Next Year in Moscow: Trailer
03:48 Share

This is a story about Russia and its ruinous war. But I wanted to start telling it here, by the Galata Bridge in Istanbul. The ferries on the Bosphorus Strait, the steep cobbled streets, the cafes, they all bear witness to a huge exodus. Thousands of Russians fled here as soon as the war in Ukraine started a year ago. Their flight echoed one made a century ago when many Russians fled violence of the Bolshevik Revolution and civil war.

Those events changed the course of the 20th century and this war is already changing the 21st. I've come to Istanbul to speak to this new generation of exiles because their stories help solve the mystery of why this senseless war began and how it might end. I'm Arkady Ostrovsky. I write about Russia and Ukraine for The Economist. I'm the host of a new podcast series called Next Year in Moscow.

I address Russian citizens as citizens of Ukraine. Who can prevent this war? People. Social activists, journalists.

Public figures, journalists, musicians, actors, athletes, scientists, doctors, bloggers, stand-up comedians, social media influencers and more. These are the people who fled Russia in the coming days. I clearly remember this feeling that this is not my world anymore. Everything changed just in one second.

The invasion destroyed their hopes that Russia might become a normal, non-violent country.

Well, my country started this awful war and I think that this shame will be with us for the rest of our lives. In this war, Ukraine has gained a new sense of nationhood. But the future of Russia is now in doubt. Can it ever be a place that these exiles once again call home? The search for answers has taken me across Europe and the Middle East and along the fringes of the old Soviet empire.

Ultimately, it led me to people who've chosen to keep light and hope alive inside Russia. Look for Next Year in Moscow on your podcast app. Episode 1 is available from the 23rd of February.