london became a safe place for russia's wealthy elites to park money. they built prestigious property empires. few questions were asked about where the money came from. but putin has misread the world catastrophically. first in his view that ukrainian is a bogus identity. ukrainians have proved it is an identity they are ready to fight and die for. putin's plan for a swift decapitation of the state has failed. russia's military incompetence has been striking. most importantly, he misread the west, believing it weakened by internal division and in long—term decline. chanting: uk supports ukraine! but the west is more united now than it has been since the fall of the berlin wall. the economic and financial sanctions it swiftly agreed are the most punitive ever imposed. in effect, they expelled russia from the global economy. a new economic iron curtain has descended. it will plunge russia into a profound economic crisis. industries will grind