Keir Giles
@keirgiles.bsky.social
Twitter refugee #1,383,497
Pinned
Keir Giles
@keirgiles.bsky.social
· Jul 2
I Was Hacked Because I Work on Russia
But the same clever new attack could be used against almost anyone.
foreignpolicy.com
More on the very clever, but also very simple, way unknown persons* convinced me to crack open my email account for them last month.
Here's the problem: almost all of us have this same back door in our security. Now it's in the open, could we all be targets?
foreignpolicy.com/2025/07/02/g...
Here's the problem: almost all of us have this same back door in our security. Now it's in the open, could we all be targets?
foreignpolicy.com/2025/07/02/g...
Thank you very much for all the interesting and varied replies. Now the follow-up question, and it is to friends and colleagues who speak Russian and have done a lot of translating of Russian documents. Does anything in particular strike you about the language highlighted below?
I have a couple of quick questions on language for American friends and colleagues. These are serious, genuine questions, as in I really don't know the answer but am interested to find out.
1/3
1/3
December 6, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Thank you very much for all the interesting and varied replies. Now the follow-up question, and it is to friends and colleagues who speak Russian and have done a lot of translating of Russian documents. Does anything in particular strike you about the language highlighted below?
Just popping this from a year and a half ago back on here again, especially for anybody that was startled by the contents of Trump's US National Security Strategy.
amzn.to/4cFI1b6
amzn.to/4cFI1b6
December 6, 2025 at 10:38 AM
Just popping this from a year and a half ago back on here again, especially for anybody that was startled by the contents of Trump's US National Security Strategy.
amzn.to/4cFI1b6
amzn.to/4cFI1b6
I have a couple of quick questions on language for American friends and colleagues. These are serious, genuine questions, as in I really don't know the answer but am interested to find out.
1/3
1/3
December 6, 2025 at 9:11 AM
I have a couple of quick questions on language for American friends and colleagues. These are serious, genuine questions, as in I really don't know the answer but am interested to find out.
1/3
1/3
Ah, I appear to have once again written my op-ed for the Independent about Europe needing to be ready to face Russia without the support of the United States. It's getting harder and harder to find different words to say it each time.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
Europe needs to stop its magical thinking and ready for war with Russia
Europe is still paralysed by denial over the threat it faces from Putin, writes Keir Giles. Unless European leaders change tack, they will be a soft target for Moscow
www.independent.co.uk
December 6, 2025 at 9:10 AM
Ah, I appear to have once again written my op-ed for the Independent about Europe needing to be ready to face Russia without the support of the United States. It's getting harder and harder to find different words to say it each time.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
NOT THAT WASHINGTON, in case non-Brits blink at this.
The UK will place further orders for 155mm artillery ammunition with BAE Systems’ Washington facility.
ukdefencejournal.org.uk/britain-to-p...
ukdefencejournal.org.uk/britain-to-p...
Britain to place 155mm artillery shell orders
The UK will place further orders for 155mm artillery ammunition with BAE Systems’ Washington facility.
ukdefencejournal.org.uk
December 4, 2025 at 10:34 AM
NOT THAT WASHINGTON, in case non-Brits blink at this.
No, I know exactly why this came up in my search results, it's because just like me, the algorithm thought at first glance that it was just another list of Pete Hegseth names for military operations.
🤠🌵 18 NAKED COWBOYS IN BAE DOMAIN RAM RANCH 🌵
HOTSPRINGS STEAMIN’, BOOTS STOMPIN’, AND BEATS POUNDIN’ AS DJ GUNDAM RIDES THE SOUNDWAVES HARD 💦 DJ QUEEN BAE WHIPPIN’ THAT BOOTY LIKE A ROGUE LASSO 🍑 AND MADAM WASHINGTON HOLLERIN’ “YEEHAW, LET’S GET LEWD!” 🔥 #BaeDomain #CowboyNighty #FFXIV
HOTSPRINGS STEAMIN’, BOOTS STOMPIN’, AND BEATS POUNDIN’ AS DJ GUNDAM RIDES THE SOUNDWAVES HARD 💦 DJ QUEEN BAE WHIPPIN’ THAT BOOTY LIKE A ROGUE LASSO 🍑 AND MADAM WASHINGTON HOLLERIN’ “YEEHAW, LET’S GET LEWD!” 🔥 #BaeDomain #CowboyNighty #FFXIV
December 4, 2025 at 10:34 AM
No, I know exactly why this came up in my search results, it's because just like me, the algorithm thought at first glance that it was just another list of Pete Hegseth names for military operations.
I do think all this ongoing criticism of the US choice of whom to send to Moscow for the "peace talks" that weren't is really a little unfair. After all, if it was a fool's errand, then Steve Witkoff was the perfect man for the job.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
December 4, 2025 at 8:31 AM
I do think all this ongoing criticism of the US choice of whom to send to Moscow for the "peace talks" that weren't is really a little unfair. After all, if it was a fool's errand, then Steve Witkoff was the perfect man for the job.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...
Reposted by Keir Giles
ICYMI: Russia's war manpower crisis has spawned global trafficking networks targeting vulnerable populations across the Global South. My recent analysis for @engelsbergideas.bsky.social traces how Moscow's attrition strategy evolved into systematic exploitation.
engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
The trafficking networks sustaining Russia’s war of attrition
As Putin seeks to avoid another politically damaging mobilisation, the temptation to draw on Moscow's extensive global trafficking networks will only grow.
engelsbergideas.com
December 3, 2025 at 5:16 PM
ICYMI: Russia's war manpower crisis has spawned global trafficking networks targeting vulnerable populations across the Global South. My recent analysis for @engelsbergideas.bsky.social traces how Moscow's attrition strategy evolved into systematic exploitation.
engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
I'll be on BBC News channel at just after 2000 UK time to talk about this absolute twaddle.
December 3, 2025 at 7:41 PM
I'll be on BBC News channel at just after 2000 UK time to talk about this absolute twaddle.
Reposted by Keir Giles
Dim-Wit is officially renamed as Dastardly and Muttley.
@keirgiles.bsky.social
@keirgiles.bsky.social
As if we hadn't talked enough already today about Dastardly and Muttley getting back together in Moscow, I'll be on TalkTV with Petrie Hosken from (all times UK) 2230-2243, then BBC Five Live with @colinmurray1.bsky.social from 2245 until they pull the plug on me.
December 3, 2025 at 10:16 AM
Dim-Wit is officially renamed as Dastardly and Muttley.
@keirgiles.bsky.social
@keirgiles.bsky.social
Shocked, SHOCKED to find that Mike Martin MP, author, member of the UK Parliament’s Defence Committee, and all-round deep war-thinker, has only ONE (1) of my books on his luxuriously populated interview bookshelf.
December 3, 2025 at 9:13 AM
Shocked, SHOCKED to find that Mike Martin MP, author, member of the UK Parliament’s Defence Committee, and all-round deep war-thinker, has only ONE (1) of my books on his luxuriously populated interview bookshelf.
Dear viewers, I have asked on your behalf exactly which part of what we heard from Putin yesterday was a surprise.
December 3, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Dear viewers, I have asked on your behalf exactly which part of what we heard from Putin yesterday was a surprise.
As if we hadn't talked enough already today about Dastardly and Muttley getting back together in Moscow, I'll be on TalkTV with Petrie Hosken from (all times UK) 2230-2243, then BBC Five Live with @colinmurray1.bsky.social from 2245 until they pull the plug on me.
December 2, 2025 at 9:44 PM
As if we hadn't talked enough already today about Dastardly and Muttley getting back together in Moscow, I'll be on TalkTV with Petrie Hosken from (all times UK) 2230-2243, then BBC Five Live with @colinmurray1.bsky.social from 2245 until they pull the plug on me.
No matter how often it is repeated, what Moscow thinks "peace talks" and "ceasefire agreements" are for still confuses some Western counterparts.
Russia repeatedly gets what it wants because the other side focuses on ending the war, but Russia instead wants to win it.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw...
Russia repeatedly gets what it wants because the other side focuses on ending the war, but Russia instead wants to win it.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw...
December 2, 2025 at 12:06 PM
No matter how often it is repeated, what Moscow thinks "peace talks" and "ceasefire agreements" are for still confuses some Western counterparts.
Russia repeatedly gets what it wants because the other side focuses on ending the war, but Russia instead wants to win it.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw...
Russia repeatedly gets what it wants because the other side focuses on ending the war, but Russia instead wants to win it.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw...
Reposted by Keir Giles
I agree with @keirgiles.bsky.social that there are probably other reasons why cable cutting has stopped. One could be that Russia got what they wanted. But this touches the classic problem of proving deterrence: it's very hard to prove why something bad didn't happen.
The idea that cable-cutting in the Baltic has stopped because of Baltic Sentry and not for any other reason, and thus that “deterrence is working”, is a logical leap that I sincerely hope is supported by some evidence.
www.ft.com/content/dbd9...
www.ft.com/content/dbd9...
December 1, 2025 at 7:27 AM
I agree with @keirgiles.bsky.social that there are probably other reasons why cable cutting has stopped. One could be that Russia got what they wanted. But this touches the classic problem of proving deterrence: it's very hard to prove why something bad didn't happen.
The idea that cable-cutting in the Baltic has stopped because of Baltic Sentry and not for any other reason, and thus that “deterrence is working”, is a logical leap that I sincerely hope is supported by some evidence.
www.ft.com/content/dbd9...
www.ft.com/content/dbd9...
November 30, 2025 at 10:00 PM
The idea that cable-cutting in the Baltic has stopped because of Baltic Sentry and not for any other reason, and thus that “deterrence is working”, is a logical leap that I sincerely hope is supported by some evidence.
www.ft.com/content/dbd9...
www.ft.com/content/dbd9...
Reposted by Keir Giles
”Britannia nuokkuu, vaikka uhka kasvaa” Huippututkija Keir Giles suomii maansa passiivista linjaa poikkeuksellisen kovin sanoin. Artikkeli ”Britannia nuokkuu, vaikka uhka kasvaa” julkaistiin ensimmäisen kerran Verkkouutiset .
Interest | Match | Feed
Interest | Match | Feed
Origin
www.verkkouutiset.fi
November 26, 2025 at 5:55 AM
Reposted by Keir Giles
- after all it was this same outlet, the Telegraph, that a decade and a half ago singlehandedly launched the ubiquitous "Russia practised nuking Warsaw during Zapad" factoid, through a headline editor sexing up an article that really didn't say that at all.
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne...
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne...
Access Restricted
www.telegraph.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 9:42 PM
- after all it was this same outlet, the Telegraph, that a decade and a half ago singlehandedly launched the ubiquitous "Russia practised nuking Warsaw during Zapad" factoid, through a headline editor sexing up an article that really didn't say that at all.
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne...
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne...
Your statutory reminder, once again, that the person who wrote the text doesn't get to write the headline, which will have been added later by somebody completely different, without necessarily consulting the original writer.
And sometimes, that can have long-lasting consequences -
And sometimes, that can have long-lasting consequences -
@telegraph.co.uk have generally been excellent on Russia's invasion, but this is a headline that belongs in the 19th century. The US president can't "hand" Ukraine's land to the Russian president, however much he wants to. Trump can only take a position on US recognition, nothing else.
November 28, 2025 at 9:38 PM
Your statutory reminder, once again, that the person who wrote the text doesn't get to write the headline, which will have been added later by somebody completely different, without necessarily consulting the original writer.
And sometimes, that can have long-lasting consequences -
And sometimes, that can have long-lasting consequences -
November 28, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Reposted by Keir Giles
And by naming us, you continue to put a target on our backs. Names for the lunatics to come after. Thanks a lot.
Reuters reached out to everyone that Trump or his subordinates singled out publicly for retribution, and reviewed hundreds of official orders, directives and public records. The result: the most comprehensive accounting yet of his campaign of payback.
www.reuters.com/investigates...
www.reuters.com/investigates...
November 28, 2025 at 1:08 PM
And by naming us, you continue to put a target on our backs. Names for the lunatics to come after. Thanks a lot.
Reposted by Keir Giles
putin needs a solid reason to end russia’s war. And the Free World must give it. The kremlin will spin retreat into triumph, but only when pressing on becomes riskier than stopping.
#armUkraineToWin
chakhoyan.substack.com/p/why-russia...
#armUkraineToWin
chakhoyan.substack.com/p/why-russia...
Why Russia begs for the gift of defeat
The Kremlin’s legitimacy rests on war-making. Until that logic is shattered, peace is impossible.
chakhoyan.substack.com
November 28, 2025 at 2:39 PM
putin needs a solid reason to end russia’s war. And the Free World must give it. The kremlin will spin retreat into triumph, but only when pressing on becomes riskier than stopping.
#armUkraineToWin
chakhoyan.substack.com/p/why-russia...
#armUkraineToWin
chakhoyan.substack.com/p/why-russia...
What better way to start a day in Brussels where conversations about the effectiveness of sanctions on Russia’s energy sector are likely to feature heavily than walking to the bus stop past the local Lukoil petrol station.
November 28, 2025 at 7:46 AM
What better way to start a day in Brussels where conversations about the effectiveness of sanctions on Russia’s energy sector are likely to feature heavily than walking to the bus stop past the local Lukoil petrol station.
It’s a while since I last travelled by Eurostar. Let’s see if this is still a barefaced lie.
November 26, 2025 at 5:01 PM
It’s a while since I last travelled by Eurostar. Let’s see if this is still a barefaced lie.
It’s the omission that is most telling. This article on “how is Europe beefing up its armies?” checks in on militaries across the continent that are increasing their manning to meet the threat… and doesn’t mention the UK once.
If this article had been written in November 2015 instead of November 2025, then we would not be scrambling to raise our defences like frightened rabbits caught in Russian headlights.
Western leaders can't say they weren't warned. They were. repeatedly and in great detail, from April 2014.
Western leaders can't say they weren't warned. They were. repeatedly and in great detail, from April 2014.
As France prepares military expansion, how is Europe beefing up its armies?
European nations are rushing to bolster their defences amid Russia threat and uncertainty of US support
www.theguardian.com
November 26, 2025 at 4:59 PM
It’s the omission that is most telling. This article on “how is Europe beefing up its armies?” checks in on militaries across the continent that are increasing their manning to meet the threat… and doesn’t mention the UK once.