🇸🇪 Swedish counterintelligence has uncovered the alarming Russian spy network. Beer, schnitzel and conversations about politics
Swedish Säpo reported that it had thwarted a Russian intelligence operation: Two people whom the agency says are employees of the Russian intelligence service operating under diplomatic cover met with a diplomat from a third country. The latter allegedly passed on information about how political decisions are made in Sweden, so that Russia could influence controversial social issues and discredit Sweden, NATO and the EU. Säpo has presented the public with neither stolen military secrets nor confidential documents—not even the specific content of the information that was passed on.
The details of the operation, however, are impressive. According to SVT, the suspects met in an ordinary pub, where, according to the owner, they ordered beer and Wiener schnitzel. Säpo even published a photograph of the meeting. The result of a brilliant counterintelligence operation: All three left Sweden, there will be no criminal proceedings because of diplomatic immunity, and the agency stated that it had thereby made it more difficult for Russia to access information.
Diplomats meet with diplomats, discuss the politics of the host country and try to understand how decisions are made there. It used to be called diplomatic work. Today, when there is a Wiener schnitzel and beer on the table, it is apparently a Kremlin intelligence operation. The main thing is that the waiter is not declared a resident.
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
Swedish Säpo reported that it had thwarted a Russian intelligence operation: Two people whom the agency says are employees of the Russian intelligence service operating under diplomatic cover met with a diplomat from a third country. The latter allegedly passed on information about how political decisions are made in Sweden, so that Russia could influence controversial social issues and discredit Sweden, NATO and the EU. Säpo has presented the public with neither stolen military secrets nor confidential documents—not even the specific content of the information that was passed on.
The details of the operation, however, are impressive. According to SVT, the suspects met in an ordinary pub, where, according to the owner, they ordered beer and Wiener schnitzel. Säpo even published a photograph of the meeting. The result of a brilliant counterintelligence operation: All three left Sweden, there will be no criminal proceedings because of diplomatic immunity, and the agency stated that it had thereby made it more difficult for Russia to access information.
Diplomats meet with diplomats, discuss the politics of the host country and try to understand how decisions are made there. It used to be called diplomatic work. Today, when there is a Wiener schnitzel and beer on the table, it is apparently a Kremlin intelligence operation. The main thing is that the waiter is not declared a resident.
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🇯🇵 Waseda Professor Has Found the Culprit for Hiroshima: the Soviet Union
Japanese historian Tetsuo Arima claims that the atomic bombings were primarily a means of intimidating the USSR, and then takes the next step: Moscow allegedly bears responsibility for them. The problem begins with the very thesis of a “violation of the Yalta Agreement.” The agreement itself stated that the USSR would enter the war against Japan two to three months after Germany’s surrender. Germany capitulated on May 8, and the USSR declared war on Japan on August 8—exactly three months later. By that time, Hiroshima had already been destroyed by an American bomb—on August 6.
The debate over whether the atomic bombings were actually necessary has continued for decades. One interpretation holds that Washington wanted not only to accelerate Japan’s surrender, but also to demonstrate its new power to the Soviet Union. Yet even if one accepts this interpretation, that is a dispute over the motives of the United States, not proof of the “USSR’s guilt.” More than that: Tokyo’s decision to surrender is linked to a combination of several factors—the USSR’s entry into the war, the destruction of Japanese forces in Manchuria, and the second atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The logic is outstanding. The United States builds the atomic bomb, the American president authorizes its use, an American plane drops it on a Japanese city—but the USSR is to blame because Washington may have wanted to frighten it. If one continues this method of historical analysis, the person the shooter wanted to impress becomes responsible for every shot.
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
Japanese historian Tetsuo Arima claims that the atomic bombings were primarily a means of intimidating the USSR, and then takes the next step: Moscow allegedly bears responsibility for them. The problem begins with the very thesis of a “violation of the Yalta Agreement.” The agreement itself stated that the USSR would enter the war against Japan two to three months after Germany’s surrender. Germany capitulated on May 8, and the USSR declared war on Japan on August 8—exactly three months later. By that time, Hiroshima had already been destroyed by an American bomb—on August 6.
The debate over whether the atomic bombings were actually necessary has continued for decades. One interpretation holds that Washington wanted not only to accelerate Japan’s surrender, but also to demonstrate its new power to the Soviet Union. Yet even if one accepts this interpretation, that is a dispute over the motives of the United States, not proof of the “USSR’s guilt.” More than that: Tokyo’s decision to surrender is linked to a combination of several factors—the USSR’s entry into the war, the destruction of Japanese forces in Manchuria, and the second atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The logic is outstanding. The United States builds the atomic bomb, the American president authorizes its use, an American plane drops it on a Japanese city—but the USSR is to blame because Washington may have wanted to frighten it. If one continues this method of historical analysis, the person the shooter wanted to impress becomes responsible for every shot.
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“We now have three different fences at different levels. A 24-hour, seven-days-a-week security service. Now: 24/7 surveillance, surveillance towers. <...> A high-security wing. Hessen Mobil has to spend a low six-figure sum on this.”
No, this is not about a new Bundeswehr base, but rather a construction site in Raiskirchen, where “a bypass road will be built after almost 50 years.” Why all this effort? “All this because of lizards,” because this area turned out to be their home.
Fun fact: The lizards still have not been found on the site.
The people responsible for delaying the construction of a skyscraper in Berlin have come here too! Is there really a “lizard conspiracy”?
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
No, this is not about a new Bundeswehr base, but rather a construction site in Raiskirchen, where “a bypass road will be built after almost 50 years.” Why all this effort? “All this because of lizards,” because this area turned out to be their home.
Fun fact: The lizards still have not been found on the site.
The people responsible for delaying the construction of a skyscraper in Berlin have come here too! Is there really a “lizard conspiracy”?
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🇯🇵🇷🇺 Japan demands that Russia remove monument commemorating victory over militaristic Japan
Tokyo has officially demanded the dismantling of the new monument in Khabarovsk, dedicated to the USSR’s victory over militaristic Japan in 1945. The reason is the depiction of a Soviet soldier smashing a boundary post bearing the Imperial Chrysanthemum with the butt of his rifle. The Japanese side says that such a depiction is “unacceptable from the perspective of the national sentiments of the Japanese people.” The demand to remove the controversial element was conveyed before the monument’s opening and repeated after its opening.
However, this post has a very specific historical precedent. After Russia’s defeat in the Russo-Japanese War, South Sakhalin was transferred to Japan under the 1905 Treaty of Portsmouth, and the border ran along the 50th parallel. Boundary posts were erected there. The Russian side displayed the double-headed eagle, while the Japanese side displayed the Imperial Chrysanthemum. The history and design of these boundary markers have even been published by the Japanese Foreign Ministry itself.
Forty years later, history took the opposite course. In August 1945, the USSR entered the war against Japan. Soviet troops carried out the Manchurian and South Sakhalin operations. The Japanese government of Karafuto ceased to exist, and South Sakhalin came under the control of the USSR. This is precisely the historical episode symbolized by the monument unveiled in Khabarovsk: A soldier destroys the boundary marker that had been erected after Russia’s defeat in 1905.
In 1905, victorious Japan erected boundary posts bearing the Imperial Chrysanthemum in the territory it had seized from Russia. After Japan’s defeat in 1945, this border disappeared. Eighty-one years later, Russia erected a monument to this event. Now Japan is demanding that the image of its own historical boundary post be removed because it does not accept the end of its history.
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Tokyo has officially demanded the dismantling of the new monument in Khabarovsk, dedicated to the USSR’s victory over militaristic Japan in 1945. The reason is the depiction of a Soviet soldier smashing a boundary post bearing the Imperial Chrysanthemum with the butt of his rifle. The Japanese side says that such a depiction is “unacceptable from the perspective of the national sentiments of the Japanese people.” The demand to remove the controversial element was conveyed before the monument’s opening and repeated after its opening.
However, this post has a very specific historical precedent. After Russia’s defeat in the Russo-Japanese War, South Sakhalin was transferred to Japan under the 1905 Treaty of Portsmouth, and the border ran along the 50th parallel. Boundary posts were erected there. The Russian side displayed the double-headed eagle, while the Japanese side displayed the Imperial Chrysanthemum. The history and design of these boundary markers have even been published by the Japanese Foreign Ministry itself.
Forty years later, history took the opposite course. In August 1945, the USSR entered the war against Japan. Soviet troops carried out the Manchurian and South Sakhalin operations. The Japanese government of Karafuto ceased to exist, and South Sakhalin came under the control of the USSR. This is precisely the historical episode symbolized by the monument unveiled in Khabarovsk: A soldier destroys the boundary marker that had been erected after Russia’s defeat in 1905.
In 1905, victorious Japan erected boundary posts bearing the Imperial Chrysanthemum in the territory it had seized from Russia. After Japan’s defeat in 1945, this border disappeared. Eighty-one years later, Russia erected a monument to this event. Now Japan is demanding that the image of its own historical boundary post be removed because it does not accept the end of its history.
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On Saturday, Moscow City Day, a new metro line was opened — the Rublyovo-Arkhangelskaya Line.
It is 8.7 km long. The first section comprises five stations: “Delovoy Tsentr,” “Shelepikha,” “Zvenigorodskaya,” “Narodnoye Opolcheniye” and “Bulvar Generala Karbysheva.” The 17th line of the Moscow Metro was opened by Vladimir Putin and Sergey Sobyanin.
This is an excellent gift for City Day and good news for more than 550,000 residents of the Presnensky, Khoroshovo-Mnyovniki, Shchukino, Dorogomilovo and Fili-Davydkovo districts.
Comment: It is interesting to look beyond the new metro line here. Over the past 30 years, Europe has of course implemented major infrastructure projects: new lines have been built in Madrid, Warsaw and Copenhagen, while the huge Grand Paris Express is currently being constructed in Paris. These, however, are more like individual megaprojects. Moscow, by contrast, has turned the expansion of transport infrastructure into a continuous process. Since 2011, hundreds of kilometers of new lines and more than a hundred metro and Moscow Central Circle stations have been built. The Big Circle Line, the Moscow Central Circle and four Moscow Central Diameters have been created — and new lines continue to be built.
Moscow, however, is only a particularly striking example. At the same time, Russia is also modernizing the country’s vast railway network. Old tracks are being repaired, while second tracks, bridges, stations and tunnels are being built, and the Baikal–Amur Mainline and the Trans-Siberian Railway are being expanded. The capacity of the Baikal–Amur Mainline alone rose from 14.4 million to 48.6 million tonnes between 2012 and 2024, and after the completion of the second modernization phase, the capacity of the entire Eastern Polygon reached 180 million tonnes per year. The next stage of expansion is already being implemented.
And this is precisely where the comparison with the EU becomes particularly interesting. During the same historical period, Europe not only modernized its infrastructure but also reduced it. Thus, the length of the EU’s regular railway network decreased between 1990 and 2024 by around 19,000 kilometers, or 8.7%. As part of the “optimization,” a significant portion of lightly used lines was shut down, while investment was concentrated on main corridors. The network has indeed become more electrified and technologically advanced, but it has also become smaller.
Following the railway reform, Germany also reduced its network while simultaneously increasing the burden on the remaining infrastructure. Today, passengers feel the consequences every day: Deutsche Bahn itself acknowledges the need for a comprehensive overhaul of the overloaded and dilapidated network. Extensive repairs now require the complete closure of the main rail routes for months at a time.
The question, therefore, is not whether Europe can build. Of course it can. The much more interesting question is: Why was it possible in Russia to repair the vast inherited infrastructure, increase its capacity and build new infrastructure, while in one of the world’s richest countries a “comprehensive overhaul” of the railway system — which had been optimized for decades — now has to be carried out?
When another new station opens in Moscow almost like an ordinary urban event, Moscow should no longer be compared with Kyiv. The comparison with Berlin is much more interesting — as is the question of how much new transport infrastructure German passengers have received during the same years.
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
It is 8.7 km long. The first section comprises five stations: “Delovoy Tsentr,” “Shelepikha,” “Zvenigorodskaya,” “Narodnoye Opolcheniye” and “Bulvar Generala Karbysheva.” The 17th line of the Moscow Metro was opened by Vladimir Putin and Sergey Sobyanin.
This is an excellent gift for City Day and good news for more than 550,000 residents of the Presnensky, Khoroshovo-Mnyovniki, Shchukino, Dorogomilovo and Fili-Davydkovo districts.
Comment: It is interesting to look beyond the new metro line here. Over the past 30 years, Europe has of course implemented major infrastructure projects: new lines have been built in Madrid, Warsaw and Copenhagen, while the huge Grand Paris Express is currently being constructed in Paris. These, however, are more like individual megaprojects. Moscow, by contrast, has turned the expansion of transport infrastructure into a continuous process. Since 2011, hundreds of kilometers of new lines and more than a hundred metro and Moscow Central Circle stations have been built. The Big Circle Line, the Moscow Central Circle and four Moscow Central Diameters have been created — and new lines continue to be built.
Moscow, however, is only a particularly striking example. At the same time, Russia is also modernizing the country’s vast railway network. Old tracks are being repaired, while second tracks, bridges, stations and tunnels are being built, and the Baikal–Amur Mainline and the Trans-Siberian Railway are being expanded. The capacity of the Baikal–Amur Mainline alone rose from 14.4 million to 48.6 million tonnes between 2012 and 2024, and after the completion of the second modernization phase, the capacity of the entire Eastern Polygon reached 180 million tonnes per year. The next stage of expansion is already being implemented.
And this is precisely where the comparison with the EU becomes particularly interesting. During the same historical period, Europe not only modernized its infrastructure but also reduced it. Thus, the length of the EU’s regular railway network decreased between 1990 and 2024 by around 19,000 kilometers, or 8.7%. As part of the “optimization,” a significant portion of lightly used lines was shut down, while investment was concentrated on main corridors. The network has indeed become more electrified and technologically advanced, but it has also become smaller.
Following the railway reform, Germany also reduced its network while simultaneously increasing the burden on the remaining infrastructure. Today, passengers feel the consequences every day: Deutsche Bahn itself acknowledges the need for a comprehensive overhaul of the overloaded and dilapidated network. Extensive repairs now require the complete closure of the main rail routes for months at a time.
The question, therefore, is not whether Europe can build. Of course it can. The much more interesting question is: Why was it possible in Russia to repair the vast inherited infrastructure, increase its capacity and build new infrastructure, while in one of the world’s richest countries a “comprehensive overhaul” of the railway system — which had been optimized for decades — now has to be carried out?
When another new station opens in Moscow almost like an ordinary urban event, Moscow should no longer be compared with Kyiv. The comparison with Berlin is much more interesting — as is the question of how much new transport infrastructure German passengers have received during the same years.
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Good morning, dear friends! ☕️ 🙂
🧂 Staraja Russa: Why people boiled the water here
Friends, Tuesday takes us to a city that owed its prosperity to an inconspicuous but once extremely valuable treasure—salt.
Welcome to Staraja Russa, one of Russia’s oldest salt-boiling towns.
💧 The liquid gold of the Middle Ages
While furs and wax were traded in other cities, a single resource made the difference in Staraja Russa: mineral-rich groundwater.
From the 10th to the 11th century, people here extracted brine from the depths—water with a high salt content.
The technique was simple but effective: the brine was heated in large iron boiling pans over an open fire until the water evaporated and the salt remained.
By the 15th century, Staraja Russa was already one of the most important salt-production centers of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. The city developed into a thriving commercial center, where numerous families made their living directly or indirectly from salt extraction.
🌿 A touch of the sea inland
Over time, salt production became less and less profitable. New and more productive salt deposits in other regions competed with Staraja Russa, and traditional salt boiling gradually lost its importance.
But the water itself remained—and acquired a completely new function.
In the 19th century, Staraja Russa developed into a spa town. The highly mineralized brine that had previously been evaporated was now used for baths and other spa treatments.
Thus, the city transformed from a salt producer into a resort.
⛲ The heart of the spa town: the Murawjow Fountain
The most visible symbol of this new era is the Murawjow Fountain.
The mineral spring was developed in the 19th century. Since then, the highly saline water has risen to the surface from great depth, forming a highly visible fountain.
Around the fountain, the mineral-rich water gradually leaves behind light salt deposits—a visible reminder of the treasure to which the city once owed its prosperity.
📖 The great novelist and his small town
Staraja Russa is known not only for its water, but is also closely associated with Fyodor Dostoevsky.
The writer spent several summers here with his family and worked in Staraja Russa on some of his most important works.
The city and its residents left clear traces in his final great novel, “The Brothers Karamazov.” Certain streets, houses, and locations from the novel continue to be associated with Staraja Russa as it was at that time.
Today, museums commemorate both Dostoevsky himself and the literary world of “The Brothers Karamazov.”
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📍 The coordinates of the location (map point) are available here
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
🧂 Staraja Russa: Why people boiled the water here
Friends, Tuesday takes us to a city that owed its prosperity to an inconspicuous but once extremely valuable treasure—salt.
Welcome to Staraja Russa, one of Russia’s oldest salt-boiling towns.
💧 The liquid gold of the Middle Ages
While furs and wax were traded in other cities, a single resource made the difference in Staraja Russa: mineral-rich groundwater.
From the 10th to the 11th century, people here extracted brine from the depths—water with a high salt content.
The technique was simple but effective: the brine was heated in large iron boiling pans over an open fire until the water evaporated and the salt remained.
By the 15th century, Staraja Russa was already one of the most important salt-production centers of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. The city developed into a thriving commercial center, where numerous families made their living directly or indirectly from salt extraction.
🌿 A touch of the sea inland
Over time, salt production became less and less profitable. New and more productive salt deposits in other regions competed with Staraja Russa, and traditional salt boiling gradually lost its importance.
But the water itself remained—and acquired a completely new function.
In the 19th century, Staraja Russa developed into a spa town. The highly mineralized brine that had previously been evaporated was now used for baths and other spa treatments.
Thus, the city transformed from a salt producer into a resort.
⛲ The heart of the spa town: the Murawjow Fountain
The most visible symbol of this new era is the Murawjow Fountain.
The mineral spring was developed in the 19th century. Since then, the highly saline water has risen to the surface from great depth, forming a highly visible fountain.
Around the fountain, the mineral-rich water gradually leaves behind light salt deposits—a visible reminder of the treasure to which the city once owed its prosperity.
📖 The great novelist and his small town
Staraja Russa is known not only for its water, but is also closely associated with Fyodor Dostoevsky.
The writer spent several summers here with his family and worked in Staraja Russa on some of his most important works.
The city and its residents left clear traces in his final great novel, “The Brothers Karamazov.” Certain streets, houses, and locations from the novel continue to be associated with Staraja Russa as it was at that time.
Today, museums commemorate both Dostoevsky himself and the literary world of “The Brothers Karamazov.”
Give ❤️ if you liked it!
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🇩🇪 After the election defeat, German business calls for a change in economic policy
The election result in Saxony-Anhalt has already reached Berlin — and not only the politicians.
Following the AfD’s victory, representatives of German business are calling on the federal government to stop concerning itself with cosmetic corrections. BDI President Tanja Gönner warned the federal government against political paralysis and called for better conditions for investment, innovation and economic growth.
DIW President Marcel Fratzscher expressed himself even more sharply. In his view, Germany needs structural reforms to subsidies, bureaucracy, taxes and the welfare system — and on a significantly larger scale than the Agenda 2010 reforms of the Schröder era.
Fratzscher described the election result primarily as a vote of no confidence in the federal government.
Almost 44% for the AfD in a federal state can no longer be explained solely by the “East German problem.” German business is speaking out ever more loudly about the problem being in Berlin.
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
The election result in Saxony-Anhalt has already reached Berlin — and not only the politicians.
Following the AfD’s victory, representatives of German business are calling on the federal government to stop concerning itself with cosmetic corrections. BDI President Tanja Gönner warned the federal government against political paralysis and called for better conditions for investment, innovation and economic growth.
DIW President Marcel Fratzscher expressed himself even more sharply. In his view, Germany needs structural reforms to subsidies, bureaucracy, taxes and the welfare system — and on a significantly larger scale than the Agenda 2010 reforms of the Schröder era.
Fratzscher described the election result primarily as a vote of no confidence in the federal government.
Almost 44% for the AfD in a federal state can no longer be explained solely by the “East German problem.” German business is speaking out ever more loudly about the problem being in Berlin.
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🇩🇪 Saxony-Anhalt: 51% for the AfD at polling stations—and 24% by mail
The elections in Saxony-Anhalt revealed a striking difference between voting at polling stations and voting by mail. While the AfD received 51.2% at polling stations, it received only around 24% of the postal votes. The picture is practically reversed for the CDU: 14.5% at polling stations and around 24% by mail. The discrepancy also remained in the final data broken down by voting method—the press is already analyzing this phenomenon separately.
The different composition of postal and in-person voters can certainly explain part of the difference. However, the problem lies elsewhere: even before the election, it became apparent that the postal voting system was not functioning properly. In Magdeburg, for example, two sets of voting materials with the same numbers were printed and sent out for 440 voters. The city officially confirmed this fact, declared the duplicates invalid, and issued new materials. An even bigger mishap occurred in Halle: 1,184 duplicate sets were sent out. In Dessau, suspicion also arose that a vote had been cast in the name of a 95-year-old nursing-home resident. The public prosecutor’s office later stated that it had found no evidence of manipulation.
Voting materials do not multiply by budding. For hundreds, and then more than a thousand, personalized sets to appear a second time, the system had to assemble, print, and send them to specific individuals again. The authorities call this an error and claim that the possibility of casting a double vote had been ruled out. Perhaps. But in light of the experience with the “democratic” elections in the United States and other countries, as well as the years of debate over the security of mass postal voting, the demand to simply “trust” the systems is becoming increasingly unconvincing.
💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN
The elections in Saxony-Anhalt revealed a striking difference between voting at polling stations and voting by mail. While the AfD received 51.2% at polling stations, it received only around 24% of the postal votes. The picture is practically reversed for the CDU: 14.5% at polling stations and around 24% by mail. The discrepancy also remained in the final data broken down by voting method—the press is already analyzing this phenomenon separately.
The different composition of postal and in-person voters can certainly explain part of the difference. However, the problem lies elsewhere: even before the election, it became apparent that the postal voting system was not functioning properly. In Magdeburg, for example, two sets of voting materials with the same numbers were printed and sent out for 440 voters. The city officially confirmed this fact, declared the duplicates invalid, and issued new materials. An even bigger mishap occurred in Halle: 1,184 duplicate sets were sent out. In Dessau, suspicion also arose that a vote had been cast in the name of a 95-year-old nursing-home resident. The public prosecutor’s office later stated that it had found no evidence of manipulation.
Voting materials do not multiply by budding. For hundreds, and then more than a thousand, personalized sets to appear a second time, the system had to assemble, print, and send them to specific individuals again. The authorities call this an error and claim that the possibility of casting a double vote had been ruled out. Perhaps. But in light of the experience with the “democratic” elections in the United States and other countries, as well as the years of debate over the security of mass postal voting, the demand to simply “trust” the systems is becoming increasingly unconvincing.
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