Russia, the UK, and War: A New Series of Articles

Posted On October 25, 2026

The Foreign Ministry of the Russian Federation, seen through falling snow, Moscow, March 2019 © James Rodgers

THE KREMLIN CONTINUES TO LOOK to President Trump for the kind of end to the war in Ukraine it can settle for–at least while it decides on its longer term intentions towards the neighbour it seeks to subjugate. As it does so, there is no let up in the venom it continues to spit at other countries that support Ukraine.

Chief among them is the United Kingdom, described in March 2025 by Russia’s foreign intelligence service as ‘the main global “warmonger”‘. The phrase was part of a verbal bombardment launched from Russia’s deep-seated historical suspicion and loathing of the UK. It is an enmity that has roots much deeper than the Cold War, reaching back as far as British attempts to crush the Bolshevik regime at birth, and imperial rivalries as played out in the ‘great game’ of the nineteenth century.

In September, The i Paper – Impartial news & intelligent debate commissioned me to write a series of four articles on Russia and the UK–on threats of sabotage and arson; spying; the aerial threat; and Russian naval activity in the English Channel.

All four pieces have now been published. The links are below.

In each case, I have tried to combine analysis of the contemporary confrontation with historical background from my latest book The Return of Russia – Yale University Press London , and my experience of reporting from Russia during the decades when this renewed conflict with the West in general and the UK in particular began to change from being a risk to a reality.

Putin has taken Europe to the brink – the next Russian attack could target Britain

Russia’s spy game is as intense as ever. And a new type of agent has emerged

The UK’s air defences are not ready for a Putin attack

I saw Russia’s crumbling navy in 2007. The threat to the UK today is astonishing