Russia Hires Britons for ‘Intelligence Operations’ – Guardian

The Russian government has allegedly hired British politicians, former intelligence officers and PR firms to advance its interests in Britain’s politics and form a “western buffer network,” The Guardian reported Monday. The claims are based on U.S.-born financier Bill Browder’s Sept. 2018 testimony submitted to the British parliament for its report on alleged Russian interference…

Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | March 9

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 3,000 people continues to spread around the world, Russia has stepped up measures to tackle the health risk, including closing most entry points along its 4,200-kilometer border with China, ordering people returning from high-risk areas to self-quarantine and temporarily banning Chinese citizens from entering the country. …

MH17 Trial Live Updates: March 9

SCHIPHOL, The Netherlands — A court in the Netherlands is conducting a landmark hearing to try to determine criminal responsibility for the downing of Flight MH17 six years ago. The Moscow Times is covering the MH17 trial live from the courtroom in The Netherlands. Follow along here: March 9 14.45: Oleg Pulatov’s defense team gives…

Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | March 8

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 3,000 people continues to spread around the world, Russia has stepped up measures to tackle the health risk, including closing most entry points along its 4,200-kilometer border with China and temporarily banning Chinese citizens from entering the country.  There have been 15 cases of coronavirus infections…

‘The Shadow in the East’

Restive Russian-speaking minorities, contentious memory politics, and turbulent Europeanization.  No, we are not talking about Ukraine, but the Baltic states: Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia, and these are just some of the themes that Aliide Naylor covers in “The Shadow in the East: Vladimir Putin and the New Baltic Front.”  In this riveting debut, Naylor combines…

Putin Critic Navalny Takes Russia to European Court Over Money Laundering Case

Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny lodged a complaint against Russia at the European Court of Human Rights on Friday to contest a money-laundering investigation he says authorities have opened to thwart his political activities. Russian investigators opened the case against Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation last August after he called on people to attend rallies that grew…

Gazprom and OMV introducing amendments to asset sale deal

Background OMV AG is Gazprom’s main partner in Austria. The companies cooperate in gas production, transportation and supplies. On October 3, 2018, Gazprom and OMV signed the Basic Agreement on Asset Sale. In accordance with the document, OMV will obtain a 24.98 per cent stake in the project for developing Blocks 4A and 5A in the Achimov formations of the Urengoyskoye field. As a result, the Gazprom Group’s stake in the project will…

Russian Game Designer Launches Political Party

Before Vyacheslav Makarov announced in January he was leaving gaming, few could have expected the man who helped create the mega-hit World of Tanks wanted a career in Russian politics. Yet on the sidelines of a digital technologies conference in Moscow on Thursday, the 40-year-old online gaming legend launched his latest creation: the Direct Democracy…

Coronavirus Hits Russian Tourism for $400M Loss

Russia’s tourism sector has already taken a 27 billion ruble  ($406 million) hit from the impact of coronavirus, the head of the Russian Association of Tour Operators said on Thursday in a plea for government support. The coronavirus outbreak has caused havoc across the global travel industry as companies restrict employee trips, airlines axe flights,…

Rosneft Joins Russia’s Gene-Editing Tech Program

Russia’s oil giant Rosneft and the Russian government will join forces to develop gene-editing technology, according to a government decree published Wednesday. The deal, which President Vladimir Putin ordered in December, aims to accelerate Russia’s $1.6 billion program to create 30 new varieties of genetically modified crops and animals by 2027.  Rosneft is tasked with…

U.S. Witness to Implicate ‘Putin’s Chef’ Prigozhin in Election Meddling – Politico

A secret witness will implicate Kremlin-linked catering magnate Yevgeny Prigozhin in plans to influence elections abroad at a trial next month, Politico reported Wednesday, citing a U.S. prosecutor. The St. Petersburg-based Concord Management and Consulting firm goes on trial in the United States in April after it was charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S.…

Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | March 4

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 3,000 people continues to spread around the world, Russia has stepped up measures to tackle the health risk, including closing most entry points along its 4,200-kilometer border with China and temporarily banning Chinese citizens from entering the country.  Russia reported its first two cases of coronavirus…

Putin’s Spending Boost Won’t Be Enough To Lift Russians Out of Poverty, Audit Chamber Warns

President Vladimir Putin’s new package of social spending initiatives will not be enough to hit the country’s ambitious poverty-reduction targets, a government watchdog has said. In its assessment of the government’s spending plans for the next few years, the Audit Chamber said the package of new measures, such as higher allowances for new mothers to…

Russia’s Yandex.Taxi Admits to Sharing Riders’ Location With Police

Russian tech giant Yandex’s taxi service shares passengers’ ride history with law enforcement authorities, according to the testimony of an ex-policeman on trial for wrongfully detaining an investigative journalist. Igor Lyakhovets was among the several police officers who had arrested journalist Ivan Golunov on drug charges in June 2019. An unprecedented public outcry led to…