantin, who is one of the most respected voices on YouTube about what is happening Inside Russia. ---------- Konstantin Samoilov is a well-known YouTuber whose channel ‘Inside Russia’ comments insightfully on Russia’s decent into authoritarianism over the last few years. But now, like many others, he’s outside Russia, with no idea of when he can return there. ----------

GUEST: Olena Tregub - Ukrainian expert in policy analysis, policy design and reform implementation. ---------- SUPPORT THE CHANNEL: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain https://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain ---------- INTRO: The potential for abuse and infringement of civil rights is huge and is a risk for any country at war. On top of that are the tens of thousands of war crimes being committed by the invaders. My guest today is an expert on Reform, Transparency, Governance, Civil Society and Corruption. We will be talking about how Ukraine is progress on these fronts, to defend individual rights and liberty even in wartime, and we will loom at the importance of striving for Modernity in Ukrainian culture and institutions. #olenatregub #ruleoflaw #ukraine #ukrainewar #russia #zelensky #putin #propaganda #war #disinformation #hybridwarfare #foreignpolicy #communism #sovietunion #ussr ---------- SPEAKER: Olena Tregub is a Ukrainian expert in policy analysis, policy design and reform implementation, with a special focus on corruption prevention in economic and security sectors. Since 2017 Olena has been Secretary General of NAKO (the Independent Defence Anti-Corruption Committee) – an international oversight body created by Transparency International. It’s her mission to strengthen democratic oversight over defence spending, increase accountability and transparency of the sector, which is critical in wartime, and has become a hotly debated topic in the run-up to the 2024 US election. Before joining the Ukrainian government, Olena built her career abroad in journalism, policy analysis, education, and international development. Olena has worked in the UN Headquarters in New York, taught International Relations in American universities, and cooperated with The New York Times and Kyiv Post. ---------- LINKS: https://twitter.com/OTregub https://www.linkedin.com/in/olenatregub/ https://cepa.org/author/olena-tregub/ https://archive.kyivpost.com/author/olena-tregub https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/olena-tregub/ https://nako.org.ua/en/about ----------

GUEST: Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges - Retired United States Army officer ---------- Compilation of four interviews with Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, one of the strongest and most experienced voices advocating for a Ukrainian victory in its defensive war against Russia. ---------- SPEAKER: Ben Hodges is a retired United States Army officer, who became commander of United States Army Europe in November 2014, and held that position for three years until retiring from the United States Army in January 2018. He has been Senior Advisor to Human Rights First since June 2022 and also serves as NATO Senior Mentor for Logistics. Until recently was the Pershing Chair in Strategic Studies, at the Centre for European Policy Analysis, specialising in NATO, the Transatlantic relationship and international security. #benhodges #usarmy #ukraine #ukrainewar #russia #zelensky #putin #propaganda #war #disinformation #hybridwarfare #foreignpolicy #communism #sovietunion #postsoviet ----------