Russia’s army is being subordinated to its security services
Vladimir Putin mistrusts his generals
TWO WEEKS after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Sergei Beseda’s mobile phone went dead. Mr Beseda, a general in the FSB, Russia’s main security agency, had been responsible for informing Vladimir Putin about internal dynamics in Ukraine. He was one of the bosses of the FSB’s Fifth Service, set up in the 1990s to spy on former Soviet republics. His information led to Mr Putin’s mistaken expectation that Ukraine would crumble.
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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Calling the shots”
Europe
April 5th 2025- Marine Le Pen’s ban polarises France
- The prospect of early elections in Ukraine has everyone in a spin
- Russia’s army is being subordinated to its security services
- Irish willingness to join NATO could ease unification
- Germany’s Mütterrente is a poor way to pay parents
- Europe cannot fathom what Trumpian America wants from it
From the April 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