Andrei Soldatov

The strategy of Russia’s liberal elite is clear: make your peace with Putin. This is how they survive | Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan As the fourth anniversary looms of Russia’s war on Ukraine, those close to the Kremlin prosper while others merely strive to escape the worst repression, say Russian journalists Andrei Soldatov and Ir...

"In the face of what looks like a permanent war, they have chosen adaptation, internalisation and, ultimately, isolation." @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and Irina Borogan
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/feb/22/russia-cultural-liberal-elite-putin

Russia's Paranoid Despot and His Secret Police Putin's secret police organizations are among a small band of winners from Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russia’s Paranoid Despot and His Secret Police | "Putin and his spies share the very dark assumption that a lost war would cause the collapse of the state, the country, and the agencies themselves." @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and Irina Borogan

Cover of Our Dear Friends in Moscow: the inside story of a broken generation by Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan

Reading this right now. About the moral and professional arc of a group of journalists as Putin rises. Super interesting and very conversational writing style

The strategy of Russia’s liberal elite is clear: make your peace with Putin. It’s how they survive | Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan As the fourth anniversary looms of Russia’s war on Ukraine, those close to the Kremlin prosper while others merely strive to escape the worst repression, say Russian journalists Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan

The strategy of Russia’s liberal elite is clear: make your peace with Putin. It’s how they survive | Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan

The strategy of Russia’s liberal elite is clear: make your peace with Putin. This is how they survive | Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan As the fourth anniversary looms of Russia’s war on Ukraine, those close to the Kremlin prosper while others merely strive to escape the worst repression, say Russian journalists Andrei Soldatov and Ir...

Four years into the war, the strategy of Russia’s liberal elite is clear: make your peace with Putin — Irina Borogan and I in @theguardian.com , drawing on themes from our book Our Dear Friends in Moscow.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Transnational repression in the UK: Joint Committee on Human Rights report In the UK, the term transnational repression is widely accepted to refer to instances of intimidation, violence and harassment by a state against people in another state. Evidence has suggested that v...

The UK Parliament’s Joint Human Rights Committee has published its report on transnational repression, an increasingly urgent issue in Europe.
Our article, “The Russian way in transnational repression” (via @kcsi.uk), is included in the “read more” section.
lordslibrary.parliament.uk/transnationa...

The Russian Way in Transnational Repression

Our article explores the historical roots of Russia’s use of TNR, from the Tsarist and Soviet periods to the present day — and why targeting critics abroad remains a central focus of the Kremlin.
kcsi.uk/kcsi-insight...

Transnational repression in the UK: Joint Committee on Human Rights report In the UK, the term transnational repression is widely accepted to refer to instances of intimidation, violence and harassment by a state against people in another state. Evidence has suggested that v...

The UK Parliament’s Joint Human Rights Committee has published its report on transnational repression, an increasingly urgent issue in Europe.
Our article, “The Russian way in transnational repression” (via @kcsi.uk), is included in the “read more” section.
lordslibrary.parliament.uk/transnationa...

YouTube video by Guardian News Ukrainians forced to be imaginative to keep warm amid energy blackout

Here's my video from frozen Kyiv. Temperatures in Ukraine have risen - it's -1C today, with a lot of slush! - but are forecast to drop again this week. Air raid sirens and Russian attacks continue. The Kremlin had targeted *every* power plant, with most hit many times www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxIT...

The Russian authorities have designated our website, Agentura.ru, a “foreign agent.”
Our mission hasn’t changed since its launch in Sept 2000: to shed light on Russia’s secret services — as I told @nytimes back then. We’ll keep doing it.

www.nytimes.com/2000/12/21/t...

The failure to prevent attacks doesn’t negate the fact that some FSB departments are highly capable (e.g., ORU, the Operative-Search Department). Their work, plus pervasive surveillance and bilateral cooperation with foreign states, lets Russia track down suspects (and get them).

Andrei Soldatov, Irina Borogan: Our Dear Friends in Moscow Vergleiche autoritärer Tendenzen unserer Zeit mit Deutschland 1930 sind Unsinn. Analogien zu Russland 2010 sind treffender.

“When people today compare right-wing and authoritarian tendencies in Austria and Europe with Germany in the 1930s, it is nonsense. It is rather Russia in the 2010s — and that’s also frightening.”
— Michael Hafner, on Our Dear Friends in Moscow

michael-hafner.at/andrei-solda...

Russia: The Price of ‘Treason’ State security agencies are amplifying warnings to enemies of the state using compliant pro-Kremlin Russian journalists.

Russia: The Price of ‘Treason’
Irina Borogan and I on a harassing documentary — the FSB’s latest attempt to respond to a wave of attacks carried out by Russian youth — for @cepa.org

cepa.org/article/russ...

Incredible sloppiness by military counterintelligence (DVKR), by far the largest FSB department. One would have expected them to scale up protection for top military brass; instead, they spend their resources spying on the military.

Bedste fjender Livsvalg. En tæt vennekreds af liberale russiske journalister fra årtusindskiftet er i dag splittet for alle vinde. De fleste arbejder nu for Putins propagandatjeneste. Hvorfor?

Denmark’s Weekendavisen has published a review of Our Dear Friends in Moscow, titled “Bedste fjender” (Best Enemies), focusing on the moral choices that shaped Russia’s recent history.
www.weekendavisen.dk/boeger/bedst...

Merry Orthodox Christmas from yours truly VVP and his secret services 🎄

Thank you to @kcsi.uk including Our Dear Friends in Moscow in your holiday book recommendations —much appreciated.

🎄 It’s that time of the year when the buzz of work quiets down and we get the time to rest before ringing in the new year — and pick up a book or two.

🥳 If you find yourself in need of last-minute holiday gift ideas, look no further than our KCSI-approved book guide!

YouTube video by The Kennan Institute The Russian Press and Putin with Irina Borogan and Andrei Soldatov

🎥 Now available on YouTube 
Kennan Conversations: The Russian Press & Putin

Michael Kimmage speaks with Irina Borogan and @andreisoldatov.bsky.social , founders of Agentura.ru, about journalism in Russia and how media has changed over time.

Watch the full conversation ⬇️
youtu.be/1Q7fG4z5IGw?...

Moscow’s Offshore Menace How the shadow fleet enables Russia’s hybrid warfare in Europe.

The Kremlin’s “willingness to engage in aggressive seaborne operations” is not new, write @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and Irina Borogan. “Going back to the Soviet era, Moscow has used ships as a key part of its intelligence operations in Europe.”

5 Notable Books of 2025 Here are 5 works of nonfiction, which changed how I see and think about the world.

It's that time of year, my notable books list of 2025 publicsphere.news/p/5-notable-...
with titles from @chrislhayes.bsky.social, Victoria Amelina, @andreisoldatov.bsky.social, Vollker Ullrich and @wdavidmarx.bsky.social

Du Kremlin aux tranchées • desk russie Cet extrait du livre Nos chers amis à Moscou, l'histoire secrète d'une génération brisée décrit le destin d’une bonne journaliste, fougueuse et un brin honnête, mais qui a mal fini.

Nous publions en français un extrait de "Our Dear Friends in Moscow". Andreï Soldatov et Irina Borogan y racontent l’histoire secrète d’une génération brisée, de l’arrivée de Poutine au pouvoir jusqu’à aujourd’hui.
desk-russie.eu/2025/11/30/d...

💬 Kennan Conversations: The Russian Press and Putin

Join us Monday, December 15 at 11 AM ET for a discussion with journalists @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and Irina Borogan about their book Our Dear Friends in Moscow.

RSVP:
🔗https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_GMIa-v7uS8a2M1iRpXN2yA

📅 December Events at the Kennan Institute

A full month of discussions with @michaelthumann.bsky.social , @bennathanson.bsky.social , @jilldougherty.bsky.social , Stephen Erlanger, Irina Borogan, @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and S. Frederick Starr.

The Best of Books 2025 The very best of the hundreds of books on international politics, economics, and history that were featured in the magazine this year, selected by Foreign Affairs’ editors and book reviewers.

"Our Dear Friends in Moscow," by Irina Borogan and
@andreisoldatov.bsky.social, is a @foreignaffairs.com Best Book of 2025! bit.ly/48sZzXc

Two Russian journalists tell the story of their generation, from the optimism of the 1990s to today's world of autocracy, fear, and betrayal.

The Best of Books 2025 The very best of the hundreds of books on international politics, economics, and history that were featured in the magazine this year, selected by Foreign Affairs’ editors and book reviewers.

“Our Dear Friends in Moscow” is among the top three on @foreignaffairs.com’ The Best of Books 2025!

www.foreignaffairs.com/lists/best-b...

Moscow’s Offshore Menace How the shadow fleet enables Russia’s hybrid warfare in Europe.

Russia’s shadow fleet is already destabilizing European countries, and these vessels may eventually “provide a launch point for offensive operations in Europe,” warn @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and Irina Borogan.

Moscow’s Offshore Menace How the shadow fleet enables Russia’s hybrid warfare in Europe.

Moscow’s Offshore Menace
Irina Borogan and I on how the shadow fleet enables Russia’s hybrid warfare in Europe — and the growing role of the sea in its sabotage operations, for @foreignaffairs.com

www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...

Putin to End Hostilities? Think Again Ukraine may be Russia’s primary military target, but the regime has a much broader range of enemies, such as NATO.

Putin to End Hostilities? Think Again | "Ukraine may be Russia’s primary military target but the regime has a much broader range of enemies." @andreisoldatov.bsky.social and Irina Borogan

Putins All the Way Down How Russia was remade.

Soldatov and Borogan's "Our Dear Friends in Moscow" is well worth reading as a memoir of dictatorial consolidation...and the crucial importance of history and political culture in allowing it to happen. www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/puti...