Big Man Walking
“Not many people change the world. Fewer still are thanked for it.” – Neal Ascherson reviews a biography of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, who joined that small group when he helped to bring about its end.
Lunch with the FT: Nigel Farage
Nigel Farage manages to consume over 17 units of alcohol in a single lunch over the course of this interview. The encounter takes on an increasingly surreal character, punctuated as it is with outlandish pronouncements – “This is what they tell me – these people who come in and want jobs. I should feminise.”
Kidnapped Royalty Become Pawns in Iran’s Deadly Plot
This piece kicks off with an evocative depiction of the scene typically found at the V.I.P. terminal of Baghdad International Airport. It was there where in April 2017 a group of Qataris were held on arrival when their luggage was found to contain $360 million in cash. Their presence was linked to a royal hunting trip turned kidnapping that would significantly affect the Middle East’s geopolitics.
Camp Code
A guide to the geography, politics and daily life of Bourj Al Shamali, a refugee camp in Lebanon that has been in existence since 1948.
Aleppo After the Fall
A powerful piece looking at the complex new reality emerging in a city and country so horribly affected by civil war, where the regime is now feeling a new confidence.
Angela Merkel: The Chancellor Next Door
A profile that makes rather a lot from a seemingly brief conversation with the German Chancellor, weaving in insights and anecdotes from interviews with others that know her and played a part in her ascent
Dmitry Medvedev: the whipping boy for Russia’s discontented
A profile of Vladimir Putin’s political foil.
Rex Tillerson at the Breaking Point
A profile of Donald Trump’s Secretary of State in action. Two reported quotes early on provide an insight into the piece – “I don’t know. I’m not a diplomat”, said at a UN showdown with Iran, and “fucking moron” when describing his President at a gathering of national-security officials.
A global guide to state sponsored trolling
A sobering examination of the extraordinary array of online trolling techniques conceived, promoted and deployed by states around the world to silence dissent.
The Quiet American
Paul Manafort is Donald TrumpÕs campaign chairman. This profile delves into his unusual client roster.