Report Russia

The sectoral sanctions the Western powers imposed on Russia in July 2014 because of the conflict in the Donbass continue to have paradoxical results.
The financial sanctions, which effectively prevented Russian companies from borrowing in Western financial markets, instead of causing the Russian economy to implode, have caused it to deleverage at an unprecedented rate, hugely strengthening Russia’s financial sector and the balance sheets of Russia’s companies, setting the scene for a coming investment boom.

Ever since President Trump of the United States declared President Assad of Syria guilty of the Khan Sheikhoun attack within hours of it happening and before any investigation had taken place, I have said that any investigation of the attack had been fatally prejudiced.

The pace of Russian-Chinese contacts has suddenly intensified with Russian President Putin hosting this month no fewer than three senior officials of the Chinese government, each one following the other in quick succession.

In the immediate aftermath of the US missile strike on Syria, I said that if it was intended to ease President Trump’s domestic political problems then it was a major blunder.
I said that on the contrary what the missile strike would do was dismay the President’s most vocal and intelligent supporters, whilst failing to appease his enemies.
Here is what I said

Ukraine has suffered another blow in the web of legal cases in which it is now involved with Russia.

Following rumours – never confirmed and possibly false – that Russian electronic warfare systems jammed the guidance systems of the 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles the US launched at Syria on 6th April 2017, supposedly causing 36 of the missiles to miss, the Russians have provided an unusual amount of information about their normally highly secret Electronic Warfare (EW) systems.

As Russia’s economy continues to put on growth, and as annualised inflation in Russia falls to a post-Soviet low of 4.2% at the start of this month, the Russian government’s handling of the Russian economy has come in for high praise from IMF chief Christine Lagarde.
Her comments about the skill with which the Russian government has handled the dual problems of the 2014 oil price crash and the sanctions could scarcely be more fulsome

Boris Johnson, Britain’s well-known journalist and occasional foreign minister, has written a curious article for the Daily Telegraph, which exposes both the bankruptcy of the West’s thinking about the crisis in Syria, and the West’s lack of any truly strong cards to play in that crisis.
The article begins with the important admission that President Assad is winning the war in Syria

The Russian government – undoubtedly after detailed consultations with China – has now issued a series of warnings to the US against any attacks on North Korea.
The warnings have come in statements by Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov and by President Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
In relation to the possibility of US military strikes on North Korea, Lavrov pointedly said that these would be both destabilising and contrary to international law

As the US aircraft carrier Carl Vinson and its accompanying escort ships come within striking distance of North Korea, a Japanese newspaper, Yomiuri Shimbun, is reporting that Russia and China have sent spy ships to monitor their movements.
Yomiuri Shimbun says it has been provided with this information by “numerous sources within the Japanese government”.  The Japanese government would be well-informed about this situation because some of its own warships have joined the task force led by Carl Vinson.