War in Ukraine

The Russian government is scrambling to prevent a domestic fuel crisis. Following a series of successful Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries and energy infrastructure, the world's self-styled petrol station has found itself without enough fuel to meet its own internal demand, at the height of the holiday season and the agricultural calendar. Avoiding the resulting social pressure will cost Russia tens of billions of dollars.

Between 2023 and 2024, the number of sabotage attacks in Europe nearly tripled. The year before that, it quadrupled. Meanwhile, the image of a Russian spy in an expensive suit bears less and less resemblance to reality. Today, the recruiter might turn out to be a Telegram channel administrator, an attractive stranger on social media, or someone who shares your views on "secret conspiracies."