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Five years ago, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina’s decision to let the ruble trade freely faced a gut-wrenching test. An oil-price collapse and international sanctions had put the currency into a nosedive that even a 650 basis-point rate hike couldn’t immediately halt. Fast-forward half a decade and the picture in Russian markets couldn’t look more […]

Greece will extradite a Russian man suspected of having laundered billions of dollars in the digital currency bitcoin to France, the justice minister decided on Friday, court officials said. Alexander Vinnik, the alleged mastermind of a $4 billion bitcoin laundering ring, is one of seven Russians arrested or indicted worldwide this year on U.S. cybercrime […]

The United States is “very concerned” about the intensification of the conflict in Libya, with a rising number of reported Russian mercenaries supporting Khalifa Haftar’s forces on the ground turning the conflict into a bloodier one, a senior State Department official said on Saturday. The United States continues to recognize the Government of National Accord (GNA) […]

Russia and Ukraine announced terms of a new gas transit deal on Saturday, under which Moscow will supply Europe for at least another five years via its former Soviet neighbor and pay a $2.9 billion settlement to Kiev to end a legal dispute. The deal is a major breakthrough for both countries, which have been seeking to resolve […]

Alpha Conde of Guinea had a favor to ask Vladimir Putin when the two presidents met at the inaugural Russia-Africa summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi in October. “I would like, if possible, to spend most of our meeting in a one-in-one format because I have things to say to you that are […]

Russian-backed Syrian forces have gained ground after a week-long renewed assault against the last opposition enclave in Syria’s northwest, the biggest such push in more than three months that has prompted a large civilian exodus, witnesses and residents said on Sunday. The wide-scale offensive led by intense aerial strikes on civilian areas in rural southeastern […]

A Moscow court on Friday slapped climate change activist Arshak Makichyan with a six-day sentence for participating in an unsanctioned picket in Moscow. Makichyan, 24, was reportedly detained in Moscow hours after returning from a trip to Madrid, Spain, where he spoke at the COP 25 UN Climate Change Conference together with climate activist Greta […]

A court in Russia has sentenced a Tajik man to 22 years in maximum-security prison for orchestrating an attempted bombing of a high-speed train between Moscow and St. Petersburg, Interfax reported Friday. The court found that Emom Burkhonov had played a role in derailing a Sapsan train in 2017 by placing a metal device on […]

Russia has opened recruitment centers for a new military force in northeastern Syria aimed at replacing U.S.-backed Kurdish groups that neighboring Turkey views as terrorists, the Voice of America broadcaster reported Thursday. Turkey and its Syrian rebel allies launched a cross-border offensive against the Kurdish militia after President Donald Trump pulled U.S. forces from the […]

President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that Turkey will not stay silent over Russian-backed mercenaries supporting Khalifa Haftar in Libya, as Moscow voiced concerns over possible Turkish military deployment to Libya in support of Haftar’s enemies. Turkey has backed Libya’s internationally recognized government led by Fayez al-Serraj and the two sides signed a security agreement […]

Russia on Friday honored two members of the British “Cambridge Five” spy ring who passed information to the Soviet Union with a memorial plaque and a tribute from the head of Russia’s foreign intelligence service. The plaque, unveiled on the day Russia celebrates the work of its security services, was dedicated to Guy Burgess and […]

Russia’s FSB security service on Friday searched the home of a man named by Russian media as the prime suspect in a rare shooting incident near the FSB’s central Moscow headquarters, neighbors said. A gunman opened fire on the FSB’s main building in Moscow on Thursday evening, killing at least one FSB employee and wounding […]

Russian state energy company Gazprom is planning to construct a giant petrochemical plant in Bovanenkovo, the company’s hub on the Yamal Peninsula. It will be able to produce about 3 million tons of plastics products polyethylene and polypropylene per year, several sources in the company told Vedomosti business daily. If built, the plant will be the northernmost […]

A court in Moscow has upheld U.S.-Israeli tourist Naama Issachar’s seven-and-a-half year prison sentence on drugs charges Thursday in a case that has strained ties between Russia and Israel. Naama Issachar, 25, was found guilty of drug possession and smuggling last month. Moscow airport authorities had found 9.6 grams of cannabis in Issachar’s luggage during her […]

Donald Trump’s administration has slammed a new package of tough anti-Russia sanctions advanced by U.S. lawmakers earlier this week, The Daily Beast reported Thursday, citing a leaked letter from a State Department official.  The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved draft legislation Wednesday that would impose new sanctions against Russia’s banking, energy and ship-building sectors […]

President Vladimir Putin said Thursday he was open to the possibility of altering Russia’s Constitution to limit the number of presidential terms anyone can serve. “Your humble servant served two terms consecutively, then left his post, but with the constitutional right to return to the post of president again, because these two terms were not […]

Russia will carry out tests on Monday on the reliability of its domestic internet infrastructure in the event that the country is disconnected from the worldwide web, the communications ministry said. The threat testing will take place in stages on Dec. 23 and will not affect regular internet users, the ministry said on Thursday. Russia enacted a […]

Russian President Vladimir Putin sidestepped a question about the identities of his two daughters at his annual end-of-year news conference on Thursday. Named sources have told Reuters — but later retracted their statements — that one of Putin‘s adult daughters is Katerina Tikhonova, who runs publicly funded projects and takes part in competitive rock’n’roll dancing. Media have identified Putin‘s […]

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 gunman opened fire at Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) headquarters in central Moscow on Thursday evening, killing one officer and wounding five others, including one civilian. An unverified video depicted officers exchanging gunfire and appearing to kill the alleged shooter behind a column. Other videos showed the FSB building being sprayed with gunfire and […]

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 […]

Russia’s Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov hosted 150 military attaches from the diplomatic missions of 70 countries Tuesday. During his speech, Gerasimov discussed Russia’s military arms and strategies. Here are some of his key quotes: Putin’s weapons — Peresvet laser system “Since the beginning of December, the Peresvet laser […]

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 […]

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 […]

Russian officials have seized nearly $96 million worth of opioids at a Moscow airport this month that were bound for Tajikistan as part of a United Nations HIV response program. The 1.2 metric tons of mislabeled methadone with a black-market value of 6 billion rubles ($95.8 million) arrived at Vnukovo Airport from Germany in early […]

The shores of Balaklava Bay in Russian-annexed Crimea became unexpectedly swarmed with aurelia jellyfish this month, photos posted online show. News of the jelly invasion quickly spread across the internet, with photos gaining thousands of likes on Instagram. Social media users said that the bay has turned into a “kissel coast,” comparing the waters to […]

The substance that brought one of Russia’s longest oil pipelines to a halt in April was carbon tetrachloride, a lethal chemical meant to be tightly controlled by an international agreement, according to the results of three separate, undisclosed tests seen by Reuters. A summary of the results of a test carried out for Russia’s Ministry […]

Russia and Syria have unveiled a series of commercial and relief projects in Syria as Moscow looks to solidify its foothold in the war-torn country. Russia has backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in an eight-year civil war and has waged an air campaign in his support in 2015. Here are five projects Russian Deputy Prime […]