News Club - What's Russia up to?

What’s Russia up to?

Thanks for coming along with me these last few weeks as we’ve gone deep on some of the big international stories that are bubbling along. What you’re getting in this newsletter reflects my ramblings through the internet as I try to get a handle on a particular event or person, and today is no different. 

Last week, a couple of stories popped up relating to Russia that I bookmarked for further investigation on the weekend. It reminded me of the excellent News Club interview Kate Watson did with one of Australia’s most esteemed political editors Chris Uhlmann. He’s frustrated that the Ukraine war isn’t getting more attention and has taken it upon himself to highlight the dangers of Russia winning. As he sees it, “Ukraine’s fight against tyranny is our fight, too” (paywall).

Serious stuff, but it is a war that has largely fallen out of our headlines. And with everything that’s happening in the world right now, the actions of Russia’s leaders - most notably those of its President Vladimir Putin - aren’t at the top of our news consciousness like they might at other times. 

With that in mind, these 4 Club Picks are a good selection of what I think are things worth knowing about.  

1. Last week, US and South Korean officials said they reckon at least 3,000 soldiers from North Korea have been deployed to Eastern Russia to join the fight alongside Russian fighters in Ukraine. Russia says that’s not true, but video footage of the North Koreans in the area tells a different story. As this video outlines, North Korea’s involvement in the war in Ukraine isn’t new, but it could be a significant escalation in Russia’s favour. 

2. Russia is siding with Iran in the Middle East conflict, and this weekend, the Wall Street Journal reported (paywall) that Houthi rebels in Yemen used satellite data provided by Russia to target and attack Western commercial ships in the Red Sea. That’s a major development, keeping in mind that Australia has just taken control of multinational efforts to knock out Houthi drones and missiles and protect shipping in the Red Sea. 

3. Remember how Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election was a thing? Experts say it’s also happening this time around… Last week, Microsoft released an update on ‘cyber and influence activity from foreign adversaries’, calling out Russian state-backed actors for undermining the Harris-Walz campaign. One notable case from last week is the spread of a Russian-made fake video that purports to show early ballots marked for Donald Trump being destroyed. 

4. And this interview on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert with Yulia Navalnaya is worth a look. She’s the wife of Alexi Navalny, the Russian opposition leader/Putin’s most vocal critic, who died in prison in February. Eight months on, his posthumous memoir Patriot written from prison has just been published, and Yulia is on the publicity trail. "It was very important for me to show that we'll continue our fight. And to remind the world about him," she said last week. 

That’s enough to get on with, don’t you think? 

Tell us what you think