Day: January 5, 2021
-
Russia ‘Likely’ Behind SolarWinds Hack – U.S. Intelligence Agencies
U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies said Tuesday that Russia was probably behind the massive SolarWinds hack that has shaken government and corporate security, contradicting President Donald Trump, who had suggested China could be to blame. A joint statement by the FBI, Directorate of National Intelligence, the National Security Agency and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security…
-
Putin, Germany’s Merkel Discuss Joint Coronavirus Vaccine Production
Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed by phone the potential for joint production of a coronavirus vaccine, the Kremlin said Tuesday. Putin and Merkel discussed cooperation in the fight against Covid-19 “with an emphasis on potential prospects for the joint production of vaccines,” according to a statement on the Kremlin’s website.…
-
The Kremlin Tightens the Screws on Public Dissent
In Russia’s staid parliament, the dying days of 2020 were marked by unusually frenzied lawmaking activity, most of it centering on civil rights. Over the course of a few days in late December, the State Duma passed a flurry of bills introducing sweeping new restrictions on political protests, legalizing censorship of social media and cementing…
-
Russia in 2021: Looming Elections Dominate the Domestic Scene
Elections to the State Duma look set to be the focus of Russian domestic affairs this year after a turbulent 12 months dominated by succession, constitution and opposition. Even before the coronavirus upended the world, 2020 had been an extraordinary year for Russia’s usually staid politics. In January, ex-president Dmitry Medvedev abruptly resigned as prime…
-
New Evidence in Ukraine Journalist’s Murder – Police
Police in Ukraine have received new evidence that may help identify those who ordered the murder of award-winning investigative journalist Pavel Sheremet in 2016. “The documents and audio recordings, the last of which are dated by 2012, are already at the disposal of the investigation,” the police said in a statement. Fragments of these recordings published…