Moscow police carried out raids of gay-friendly nightclubs, bars and saunas in the city center overnight, media reported. The raids came one day after Russia’s top court banned the “international LGBT movement,” a group that does not formally exist, sparking fears of widespread persecution of LGBT people and rights groups. Police burst into a club on Malaya…
On December 2, 2023, Director General of ROSATOM State Corporation Mr. Alexey Likhachev had a meeting with IAEA Director General Mr. Rafael Grossi on the margins of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP-28) in Dubai. Alexey Likhachev confirmed support for the IAEA’s activities to promote the “peaceful atom” as a sustainable energy source and expressed…
Paint your cheeks with beet juice? Every Soviet child laughed at ugly Marfushka with huge beet-red circles on her cheeks in the 1964 movie “Morozko.” Although the fairy tale was a lie, there was an ounce of truth in the image. Five hundred years ago the faces of Russian women were plastered with make-up so…
A Russian TV channel was fined $5,500 on Friday for showing a music video by ex-Eurovision contestant Sergey Lazarev that allegedly showed same-sex couples holding hands. The move comes a day after Russia’s top court effectively outlawed LGBTQ activism, cementing a long crackdown on the community as the Kremlin pushes ultra-conservative social values. St. Petersburg’s…
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Friday boosting troop numbers by 15%, in a move the army said was due to “threats” associated with the Ukraine offensive. The move comes as both Ukraine and Russia seek to gain ground and replenish their ranks in the conflict, whose front lines have barely moved in…
Сутки: 24 hours, day and night The topic of “untranslatable words” makes me exceedingly cranky. First of all, there is no such thing as an untranslatable word. Really. There may not be one word in your language that corresponds to the meaning of the so-called untranslatable word. Or there might be a word equivalent in…
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday expressed indifference over the future of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which this week hel its annual summit in the North Macedonian capital of Skopje. Created in 1975 as a forum for dialogue between the Eastern and Western blocs, the OSCE faces mounting challenges in…
November 30 was Vladimir Urin’s last day as general director of the Bolshoi Theater. His departure was rumored to be imminent since November 17, when it was reported in several Russian media that he had resigned. Urin spent the evening watching the premieres of two short operas, “The Mandarin’s Son” by César Cui, and “The Nightingale”…
A song by AIGEL, an electronic hip-hop duo from Russia’s republic of Tatarstan, has secured the No. 2 spot on Shazam’s global top 200 chart this week. The success of “Pyala” (“Glass” in the Tatar language) marks the first time in history that a song in Tatar — a Turkic language spoken by Russia’s largest…
Law enforcement agents in central Russia’s Tula region on Friday reportedly raided a warehouse belonging to the online retail giant Wildberries in search of fresh recruits for Moscow’s war against Ukraine, according to news channels on the messaging app Telegram. The raid, which took place in the town of Aleksino, was said to have targeted…
Ukraine claimed on Friday to have orchestrated attacks on a Russian railway line in Siberia, thousands of kilometers away from the frontline in eastern Ukraine. Russian authorities have reported several attacks on the country’s transport infrastructure since it launched its invasion of Ukraine last year, often blaming Kyiv. “The Russians have fallen into the [Ukrainian…
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Friday that Ukraine had lost over 125,000 troops since launching its counteroffensive in June, as well as 16,000 units of “various weapons.” “Total mobilization in Ukraine, the supply of Western weapons, and the introduction of the Ukrainian command’s strategic reserves into battle did not alter the situation on the…
Moscow said Friday it had arrested a dual Russian-Italian national for carrying out sabotage attacks on military installations and a railroad under the orders of Ukrainian military intelligence. Russian authorities have opened dozens of cases into alleged sabotage at key infrastructure and production facilities, as well as attacks on military recruitment centers since launching its…
A Russian court on Friday extended the pre-trial detention of U.S.-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, who was arrested in October for failing to register as a “foreign agent,” her employer said. Kurmasheva, who holds both Russian and American citizenship, was working for the U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) media outlet when she was detained by…
Russian authorities have pressed fresh criminal charges against jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, according to a message shared on the activist’s official social media accounts Friday. “I have no idea which word to use to describe my latest news. Whether it’s sad, funny or absurd,” Navalny wrote on X (formerly Twitter). The jailed activist said…
Ukraine said Friday that Russian forces had launched more than two dozen Iranian-designed attack drones and two missiles on the south and east of the country, in Moscow’s latest aerial barrage. Officials in Kyiv say Russian forces have been stockpiling drones and missiles for systematic attacks on Ukraine’s struggling energy grid over winter months. “In…
Giant letters in support of Moscow’s armed forces fighting in Ukraine have been installed in front of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, AFP saw Thursday. A huge Latin letter ‘Z’ and ‘V’ — symbols used by the Russian military which have been adopted by high-profile supporters of Russia’s offensive — were put up outside the…
At least 12 Russian soldiers were killed and eight were injured by an explosion at a training facility in southern Russia, local media reported Thursday, citing three anonymous government sources. The soldiers were reportedly killed in an accidental explosion on Nov. 3 at the Kuzmin military training ground in the Rostov region, the 161.ru news…
Estonia on Thursday warned its citizens against “any travel” to Russia, suggesting that it may temporarily close the border with its eastern neighbor amid an influx of asylum seekers on the Russian-Finnish border. Estonia shares a 333-kilometer-long border with Russia, along which six checkpoints are currently open. But the Baltic country’s foreign ministry said in…
Lawmakers in central Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region said they will submit a draft amendment to the country’s parliament that would outlaw abortions at private clinics nationwide if passed, state media reported Thursday. The draft amendment to Russia’s federal law “On the Foundations of Preserving Citizens’ Health” was passed unanimously and without discussion in Nizhny Novgorod’s legislative…
Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said Thursday that Moscow had stopped swapping prisoners of war with Kyiv. The two warring sides have carried out many rounds of prisoner exchanges during Moscow’s 21-month-long invasion, but in the latter half of this year the process stalled. “Exchanges are not taking place because Russia does not want them…
Yekaterina Duntsova, a Russian journalist who earlier this month announced her bid to run for president, condemned the Russian Supreme Court’s decision on Thursday to ban the so-called “international LGBT public movement.” “This is a dangerous decision, which has no clear guidelines for interpretation, and it can lead to the persecution of any Russian citizen,”…
Finland closed its borders to Russia this week in response to a surge of migrants across the country’s border with Russia. The men seeking asylum were not Russians but came through Russia from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other Middle Eastern and African countries. There was evidence that the Russian authorities organized these groups of migrants. Earlier…
Russia’s Supreme Court on Thursday designated the so-called “international LGBT public movement” as a banned “extremist” organization, setting the stage for a sweeping crackdown on LGBT rights not seen in the country since the Soviet era. The move is the latest episode in the sharp conservative turn by Russia’s leadership that has accelerated and permeated…
As tens of thousands of delegates gathered in Dubai for the UN’s COP28 climate conference Thursday, negotiators from around the world will once again struggle to agree on how to collectively address the climate crisis. For Russia, which remains under harsh Western sanctions and bogged down in its 21-month war on Ukraine, the conference will…
Moscow thanked the Hamas militant group on Thursday for freeing two Russian hostages from Gaza, which was organized separately from a truce deal with Israel. The statement came a day after Hamas released two Russian citizens, both women, in what it said was a move “in appreciation” of President Vladimir Putin. “We are grateful to…
Germany’s consulate in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea will close starting Thursday, according to an official statement on its website, which did not give a reason for the closure. “From now on, the Consulate General in St. Petersburg is responsible for consular and passport matters in the district of the Consulate General…
Updated to include the closures of the German consulates in Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk. Germany’s consulates in Kaliningrad, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk have closed, according to statements on the German Embassy in Russia’s website, which did not give a reason for the closures. On Thursday, the German consulate in the Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad said “from now on, the…
The Kremlin said Thursday that President Vladimir Putin will hold his annual press conference on Dec. 14, which this year will take place in a “combined format” together with his popular call-in show. Set-piece political events involving Putin have been delayed or scrapped altogether in the tumultuous months following Moscow’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.…
Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger died Thursday at the age of 100, his geopolitical consulting firm said. As the prime architect of Washington’s detente with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, Kissinger left an indelible mark not just on U.S. foreign policy, but also on Russia’s. Before his death, Kissinger expressed deep…
The world’s largest regional security group opened its Skopje summit Thursday with Russia and Ukraine’s allies in open conflict, rattling the organization that is intended as a forum for East-West blocs. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has been struggling to survive with Russia blocking key decisions, including the group’s budget. Russian…
Russia lost out Wednesday in its bid for re-election to the decision-making body of the OPCW chemical watchdog, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky cheered Moscow’s “isolation” on the world stage. Four eastern European countries were competing for three seats on the OPCW Executive Council, warring neighbors Russia and Ukraine, plus Poland and Lithuania. Russia received…
Russian authorities in the Ural Mountains region of Chelyabinsk cut down a spruce tree growing on a local resident’s property so that it could be installed in a town square as a New Year decoration, the Telegram news channel Podyem reported Wednesday. Authorities in the town of Minyar, which has a population of around 8,500…
A 41-year-old Russian woman was detained in Moscow’s Red Square while recording an Instagram video in which she eats an unusually large caviar sandwich, local media reported Tuesday. Gulina Naumann and a friend recorded a video of her sitting in front of the Kremlin’s walls, wearing a large fur coat and eating a “huge sandwich” with…
The Russian ska-punk group Leningrad on Tuesday released a new song and music video praising the country’s state-owned defense conglomerate Rostec. “It’s a f****** no brainer — Rostec has the best weapons,” the band’s eccentric frontman and founder Sergei Shnurov sings in the new song, which is simply called “Rostec.” The music video accompanying the…
Russia on Wednesday leveled criminal charges against Jamala, the Ukrainian winner of the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest, arresting her in absentia for spreading “false information” about the Russian army. Shortly after launching its offensive in Ukraine last year, Moscow outlawed criticism of the conflict and has detained and charged thousands of people for speaking out and…
A man in Kazakhstan has been sentenced to six years and eight months in prison for fighting in Russia’s war against Ukraine, the Kazakhstan service for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported Tuesday. Alexei Shompolov, 34, was charged with “mercenarism” for joining the Wagner private military company, as well as with “committing a serious criminal offense against the…
Russia said on Wednesday its armed forces had taken control of Khromove, a small village on the outskirts of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. Moscow’s troops seized Bakhmut in May after one of the bloodiest battles of its 21-month military offensive. “Troops, supported by aviation and artillery fire, improved their positions along the front…
Moscow’s largest aquarium will send hundreds of fish to an aquarium in annexed Crimea that was badly damaged by flooding earlier this week, the Daily Storm news outlet reported Tuesday. Moskvarium, which is located at the VDNKh exposition center in the Russian capital, will send between 200 and 300 fish to the Sevastopol Aquarium, according…
Russian forces were ramping up attacks in eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, Moscow and Kyiv said, as they vie to secure elusive territorial gains before the end of the year. Despite the frontlines having barely shifted in 2023, fighting has remained intense, with the nearly encircled industrial town of Avdiivka the latest major flashpoint. Russia launched…
Russia’s Interior Ministry has proposed requiring foreigners who visit Russia to adhere to an “agreement of loyalty,” the state-run TASS news agency reported Wednesday, citing a draft law prepared by the ministry. According to the draft law, foreigners staying in Russia would be prohibited from “hindering the activities of public authorities of the Russian Federation…
Former active duty U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, imprisoned in Russia on espionage charges, was assaulted by a fellow inmate, his family said Tuesday, adding they fear he is a target because of his nationality. The 53-year-old has been behind bars since 2018 and is serving a 16-year sentence that the U.S. government argues is without…
Ukraine said Tuesday it believed Russia had poisoned the wife of its military intelligence chief in an apparent assassination attempt targeting the heart of Kyiv’s leadership. Marianna Budanova, who is an advisor to Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko, was hospitalized after a prolonged deterioration in her health, the Babel news outlet reported earlier. Ukrainian investigators’ “main…
Ukraine said Russian shelling of a border village in the northeastern Sumy region on Tuesday killed three people, including a seven-year-old child. The office of Ukraine’s Prosecutor General said Russia shelled civilian areas in Seredyna-Buda, a village on the border with Russia, at around 12:30 pm local time. “Two dead women and two wounded men…
SYUNIK PROVINCE, Armenia — “When I go to bed at night, I don’t think: ‘Is my phone on charge or have I brushed my teeth?’ I think: Do I know where my parents are and is my bag packed to evacuate?” These are the nightly thoughts of Mariam, a 22-year-old teacher living in southern Armenia’s…
Finland’s prime minister said Tuesday that the country will temporarily close its last border crossing with Russia following an influx of migrants that Helsinki claims is a “hybrid operation” orchestrated by Moscow. Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said the closure would come into effect overnight between Wednesday and Thursday and last until Dec. 13. The Nordic…
Relatives of mobilized Russian soldiers sent to fight in Ukraine have started placing anti-mobilization stickers on their cars as they continue to call for the return of their loved ones from the front. Images shared by the Put’ Domoi (“Way Home”) Telegram channel, a group of relatives calling for an end to mobilization in Russia,…
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania said Tuesday that their top diplomats will not take part in an upcoming OSCE meeting in the North Macedonian capital Skopje over the decision to invite Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. In a joint statement, the Baltic countries’ foreign ministers said Lavrov’s planned attendance “risks legitimizing aggressor Russia as a rightful member of…
Russia’s parliament will officially announce the start of the 2024 presidential race on Dec. 13, the head of Russia’s Communist Party Gennady Zyuganov told reporters during a press briefing on Tuesday. Next year’s presidential election is scheduled to take place in March, with President Vladimir Putin widely expected to run for a fifth term in…
A Moscow court on Tuesday said it had extended the detention of U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested in Russia earlier this year on spying charges. The court said Gershkovich’s “period of detention” was extended by two more months until January 30. The 32-year-old Wall Street Journal correspondent in Moscow, his employer and the…
Under the grant program of Vostsibneftegas (a member of Rosneft Oil Company), scientists of the Federal Research Center “Krasnoyarsk Scientific Center SB RAS” studied the ability of Evenkiya forest to restore.
Ancient Crimean gold treasures returned to Kyiv Monday after being held in a Dutch museum for nine years, where they were on show when Russia seized the Black Sea peninsula in 2014. The Scythian artifacts – some around 2,000 years old – were on loan to Amsterdam’s Allard Pierson museum when they were suddenly at…
Russia’s Central Bank said Monday it will resume buying and selling foreign currency through its sovereign wealth fund next year as the ruble continues to recover from a dramatic summer slide. The Russian currency has been extremely volatile since February 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale military offensive on Ukraine and the West hit Moscow…
A former Russian state television correspondent is being held in a so-called “punishment pit” in occupied Ukraine, the independent Novaya Gazeta Europe news website reported Monday. Ilya Andreyev, 42, resigned from the state-run Channel One broadcaster shortly after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. He later signed a military contract with the Russian Defense Ministry because, according…
Turkish exports of military-related goods to Russia have surged this year, raising concerns that the NATO member is acting as a conduit for sensitive Western goods, the Financial Times reported Monday. Forty-five categories of civilian goods useful to the Russian military, including microchips, communications equipment and parts including telescopic sights, are subject to United States, European Union,…
A methane blast at a diamond mine in Russia’s remote Sakha republic in Siberia killed three miners and injured two others, regional authorities said Monday. The accident occurred at the Udachny (“Lucky”) mine, owned by Russian state diamond giant Alrosa. The site – one of the deepest open-pit mines in the world – lies in…
Russia was intensely attacking the eastern town of Avdiivka and southern village of Robotyne, where fighting has centered in recent weeks, Ukraine said on Monday. Neither side has made significant breakthroughs on the battlefield for weeks, as Moscow’s invasion drags on for a 22nd month. In recent weeks, Russia has focused its efforts on the…
Updated with new death toll. A severe storm on the Black Sea hit parts of Ukraine and southern Russia on Sunday night, killing at least four people and knocking out power to nearly 2 million, with strong winds continuing into Monday. “About 1.9 million people remained without power supply as of 10:00 Moscow time due to…
Russia on Sunday put Meta Platforms spokesperson Andy Stone on a wanted list on unspecified charges as the U.S. social media giant — which owns Facebook — is classed as “extremist” by Moscow. Russia has hugely cracked down on media and social media freedom since launching its Ukraine offensive last year and banning criticism of…
Russia said Sunday it had downed Ukrainian drones over five regions, including Moscow, as well as two Ukrainian missiles over the Azov Sea, a day after a large-scale Russian drone attack on Kyiv. Russia and Ukraine have hit each with drones for months, as Moscow’s offensive drags on for a 22nd month, with little significant…