A Misfit in Moscow: Ex-UK Diplomat Ian Proud Gets Real
Former UK Diplomat talks Kursk invasion, long range weapons, scuttled peace talks
This week we’re talking about diplomacy — or the lack of it — in the now 31-month war in Ukraine. I have the honor to welcome Ian Proud who was a member of His Britannic Majesty's Diplomatic Service from 1999 to 2023 and served as the Economic Counsellor at the British Embassy in Moscow from July 2014 to February 2019. Prior to Moscow, he organized the 2013 G8 Summit Northern Ireland, working out of 10 Downing Street.
He recently published his memoir, A Misfit in Moscow: How British diplomacy in Russia failed, 2014-2019.
Simply put, he has the chops to talk about the degradation of diplomacy, not only in Western relations with Russia, but how the West mismanaged critical events, beginning with the Maidan revolution in Kyiv, the Russian takeover of Crimea, and the years leading up the current war in Ukraine.
Irish professor and author Geoff Roberts wrote recently that Proud is “a very welcome addition to the ranks” of Western ambassadors such as Jack Matlock and Chas Freeman in the United States, Britain’s Tony Brenton, and Tony Kevin in Australia. Why? Because they are “dissident voices that are needed more than ever amid fevered lobbying for yet further escalation of the (Ukraine) conflict.”
We tap into Proud’s experience and institutional wisdom this week to challenge the conventional narratives undergirding today’s headlines: the Ukrainian’s invasion of Kursk, the pressure to allow Ukraine to use U.S/UK weapons to strike deep into Russia, and the dangers of today’s aversion to “talking to dictators.”
More from Ian Proud:
Russian asset seizure scheme will prolong war
Will Kursk be a sideshow that turns into tragedy for Ukraine?
Very interesting interview. As someone who is in the UK, I particularly appreciated Ian's perspective on the UK media and political class.