Silicon Curtain

Today I’m speaking to David Satter, journalist, and historian with unique insights into how the repression of the past, is having terrible consequences for present day Russia. David has written extensively about Russia and the Soviet Union, especially the decline and fall of the USSR and rise of post-Soviet Russia. David Satter became the first American journalist to be expelled from Russia since the Cold War in December 2013. From 1976 to 1982 David was the Moscow correspondent of the Financial Times, and then became a special correspondent on Soviet affairs for The Wall Street Journal. He is author of several books that are essential reading to help understand the origins of the current crisis, including the brilliantly named ----------BOOKS:Darkness at Dawn: The Rise of the Russian Criminal State (2003)It Was a Long Time Ago, and It Never Happened Anyway (2011)The Less You Know, The Better You Sleep (2016)Never Speak to Strangers and other writing from Russia and the Soviet Union (2020) ----------LINKS:https://davidsatter.org/ https://x.com/DavidSatterhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Satterhttps://www.hudson.org/experts/362-david-satterhttps://www.fpri.org/contributor/david-satter/ ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------

Julia Ilnytska is a Ukrainian people-and-operations professional, interviewer, and the founder and host of iUkraine, an English-language podcast focused on the people building modern Ukraine. The project was created to shift international attention beyond the war itself and towards the entrepreneurs, technologists, defence innovators, communicators, investors and civic leaders shaping Ukraine’s future. Ilnytska describes iUkraine as a platform for conversations about a country that is not only defending itself, but continuing to build, innovate and create under extreme pressure.Through iUkraine, she has interviewed figures working across defence technology, entrepreneurship, strategic communications, diplomacy and Ukraine’s international image, presenting their work primarily to an international audience. The podcast’s underlying argument is that Ukraine should be understood not solely through the destruction caused by Russia’s invasion, but through the remarkable capacity of Ukrainians to adapt, innovate and build institutions and businesses during wartime. ----------LINKS: https://www.youtube.com/@UC1LXlPzrCrbGG69YDn3kP5A https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-ilnytska/https://www.instagram.com/july_ilnytska/https://base.monobank.ua/DYMCPXXLcNKiawhttps://www.patreon.com/cw/iukraine2025/membership----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------

Silicon Bites Ep413 | 2026-10-06 | TERRITORIAL SURRENDER AS NEGOTIATING FRAMEWORKThe policy did not stop at the dismantling. It escalated into affirmative acceptance of the maximalist Russian territorial agenda. April 2025: The U.S. peace proposal, developed through envoy Steve Witkoff and leaked to Reuters, proposed:- Legal U.S. recognition of Crimea as Russian territory.- De facto recognition of Russian control over other occupied Ukrainian territories.- Ukraine abandoning its constitutional NATO membership aspiration.- Lifting of sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014.- Vague, non-Article-5-adjacent security guarantees for Ukraine. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:Simon Shuster / The Atlantic via Meduza English — "The Atlantic: Trump backs plan to ease Russia sanctions in exchange for political prisoners without waiting for the Ukraine war to end" (29 September 2026) RBC-Ukraine — "'Magic of business' instead of pressure: Trump backs plan to ease sanctions on Russia" (29 September 2026) UNN English — "Trump agreed to ease sanctions against the Russian Federation in exchange for political prisoners - The Atlantic" (29-30 September 2026)Kyiv Post via Politico — "Trump Leaves Key US Allies Out of NATO Group Meeting" (1 October 2026)Institute for the Study of War / Critical Threats — Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, 27 September 2026 UNITED24 Media — "Putin Wants Ukraine to Capitulate by Spring 2027 Through Intensified Strikes, ISW Says" (28-29 September 2026) Reuters via NYT reporting — "US-Russia talks on Ukraine involve multi-billion-dollar oil deal - NYT reports" (3 October 2026)Reuters via Malay Mail — "Teachers, dissidents and a Nobel laureate — the 123 prisoners freed in Belarus-US sanctions deal" (14 December 2025) AP via Yahoo — "Belarus frees 52 political prisoners as US lifts some sanctions on its national airline" (September 2025)AP via Yahoo — "Belarus releases 250 political prisoners in a deal with the US to lift some sanctions" (March 2026) Reuters — "Trump administration disbands task force targeting Russian oligarchs" (6 February 2025)Reuters — "US defense chief Hegseth says return to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders not realistic" (12 February 2025) ----------

Silicon Bites Ep412 | 2026-10-05 | The treachery is parading in plain sight. These patterns of implicit betrayal of Ukraine were there from the very start of the Trump regime, but we’ll unpack them in more detail in this episode. And there is a new plan to let Putin off the hook, even before the aggression against Ukraine ends. Easing sanctions on Russia in exchange for the release of Russian political prisoners – a policy of such moral and political degeneracy, that it could only, have come from the Trump White House. The delusional assumptions underpinning it are legion: - reintegrate Russia into the global economy;- expand Trump's negotiations with the Kremlin beyond the intractable war in Ukraine, which his envoys have failed to end after more than a year of diplomacy;- bolster Trump's case for his long-awaited Nobel Peace Prize.They are not three Ukraine-related objectives. They are only to benefit Trump. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:Simon Shuster / The Atlantic via Meduza English — "The Atlantic: Trump backs plan to ease Russia sanctions in exchange for political prisoners without waiting for the Ukraine war to end" (29 September 2026) RBC-Ukraine — "'Magic of business' instead of pressure: Trump backs plan to ease sanctions on Russia" (29 September 2026) UNN English — "Trump agreed to ease sanctions against the Russian Federation in exchange for political prisoners - The Atlantic" (29-30 September 2026)Kyiv Post via Politico — "Trump Leaves Key US Allies Out of NATO Group Meeting" (1 October 2026)Institute for the Study of War / Critical Threats — Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, 27 September 2026 UNITED24 Media — "Putin Wants Ukraine to Capitulate by Spring 2027 Through Intensified Strikes, ISW Says" (28-29 September 2026) Reuters via NYT reporting — "US-Russia talks on Ukraine involve multi-billion-dollar oil deal - NYT reports" (3 October 2026)Reuters via Malay Mail — "Teachers, dissidents and a Nobel laureate — the 123 prisoners freed in Belarus-US sanctions deal" (14 December 2025) AP via Yahoo — "Belarus frees 52 political prisoners as US lifts some sanctions on its national airline" (September 2025)AP via Yahoo — "Belarus releases 250 political prisoners in a deal with the US to lift some sanctions" (March 2026) Reuters — "Trump administration disbands task force targeting Russian oligarchs" (6 February 2025)Reuters — "US defense chief Hegseth says return to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders not realistic" (12 February 2025) ----------

Livestream with Yuri RashkinLINKS:https://rashkinreport.substack.com/https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/rashkin-report/id1183073638----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/kharpp - Reconstruction project supporting communities in Kharkiv and Przemyslhttps://kharpp.com/NOR DOG Animal Rescuehttps://www.nor-dog.org/home/-----------