Day: December 19, 2019

The son of Russian spies who was born in Canada and was stripped of his citizenship after his parents were arrested for espionage in the United States is a Canadian national, the country’s top court ruled on Thursday. Canada’s Supreme Court unanimously upheld an earlier federal court ruling that said a 2014 administrative decision to strip…

At least one person has been killed in a shooting in downtown Moscow on Thursday evening, state media have reported.  An unidentified gunman opened fire near the entrance of the Federal Security Services (FSB) building before being killed in a shootout, RIA cited an FSB spokesperson as saying. One FSB officer was killed at the…

Russian President Vladimir Putin held his 15th annual end-of-year press conference at the World Trade Center in Moscow on Thursday. Almost 1,900 journalists, including reporters from the UK, Turkey, Ukraine and Estonia, were accredited to attend the event, meaning almost 2,000 questions had been prepared in advance. Of course, there wasn’t enough time for the…

President Vladimir Putin held his annual end-of-year press conference on Thursday, answering questions from state media and independent journalists on an array of topics related to Russia’s domestic and foreign policy. Here are the highlights from the marathon presser that lasted four hours and 19 minutes: On constitutional term limits for the presidency: — “One…

As the only remaining independent, English-language news source reporting from Russia, The Moscow Times plays a critical role in connecting Russia to the world. Editorial decisions are made entirely by journalists in our newsroom, who adhere to the highest ethical standards. We fearlessly cover issues that are often considered off-limits or taboo in Russia, from…

Citizen of the Year – Danila Beglets By Kirill Martynov Danila Beglets is a political prisoner in the so-called Moscow protest cases.  However, unlike most politicians, Beglets is not fighting for power. He is not interested in elections and he is neither an activist nor famous. He is an ordinary person who was walking along…

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he was open to the possibility of altering Russia‘s constitution, including proposals to increase parliament’s power and to limit the number of presidential terms anyone can serve. The issue of constitutional change in Russia is watched closely amid speculation about Putin’s own political ambitions. In power as either president or prime…

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that U.S. Democrats had impeached President Donald Trump for “fabricated” reasons in order to reverse his 2016 election victory. Putin, speaking at his annual year-end news conference, said he expected Trump to survive the proceedings and stay in office. The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to…

As the only remaining independent, English-language news source reporting from Russia, The Moscow Times plays a critical role in connecting Russia to the world. Editorial decisions are made entirely by journalists in our newsroom, who adhere to the highest ethical standards. We fearlessly cover issues that are often considered off-limits or taboo in Russia, from…

A Russian banker awaiting trial on organized crime charges has taken out a full-page newspaper ad to give a New Year’s Eve warning to businesspeople that they too could face a similar fate. Alexander Popov’s message in the Vedomosti business daily Wednesday comes as Russian authorities consider limiting the use of organized-crime laws in corporate…

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved legislation on Wednesday that would impose sanctions on Russia, but there was no indication of when the full Senate might vote on the measure that one sponsor called the sanctions bill “from hell.” The vote was 17-5 to advance the bill in the Republican-controlled committee. All five “no”…

A five-year-old girl born in Russia is the world’s third-richest YouTube blogger, Forbes reported Wednesday. Anastasia Radzinskaya earned an estimated $18 million between June 2018-June 2019, according to the business magazine. The native of the southern Russian city of Krasnodar who moved to Florida last year has a combined 107 million subscribers across six YouTube…

Residents of Moscow are wondering where winter has gone as the highest December temperatures for 133 years deprive the Russian capital of its customary covering of snow. “This is not our winter,” said pensioner Ludmila Biryukova. “It came from somewhere else.” At a time when snow often blankets the streets and icicles hang from buildings, the temperature…

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin gave an annual report to municipal lawmakers Wednesday. Sobyanin faced several challenges this year, including mass protests against the exclusion of opposition candidates from the Moscow City Duma election and against plans to ship waste to outlying regions. Here’s a selection of quotes from Sobyanin’s two-hour report, which included answers to…

Donald Trump on Wednesday became the third U.S. president to be impeached as the House of Representatives formally charged him with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in a historic step that will inflame partisan tensions across a deeply divided America. The Democratic-led House’s passage of two articles of impeachment on a mostly party-line…