I read a good piece of writing on LinkedIn recently. I am cutting and pasting it here.

The paradox of Putin’s Russia isn’t that it fears the West, it thrives off it. London, Paris, Zurich, cities criticised as ‘decadent’ are where Russia’s elite send their money, educate their children, and secure their futures.

Russia’s influence in the West isn’t hidden; it’s quieter, more intentional. Since 2016, individuals linked to the Kremlin or state corruption have funneled over £1.5 billion into UK real estate, turning parts of Westminster and Kensington into safety deposit boxes in white stone. Eaton Square is nicknamed ‘Red Square’.

London has always attracted global wealth from Americans, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Ukrainian investors alike. That isn’t new. But there’s a difference between those seeking stability and those who insulate themselves from systems they exploit. Russia’s elite do both: denouncing the West in public while relying on it in private.

The reach goes further. Over the last five years, British universities have accepted millions from Russian donors. The same names appear on think-tank boards and cultural foundations. The influence is rarely overt, it seeps in through proximity and prestige, not policy.

Online, the strategies are just as calculated. Narratives spread across social media, questioning Ukraine’s integrity or Western support, not to persuade but to create doubt and weaken conviction. Support for Ukraine remains strong, but domestic fatigue is growing and distraction is part of the strategy.

Then there’s the hypocrisy. The loudest critics of Western ‘decadence’ quietly build lives within it. Lavrov’s stepdaughter bought a £4.4 million Kensington flat at 21. Before Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, thousands of Russian children, many from elite families, attended Britain’s best schools. They seek ‘the rule of law in London’ that they deny at home, the same rule of law Ukraine is fighting to retain.

Consider Vladimir Solovyov, who calls for nuclear strikes on Ukraine while owning a villa on Lake Como. When sanctions took it from him, he decried Europe’s ‘persecution’, discovering his newfound respect for Western rights only when his wealth was threatened.

This reveals more than corruption, it reflects a deeper issue. The systems defining democratic societies, our markets, institutions, and freedoms, can be exploited. We’ve long valued openness. Moscow sees it as leverage.

Ukraine is fighting for its freedom and its liberty. Its struggle shows how easily comfort can dull vigilance, and how disinformation can slowly erode resolve.

So the question isn’t just how to counter Russian influence but how to restore confidence in the values that justify resisting it. When power mocks freedom yet shelters under it, the problem lies not only in their cynicism but in our complacency.

Then there is this piece I read in the Kyiv Independent also recently about a specific column on Ukraine by Roger Boyes, diplomatic editor of The Times of London, entitled, rather undiplomatically, “I hate to say it, but Kyiv won’t last till spring.” The KI journalist was spot when she said that this is cruel and irresponsible, knowing one is speaking about the lives of several millions of people living in Kyiv. “Perhaps it was the questionable professionalism of the author, who seemed not to have a very good grasp on events, judging from his arguments.”

The Times journalist went on, “…the critical question facing the West: is there anything worth fighting for?” The KI journalist further wrote, “I won’t judge the immorality of this open-ended question, but I will judge its inexcusable short-sightedness. If an educated British man, who presumably isn’t an idiot and isn’t paid by Russia, doesn’t see the point of fighting against Russian aggression, it means he’s taking his freedoms for granted. Fortunately, many of his compatriots don’t.”