Their Ancestral Traditions Under Threat, a Village in Russia’s Far East Stands Up to Gold-Mining Giant

A small Indigenous community in Russia’s Far East republic of Sakha (Yakutia) is challenging a gold-mining giant owned by Russian magnate Alexei Mordashov in what they deem a last-ditch attempt to preserve their traditional livelihoods.  Residents of Tyanya, an Evenk village of about 470 people in Sakha’s southeastern Olyokminsky district, this month called on President…

Russia Charges Blogger Varlamov With ‘Discrediting’ Army

Popular travel blogger Ilya Varlamov has been charged with “discrediting” the Russian armed forces, the independent news website Mediazona reported Thursday, citing the Moscow court system’s open database of cases. Moscow’s Tverskoy District Court registered a lawsuit against Varlamov that was filed by the local prosecutor’s office. The blogger is accused of “discrediting” the army…

‘If We Talk About It, These People Might Survive’: Exhibition of Kremlin’s Political Prisoners Opens in Amsterdam

AMSTERDAM — An exhibition dedicated to political prisoners in Russia opened in the heart of the Dutch capital on Tuesday. “Faces of Russian Resistance” displays 16 stories of politicians, activists, artists and public figures designated as political prisoners by human rights groups.  “We understand that hundreds of people are now in prison based on political…

Home Appliances Made for Ukraine Sold in Russia – Kommersant

Major online retailers in Russia have started selling foreign-made household appliances destined for the Ukrainian market, the business newspaper Kommersant reported Wednesday, citing local distributors. Among the e-commerce sites offering products intended for Ukrainian consumers are Ozon and Wildberries, which have been found to sell Bosch washing machines and LG Smart TVs that bear Ukrainian…

Moscow Blames Ukraine for Blocking POW Exchanges

Russia’s human rights commissioner Tatiana Moskalkova has blamed the authorities in Kyiv for roadblocking efforts to secure the further release of prisoners of war, the state-run Interfax news agency reported Wednesday. “Unfortunately, exchanges have been suspended for several months due to Ukraine constantly making new and far-fetched demands,” Moskalkova was quoted as saying by Interfax…

Putin Taps Ex-Bodyguard Dyumin to Head Russia’s State Council

President Vladimir Putin’s former personal security guard and newly appointed presidential aide Alexei Dyumin was tapped to head Russia’s State Council on Wednesday. “Aide to the president Alexei Dyumin has been appointed Secretary of the State Council of the Russian Federation by presidential executive order,” an announcement on the Kremlin’s website read. Russia’s State Council is…

Putin Says Western Weapons Striking Russia Would Have ‘Serious Consequences’

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Tuesday of “serious consequences” if Western countries allowed Ukraine to use their weapons to strike Russia. Speaking in Uzbekistan, Putin’s comments came in response to calls within some NATO member states to allow Ukraine to hit targets inside Russia. “This constant escalation can lead to serious consequences,” Putin said. “In…

Russia’s Human Rights Chief Slams Chatbots for Dodging Ukraine War Questions

Russian tech companies Yandex and VKontakte are being grilled by government officials for making their homegrown artificial intelligence chatbots avoid subjects related to the invasion of Ukraine, the Kommersant business daily reported Tuesday. Presidential Human Rights Council chief Valery Fadeyev said he was surprised to learn that Yandex’s Alisa and VKontakte’s Marusia refuse to answer when…

Russian Traffic Police Force Returns Soviet-Era Name

Russia’s Main Directorate for Traffic Safety (GIBDD) has been renamed back to the Soviet-era State Automobile Inspectorate (GAI), the state-run TASS news agency reported Tuesday, citing the head of the traffic police force. “We’ve now become the State Automobile Inspectorate,” the agency head Mikhail Chernkiv said during an Interior Ministry meeting on Tuesday. Soviet authorities…

Court Extends Navalny Lawyers’ Pre-Trial Detention for ‘Extremism’

A Russian court has extended the pre-trial detention of two lawyers who represented the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, the independent news website Mediazona reported Tuesday. Vadim Kobzev, Alexei Lipster, and Igor Sergunin were arrested last October on accusations of participating in “extremist” activities for passing Navalny’s letters on to his associates.  Russia in 2021 outlawed Navalny’s…

Missing Ukrainian Journalist Held in Russia – Reports

Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna is being held in custody in Russia nine months after her disappearance, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) said, citing a letter from the Russian Defense Ministry to her father. Roshchyna, an award-winning freelance journalist, went missing in August while attempting to enter the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region in southern Ukraine for…

Western Companies U-Turn on Russia Exit Plans – FT

Western companies are reconsidering leaving Russia amid increasing Kremlin-imposed exit costs, difficulty finding suitable buyers and rebounding consumer activity, the Financial Times reported Tuesday. As of last month, 2,175 foreign companies remain in Russia compared with 1,610 that left or scaled back operations, according to the Kyiv School of Economics. Some remaining companies are increasingly open about…

Russia to Build Nuclear Reactors in Uzbekistan

Russia will help Uzbekistan build small-scale nuclear reactors as part of an agreement signed during President Vladimir Putin’s visit to the Central Asian country, the state-run TASS news agency reported Monday. Since 2018, Moscow and Tashkent have been in talks on building the first-ever nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan, which is the world’s fifth top…

In Russia’s Coal-Mining Heartland, Opponents of Plan to Revive a Soviet Hydropower Plant Are Being Silenced

Like other infrastructure projects in the U.S.S.R., the Krapivinskaya hydropower plant was born at a time when the Soviets dreamt of bending the natural world to its will to fuel industrial growth.  Decades later, this rusting hulk of concrete and iron still looms above the Tom River in Siberia’s coal-rich Kemerovo region, half-finished and half-forgotten.…

At Least 6 Yekaterinburg Law Enforcement Officials Arrested on Various Charges – Reports

At least six former and current law enforcement officials have been arrested on various charges in Russia’s third-largest city of Yekaterinburg over the past week, the independent news website Govorit NeMoskva reported Friday. Andrei Dyakov, who heads the anti-corruption department at the Sverdlovsk region branch of Russia’s Interior Ministry, was charged with abuse of power…

Putin Arrives in Belarus to Talk Security, Tactical Nuclear Weapons Drills

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Belarus late Thursday for talks with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko expected to focus on security and joint tactical nuclear weapons exercises. Earlier this month, Putin ordered the Russian military to conduct tactical nuclear weapons exercises in response to Western “threats and provocations.” Belarus, which last year agreed to…

Senior Russian Defense Ministry Official Arrested for ‘Abuse of Power’

A senior procurement officer in Russia’s Defense Ministry has been charged with abuse of power, Russian law enforcement authorities announced late Thursday. Investigators accuse Vladimir Verteletsky of taking a bribe in relation to “work that was not carried out” under a government contract in 2022, according to Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes. The law…