Putin re-asserts Russia’s nuclear threat to the West, boasts of new missiles PRO Members Public
Hello! Putin gave his annual parliamentary address Wednesday and our top story this week is a look at why he chose (again) to focus on Russia’s nuclear arsenal and confrontation with the West. We also have an update on the case of Michael Calvey, the U.S. private equity
Behind the scenes of the operation to jail the top managers of Baring Vostok PRO Members Public
The arrest of Michael Calvey, the founder of private equity firm Baring Vostok has shaken Russia’s investment community. The Bell explains how the management of the country’s largest foreign investment fund ended up behind bars Highlights: * The real reason: Baring Vostok’s conflict over Vostochny Express Bank with
Veteran U.S. private equity investor detained in Moscow amid business dispute PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story is Friday’s breaking news: the detention on fraud charges of U.S. citizen Michael Calvey, one of the most well known private equity investors in Russia. We also take a look at what looks like a new round of U.S. sanctions, a
Why is the Russian economy growing despite Western sanctions? PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we kick-off with an explainer on Russia’s impressive economic performance in 2018 (sanctions notwithstanding) and whether the growth data could been doctored. Then we have stories on Durov’s very optimistic valuation for his new cryptocurrency project, how a propaganda chief fared when he went on
A new investigation into Wagner, Russia’s private mercenary army PRO Members Public
Hello! Our lead story this week is an investigation into Wagner, the Russian mercenary company, including some previously unreported details about its foundation. We also have: highlights from our interview with controversial Belarusian escort Nastya Rybka and her sex coach, Alex Leslie, who have just spent 9 months in jail;
“You risk your life offering such services”: Rybka and Leslie on the Oleg Deripaska affair PRO Members Public
The Bell spoke with escort Nastya Rybka and her sex coach Alex Leslie after their return from Thailand and their release in Russia. Both are suspects in a criminal case and signed a non-disclosure agreement. They try not to even say the name Oleg Deripaska; because of him they found
A Private Army for the President: The Tale of Evgeny Prigozhin’s Most Delicate Mission PRO Members Public
The name Evgeny Prigozhin has become synonymous with Russia’s informal presence in conflict zones where Russia has interests, from Syria to West Africa to Venezuela. The Bell has learned that “Putin’s chef” might have received this risky mission — to participate in the creation of a private army — in
«How to tell a man on the street from a member of Wagner?». An interview with the alleged founder of a Russian private army PRO Members Public
What follows is the complete transcript of a rare email interview with Evgeny Prigozhin, widely believed to be the founder of Wagner Group, a private military company representing Russian interests in Ukraine, Syria and across Africa. The interview was conducted by Anton Baev, a reporter for The Bell, as a
Russia’s toehold of influence in Latin America under threat amid Venezuelan turmoil PRO Members Public
Over the last two decades, Russia has spent tens of billions of dollars supporting the regimes of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, making the Latin American country Russia’s sole ally in the region. If Maduro’s regime does not survive, Russia will lose twenty years of effort
Revelations to come? A deep dive into what Nastya Rybka might know PRO Members Public
Three encounters with billionaire Oleg Deripaska have cost Belarusian escort Nastya Rybka (Anastasia Vashukevich), her sex coach Alex Leslie (Alexander Kirillov) and some of their friends 9 months in a Thai jail, deportation and criminal charges in Russia. Even though the suspects were freed this week, there is much that
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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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