Who doesn’t stand to benefit from the war in Ukraine?

On the night of 26 May, Kyiv came under another large-scale Russian drone and missile attack, with explosions and machine gun fire rattling the city. I lay on the floor of my narrow hallway, listening to the furious cacophony outside the window. Two thin walls stood between me and the war, hardly an invitation to philosophical reflection. Nevertheless, I tried, because it helped me banish the more disturbing thoughts.

We Ukrainians now rely on smartphone apps to warn us of incoming Russian drones and missile launches. They don’t tell you which building will be hit or where the wreckage of a downed Shahed might fall. This deprives you of sleep. Your mind churns with scrambled thoughts instead of dreams. If you can catch the truly important ones, they can be useful.

So I thought. Between explosions, Seneca’s old question ‘Cui bono?’ – ‘who benefits?’ – echoed in my head.