Shaun Walker (journalist)

Shaun Walker (born 1981/82) is a British journalist and author, noted primarily for his writing on Ukraine, and Russia for The Guardian. Walker was shortlisted for the 2024 UK Press Awards.

Early years
Walker visited Russia for the first time as an 18-year-old, in 2000, working as an English teacher, and then travelling around the country. Walker then returned home to the UK, where he studied Russian and Soviet history at Oxford University. After completing his studies, Walker returned to Moscow at the end of 2003, working for an NGO for a year, before taking up journalism. Walker was taken on by The Independent in 2007, and worked as their Moscow correspondent until 2013.

2014 on
From 2014, working for The Guardian, primarily as their Ukraine and Russia correspondent, Walker has extensively covered the war in Donbas. Walker wrote a downbeat 'farewell' article to Russia in early 2018, stating that he would return for the upcoming World Cup, but after that he was 'off for real', expressing his desire to return one day to see a 'post-Putin' Russia. Walker did return for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, this time writing an upbeat article about the "positive atmosphere: the street parties, the surprisingly lax police presence, the good-natured welcome from the majority of Russians, and the hot weather and cheap beer."

From 2019, Walker has been the Guardian's central and eastern Europe correspondent. Walker currently lives in Budapest, Hungary. He writes on Europe for the Guardian, and continues to cover Ukraine and Russia. Walker also takes part in Guardian podcasts.

Political views
In his time working for the Independent and Guardian, Walker frequently expressed his support for Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny. Writing after Navalny's death in a Russian penal colony in February 2024, Walker stated that he believed Navalny had been mistaken to return to Russia in 2021, as he could have been able to co-ordinate a 'powerful anti-war movement' from abroad.

Walker has received praise for his writing on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been consistently in support of Ukraine. Walker has also been criticised for some his pro-Russian writings prior to 2022, including a 2014 article for the Guardian entitled "I can't stop dreaming about Vladimir Putin", and his positive comments on Russia at the time of the 2018 World Cup.

Books
Walker is the author of two non-fiction books, 2014's Odessa Dreams: The Dark Heart of Ukraine's Online Marriage Industry, and 2018's The Long Hangover: Putin's New Russia and the Ghosts of the Past.