Russia Detains 4 Men for Donating to Navalny’s ‘Extremist’ Orgs

At least four Russians have been detained for donating to jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s “extremist” organizations, state and independent media reported Wednesday. Law enforcement officers carried out searches in connection with financing Navalny’s groups in the Russian cities of Nizhny Novgorod, Moscow and Krasnoyarsk, according to the independent human rights watchdog OVD-Info. The watchdog…

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Russia Announces ‘Tactical’ Withdrawal From Ukraine’s Robotyne

A Kremlin-installed official in southern Ukraine admitted Tuesday that Russian forces have withdrawn from the village of Robotyne more than a week after Kyiv announced its recapture. “The Russian army abandoned — tactically abandoned this settlement,” said Yevgeny Balitsky, the Russian-appointed governor of Ukraine’s occupied Zaporizhzhia region. Ukraine, which launched a grinding counteroffensive in June,…

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Putin’s Daughter Publishes in Western Academic Journals Amid Ukraine Invasion

Western academic journals have continued to publish articles by President Vladimir Putin’s oldest daughter since Moscow’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the independent news outlet Mozhem Obyasnit reported Tuesday. Maria Vorontsova is a candidate of medical sciences, roughly equivalent to a Ph.D. in Western countries, and an endocrinologist by training.  Her profile on the Moscow State…

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Russia-Based Recruiters Lure Cubans to Fight in Ukraine with Promises of Money, Citizenship

Russia-based recruiters are targeting Cuban nationals online for the war in Ukraine, promising them lucrative military contracts, help with relocating to Russia and even citizenship for them and their families, according to an investigation by The Moscow Times’ Russian service.  In a rare accusation against longtime ally Moscow, Cuban authorities announced Tuesday that they had…

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Russian University Fires Opposition Activist Galyamina Over ‘Foreign Agent’ Status

A leading Russian university has fired prominent opposition activist Yulia Galyamina over her “foreign agent” status, less than a day after she was reinstated at the same university by court order following a previous dismissal. Former Moscow city councilor Galyamina said in December that she had been fired from the Russian Academy of National Economy…

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Exiled Experts Lament Dashed Hopes for Russia’s Green Energy Transition

Throughout her career, independent renewables expert Tatiana Lanshina has launched innovative research and nonprofit projects related to Russia’s energy transition, including initiatives such as renewable energy certificates under the international I-REC standard.  Following the Kremlin’s military offensive on Ukraine in February 2022, Lanshina realized that her experience in Russia was now worth nothing. Currently based…

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Bomb Detonates at St. Petersburg Military Enlistment Office

A bomb went off outside a military enlistment office in St. Petersburg, the local news website Fontanka reported Tuesday, citing eyewitnesses. Local residents reported hearing sounds of explosions near the enlistment office around noon on Tuesday. Authorities cordoned off a nearby abandoned bomb shelter, which Fontanka said sustained “minor damage.” Investigators believe the explosion occurred…

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Kremlin-Installed Official Targeted in Bomb Attack – Reports

A Kremlin-installed official was targeted in a bomb assassination plot at his home in occupied eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian and Russian media reported Tuesday, citing anonymous sources. Yury Afanasyevsky, head of the customs office in the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), was at his home during the bomb attack, according to an anonymous Ukrainian security service…

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Top Russian General Resurfaces 2 Months After Wagner’s Failed Mutiny

Russian General Sergei Surovikin has resurfaced more than two months after his last public appearance in a video urging Wagner fighters to stand down from their march on Moscow, media reported Monday. Surovikin, long considered the main intermediary between the Wagner mercenary outfit and the Russian Defense Ministry, disappeared from public view after Wagner chief Yevgeny…

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Russian Universities Admit 8.5K Ukraine War Veterans and Their Children

Universities across Russia have admitted 8,500 veterans of the war in Ukraine and their children this academic year, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko announced Monday. President Vladimir Putin in 2022 ordered a 10% university admission quota for war veterans and their children, granting them priority and clearing them of entrance exams. “On the president’s instructions,…

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Russian Government Bucks Putin’s Call to Forgo Foreign Cars – Agentstvo

Russia’s government has continued to buy foreign-made cars despite calls by President Vladimir Putin last month for officials to start using domestic-made vehicles, the investigative news outlet Agentstvo reported Monday. Overall, Russian government bodies, agencies and state-affiliated companies purchased 151 foreign-made cars worth 566 million rubles ($5.9 million) in August, according to state procurement data cited…

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Russia Deploys Sarmat ICBM for Combat Duty

A strategic next-generation missile that Russian President Vladimir Putin once described as “invincible” has been deployed for combat duty, the head of state space agency Roscosmos said Friday. The Kremlin had previously stated that the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile would be ready for combat duty by the end of 2022, according to the state-run RIA Novosti news…

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Russian Street Artist Faces Prison Term for Anti-War Graffiti – Polygon Media

Russian street artist Filipp Kozlov, who goes by the name Philippenzo, could face up to three years in prison for anti-war graffiti, just days after his release from prison over past minor offenses, the independent outlet Polygon Media reported Friday. Video published by Polygon Media showed Kozlov escorted by law enforcement officers wearing civilian clothing.…

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Russian Region Appoints Male Official to Head Women’s Rights Council

Authorities in Russia’s southern Rostov region have appointed a male official to lead the region’s newly formed council on women’s rights.  The government body will be tasked with creating policies on topics ranging from women’s health to strengthening women’s role in society to combating poverty and social disadvantage among women. But women will hold just eight seats…

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Towns in Russian Border Region Scrap In-Person Return to School Amid Drone Strikes, Shelling

Authorities in western Russia’s Bryansk region have scrapped in-person back-to-school day this Friday in towns that face regular drone and artillery strikes. Each year on Sept. 1, Russian schools open their doors to students, parents and teachers in what is known as Den’ Znanyy, or the Day of Knowledge. Bryansk region Governor Alexander Bogomaz said…

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Belarus Leader Slams ‘Stupid’ Polish, Baltic Calls for Wagner Withdrawal

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday criticized what he called “stupid demands” from Poland and the Baltic states for Wagner fighters sheltering in his country to leave. Wagner fighters took refuge in Belarus after they staged a short-lived rebellion against Moscow’s military leadership in June, prompting concerns from neighboring countries. “They are whipping up hysteria…

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2 Russian Planes Damaged in Ukraine Drone Strikes – RFE/RL

At least two Russian military aircraft were damaged as a result of Ukrainian drone strikes on an airbase in northwestern Russia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s (RFE/RL) investigative project Skhemy reported Thursday, citing satellite imagery. Authorities in the Pskov region said its airport came under a large-scale attack on Wednesday. Emergency officials told state media at…

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Siberian Court Jails Veteran Activist for Attacking Police Officers

A court in the Siberian republic of Buryatia has sentenced activist Natalya Filonova to nearly three years in prison on charges linked to anti-mobilization protests that swept Russia last fall, the regional news outlet Lyudi Baikala reported Thursday.  Filonova, a 61-year-old pensioner and a veteran activist, was detained at a September 2022 rally in Buryatia’s capital…

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Russia Says Killed, Detained Ukrainian Saboteurs in Border Region

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Thursday it has repelled a Ukrainian sabotage group’s attempt to infiltrate western Russia’s Bryansk region, the second attempted incursion this month. Two Ukrainian fighters were purportedly killed and five others were detained Wednesday, the FSB said in a statement. Russia’s intelligence agency did not say how many Ukrainian fighters…

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