Russia’s annual rate of inflation unexpectedly slowed in December after ticking up continuously for seven months, official data showed Friday, in a boost for the Kremlin ahead of elections. Inflation had been predicted by economists to rise in December 2023 but instead edged down to 7.4% year-on-year, compared with 7.5% in November. Friday’s figure is…
Russia’s Interior Ministry has issued an arrest warrant for the former vice president of the state-owned Gazprombank, who joined the Ukrainian army after Moscow’s invasion, the state-run TASS news agency reported Friday. Igor Volobuyev was born in northeastern Ukraine in 1971 but lived most of his life in Moscow, where he served as chief spokesman for…
Ukraine’s military spy chief Kyrylo Budanov said in an interview published Friday that Kyiv’s attacks against Russian-annexed Crimea were set to intensify, adding that Moscow’s economy was proving surprisingly resilient despite sanctions. “In 2023, the first Ukrainian incursions took place in temporarily occupied Crimea,” Budanov told the French daily Le Monde, adding: “And this is…
A music channel owned by the media arm of Russian energy giant Gazprom was fined $11,300 for spreading “LGBT propaganda among minors” in a 90s-era music video that shows two women kissing, the independent Vyorstka news outlet reported Friday. The music video with the offending kiss aired in July on the channel Lya-Minor TV, which is…
Russia is preparing a legal challenge to prevent the United States and Europe from seizing some of its $300 billion in frozen assets that the West wants to use to help rebuild Ukraine, Bloomberg reported Friday, citing anonymous officials in Moscow familiar with the matter. The news agency reported Wednesday that the Biden administration supported…
Russian shelling on Friday killed two people in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, while a drone attack by Kyiv in the Moscow-controlled east killed another two, officials said. As the war approaches its second anniversary, both Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of killing dozens of civilians in a sharp escalation of attacks.…
The U.S. Olympic Committee and the fencing association it governs have asked Congress to grant American citizenship to three Russian fencers who face wartime criminal charges at home, USA Today reported Friday. Konstantin Lokhanov, Sergei Bida and Violetta Bida — who fled to the United States after Russia invaded Ukraine — may be able to compete…
A Russian serial killer pardoned by President Vladimir Putin in exchange for fighting in Ukraine was killed on the front lines, the independent Mediazona news website reported Thursday. Denis Zubov, 41, from the southern Russian city of Volgograd, was sentenced to 21 years in a maximum-security colony in 2017 for the murders of three people.…
A Russian man working for a state-owned firm was arrested for allegedly planning to pass sensitive information to Poland in exchange for help in fleeing the country, the Federal Security Service (FSB) said Friday. Russian security services have detained a slew of foreigners and Russian citizens accused of working for foreign intelligence since Moscow invaded…
Trade between China and Russia reached a record $240 billion in 2023, official Chinese data showed on Friday. China’s General Administration of Customs Data said two-way with Russia in 2023 grew by 26.3% from the year earlier. Similarly, Chinese exports to Russia increased by 46.9%, while imports from Russia rose 13% last year. Presidents Vladimir Putin…
Russia’s Interior Ministry has issued an arrest warrant for journalist Andrei Serafimov, who is believed to have fled the country, news outlets reported Friday. The law enforcement body’s online database of wanted persons lists Serafimov but does not specify which criminal charges he faces in Russia. The journalist said in December he had been charged with public…
Authorities in western Russia’s Belgorod have begun reinforcing bus stops with cement blocks and sandbags to protect residents amid a recent surge in Ukrainian airstrikes against the city. Images shared on social media showed municipal workers laying large bricks around benches and shelters at bus stops. Belgorod Mayor Valentin Demidov announced the safety measures during…
Updated with Kremlin’s remarks. The Kremlin on Friday condemned the United States and the United Kingdom for military strikes against the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, while Russia’s mission to the UN requested an urgent Security Council session. The U.S. and U.K. air forces said they struck multiple Houthi targets in Yemen late on Thursday in…