Repression set to tighten PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we analyze how Russia is preparing to tighten the screws on domestic critics and why a ceasefire in Ukraine would only lead to yet more repression on the home front. Russia steps up campaign against the ‘enemy within’ ahead of possible ceasefire Amid a thaw in relations
Istanbul talks: Russia’s impossible demands PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look in detail at what Russia put on the table at the first direct peace talks with Ukraine in more than three years. We also talk a bit about our dear colleague Irina Pankratova, The Bell’s investigative correspondent who recently passed away. Russia comes to
THE BELL WEEKLY: Can Trump bring peace to Ukraine? PRO Members Public
This week we take a detailed look at Donald Trump’s attempts to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine, outline what each side wants, what we’ve learnt from the various plans on the table, and how likely an end to the war might be. This is the last free
THE BELL WEEKLY: Sabotage claims fuel nationalization drive PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our main story is Vladimir Putin letting some Western investors sell their frozen Russian assets ahead of his high-stakes call with Donald Trump. We also look at what Russians stand to lose if Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty ceases to exist and take stock of mounting worries
THE BELL WEEKLY: Trump-Zelensky clash delights Kremlin PRO Members Public
Hello! Our main story is Russia jumping for joy at the stunning Oval Office clash between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky. We also bring you highlights of our interview with Nobel Prize winning economist Daron Acemoglu. Moscow revels in Oval Office row between Zelensky and Trump Russia can’t get
Yandex founder Arkady Volozh condemns "barbaric Russian invasion of Ukraine" PRO Members Public
Arkady Volozh, the founder of Russia's largest tech company Yandex, has denounced Russia's invasion of Ukraine in a statement provided to The Bell by his press service. Like most major Russian businessmen, Volozh had previously remained silent on the issue. Volozh has been criticized since the
THE BELL WEEKLY: Why the nationalization of Danone and Carlsberg matters PRO Members Public
President Vladimir Putin has recently signed a decree nationalizing the Russian assets of French dairy producer Danone and the Baltika brewery, owned by Denmark's Carlsberg. One of them is now under the ownership of an old friend of Putin’s from 1990s St. Petersburg, while the other went
THE BELL WEEKLY: Prigozhin’s attempted mutiny exposes cracks in the Russian regime PRO Members Public
Hello! This week, our main story is the extraordinary attempted rebellion carried out by the Wagner mercenary group and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, against Russia’s military leadership. We also look at what could come next and the economic consequences of this crisis. Saturday was an almost unbelievable day in
RSF and independent Russian journalists call on Big Tech to create “Engineers against Dictatorship” to prevent Russia’s online informational shutdown PRO Members Public
With the Russian presidential election coming in 2024, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) joins Russian independent media organisations and journalists in calling on Big Tech companies to establish a working group to prevent Russia's online informational shutdown. The initiative is supported by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov, journalist
THE BELL WEEKLY: Moscow-Tbilisi detente PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story is Moscow’s decision to restore visa-free access for citizens of Georgia and lift a flight ban between the two countries. We also take a look at the presidential elections in Turkey and their implications for Russia. And, finally, we sum up a new
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The Bell was founded in 2017 by journalists Elizaveta Osetinskaya, Irina Malkova and Peter Mironenko as a news outlet independent from the Russian authorities, after its founders have been sacked as top editors at the largest Russian news website RBC because of pressure from the Kremlin.
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