Silicon Curtain

2026-01-18 | UPDATES #106 | Popcorn in the Kremlin, as the world wonders whether Trump will order his troops to invade Greenland, a fellow NATO member on the one hand, or invade the U.S. instead – Minneapolis. Is the military to be deployed to support ICE thugs in a crisis manufactured by Trump. Two battalions. On alert and could potentially move within hours. From the 11th Airborne Division — the “Arctic Angels” — based in Alaska, built for extreme cold, rapid force projection and now reportedly queued up for Minnesota. It is winter, but this does seem like overkill. Joking, not joking. This is insanity. A quick question: are they preparing to “restore order” in Minneapolis or just warming up the engines for an Arctic strong-arm play in Greenland? Either scenario is as mad as the other – but what’s madder, is how many people are still lining up to ‘sane wash’ Trump’s weaponised lunacy, or even to support it. The unit trained for the Arctic is being readied for a domestic flashpoint at the exact moment Washington is torching alliance norms over an Arctic territory that belongs to a NATO ally. And Moscow has a front-row seat, watching the geopolitical show unfold with relish.----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------SOURCES: Associated Press — Pentagon orders ~1,500 soldiers on standby for possible Minnesota deployment (Jan 18, 2026). Wall Street Journal — Pentagon places 1,500 soldiers on alert for possible Minnesota deployment (Jan 18, 2026). Washington Post — Pentagon readies 1,500 soldiers to possibly deploy to Minnesota (Jan 18, 2026).CNN transcript (State of the Union) — Mayor Jacob Frey interview on troop alert & intimidation claim (Jan 18, 2026). Fox News — Sean Parnell statement quoted (“Department of War…”) (Jan 18, 2026). Reuters — EU warns of “dangerous downward spiral”; Kaja Kallas warns divisions benefit Russia/China (Jan 17, 2026). Reuters — Spain’s PM Sánchez: Greenland invasion would make Putin “the happiest man on earth” (Jan 18, 2026). AP — European leaders warn of spiral after Trump’s Greenland tariff threats (Jan 18, 2026). Financial Times — Macron urges EU response; anti-coercion instrument discussion (Jan 18, 2026).Kyiv Independent — Russia welcomes Greenland tariffs as NATO “collapse”; Dmitriev “transatlantic alliance is over” (Jan 18, 2026). Anadolu Agency — Dmitriev mocks Europe (“1% per soldier”; “daddy”) (Jan 18, 2026). Reuters (background) — Russia calls NATO Greenland threat narrative a “myth” (Jan 15, 2026).----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------

2026-01-18 | UPDATES #105 | The Purge Turns Inward: The Kremlin Starts Eating Its “Patriots.” What’s driving it? Fear of rivals and conspiracies? Punishment for incompetence? Or just plain paranoia? The people who cheerlead for a regime typically get rewarded, until that regime metastasizes and gets consumed by grievance, revenge narratives and paranoia. In Putin’s Russia, they get recycled almost as efficiently as Ukrainians are recycling the Russian army into compost and scrap metal. Arrests, seizure of properties, reputational ruin and stripped of their power and status. If you lose proximity to power in Russia, you lose everything. How many of the Russian elite are being ostracized, incarcerated, or found dead under mysterious circumstances. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------SOURCES: Meduza (Jan 16, 2026) — Anton Panov death / alleged intelligence links Cyprus Mail (Jan 16, 2026) — embassy access denied; investigative linksRBC (Jan 15, 2026) — Alexey Sklyar found dead RIA Novosti (Jan 15, 2026) — “Preliminary, he took his own life” Kommersant (Jan 15, 2026) — Sklyar details Reuters (May 22, 2024) — pro-war blogger backlash over Popov arrest (Telegram quotes) Reuters (May 23, 2024; Jul 26, 2024; Oct 7, 2024) — Defense Ministry corruption crackdown; factional “clans”; FSB role The Guardian (Nov 6, 2025) — repression turns inward on pro-war figures Carnegie Endowment (Dec 22, 2025) — why the Kremlin punishes pro-war bloggers Novaya Gazeta Europe (Sep 25, 2025) — Roman Alyokhin “foreign agent” case UNITED24 Media (Nov 18, 2025) — “destroyed legally” framing (via The Economist summary)Reuters (Sep 1, 2022) — list of Russian businessmen deaths in unexplained circumstancesMeduza (Jul 7, 2025) — review of sudden executive deaths since 2022 Britannica — Great Purge Britannica — Night of the Long Knives USHMM Holocaust Encyclopedia — Röhm Purge / legalization-after-the-fact (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum)----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------

2026-01-17 | UPDATES #104 | Let’s start with a quote from Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent of The Wall Street Journal. “We are now at a stage when Trump calls NATO nations putting troops on the territory of a NATO ally a threat to world peace. Actually, he calls Denmark putting troops on Denmark’s own sovereign soil a threat to world peace:“Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, The United Kingdom, The Netherlands, and Finland have journeyed to Greenland, for purposes unknown. This is a very dangerous situation for the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Planet. These Countries, who are playing this very dangerous game, have put a level of risk in play that is not tenable or sustainable.”----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------SOURCES: Reuters (Jan 17, 2026): Trump vows tariffs on eight European nations over Greenland AP (Jan 17, 2026): Trump says 8 European countries face 10% tariff for opposing US control of Greenland Reuters (Jan 17, 2026): Macron says Trump tariff threat over Greenland unacceptable The Guardian (Jan 17, 2026): Starmer and UK politicians condemn Trump’s Greenland tariff threat Reuters (Jan 15, 2026): NATO scramble for Arctic security ideas “and survival” amid Greenland push (Rynning, Rutte, Pothier quotes)Reuters (Jan 17, 2026): USTR Greer urges Europe to “silo” Greenland tariffs from trade deal Washington Post (Jan 17, 2026): U.S. lawmakers contradict Trump on Greenland; Murkowski “ally, not asset” Financial Times (Jan 17, 2026): Anders Fogh Rasmussen attacks Trump’s “gangster” talk; calls it “weapon of mass distraction” Reuters/Ipsos (Jan 16, 2026): U.S. public opinion on Greenland acquisition and force Reuters (Jan 16, 2026): Zelenskyy warns on air-defence missile shortages; delegation heading to U.S. Reuters (Apr 2025): Why Russia was excluded from certain tariff lists (sanctions rationale)----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------

Livestream with Yuri Rashkinhttps://www.youtube.com/@rashkinreportperspectives/streams ----------Silicon Curtain is a part of the Christmas Tree Trucks 2025 campaign - an ambitious fundraiser led by a group of our wonderful team of information warriors raising 110,000 EUR for the Ukrainian army. https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/christmas-tree-trucks-2025-silicon-curtainThe Goal of the Campaign for the Silicon Curtain community:- 1 armoured battle-ready pickupWe are sourcing all vehicles around 2010-2017 or newer, mainly Toyota Hilux or Mitsubishi L200, with low mileage and fully serviced. These are some of the greatest and the most reliable pickups possible to be on the frontline in Ukraine. Who will receive the vehicles?https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/christmas-tree-trucks-2025-silicon-curtain- The 38th Marine Brigade, who alone held Krynki for 124 days, receiving the Military Cross of Honour.- The 1027th Anti-aircraft and artillery regiment. Honoured by NATO as Defender of the Year 2024 and recipient of the Military Cross of Honour.- 104th Separate Brigade, Infantry, who alone held Kherson for 100 days, establishing conditions for the liberation of the city.- 93rd Brigade "Kholodnyi Yar", Black Raven Unmanned Systems Battalion ----------SILICON CURTAIN FILM FUNDRAISERA project to make a documentary film in Ukraine, to raise awareness of Ukraine's struggle and in supporting a team running aid convoys to Ukraine's front-line towns.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasWe need to scale up our support for Ukraine, and these events are designed to have a major impact. Your support in making it happen is greatly appreciated. All events will be recorded professionally and published for free on the Silicon Curtain channel. Where possible, we will also live-stream events.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------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/-----------

2026-01-17 | UPDATES #103 | If you think the number, the ratio 27:1 sounds obscene, that’s good. It should. Because it tells you two stories at once: the brutal arithmetic of Russia’s infantry-first “meat grinder” tactics, and the way Ukraine is learning to turn Russia’s mass into a liability. It’s a stark riposte to those that endlessly trot out the line that Russia has so many more people, so many more resources. To match Ukraine’s army at that ratio of loss, (match, mind you, not overwhelm) it would need an army of 21,600,000 – it does not have this, not even close to that number. Over the last couple of days, UK outlets reported that an intelligence assessment shared with the British military that put the Russian-to-Ukrainian loss ratio at roughly 27-to-1 in the Kupiansk fight — in other words, for every Ukrainian lost, around 27 Russians became casualties in that phase of the battle. The phrase being used is “kill ratio,” but treat it carefully: these figures come from briefings and assessments, not an independently audited body count – because such accurate numbers simply don’t exist – everything, by necessity, is conjecture. What matters is what the number is signalling about the fight: Russia didn’t just fail to take Kupiansk — it paid a punitive price for even trying to take it. (The Times)----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------SOURCES: The Times (Jan 15, 2026) — “Ukraine forces killed 27 Russians for every soldier lost at Kupiansk”https://www.thetimes.com/world/russia-ukraine-war/article/ukraine-killed-27-times-russians-kupiansk-control-vhkzp5vfxThe Independent — Bulletin item referencing the British-military briefing and 1:27 ratio (Jan 15–16, 2026) https://www.independent.co.uk/bulletin/news/ukraine-kills-27-russian-soldiers-for-every-loss-in-kupiansk-b2901725.htmlFinancial Times (Jan 15, 2026) — “Military briefing: Ukraine’s elite units dash to repel Russian frontline advances” https://www.ft.com/content/708aa803-e350-4961-b7ef-a0b878c179c2The Telegraph (Jan 16, 2026) — “Ukraine's robot machine gunner held off Russia for six weeks”https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/16/ukraines-robot-machine-gunner-that-held-off-russia-weeks/ Ukrainska Pravda (Jan 12, 2026) — “Ukrainian forces re-establish control over Kupiansk City Council building – video” https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2026/01/12/8015789/Kyiv Independent (Jan 12, 2026) — “Khartiia Brigade raises flag over Kupiansk city council building”https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-war-latest-update-2026-01-12/Ukrinform (Jan 12–13, 2026) — “Ukrainian National Guard raises flag over Kupiansk city hall”https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/4079590-ukrainian-national-guard-raises-flag-over-kupiansk-city-hall.htmlGwara Media (Jan 13, 2026) — “Ukrainian forces regain control of Kupiansk City Council building”https://gwaramedia.com/en/ukrainian-forces-regain-control-of-kupiansk-city-council-building/Ukrinform (Dec 22, 2025) — “AFU showcase ground robot holding frontline position for 45 days” (background on UGV claim/video) https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/4072435-afu-showcase-ground-robot-holding-frontline-position-for-45-days.htmlUNN (Dec 17 & Dec 24, 2025) — items on Kupiansk claims and false reporting (background on “lying up the chain”) https://unn.ua/en/news/russian-military-leadership-continues-to-lie-to-putin-about-the-real-situation-in-kupyansk-center-for-countering-disinformationhttps://unn.ua/en/news/kupiansk-is-fed-russian-war-correspondents-admitted-the-loss-of-the-city-despite-putins-statementsCenter for Countering Disinformation (Ukraine) (Dec 8, 2025) — “russians are lying again about complete capture of Kupiansk” (background) https://cpd.gov.ua/en/international-threats-en/usa/russians-are-lying-again-about-complete-capture-of-kupiansk/----------