2026-04-20 | UPDATES #179 | This is the ultimate case of ‘don’t look up’. Russia’s debt is spiralling, and the banking system is on the verge of a systemic collapse. The Kremlin has built an economic ‘kill switch’ to flip the economy back into a full authoritarian, centralised command economy, one engineered for the digital age. This is the banking crisis nobody will name, the crisis that the Kremlin expects at any moment, because it built the kill switch first, to stay in power and stay in control.----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------A REQUEST FOR HELP!I'm heading back to Kyiv next month, to film, do research and conduct interviews. The logistics and need for equipment and clothing are a little higher than for my previous trips. It will be cold, and may be dark also. If you can, please assist to ensure I can make this trip a success. My commitment to the audience of the channel, will be to bring back compelling interviews conducted in Ukraine, and to use the experience to improve the quality of the channel, it's insights and impact. Let Ukraine and democracy prevail! https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrashttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformationNONE OF THIS CAN HAPPEN WITHOUT YOU!So what's next? We're going to Kyiv in April 2026 to film on the ground, and will record interviews with some huge guests. We'll be creating opportunities for new interviews, and to connect you with the reality of a European city under escalating winter attack, from an imperialist, genocidal power. PLEASE HELP ME ME TO GROW SILICON CURTAINWe are planning our events for 2026, and to do more and have a greater impact. After achieving more than 12 events in 2025, we will aim to double that! 24 events and interviews on the ground in Ukraine, to push back against weaponized information, toxic propaganda and corrosive disinformation. Please help us make it happen!----------SOURCES: Ukraine Foreign Intelligence Service (SZRU) — "Oil Bankruptcies, Debt Crisis, and Hidden Nationalization: How Russia's Economy Is Collapsing from Within" (February 18, 2026) — https://szru.gov.ua/en/news-media/news/oil-bankruptcies-debt-crisis-and-hidden-nationalization-how-russias-economy-is-collapsing-from-withinThe Moscow Times — "Russia Faces a Wave of Bankruptcies as Borrowing Costs Skyrocket" (November 2024) — https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/11/11/russia-faces-a-wave-of-bankruptcies-as-borrowing-costs-skyrocket-a86981The Moscow Times — "Does Russia's Economy Have a Debt Problem?" (July 10, 2025) — https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/07/10/does-russias-economy-have-a-debt-problem-a89708bne IntelliNews — "Russia corporate debt burden risks rise, 17 leading companies in trouble" (November 28, 2025) — https://www.intellinews.com/russia-corporate-debt-burden-risks-rise-17-leading-companies-in-trouble-414003/Espreso Global — "Russia's industrial sectors face unprecedented collapse" (November 20, 2025) — https://global.espreso.tv/sanctions-russia-russian-economy-faces-mounting-crisis-as-corporate-bankruptcies-surge-key-industries-collapse----------

2026-04-19 | UPDATES #178 | This episode is about how Russia Is building the infrastructure to seize control of every rouble, every account, every transaction, from its population to fuel Putin’s pointless war. Russia’s population are waking up to the reality that their money is not their money. Their property is not their property. Their resources are not their resources. Everything is on loan from the state – retention of all these is conditional upon their loyalty and compliance. What’s expected of them is indifference to politics in peacetime and unreasonable sacrifice, without question in wartime. Their lives are not their lives. And finally, many are discovering that their country is not their country, it’s a territory ruled, and owned, by a class of people that don’t give a damn about their squeals of indignation and outrage at privileges revoked. This is an object lesson for the West too. We may complain about our governments, our politicians, infrastructure and institutions. But things can always be worse, especially if we lose sight of hope, stop believing in progress, and deny our political agency as individuals. Russia shows what happens where there is no rule of law, no moral or political limits on executive power, no concept of the inviolability of property, rights or possessions. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------A REQUEST FOR HELP!I'm heading back to Kyiv next month, to film, do research and conduct interviews. The logistics and need for equipment and clothing are a little higher than for my previous trips. It will be cold, and may be dark also. If you can, please assist to ensure I can make this trip a success. My commitment to the audience of the channel, will be to bring back compelling interviews conducted in Ukraine, and to use the experience to improve the quality of the channel, it's insights and impact. Let Ukraine and democracy prevail! https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrashttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformationNONE OF THIS CAN HAPPEN WITHOUT YOU!So what's next? We're going to Kyiv in April 2026 to film on the ground, and will record interviews with some huge guests. We'll be creating opportunities for new interviews, and to connect you with the reality of a European city under escalating winter attack, from an imperialist, genocidal power. PLEASE HELP ME ME TO GROW SILICON CURTAINWe are planning our events for 2026, and to do more and have a greater impact. After achieving more than 12 events in 2025, we will aim to double that! 24 events and interviews on the ground in Ukraine, to push back against weaponized information, toxic propaganda and corrosive disinformation. Please help us make it happen!----------SOURCES: Kremlin financial control plans — TOLK Forum:The Moscow Times — "How the Kremlin Is Considering Cracking Down on Financial Freedom" (April 7, 2026) The Moscow Times — "Putin Signs Law Allowing Police to Freeze Bank Accounts Without Court Orders" (August 2025)Bloomberg — "Russia's VPN Crackdown Caused Bank Outage, Telegram Founder Says" (April 4, 2026) Business Standard / Bloomberg — "Russia's VPN crackdown caused bank outage, says Telegram founder" (April 4, 2026)Cybernews — "Russia's VPN crackdown triggers payment system disruption, Telegram's CEO Durov says" (April 2026) Techdirt — "Whoops: Russia's Attempt To Block VPNs Causes Major Banking Failure" (April 13, 2026)LatestLY — "Telegram Founder Pavel Durov Blames Russian VPN Crackdown for Major Payment System Failures" (April 4, 2026) Mediazona (English) — "Russia's internet censorship in 2026: VPN crackdowns, mobile shutdowns, Telegram blocks and the state messenger Max" (April 7, 2026) ----------

Jason Jay Smart is a political adviser who has lived and worked in Ukraine, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Latin America. Due to his work with the democratic opposition to Vladimir Putin, Smart was made persona non grata for life by Russia in 2010. Jason is a Special Correspondent at the Kyiv Post. It’s the state of US support for Ukraine that we will discuss today.----------LINKS:https://jasonjaysmart.com/ https://www.kyivpost.com/authors/5 https://americanpoliticalservices.com/https://www.facebook.com/jasonjaysmarthttps://twitter.com/officejjsmart ----------ACTIVE CAMPAIGN:We are raising funds for 5 of 15 Vampire DronesSilicon Curtain for Kupiansk Vampires. Dzyga’s Paw, together with Jonathan Fink, is joining forces to raise $40,000 to provide the Khartiia Brigade with Vampire Drones.https://dzygaspaw.com/silicon-curtain-for-kupiansk-vampiresThese heavy bombers are designed to destroy manpower and equipment, as well as for remote mining. The Vampire UAV, manufactured by Skyfall, has proven itself to be one of the most effective weapons in the Kupiansk direction. Skyfall is one of Ukraine’s largest defense tech companies, producing Vampire bomber drones, various modifications of Shrike FPV drones, P1-SUN, Shahed drone interceptors, communication systems, and components.----------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----------DESCRIPTION:Why Ukraine Matters: Media Manipulation, Russia’s Economic Strain, and the War’s Global StakesThe panel argues the war in Ukraine has profound long-term global consequences for Americans and Europeans and must be framed beyond individual strikes. They discuss how corporate media incentives and social-media dynamics amplify outrage, distraction, and cherry-picked narratives, while foreign coverage is limited by cost and lack of permanent TV presences in Ukraine. Speakers contrast Ukraine’s good-faith negotiation posture with Russia’s unserious delegations and propaganda, and contend Russia is increasingly weakened by drone-centric warfare and growing internal economic stress, including deficits, liquidity concerns, toxic loans, and elite asset seizures. They cite dissenting signals from Russian economic and nationalist circles and suggest Putin is detached from reality due to distorted information. The conversation explores post-Putin scenarios, risks of forced ceasefire pressure, Europe and Ukraine security alignment.----------