War-fatigued Russians are turning to entertainment for distraction in what could threaten Russia’s “civilizational identity,” said the head of Russia’s Orthodox Church. “After almost three years of active military operations, we see there’s a certain weariness among our fellow citizens of reports from the front lines,” Patriarch Kirill said at the church’s World Russian People’s…
Russian law enforcement authorities on Friday launched a criminal investigation into a deadly Ukrainian drone strike on a convent in the southwestern Kursk region. Two young men were said to have been killed when drones dropped explosives on the Trinity Convent in the village of Durovo-Bobrik, around 30 kilometers (18.5 miles) from the border with Ukraine’s…
Self-exiled entrepreneur Yevgeny Chichvarkin said Friday that he is temporarily stepping away from Russia’s opposition, criticizing activists for “fighting each other” instead of uniting against the Kremlin. “I’ve decided to withdraw from the Russian opposition for now, until my colleagues and friends refocus on fighting the bloody, monstrous, disgraceful Putin regime,” Chichvarkin said in a video…
North Korea’s foreign minister met with her Russian counterpart in Moscow on Friday, assuring him that Pyongyang would stand by Russia until it achieves “victory” in its war against Ukraine. The meeting between the two foreign ministers comes amid Western reports that North Korea sent thousands of troops to Russia, possibly for further deployment on the battlefield in Ukraine.…
Russia’s military said early Friday that its air defense systems destroyed 83 Ukrainian drones over multiple Russian regions and annexed Crimea overnight, with at least one of the drones crashing into an oil depot and sparking a fire. In southern Russia’s Stavropol region, Governor Vladimir Vladimirov said an unmanned aircraft “fell” into an oil depot…
A former employee of the U.S. consulate in the Far East city of Vladivostok has been sentenced to four years and ten months in prison for “secret collaboration with a foreign state,” Russian state media reported Friday. Robert Shonov, a Russian citizen, had worked for more than 25 years at the U.S. consulate. He was forced…
The United States said Thursday that up to 8,000 North Korean troops have reached Russia’s border region with Ukraine ready for combat, after Pyongyang’s firing of a long-range missile ramped up tensions days before the U.S. election. Seeking advantage in his grinding invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has brought in troops from North Korea,…
Kramatorsk, UKRAINE — Sitting on the steps of his church, now transformed into a refugee center, Evgueny, the congregation’s pastor, enjoys the last rays of sunshine before winter. In the distance, two explosions a few seconds apart make the windows of the small reception center tremble. “Those are gliding bombs,” Evgueny explains without flinching. With…
Finnish prosecutors on Thursday pressed charges against Russian nationalist fighter Vojislav Torden, accusing him of having committed war crimes in eastern Ukraine in 2014. Torden, formerly known as Yan Petrovsky, was detained at Helsinki Airport in July 2023 on suspicion of committing terror crimes in Ukraine. In February, a Finnish court handed him a suspended…
Russia’s Constitutional Court ruled Thursday that law enforcement authorities are no longer bound by statutes of limitations when seeking state seizure of assets in anti-corruption cases. “Prosecutors should not be constrained by time limits in anti-corruption lawsuits,” the court said. Those accused of corruption “must be denied the ability to use the statute of limitations…
German prosecutors said Thursday that they charged a German-Russian man who fought with a pro-Moscow militia in eastern Ukraine with terror offenses and for threatening state security. The suspect, identified only as Dieter S., was one of two men arrested in April on suspicion of planning attacks in Germany to undermine support for Ukraine, with…
A senior lawmaker in Russia’s upper-house Federation Council on Thursday called for a ban on Halloween celebrations in schools and universities, denouncing the holiday as a “Western” cultural import. “We need to do everything to ensure that this Western holiday is simply forgotten by the public and never again remembered,” Natalia Kosikhina, a senator from…
An animal rights activist from the Moscow region is facing criminal charges of treason, the independent news website Mediazona reported this week, citing the woman’s family. Federal Security Service (FSB) agents raided the home of Yevgenia Konforkina and her parents in the Moscow region town of Lyubertsy last week Thursday. “They broke into our house…
Russia and Iran will sign a strategic partnership agreement “in the near future,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday, as political and military ties between the two countries deepen. Both under heavy Western sanctions, Russia and Iran have strengthened their ties since Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, with Iran widely believed to be supplying Russia with…
Two children were among three killed in a Russian airstrike on an apartment building in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, with dozens more injured, the local governor said Thursday. A guided aerial bomb — a powerful weapon used widely by Russia — hit a building in the city on Wednesday evening, according to Ukraine…
Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina warned Thursday that “more drastic changes” in monetary policy may be needed as the country’s rumbling war economy drives inflation far above target levels. Nabiullina’s comments, made to a group of State Duma lawmakers, come a week after the Central Bank hiked its key rate to a record-high 21%,…
At least four people were killed and 11 injured when a gas explosion ripped through an apartment building in the North Caucasus republic of Karachayevo-Cherkessia, regional authorities said Thursday. Video of the explosion site published by regional emergency officials showed the partially collapsed top two floors of the five-story building in the regional capital of…
The head of Russia’s human rights council on Wednesday called Moscow’s major crackdown on dissent part of “sanitary measures” while the country fights in Ukraine, denying the existence of political repression. Russia has banned criticism of its war on Ukraine, handing out prison terms or fines to those who denounce it. All of President Vladimir…
Russian police in annexed Crimea charged a woman with child neglect after her 10-year-old daughter allegedly posted a video online that “discredited” the Russian army, authorities said Wednesday. The video, shared on Russian Telegram channels, showed a girl choosing between Russian and Ukrainian flags, with an angry face emoji next to the Russian flag and…
Washington on Wednesday unveiled a new round of sanctions against almost 400 people and companies it accused of supplying Russia with advanced technology to support its “war machine.” The U.S. Treasury Department announced sweeping sanctions against 275 individuals and entities in countries including India, China, Switzerland and Turkey, with the restrictions aimed at “disrupting global…
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that it summoned the Finnish ambassador in Moscow to protest the seizure of Russian state properties in connection to a Ukrainian lawsuit. A Finnish court ordered the confiscation of $4.25 billion in Russian-owned assets at the request of Ukraine’s national gas provider Naftogaz. The order relates to a ruling last year…
Kremlin foe Alexei Navalny started writing his posthumously released memoir “Patriot” while recovering from a nearly fatal nerve agent poisoning in Germany. Eventually incorporating his prison diary, the book provides new insights into his early life and political career, as well as the conditions he faced in the months leading up to his death in…
A history teacher in the Far East Russian city of Khabarovsk created a club for students to learn about Juche, the state ideology of North Korea, Russian media reported Tuesday. According to the club’s founder, Vladislav Kushnirenko, members of the club are currently undertaking work to “debunk myths” about the isolated country after having visited…
North Korea’s Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui arrived in Moscow Wednesday to hold “strategic” talks with her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. The visit comes amid Western warnings that thousands of North Korean troops are training in Russia and could be deployed to fight Ukraine. “Choe Son Hui is coming to Moscow on an official visit…
Russian law enforcement authorities in annexed Crimea charged a woman with treason for allegedly buying non-fungible token stamps in support of the Ukrainian military, the Memorial human rights group said. Lyudmila Kolesnikova, 34, said in a letter to volunteers that she had been placed in pre-trial detention after being arrested by Federal Security Service (FSB)…
The Kremlin on Wednesday dismissed a recent report by the Financial Times claiming that Russian and Ukrainian officials are discussing a potential pause on strikes on each other’s energy infrastructure. “There’s a lot of fake news nowadays, and it has nothing to do with reality,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked to comment…
Russia’s military said Wednesday that its forces captured the village of Kruhliakivka in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, where it has been stepping up pressure on Kyiv’s forces for months. The village was home to around 1,200 people before the full-scale invasion and lies around 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Kupiansk, an embattled Ukrainian stronghold…
The head of Chelyabinsk region’s Korkino district announced her resignation Wednesday amid mounting criticism from regional authorities over ethnic unrest that erupted following a local woman’s murder. On Thursday night, enraged residents in the town of Korkino gathered outside homes believed to belong to Romani families, damaging property and clashing with riot police. About 40…
Russia’s military said early Wednesday that its air defense forces shot down nearly two dozen Ukrainian drones across six Russian regions overnight, with some of the downings causing minor property damage. Seven drones were destroyed over the Rostov region, where Governor Vasily Golubev said there were no injuries or damage. In the Kursk region, Governor Alexei…
Russia’s military test-fired ballistic missiles across the country Tuesday to simulate a “massive” nuclear response to an attack on the country. The exercises came a month after President Vladimir Putin revealed plans to broaden Russia’s rules on the use of its nuclear weapons. The Kremlin said the changes served as a warning to Western countries…
A Russian court on Tuesday sentenced a Ukrainian man to 25 years in prison for the murder of an army recruitment officer and former submarine commander. The convicted man, Sergei Denysenko, was arrested in July last year, two days after the killing of recruitment official Stanislav Rzhitsky, who was shot dead while jogging in a…
A U.S. soldier serving a prison sentence in Russia’s Far East appeared on state television Tuesday, saying he hoped to be exchanged at some point in the future. Gordon Black spoke to state broadcaster Rossiya from prison, looking pale and wearing the same clothes he had on at the time of his arrest earlier this…
Google has racked up some 2 undecillion rubles ($2.5 decillion) worth of fines in Russia after years of refusing to restore the accounts of pro-Kremlin and state-run media outlets, the RBC news website reported Tuesday, citing an anonymous source familiar with court rulings against the tech company. According to RBC’s sources, Google began accumulating daily…
Russia’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday that its forces captured the eastern Ukrainian town of Selydove as part of a wider push to seize the nearby logistics hub of Pokrovsk. The capture of the frontline town of Selydove, located around 18 kilometers (10 miles) southeast of Pokrovsk, is the latest battlefield gain for Russia, which has…
A Moscow court sentenced an IT specialist to more than 13 years in prison for attempting to pass state secrets to the CIA, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Tuesday. Firuz Dadoboyev was found “guilty of treason for the benefit of the United States.” He was also fined 300,000 rubles ($3,000). Russia’s FSB claimed Dadoboyev illegally…
Estonia’s Foreign Ministry summoned Russia’s charge d’affaires amid an ongoing border dispute over a shared river, media in the Baltic country reported Tuesday. In May, Estonian border guards accused their Russian counterparts of removing two dozen navigation buoys from the Narva River, which flows north into the Baltic Sea from Lake Peipsi, or Lake Chudskoye…
The republic of Chechnya’s supreme mufti on Tuesday decried bans on hijabs and other religious clothing in schools as unconstitutional, arguing that the restrictions violate a person’s right to freedom of conscience and religion. Supreme Mufti Salah Mezhiev issued his criticism a week after education authorities in central Russia’s Vladimir region ordered a ban on…
North Korea’s Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui arrived in Russia Tuesday for an official visit after South Korea and the United States claimed Pyongyang sent thousands of troops to train in Russia. Choe flew to the city of Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East, the state-run TASS news agency reported, citing a diplomatic source. According to…
An early morning drone strike damaged a special forces university in the North Caucasus republic of Chechnya, regional leader Ramzan Kadyrov said Tuesday, marking the first such attack on the region since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. “At 6:30 this morning, the roof of an empty building on the territory of the Russian Special Forces…
Tens of thousands of Georgians took to the streets Monday to protest against the ruling party’s victory in parliamentary polls denounced as “stolen” by the pro-Western opposition, while Georgia’s president alleged to AFP that the vote was rigged using “sophisticated” methods she linked to Russia. The Caucasus country — rocked by mass anti-government protests earlier this…
Britain’s government on Monday unveiled new sanctions on three Russian public relations firms and their top managers, accusing them of “attempting to undermine and destabilize Ukraine and its democracy.” London said it was targeting Russia’s state-funded Social Design Agency (SDA), its partner company Structura and another firm called Ano Dialog, as well as three senior…
Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Monday that its agents killed four “saboteurs” who tried to cross into the western Bryansk region from Ukraine. “FSB border guards, together with the units of Russia’s armed forces and the National Guard, thwarted an attempt to cross over the Russian state border in the Klimovsky district on Oct. 27,” the…
Finnish authorities have begun seizing Russian state-owned property in the country after a Hague-based court ordered Moscow to compensate Ukraine’s national gas provider for assets it lost during the annexation of Crimea, the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat reported Monday. Finland’s National Enforcement Authority, an agency of the country’s justice ministry, reportedly seized the 3,326-square-meter (35,800…
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Monday that North Korean troops were sent to Russia’s embroiled Kursk region, decrying the deployment as a sign of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “growing desperation.” Speaking in Brussels after a briefing with South Korean intelligence officials, Rutte said he could confirm that North Korean military units had been sent to…
Police in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region detained around 20 Roma for “crime prevention talks” after ethnic tensions flared last week over a woman’s murder, local media reported Sunday. Enraged residents in the town of Korkino gathered Thursday night outside homes believed to belong to Roma, where they damaged property and clashed with riot police. The unrest…
An increasing number of Russian political activists have been placed in forced psychiatric treatment — a practice dating back to the Soviet era that involves confinement in mental hospitals. According to rights activists, some political prisoners who have undergone this treatment report being subjected to humiliation, beatings and being injected with powerful antipsychotic drugs. The number of…
A Ukrainian drone attack in southwestern Russia’s Kursk region killed two people, regional authorities said Monday. Kursk region Governor Alexei Smirnov said a “Ukrainian copter drone” targeted a civilian vehicle in the Lgovsky District. “Two explosives were dropped. Two young people who were inside [the car] died,” Smirnov said. The Lgovsky District lies just north of…
The Kremlin on Monday said it “strongly rejects” accusations from Georgia’s president that it interfered in this past weekend’s parliamentary elections. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili claimed that Moscow was behind election fraud in Georgia, saying it was part of a “Russian special operation.” “We strongly reject these accusations. There was no intervention. These accusations are…
St. Petersburg opposition lawmaker Boris Vishnevsky said Monday that he would step down from the regional legislative assembly to comply with new amendments to Russia’s “foreign agent” law. In May, federal lawmakers passed legislation prohibiting “foreign agents” from running in elections, changes introduced after several people hit with designation said they planned to run for local…
Authorities in Russia’s Vladimir region have banned students from wearing hijabs while at school. According to the ban, which was enacted last week Tuesday, “clothing and elements demonstrating the student’s religious affiliation… are not allowed inside educational institutions,” including hijabs and niqabs. The Vladimir region’s Education Ministry insisted in a statement on Saturday that the ban…
Ukraine is investigating reports that Russian soldiers shot at civilians in the embattled frontline town of Selydove, prosecutors said Sunday. A video posted on Telegram by “Ghost of Khortytsia,” a Ukrainian army unit, purported to show Russian forces opening fire on a civilian vehicle. The footage taken from a drone shows a person rushing around…
Russia said Sunday its military had advanced further in east Ukraine, capturing a frontline village just a few kilometers north of a key Ukrainian-held industrial hub. Moscow has made steady gains on the battlefield for months, pressing their advantage against overstretched and outmanned Ukrainian forces. Russian army units “liberated the settlement of Izmailovka,” the Russian…
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday he hoped the West “heard” his warning about the danger of a direct war with NATO if it allowed Ukraine to use long-range weapons against Russia. Putin made the initial threat in September after Britain and the United States mulled letting Kyiv use long-range arms against Russian targets, warning…
Russia shot down 51 Ukrainian drones from above several regions, including near the border, Moscow’s defense ministry said on Sunday. Eighteen were intercepted in the Tambov region, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) from the Ukrainian border, and 16 in the area of the border town Belgorod, the ministry said in a statement on Telegram. The…
Finance ministers of the G7 nations vowed Saturday to step up efforts to prevent Russia from evading sanctions imposed after its invasion of Ukraine. “We remain committed to taking further initiatives in response to oil price cap violations,” the group said in a statement following a meeting in Washington. Those further steps were not spelled…
Russian missile strikes killed four people including a child in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro last night, while a teenager and another person died in attacks on Kyiv and the surrounding region, officials said Saturday. The strikes came less than 48 hours after Russia finished hosting a three-day summit of the BRICS group of emerging…
Russian authorities announced a manhunt on Saturday after six convicts escaped the correctional facility where they were being held through a secret tunnel. Prison guards in the western Lipetsk region were alerted to the prisoners’ disappearance after carrying out a routine inspection. “In general regime penal colony No. 2, an underground tunnel was discovered during…
Authorities in Russia designated the anti-war Telegram news channel Astra as a “foreign agent” on Friday. Russia’s Justice Ministry accused Astra of spreading “inaccurate information” about government policy in order to promote a “negative image” of the Russian military. “[Astra] opposed the special military operation in Ukraine… The creator and editor-in-chief of the internet portal reside outside…
President Vladimir Putin on Friday appointed Lieutenant Colonel Artyom Zhoga, currently the Kremlin’s envoy to the Urals Federal District, to Russia’s National Security Council. Zhoga, a former military officer from the Russian-occupied Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, gained prominence last year after publicly urging Putin to seek re-election in the 2025 presidential race. Earlier this…
A local politician in central Russia’s Vladimir region was charged with using slave labor and defrauding a soldier who fought in the Ukraine war, regional investigators said Friday. According to the Vladimir region branch of Russia’s Investigative Committee, the politician allegedly led an organized criminal group that stole 1 million rubles ($10,350) from a soldier’s…