In Putin’s Moscow, a summer of death and distraction
Amid festivals and flowers the capital is far from the war
WATCH RUSSIAN television or listen to Vladimir Putin’s chilling speeches, and Russia is a besieged fortress, struggling to preserve humanity against the decadent West, defending the traditional values of family life, and defying death by its readiness to sacrifice life. Walk down Moscow streets, however, and it looks nothing like a city in the grip of a death cult. But neither did Berlin in the early 1940s, with its cabarets and heady consumption.
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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Summer in Putin’s Moscow”
Europe
July 5th 2025- In Putin’s Moscow, a summer of death and distraction
- A pragmatic amnesty for separatists benefits Catalonia
- Turkey’s strongman is becoming Donald Trump’s point man
- An infestation of ticks menaces Istanbul
- Germany’s Bundestag bars AfD MPs from its football team
- The sleeping policeman at the heart of Europe
From the July 5th 2025 edition
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Ukraine’s political infighting gets nasty
As Trump starves it of arms, there is turmoil inside the government
Turkey’s strongman is becoming Donald Trump’s point man
But renewed war with Iran would put the honeymoon with Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the test
Germany’s Bundestag bars AfD MPs from its football team
Could the sporting ban precede a political one?
An infestation of ticks menaces Istanbul
And mosquitos are a growing problem too
The sleeping policeman at the heart of Europe
Enforcement of EU law has become an afterthought
A pragmatic amnesty for separatists benefits Catalonia
But it carries costs for the rule of law