The Kremlin’s nightmare has a name: black rain. Reports emerging from Moscow this morning describe a toxic downpour, turning the city’s streets into slick, oily rivers. While the cause remains officially disputed, whispers suggest a Ukrainian drone strike on a chemical storage facility.
But the real story for London is not the tragedy on the Moskva; it is the stark contrast in air defence readiness. The UK, having spent years beefing up its Sky Sabre systems and investing in counter-drone tech, looks prescient. Hybrid warfare, that grey-zone strategy of sabotage and misdirection, requires not just missiles but resilience.
The City should take note: gilt yields remain stable not because of sentiment but because the UK’s fiscal shield is backed by a physical one. Capital flight from the continent has been a steady trickle; this event may turn it into a flood. The black rain over Moscow is a reminder that markets loathe uncertainty, and defence spending, while painful at the Budget, pays dividends in stability.
