Silicon Curtain

Silicon Bites Ep414 | 2026-10-07 | What do you give the killer Tsar for his birthday? A tyrant that has everything, and enough money to buy anything, and almost anyone. It’s simple, you give him a pile of dead kids and babies. Putin turns 74 — and his court of sick minions and slaves sought to flatter his ego by flattening an apartment block. This resulted in three dead one-year-olds, five kids killed overall and another seven wounded. and a besieged capital cowering under his wrath. Kyiv is now the front line, and the cruelty has no ceiling, no limits and seemingly no end.WHAT DO YOU GIVE A KILLER FOR HIS BIRTHDAY? On Wednesday 7 October 2026, Vladimir Putin turned 74. His army knew exactly what he would want. Seventy missiles. A residential building in Pryluky turned to rubble while its residents slept. Children pulled out of the concrete. The empire of savages does not send greetings, it sends corpses, blood and grief.----------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:Reuters (via The Print), "At least 24 killed in Ukraine, Zelenskiy condemns one of Russia's most 'vile strikes'", 7 Oct 2026 — https://theprint.in/world/at-least-24-killed-in-ukraine-zelenskiy-condemns-one-of-russias-most-vile-strikes/3064836/Reuters (via GV Wire), "At Least 24 Killed in Ukraine, Zelenskiy Condemns One of Russia's Most 'Vile Strikes'", 7 Oct 2026 — https://gvwire.com/2026/10/07/at-least-24-killed-in-ukraine-zelenskiy-condemns-one-of-russias-most-vile-strikes/Reuters (via News Tribune), "Russia launches heavy strikes at Ukraine, killing at least 20", 7 Oct 2026 — https://www.newstribune.com/news/2026/oct/07/russia-launches-heavy-strikes-at-ukraine-killing-at-least-20/ABC News, "Russia hits Ukrainian apartment buildings in deadly overnight strike, Zelenskyy says", 7 Oct 2026 — https://abcnews.com/International/russia-hits-ukrainian-apartment-buildings-deadly-overnight-strike/story?id=137058213Euromaidan Press, "Oleksandr, Kyrylo and Serhii, all aged one, and eight-year-old Maksym were killed in Ukraine's city by Russian strike on Putin's birthday", 7 Oct 2026 — https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/10/07/oleksandr-kyrylo-and-serhii-all-aged-one-and-eight-year-old-maksym-were-killed-in-ukraines-city-by-russian-strike-on-putins-birthday/Euromaidan Press, "14 dead in Pryluky, two each in Kyiv, Kremenchuk, and Oleksandriia: Russia's night of 70 missiles", 7 Oct 2026 — https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/10/07/five-dead-in-pryluky-two-each-in-kyiv-kremenchuk-and-oleksandriia-russias-night-of-70-missiles/The Kyiv Independent, "Russia slams Kyiv in mass missile, drone attack on Putin's 74th birthday", 7 Oct 2026 — https://kyivindependent.com/russia-slams-kyiv-in-mass-missile-drone-attack-on-putins-74th-birthday/The Kyiv Independent, "Zelensky warns Russia preparing mass strike", 6 Oct 2026 — https://kyivindependent.com/zelensky-warns-russia-preparing-mass-strike/The Kyiv Independent, "Russia attacks Kyiv as drone debris falls into residential area, sets cars ablaze", 6 Oct 2026 — https://kyivindependent.com/russia-attacks-kyiv-as-drone-debris-falls-into-residential-area-sets-cars-ablaze/----------

Silicon Bites SW26-225 | 2026-10-07 | Russia is Testing the locks. Probes on NATO’s sovereign borders are intensifying, and with them comes increased risk, from a bolder and more desperate Russia. Testing the locks: armed men on Latvia’s border, drones exploding in Moldova, a Russian helicopter over Poland. Putin is probing NATO for the weakest seam in the defensive cloth. The only question is whether we can find the strength to defend ourselves before he finds it.----------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:Kyiv Independent — "Armed individuals from Belarus threaten Latvian soldiers at border, followed by another breach" (6–7 Oct 2026)TVP World — "Armed escorts push migrants towards Latvia as masked men breach border" (Oct 2026)LIGA.net — "Armed, masked individuals threatened Latvian military personnel at the border with Belarus" (Oct 2026)Mezha (citing Ukrainska Pravda) — "Latvia Reports Belarus Border Provocations After Masked Intruders Damage Surveillance System" (7 Oct 2026)UA.News (citing RMF24) — "Armed men threatened Latvian military at border" (Oct 2026)Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs — protest note on August 2023 border violation near MusteikaMeduza — "Poland says Russian military helicopter violated its airspace" (23 Sep 2026)Kyiv Independent — "Russian Mi-8 helicopter violates Polish airspace near Kaliningrad, Poland says" (23 Sep 2026)TVP World — "Russian military helicopter briefly breaches Polish airspace" (23 Sep 2026)Kyiv Independent — "NATO jets shoot down drone over Lithuanian airspace after it flew in from Belarus" (15 Sep 2026)AP via ABC News — "NATO jets down drone in Lithuanian airspace" (15 Sep 2026)AP via FOX 5 San Diego — explosive device found on Lithuanian drone (15 Sep 2026)----------

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) ----------