The internet has proven a particular boon, since its users are predominantly young, educated males from the cities just the kind of groups, the party has noted, behind the colour revolutions in Serbia, Georgia and Ukraine.

ECONOMIST: Banyan

And although the latest conflict was triggered by Georgia, the deeper roots of Russia's invasion lie in domestic events that go back as far as 2003-04: the destruction of the Yukos oil company, and Russia's perception of the colour revolutions in Georgia and Ukraine as a Western plot to undermine its sovereignty.

ECONOMIST: Russia and Georgia