Tristan Redman

It's especially difficult when Vladimir Putin knows who you are and says that you're being paid to attack him.

From the BBC, I'm Tristan Redmond in London.

And today on The Global Story, the tightrope of reporting in Russia.

Hello, hello, hello.

Hello, hello, hello, hello.

One, two, three.

One, two, three.

Hello, Steve.

It's great to have you with us.

Thank you for joining us.

Well, Steve, you are one of the only Western journalists left in Russia these days.

And in your recent writing and reporting, you've been looking back at your time in Russia and what it means to still be there today.

I'm endlessly fascinated by all things Russia and the...

the experience of being a foreigner in a place like Moscow.

How hard has it been, Steve, watching so many of your journalistic colleagues in other news organisations being forced to leave Moscow in the last few years?

Well, we want to understand, Steve, how things have changed, the experience of being in Moscow over the whole arc of your career there.

So let's start at the very beginning.

Do you remember when you first became interested in Russia?

Yes, I do, actually.

Well, how were you received as a Westerner at this particular moment?