An exiled Russian war movie star faces criminal charges over his criticism of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine, authorities announced Monday. Actor Artur Smolyaninov “made a series of statements against Russia in an interview to a Western publication,” Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said in a short statement. It did not identify the…
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Five employees of what used to be authoritarian Belarus’s largest independent news outlet went on trial Monday in Minsk, facing several charges including tax evasion and “inciting enmity,” a rights group said. The outlet Tut.by covered large-scale protests in 2020 that erupted after President Alexander Lukashenko claimed a sixth term in office in a contested…
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Russia’s ruling party is purging its ranks of opponents to the war in Ukraine with AI and algorithms that track voters’ social media activity, the Vedomosti business daily reported Monday, citing unnamed sources within the pro-Kremlin party. The tools scour two popular Russian social networks, VKontakte and Odnoklassniki, for “politically significant actions” that include likes and…
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The head of a Russian region on the Ukrainian border that has faced regular attacks throughout the war said he has undergone combat training with the notorious Wagner mercenary group. Kursk region Governor Roman Starovoit said he, his colleagues in the regional administration and a volunteer territorial defense unit visited Wagner’s training camp in the…
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Russia said Sunday it had carried out a devastating “retaliatory strike” in eastern Ukraine to avenge a recent deadly attack on its troops, a claim quickly denied by Kyiv. “More than 600 Ukrainian servicemen were killed” by a missile strike on troops stationed in two buildings used as barracks in Kramatorsk, said a Russian defense…
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Russian families on Sunday buried servicemen killed in a Ukrainian New Year’s strike on troops in the eastern town of Makiivka. At least nine men were laid to rest in the central region of Samara on the Volga River on Saturday and Sunday, local authorities said. Since President Vladimir Putin sent troops to Ukraine on…
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Moscow claimed on Sunday its army conducted a deadly “retaliatory strike” in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk to avenge the deaths of 89 Russian troops killed in Makiivka. “More than 600 Ukrainian servicemen were killed” as a result of a strike on Kyiv troops stationed in two buildings in Kramatorsk used as barracks, the…
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Ukrainians and Russians on Saturday marked Orthodox Christmas under the shadow of war, as fighting persisted despite Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin unilaterally ordering his forces to pause attacks. Despite Putin’s ceasefire order, war-scarred cities in eastern Ukraine saw no significant let-up in the fighting as AFP journalists in the town of Chasiv Yar south of the…
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Where there’s Christmas, there’s Christmas Eve. Twelve days “from star to water,” that is, from the appearance of the first star on Christmas Eve to baptism on Epiphany. This holiday is a vivid example of how pagan and Christian rituals merged in our history. Russian holidays have always been an amazing combination of spiritual rejuvenation…
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Russian President Vladimir Putin stood alone at a midnight service at a Kremlin church as he marked Orthodox Christmas darkened by Moscow’s assault on Ukraine. Putin attended the service at the Cathedral of the Annunciation, originally designed as a church for the Russian tsars. He stood alone as Orthodox priests in golden robes conducted a…
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Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich’s seven children became the beneficiaries of 10 offshore trusts holding assets worth billions of dollars shortly before he was hit with sanctions, Britain’s Guardian newspaper reported Friday. They acquired the beneficial ownership of the secretive trusts with assets of at least $4 billion in early February 2022, three weeks before Russia…
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Artillery exchanges pounded war-scarred cities in eastern Ukraine on Friday despite Russian leader Vladimir Putin unilaterally ordering his forces to pause attacks for 36 hours for the Orthodox Christmas. The brief ceasefire declared by Putin earlier this week was supposed to begin at 09:00 GMT Friday and would have been the first full pause since…
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Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, a powerful ally of President Vladimir Putin, is embracing the rhetoric of the medieval crusades in urging support for Moscow’s offensive in eastern Ukraine. When Pope Urban ordered the first crusade to the Middle East in 1095, he told Christians to rise up and defend fellow believers, promising that their sins…
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Orthodox Christmas Since the invasion began on Feb. 24 last year, Russia has occupied parts of eastern and southern Ukraine, but Kyiv has reclaimed swathes of its territory and this week claimed a New Year’s strike that killed scores of Moscow’s troops. After votes that were internationally branded as farces, Russia annexed the Donetsk, Luhansk,…
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Boris Bondarev, a former member of Russia’s delegation to the United Nations in Geneva, now lives modestly in Switzerland with his wife and their kitten — and spends a lot of time on Twitter. The ex-diplomat is unable to return to Russia after publicly quitting his job in May when he said the invasion of…
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President Vladimir Putin told Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan he was open to dialog with Ukraine if Kyiv accepts the territories occupied by Moscow as Russian, the Kremlin said Thursday. “Putin again confirmed Russia’s openness to serious dialogue on the condition of Kyiv authorities fulfilling the well-known and repeatedly voiced requirements of taking into account…
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Jailed Belarusian Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialiatski went on trial in Minsk on Thursday in what supporters see as a bid to clamp down on Belarus’s highest-profile human rights organization, Vesna, which he founded. Bialiatski, who shared last year’s Nobel Peace Prize with two other human rights organizations from Russia and Ukraine for his…
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Russia’s spiritual leader, Patriarch Kirill, on Thursday called for a ceasefire in Ukraine over Orthodox Christmas, which is traditionally celebrated this week by both countries. The 76-year-old Orthodox Church leader is a staunch supporter of President Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine who has given his blessing to Russian troops fighting in the war…
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The first inmates recruited from Russian jails by the Wagner mercenary group have completed their six-month service in Ukraine and received their promised pardons from the Russian state, Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin told journalists on Thursday. “They worked off their contract. They worked with honor, with dignity. They were the first ones. Nobody else in…
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The Ukrainian New Year’s missile strike on Makiivka has led to a usually reticent Moscow admitting its largest single loss of life since it sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has been met with anger among the Russian population. The strike’s rising death toll intensified criticism of Russia’s military high command, with even…
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The former head of Russia’s space agency Dmitry Rogozin said on Wednesday that he had sent a piece of shrapnel from a French howitzer shell that injured him in the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine last month to French President Emmanuel Macron. Rogozin, an outspoken public figure who has also served as Russia’s…
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The death toll from a Ukrainian New Year strike in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine has risen to 89, Moscow said on Wednesday, after Russians gathered to mourn the troops in a rare public display of anger and grief. The Russian Defense Ministry announced the recovery of further bodies from the rubble of a vocational school in…
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While many analysts and observers expected the Russian economy to collapse under the weight of the Ukraine war and a flood of Western sanctions, the country has actually appeared surprisingly resilient through 2022. The head of Russia’s Central Bank said in December that Russian GDP would contract just 3% in 2022, while President Vladimir Putin…
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President Vladimir Putin ordered his government Tuesday to ensure by February the screening in cinemas of documentary films dedicated to the invasion of Ukraine and the fight against “neo-Nazi” ideology. The Kremlin said in a statement that the Culture Ministry had until Feb. 1 to implement the order. Putin shocked the world by sending troops…
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Pro-government Russians came out onto the streets of towns across Samara region Tuesday to mourn local soldiers killed in the Ukrainian city of Makiivka in a missile attack on New Year’s Eve. Hundreds of pro-war Russians attended gatherings in the Volga river cities of Samara and Tolyatti, according to local media reports. “I haven’t slept…
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Russian troops attacking the Ukrainian town of Bakhmut are bogged down because of a tenacious Ukrainian resistance and an extensive network of defensive fortifications, the head of Russia’s mercenary company Wagner said Tuesday. There is a “fortress in every house” in Bakhmut, Yevgeny Prigozhin said in an interview with state news agency RIA Novosti. “The…
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Factories in Russia producing military equipment are working nonstop and have withdrawn New Year holidays from employees, the head of state defense military conglomerate Rostec Sergei Chemezov said Monday. “Rostec’s factories involved in fulfilling state contracts are working almost around the clock and their staff are showing self-sacrifice and understanding in relation to the increased…
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Russian gas exports to countries outside a group of former Soviet republics plunged by 45.5% in 2022, figures from gas giant Gazprom showed Monday. Gazprom said in a statement that exports outside the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) totaled 100.9 billion cubic meters compared to 185.1 billion in 2021. Europe was previously Gazprom’s main export…
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Updates with Defense Ministry statement. A total of 63 Russian soldiers were killed in a Ukrainian attack on a vocational school in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine that took place in the early hours of New Year’s Day, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday. “As a result of the impact of four rockets with high explosive warheads…
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From the very first day of the invasion of Ukraine, anti-war art has spilled onto the streets and squares of Russian cities. And, despite detentions and fines, for 10 months they have continued to protest against Russian militarism. The Moscow Times picked seven of the most compelling anti-war artists and talked to some of them…
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Russia’s New Year assaults on Ukraine left four people dead and wounded dozens this weekend as Moscow on Sunday claimed to have thwarted Kyiv’s “terror attacks” on the homeland. The Ukrainian capital and other cities came under fire from missiles and Iranian-made drones on Saturday, killing three people. At least one drone had the Russian…
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A fresh round of explosions rocked Kyiv less than an hour into 2023, after Russia had attacked Ukraine with missiles targeting the capital and other cities ahead of New Year’s Eve celebrations. The first blasts of the new year began roughly 30 minutes after midnight, hitting two districts, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram, adding…
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Updates with Zelensky’s comments and color from Moscow and recasts throughout. MOSCOW — President Vladimir Putin said in his televized New Year’s address Saturday that “moral, historical rightness” is on Russia’s side as his country faces international condemnation for its offensive in Ukraine. Putin delivered his traditional midnight address standing among soldiers who had apparently…
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The past year has been almost entirely dominated by the seismic repercussions of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine on Feb. 24 in a full-scale attack that he believed would see his troops swiftly take Kyiv. Of course, the invasion didn’t go as Putin had planned. From the unexpected ferocity of Ukrainian resistance,…
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Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Saturday that Russia’s victory in Ukraine is “inevitable” in a New Year’s message to servicemen, as Moscow’s military campaign grinds through its 11th month. “In the coming year, I want to wish everyone good health, fortitude, reliable and devoted comrades… Our victory, like the New Year, is inevitable,” Shoigu said…
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Creamy, chocolatey logs made from cookies, cocoa, and butter were on the table in almost every Soviet family. Despite their foreign origins, they became one of the most common homemade desserts. And they became a kind of symbol of socialism — both its heyday and its decline. “Do you remember when we visited Aunt Valya…
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The Russian Football Union reaffirmed its desire to see Russian teams return to international competition on Friday following its decision not to leave UEFA and seek membership with Asia’s football confederation instead. European football’s governing body, UEFA, banned Moscow from competition after President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in February. However, despite Russia’s mooted abandonment of UEFA,…
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The co-founder of Yandex, Arkady Volozh, announced on Friday that he was leaving the Russian tech giant, addressing a farewell letter to the firm’s employees, in which he described Yandex as “the project of my life” and the plan to restructure the company as “reasonable and necessary.” Volozh, whose fortune was estimated by Forbes at…
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Bulgaria’s sole nuclear power plant signed a nuclear fuel supply deal with a French firm on Friday in an effort to end its reliance on deliveries from Russia in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The state-owned Kozloduy plant on the Danube river currently relies on Russian fuel for its two Soviet-built 1,000-megawatt reactors. …
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As Russians prepare to mark their first New Year’s Eve since the start of the war in Ukraine that has claimed tens of thousands of lives and created unprecedented upheaval, the holiday season looks set to be a time of particular reflection and stock-taking. From Russian soldiers in the trenches in Ukraine to anti-war activists…
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Kazakhstan has deported a Russian citizen who fled Russia’s mobilization drive this fall in the first known case of Astana returning a draft dodger to Russia, media reported Friday. Former presidential guard Mikhail Zhilin’s family said he faces torture in Russia for fleeing the military draft announced by President Vladimir Putin. Russian authorities sought Zhilin,…
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Russian-Chinese trade turnover will reach $200 billion “ahead of schedule,” President Vladimir Putin said during a videoconference with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday as Moscow’s isolation from the West over its invasion of Ukraine continues to grow. “Despite the unfavorable external environment, illegitimate restrictions, and direct blackmail by some Western countries, Russia and China…
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Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Thursday lifting the requirement for government officials to disclose their income tax returns for the duration of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine. “Information on income, spending, assets and property-related obligations is not to be published on official government websites or provided to Russian media for publication during…
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The Ukrainian military said on Friday that it had repelled an overnight drone attack on the country, including on the capital Kyiv, a day after Russia launched a barrage of missiles on the war-battered nation. “On the night of December 29-30, the enemy attacked Ukraine with Iranian-made kamikaze drones,” the Ukrainian air force said on…
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Armenia on Thursday accused Russian peacekeepers of failing to protect ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and called for a multinational peacekeeping force to step in. “The behaviour of Russian peacekeepers is unacceptable to us. They have become silent bystanders [in Karabakh],” Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said. Moscow has rebuffed the criticism. Russia deployed peacekeepers…
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Bulgaria on Thursday summoned Russia’s ambassador “for explanations” after Moscow placed Bulgarian Christo Grozev, the executive director of the investigative website Bellingcat, on its list of wanted persons. Bellingcat makes extensive use of open-source databases and online research tools and has won several awards. It has run a series of investigations into what it says had…
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Russian police raided the homes of politicians and journalists in seven regions over ties to a pro-Ukraine former lawmaker accused of spreading “fake news” about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, media reported Thursday. This is at least the third wave of mass searches linked to Ponomaryov since the vocal Ukraine war critic was arrested in absentia in…
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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a law making it a criminal offense to desecrate the ribbon of St. George, the black and orange military pattern frequently used for commemoration of the Soviet victory in World War II. The new law designates the ribbon as one of the official symbols of Russia’s military glory…
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2022 was defined by Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine, with the resulting violence leading to the deaths of tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians. But some major Russian public figures also passed away in 2022, including the last leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, and extreme nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky. As the year draws…
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President Vladimir Putin on Thursday oversaw the commissioning of several new warships and a nuclear-powered submarine as he vowed to further strengthen Russia’s navy. Putin, who has largely avoided public engagements since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, gave the green light for Russian flags to be hoisted on the new vessels via video link.…
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Updates with Belarus saying it shot down the missile Russian ally Belarus said on Thursday that its air defense shot down a missile launched from Ukrainian territory, in the first such incident reported by Minsk since the start of Moscow’s Ukraine offensive. The Defense Ministry in Minsk said a missile was shot down around 10:00…
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Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold talks by video link with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday, the Kremlin said, as Russia seeks to bolster ties with Beijing. “It will be very important to exchange views on the most acute regional problems … both those that are closer to us, to Russia, and those that…
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Russian energy giant Gazprom’s gas exports to Europe nearly halved in 2022, according to calculations based on company data published on Wednesday. Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said exports to foreign markets outside the former Soviet Union would total 100.9 billion cubic meters this year, amounting to a drop of 46% from 2021, according to calculations made…
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Ukraine was hit with “massive” Russian missile strikes across the country on Thursday, including in the capital Kyiv, the Ukrainian military said. “December 29. Massive missiles attack … The enemy is attacking Ukraine from various directions with air and sea-based cruise missiles from strategic aircraft and ships,” Ukraine’s air force said on social media. According…
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Russia’s foreign minister said Wednesday he was convinced that Moscow would achieve its goals in Ukraine thanks to its “patience” and “perseverance.” “I am convinced that thanks to our perseverance, patience and determination, we will defend the noble goals that are vital for our people and our country,” Russia’s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov said in an…
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A Russian teenager was on Wednesday sentenced to life in jail for killing six people in a shooting spree on a university campus in 2021, investigators said. During an attack — one of the worst in recent Russian history — first year law student Timur Bekmansurov roamed through a busy university campus in the Urals…
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The defense ministers of Russia, Turkey and Syria met in Moscow on Wednesday, the first such talks since a war broke out in Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said. It was also the first meeting between Turkish and Syrian defense ministers since the start of the war in 2011. Russia and Turkey are involved in Syria, with…
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Russia detained at least 20,467 people for political reasons in 2022, according to end-of-year statistics published last week by OVD-Info, one of Russia’s leading independent human rights watchdogs. At least 19,478 of those were detained for speaking out against Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine. Other detentions occured at ecological and workers’ rights protests and protests…
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The head of Gazprom admitted on Wednesday that the Russian energy giant had experienced a challenging year as the company sought new markets following the imposition of international sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. “I want to say right away that 2022, of course, has turned out to be very, very difficult,” Alexei…
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Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday proposed designating Russians who left the country in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine “enemies of society” and suggested they be banned from returning to Russia “for the rest of their lives.” Medvedev’s proposed term “enemies of society” echoes the Soviet-era term “enemy of the people,”…
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