10Apr 2026 by Nicholas Woode-Smith
Frontlines for Freedom: Resisting the New Axis

Frontlines for Freedom: Resisting the New Axis

Opinion
Excerpt The frontline states share a single, brutal truth. Freedom is not defended by speeches, summits, or symbolic condemnations. It is defended by people and countries willing to absorb the first hit, the first missile volley, the first wave of terrorists, the first cyberattack, the first blockade. Ukraine bleeds so Europe does not. Taiwan holds the technological high ground, so the world does not wake up under a Chinese chip monopoly. The comfortable capitals of the West like to pretend that history has ended, that trade can tame tyrants, and that “stability” is achieved by bargaining with the very forces that destroy it. That illusion is finished. The New Axis is not a misunderstanding - it is a project. It aims to rewrite borders by force, weaponise supply chains, export…
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10Apr 2026 by Nicholas Woode-Smith
The New Axis: Russia

The New Axis: Russia

Opinion
Excerpt Russia is a paper tiger. The war in Ukraine proves it. A two week “special operation” has lasted longer than the Soviet Union’s involvement in the Second World War. Millions of young men have been thrown into a meat grinder to satisfy Vladimir Putin’s imperial ambition. Russia cannot win a traditional war against the West. Only its nuclear arsenal, and the threat of mutually assured destruction, allow it to misbehave with relative impunity. Unable to achieve decisive victories, it has instead become a master of information warfare. Russian information warfare does not aim to convince Western publics that Moscow is virtuous. It succeeds when citizens conclude that truth is unknowable, institutions are corrupt, and political participation is futile. Read in the Rational Standard
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