Barbed-Wire Police Protest Lands Russian Performance Artist in Jail

A Russian performance artist has been jailed a second time for attempting to stage a barbed-wire stunt in protest of police overreach in central Moscow last month, the OVD-Info police-monitoring website reported Monday. Authorities detained Pavel Krisevich on Sunday immediately after he finished serving a two-week administrative arrest on charges of disobeying police orders with the stunt…

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1 in 4 Russians Watched Navalny’s ‘Putin Palace’ Investigation – Poll

More than one out of every four Russians, or 26%, have watched opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s recent investigation into President Vladimir Putin’s alleged $1.3 billion palace, according to a poll by the independent Levada Center published Monday. Navalny’s team released the in-depth YouTube investigation — which alleges that Putin and his close associates laundered money…

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Russian State TV Attempts ‘Putin Palace’-Style Exposé on Navalny’s German Apartment

Russian state television has filmed what it called an exposé into opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s villa in Germany where he lived while recovering from nerve agent poisoning last year. The detailed segment, interspersed with scenes from Navalny’s viral video investigation into President Vladimir Putin’s alleged Black Sea palace, ran during one of the country’s most-watched…

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Russia Expels European Diplomats Over Navalny Protests – Foreign Ministry

Russia will expel diplomats from Sweden, Poland and Germany over their alleged participation in recent “unauthorized” rallies in support of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, the Foreign Ministry said Friday. The expulsions come amid European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell’s visit to Moscow, where he lamented to his counterpart Sergei Lavrov that ties between…

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Top EU Envoy ‘Hopes’ for Russian Vaccine’s Approval in Europe

The European Union’s top diplomat has said he hopes the Russian-developed coronavirus vaccine will be approved for use in the European bloc soon, AFP reported Friday.   Earlier this week, a peer-reviewed study published in The Lancet showed the Sputnik V vaccine to be 91.6% effective against symptomatic Covid-19, boosting international confidence in Russia’s jab after…

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Russia Slams Biden’s ‘Very Aggressive Rhetoric’

The Kremlin on Friday slammed Joe Biden’s “very aggressive rhetoric” after the new U.S. president said Washington’s relationship with Moscow would change and demanded opposition politician Alexei Navalny’s release.  “We’ve already said that we will not heed patronizing statements of this sort. We will not do it,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.  “This is…

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Top U.S. Diplomat Raises Navalny, Jailed Americans With Russia

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken voiced concern over jailed opposition figure Alexei Navalny and imprisoned Americans in a telephone call Thursday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. President Joe Biden’s administration has repeatedly voiced alarm over Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s most vocal critic whose doctors say he was poisoned and who was promptly detained…

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‘No Repressions’ Against Pro-Navalny Protesters, Kremlin Says

There has been “no repression” against Russians detained while protesting in support of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, the Kremlin said Thursday amid mounting criticism of the harsh law enforcement tactics used against peaceful demonstrators. Independent monitors estimate that more than 10,000 people and dozens of journalists have been detained nationwide during the protests on…

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Top Navalny Aide Urges EU to ‘Go After’ Putin’s Money

A top aide of Alexei Navalny on Wednesday vowed to fight on despite the Russian opposition figure’s imprisonment, saying the EU should respond by targeting President Vladimir “Putin’s money.” Leonid Volkov, Navalny’s regional network coordinator, told AFP he expected the jailing would boost the Kremlin critic’s approval rating and followers despite a crackdown on protests.…

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Germany: New Russia Sanctions ‘Cannot Be Ruled Out’

Germany warned Wednesday that Russia may face further EU sanctions over the jailing of opposition figure Alexei Navalny. “After this ruling, there will now also be talks among EU partners. Further sanctions cannot be ruled out,” said Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert. The ruling against the 44-year-old anti-corruption campaigner is “far off from constitutional…

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In Photos: Russia Cracks Down on Navalny Protesters Following Prison Ruling

Russians in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other cities took to the streets Tuesday in protest of opposition leader Alexei Navalny being sentenced to 2.8 years in prison. Despite hundreds of riot police stationed throughout central Moscow and St. Petersburg warning people not to stage unauthorized protests, thousands of Navalny’s supporters rallied in spontaneous groups throughout…

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Navalny’s Poisoning Could Have Been ‘Staged’ by West, Says Russian Foreign Minister

The Russian government suspects the poisoning attack on Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny could have been “staged” by the West since it still hasn’t received evidence from Germany, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference Tuesday. Lavrov’s comments come as Navalny faces years in prison for allegedly violating his probation while recovering in…

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