Russia, Belarus Developing Shared Register of ‘Extremists’

Allies Russia and Belarus are working to create a shared database of “extremists,” the Belarusian ambassador in Moscow said Tuesday. Ambassador Dmitry Krutoy said it was “perplexing” that some websites blacklisted in Russia remained accessible in Belarus and vice versa.   “Let’s say these entities or people flee to Russia and face no criminal proceedings there,” Krutoy told…

Kyiv Says ‘Neutralized’ Russian Spy Network

Ukraine on Tuesday said it had arrested five former and current intelligence officers it said were secretly working for Russia as part of an influential spy ring. Kyiv said the men were caught passing information to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) about Ukrainian military sites, its defensive fortifications, personal data and strategic energy facilities. “The…

Russian Election Authority Gives Presidential Hopeful Nadezhdin Extra Day to Dispute Signature Flaws

Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) on Tuesday agreed to give pro-peace presidential hopeful Boris Nadezhdin an extra day to resolve thousands of errors in endorsement signatures before it decides whether to officially register him as a candidate in the March presidential election.  Just hours earlier, Nadezhdin said he had asked the CEC to give him…

Russia Lists U.S. Journalists, Ex-Ukraine Army Spokesperson as ‘Extremists and Terrorists’

Russia’s state financial watchdog Rosfinmonitoring has added several U.S. journalists, as well as the former spokesperson for Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces, Sarah Ashton-Cirillo, to its list of “extremists and terrorists.”  Ashton-Cirillo, a trans woman, responded to Rosfinmonitoring’s designation on X (formerly Twitter) by saying “I know the FSB and Kremlin were thinking about it.” Being…

Russia Will Block VPN Services in March, Says Safe Internet League Chief Mizulina

Russian authorities will “most likely” start blocking major VPN services in March, the head of the Kremlin-aligned Safe Internet League said Monday.  Downloads of VPNs, which help users access blocked websites, surged in Russia after authorities started blocking Western social media platforms and scores of Russian independent news outlets amid the invasion of Ukraine.  “VPNs, especially…

Georgia Says Intercepted Ukrainian Explosives Sent to Russia

Georgian security officials said Monday that they intercepted several explosives claimed to be from Ukraine and intended to be transported to the southwestern Russian city of Voronezh. Georgia’s State Security Service (SSG) said the explosive devices, which were allegedly sent from the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, arrived by minivan at the Georgian-Turkish border crossing on Jan. 19…

Russian Election Authority Says Found Flaws in 15% of Pro-Peace Nadezhdin’s Signatures

Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) has found flaws in more than 15% of the signatures of endorsement collected by pro-peace presidential hopeful Boris Nadezhdin, his campaign team said Monday. Nadezhdin, who has emerged as the leading pro-peace voice ahead of the March presidential election, submitted some 105,000 signatures to CEC for review last week. But…

Russia’s Deputy FM Visits Seoul After Diplomatic Row Over N. Korea Comments

Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko visited South Korea to discuss the Ukrainian war and bilateral ties, Seoul’s foreign ministry said Sunday, as the two countries trade increasingly heated rhetoric over the nuclear-armed North. Rudenko, Russia’s deputy foreign minister handling Asia-Pacific affairs, met his South Korean counterpart Chung Byung-won on Friday, Seoul’s foreign ministry said…

Russia Labels Veteran Rights Campaigner Orlov ‘Foreign Agent’

Russia on Friday named veteran human rights campaigner Oleg Orlov, head of the Nobel Prize-winning Memorial group, a “foreign agent.” Moscow has labeled hundreds of activists and independent journalists “foreign agents” in recent years as part of a sweeping crackdown on dissent. Russia’s Justice Ministry said Orlov “opposed the special military operation in Ukraine, disseminated…

Russia Arrests Anti-War Volunteer Helping Ukrainian Refugees

A Russian model and photographer who helps Ukrainian refugees flee the war has been arrested on criminal charges of undermining state security, the independent news website Mediazona reported Friday. Nadezhda Rossinskaya, who goes by the name Nadine Geisler, is accused of posting information about collecting humanitarian aid for the Ukrainian military’s Azov Regiment on Instagram last August. …

Russian Election Authority Says ‘Dead Souls’ Endorsed Anti-War Hopeful Nadezhdin

Russian election authorities said Friday that signatures of endorsement for anti-war presidential hopeful Boris Nadezhdin included “dead souls,” thus appearing to set the stage for his disqualification from the race.  Nadezhdin, who has emerged as the presidential election’s leading pro-peace voice, said Wednesday he had submitted 105,000 signatures to the Central Election Commission (CEC) for review.…

Russia Targets Exiled Celebrities Who Criticize War – Bloomberg

Moscow has instructed its diplomats to “pursue” exiled Russian celebrities who speak out against their country’s war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing two anonymous sources familiar with the matter. The Foreign Ministry’s instructions were reportedly issued to Russian diplomats posted in so-called “friendly” countries — those that have avoided taking sides over Russia’s invasion.…

Russian Investigators Say Military Plane Shot Down by Patriot Missile System

Russian investigators concluded Friday that two missiles launched from a U.S.-made surface-to-air system shot down a military transport plane near the Russian-Ukrainian border last week.  Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said over 100 fragments of MIM-104A anti-aircraft missiles, as well as hundreds of body parts, were recovered from the crash site in the western Belgorod region. …

Exiled from Bashkortostan, Ex-Official Murzagulov Remains Hopeful for Its Future

“I can only cry in response,” Rostislav Murzagulov says when asked whether he feels homesick for his native republic of Bashkortostan.  For Murzagulov, a former PR chief of Bashkortostan’s head Radiy Khabirov, visiting his home republic in Russia’s Ural Mountains region is a distant prospect.  Once a self-described “systemic liberal politician,” Murzagulov resigned from his…

Turkish Banks Close Russian Corporate Accounts Over Secondary Sanctions – Vedomosti

Updated with Kremlin’s statement. Turkish banks have started closing Russian corporate accounts following threats of secondary sanctions from the United States, the Vedomosti business daily reported Thursday, citing financial consultants and business owners. U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order in December announcing secondary sanctions on foreign banks suspected of supporting Russia’s war against…

Russia Says Downed 11 Ukrainian Drones Overnight

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Thursday that air defense systems had shot down 11 Ukrainian drones over regions in the western part of the country.  “Tonight, the Kyiv regime attempted to commit terrorist attacks against structures on Russian territory using drones,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement.  “Air defense systems intercepted and destroyed drones over…

UN Court Rejects Most of Ukraine’s ‘Terror’ Case Against Russia

The United Nations’ top court on Wednesday mostly rejected Ukraine’s claims that Russia was financing “terrorism” in eastern Ukraine, saying only that Moscow had failed to investigate alleged breaches. Kyiv had accused Moscow of being a “terrorist state” whose support for pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine was a harbinger of the full-fledged 2022 invasion. It…

Russian Election Authorities Pick Pro-War Symbol, Putin’s Favorite Slogan for Presidential Campaign Promo

A pro-war symbol and one of President Vladimir Putin’s favorite quotes have been chosen as the official logo and slogan of the 2024 presidential election, in what observers say is an effort to indirectly influence the public to vote for the incumbent leader.  The Central Election Commission (CEC) announced Monday that the Latin letter “V”…

Putin Awards Former Serbian Spy Chief Order of ‘Friendship’

Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded Serbia’s former top spy with the Order of Friendship for maintaining close ties between the two countries’ intelligence agencies, the nationalist political party that the ex-spy chief heads announced Tuesday. Aleksandar Vulin, who resigned from Serbia’s Security and Information Agency in November, received the state decoration from Russia’s Foreign Intelligence…

Chinese, Turkish Companies Supplying Russia With Key Gunpowder Component

Turkish and Chinese companies have helped Russia replenish its dwindling stocks of ammunition by exporting large volumes of a key component used to produce gunpowder, the Moscow Times’ Russian service reported Wednesday, citing customs data.  The EU banned shipments of nitrocellulose — a highly flammable compound used as the main ingredient of modern gunpowder — to Russia in…