Silicon Bites Ep380 | 2026-08-14 | In December 2025, Vladimir Putin stood in front of Russia's military command and complained that European leaders were "stoking up hysteria" about the Russian threat. That was the public performance, reported from the Russian record by RBC-Ukraine. Is this just a clear-cut case of projection, or is there something more to this performative, fake outrage?Misunderstood Moscow. Warmongering Europeans. This narrative turns the world on its head. Not unusual for Russian geopolitical games though. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:The New York Times, 14 Aug 2026 — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/14/world/europe/russia-moldova-putin.htmlThe New Voice of Ukraine — https://english.nv.ua/nation/putin-ordered-russia-to-undermine-nato-and-eu-from-within-in-2026-nyt-reports-50632708.htmlKyiv Post, 14 Aug 2026 — https://www.kyivpost.com/post/82357UNN, 14 Aug 2026 — https://unn.ua/en/news/putin-wants-to-destroy-nato-and-the-eu-from-within-he-has-assigned-moldova-a-key-role-nytRBC-Ukraine, 14 Aug 2026 — https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/putin-gives-russian-military-objective-for-1786713992.htmlCharter97, 14 Aug 2026 — https://charter97.org/en/news/2026/8/14/694762UA.NEWS (Peskov denial), 14 Aug 2026 — https://ua.news/en/world/u-kremli-bachat-moldovu-platsdarmom-dlia-novoyi-agresiyi-nytAround Prague (GRU camps, payments), 14 Aug 2026 — https://aroundprague.cz/en/news/putin-s-2026-target-undermining-nato-and-the-eu-from-within-through-moldovaKyiv Independent (Tusk), 13 Aug 2026 — https://kyivindependent.com/poland-arrests-russian-man-for-alleged-assassination-plot-against-us-ukrainian-national-pm-tusk-says/NBC News / Reuters, 13 Aug 2026 — https://www.nbcnews.com/world/europe/poland-thwarted-russian-plot-kill-american-citizen-warsaw-rcna592337CNN, 14 Aug 2026 — https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/14/europe/poland-russian-plot-american-intlThe Washington Post, 14 Aug 2026 — https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2026/08/14/poland-says-it-thwarted-russian-assassination-attempt-us-citizen-warsaw/----------

Welcome to our monthly conversation 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. ----------LINKS: @INSIDERUSSIA https://www.patreon.com/insiderussiaINSIDE RUSSIA is a source of current news on Russia - Konstantin carefully selects 9 news stories that are important and really matter, with commentaries and analyses by Konstantin delivered daily to channel patrons at Patreon.comGet your access to daily news updates at patreon.com/INSIDERUSSIA----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------DESCRIPTION:Konstantin Samoilov on Being Targeted, Russia’s Rising Repression, and the Power Struggle Behind PutinJonathan speaks with exiled Russian YouTuber Konstantin Samoilov, who describes escalating intimidation he attributes to Russian security services after he became more prominent for opposing the war and Putin’s regime. Samoilov recounts being hospitalized with worsening stomach pain, receiving a call from Moscow urging him to cooperate and come to Russia, and later being followed; he says the campaign has made him fear for his family’s safety and stop showing them publicly. The discussion broadens to intensified repression in Russia, comparisons to pre-war “clearing the decks” and 1930s-style terror dynamics, and a sharpening struggle between siloviki and other elite clans. Samoilov argues Putin is increasingly a figurehead fed curated information, amid economic strain, fuel crises, arrests, and instability, with possible outcomes ranging from internal conflict to a frozen war and deeper Chinese leverage over Russia.----------CHAPTERS:02:49 Exile And Rising Profile05:00 Hospital Call From Moscow07:41 Support And Gratitude09:22 Mobilization And Crackdown11:39 Russia At A Crossroads16:32 Volcano Signs And Oligarchs19:21 Two Clans Power Struggle24:38 Putin Visits Fuel Crisis27:48 Putin In The Dark28:53 Puppet And Puppeteers30:47 1930s Terror Parallels33:33 Stalin Rotated Secret Police35:22 Khrushchev Checks And Balances37:18 Two Paths To Collapse38:01 Private Armies And Civil War39:30 Siloviki Shadow Takeover42:37 Economic Strain And Drone Siege43:51 World War Three Fears45:53 China Bleeding Strategy51:19 Putin Near The End----------

Nigel Gould-Davies is a senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in London. Between 2010 and 2013 he held senior government relations roles in the international energy industry. Previously he has also served in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, where his roles included head of the Economic Section in Moscow, ambassador to Belarus, and project director in the Policy Planning Unit. He is author of Tectonic Politics: Global Political Risk in an Age of Transformation (Brookings, 2019).----------LINKS:https://twitter.com/Nigelgd1https://www.linkedin.com/in/nigel-gould-davies-5347b51a?originalSubdomain=ukhttps://www.iiss.org/people/russia-and-eurasia/dr-nigel-gould-davies/https://gsas.harvard.edu/person/nigel-gould-daviesBOOKS:Tectonic Politics: Global Political Risk in an Age of Transformation (2019)https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tectonic-Politics-Insights-Critical-International/dp/0815737130https://www.chathamhouse.org/2019/05/tectonic-politics-global-political-risk-age-transformationARTICLES:https://spectator.com/article/does-russias-exiled-opposition-want-whats-best-for-europe/https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/08/11/soviet-dissidents-understood-what-russias-exiled-opposition-has-forgotten-a93458https://www.iiss.org/research-paper/2026/05/the-coming-crisis-in-russias-political-economy/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00396338.2024.2332057https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/12/09/biden-putin-ukraine-appeasement-deterrence-donbass/----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------

David DeBatto is host of the ‘No Delusion Zone’ podcast @NoDelusionZone is a retired U.S. Army Counterintelligence Special Agent, a geopolitical analyst, writer, and podcaster. David is an Iraq war veteran who served as Team Leader of a Tactical Human Intelligence Team (THT) in operations within Iraq and is also a former police officer. David is considered too conservative for the progressive left and too independent minded for the radical right and seeks to challenge political dogma and the naked self-interest of politicians. ----------LINKS:@NoDelusionZone https://www.protectingtherepublic.com/podcasthttps://www.protectingtherepublic.com/https://substack.com/@protectingtherepublichttps://x.com/ddebattohttps://www.kyivpost.com/authors/743----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/kharpp - Reconstruction project supporting communities in Kharkiv and Przemyślhttps://kharpp.com/NOR DOG Animal Rescuehttps://www.nor-dog.org/home/----------

Cormac Smith has worked in Public Relations and Corporate Communications for over three decades. In 2016 he traveled to Ukraine to take up a special appointment as the ‘Strategic Communication Advisor’ to Pavlo Klimkin, then the Foreign Minister of Ukraine. He was attached to the British Embassy in Kyiv but was embedded in Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the first foreigner to hold such a position. While in Kyiv, he also advised and provided training for five other government ministries and worked directly with three other cabinet ministers: Health, Education and the Deputy Prime Minister. ----------LINKS:https://defencebrink.uk/https://x.com/CormacS63https://x.com/philipingmbe----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------

Today I’m speaking with Operator Starsky, a former Ukrainian National Guardian, blogger, and inspiration for everyone who is following the war, and supporting a Ukrainian victory. He has created one of the most popular and original YouTube channels dedicated to the international community. I’m not sure you need an introduction – I’m sure most people watching this channel will have seen your videos! ----------LINKS:https://www.youtube.com/@PropagandaStudyInstitutehttp://psi-eu.org/https://www.youtube.com/@StarskyUA----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------

Silicon Bites Ep377 | 2026-07-31 | ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:----------

It’s my pleasure today to welcome back onto the channel Vlad Vexler, Social Philosopher, and unique YouTuber. Our previous video conversations proved to be extremely popular, and a lot has happened since we last spoke. Please do check out Vlad’s channel on YouTube, as it has a collection of the most thought-provoking and insightful videos on the Russian mindset and the roots of this war.----------LINKS:https://www.youtube.com/@VladVexlerhttps://www.vladvexler.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/vlad-vexler/https://www.instagram.com/vladvexler/?hl=enhttps://www.resilience.org/resilience-author/vlad-vexler/----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------DESCRIPTION:Vlad Vexler on Western Democratic Decline, Ukraine’s Agency, Trump’s Stance, and Russia’s War TrajectoryJohn welcomes back social philosopher Vlad Vexler to discuss Western democratic decline and the inability of Western allies to align resources with strategic purpose amid major Russian strikes on Kyiv. Vexler argues citizens must recognize negative historical trends while still acting—especially by defeating anti-democratic figures at the ballot box—and links healthier domestic discourse to foreign-policy capacity, noting NATO is vital but insufficient long-term. They compare Ukrainian wartime civic agency to Western apathy, emphasizing people act only when they perceive viable alternatives, and explore how social forces, information environments, and economic alienation shape politics. Vexler frames Putin’s Russia as an extreme hard-right regime closer to fascism than Soviet communism, critiques “Soviet” institutional legacies like punitive hierarchy, assesses Trump’s begrudging engagement with Ukraine, evaluates Ukraine’s strikes inside Russia as economic/elite-pressure “spring-loading,” and concludes mobilization in Russia looks increasingly likely while no viable peace path exists without major events.----------CHAPTERS:00:39 Kyiv Strikes And Western Drift01:41 Irreversible Decline And Agency07:36 Ukraine Protests And Democracy08:48 Why People Act Or Don't13:26 Social Forces Behind Populism20:09 Russia As Extreme Case24:34 Soviet Legacy In Institutions29:05 Trump And Ukraine Policy37:55 Nuclear Risk And Red Lines39:53 Wildberries Strikes Explained44:11 Russian Public Reaction48:20 Elite Fissures Melnichenko53:39 Mobilization Odds And Design57:47 Casualties And No Peace Path01:01:56 Putin's Mindset And Wrap Up----------

Silicon Bites Ep379 | 2026-08-05 | Twenty-eight ballistic missiles over Kyiv. Zero stopped. Seventeen dead. And a West that has run out of interceptors, run out of urgency, and run out of excuses. Have we also run out of compassion? Run out of political capacity to defend ourselves and our allies, run dry of strategic clarity to see and oppose our enemies – those that would seek to destroy is – and run out of any sense of geopolitical morality enough to care? There is a slaughter taking place daily, nightly in Ukraine, on our watch, enabled by our inaction and weakness. And the consequences may soon be a full-scale genocide and ecocide that we are allowing, enabling. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:Euronews — Russian overnight barrage on Ukraine kills at least 17 in Kyiv and surrounding region (5 Aug 2026)NPR / Associated Press — Russian missile and drone barrage in Ukrainian capital region kills 17 (5 Aug 2026)ABC News — 'Massive' Russian strikes kill 17 in Kyiv, Zelenskyy says, as no missiles intercepted (5 Aug 2026)CNN — Russian attack kills 17 in Kyiv region, Zelensky says (5 Aug 2026)UNITED24 Media — 17 Killed as Russia Hammers Kyiv and Region With 24 Ballistic Missiles and 115 Drones (5 Aug 2026)Kyiv Independent — 2 rescued from rubble as Russian ballistic missile attack damages Kyiv (5 Aug 2026)Meduza — Russian missile strike destroys largest warehouse of Ukrainian marketplace Rozetka (5 Aug 2026)Interfax-Ukraine — Overnight strike destroys Nova Poshta sorting center in Kyiv, kills 3, wounds 8 (5 Aug 2026)Interfax-Ukraine — Rozetka's Brovary warehouse destroyed by Russian strike (5 Aug 2026)RBC-Ukraine — Ukraine's biggest retailers under fire: what Russia's attack on Kyiv destroyed (5 Aug 2026)----------

This interview is like a thick, hearty and warming Borscht - a concentrated explosion of Ukrainian character, flavour and goodness. Enjoy!----------Yevhen Klopotenko is one of Ukraine’s best-known chefs- iconic, iconoclastic, original and inventive. But as a leading figure within Ukraine’s resurgent culture, his interests go beyond food. Over the past decade—and especially since 2022—he has become a cultural strategist, public intellectual and practitioner of what might be called gastronomic statecraft: using food as a vehicle for national identity, historical memory, soft power and resistance to Russian imperial narratives. His successful campaign to have Ukrainian borshch recognised by UNESCO became one of the defining examples of cultural diplomacy and resistance during wartime. ----------RESTAURANTS:https://www.100rokiv.com.ua/ukhttps://www.instagram.com/100rokiv?igsh=bWZodHV2Znc2Ymtjhttps://expz.menu/a16c8955-ee3e-46c4-bcb6-dbe17edaa63ehttps://www.cultfood.info/ukLINKS:https://klopotenko.com/en/https://klopotenko.com/en/cuisine/ukrainian/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yevhen_Klopotenkohttps://www.instagram.com/klopotenko_chef/?hl=enhttps://www.youtube.com/@klopotenkochefhttps://x.com/klopotenko_chef?lang=enhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/klopotenko/----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------