Four worrying signs for the Russian economy PRO Members Public
The Russian economy is approaching the end of 2022 in a far better state than many had anticipated in the spring following the invasion of Ukraine and ensuing Western sanctions. The fall in GDP has only amounted to about 3% or even less, and the U.S. dollar is still
Four worrying signs for the Russian economy PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story is about the main warning signs emerging in Russia’s economy as it ends 2022 on a better-than-expected note. We also look at the power struggle at Russian tech giant Yandex now that former Audit Chamber head Alexei Kudrin has joined the company and
The ‘merchant of death’ returns to Russia in prisoner swap PRO Members Public
International arms dealer Viktor Bout returned to Russia last week after 14 years in a U.S. jail. Bout has been a star of Russian propaganda throughout his incarceration. And his return home was an excellent illustration of the strange relationship between the Russian authorities, Russian propaganda and the Russians
Russia designates The Bell a ‘foreign agent’ PRO Members Public
We expected it for a long time — and it finally happened. The Ministry of Justice added The Bell on Friday to its register of so-called foreign agents (back in the spring, our founders, journalists Elizaveta Osetinskaya and Irina Malkova, were put on the list). * The decision to list The Bell
Independent TV channel Dozhd stripped of broadcasting license in Latvia PRO Members Public
Latvia’s decision last week to take away independent Russian TV channel Dozhd’s permission to broadcast in much of Europe started with a slip of the tongue and quickly escalated into this year’s biggest media scandal. It led to the “cancellation” of a major anti-war Russian media source
The Dozhd conundrum PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story is about why Latvia stripped independent media channel Dozhd of its local broadcasting license — and what it means. We also look at The Bell being made a “foreign agent” (finally!) and the return to Russia of notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout after he was
On-air blunder causes trouble for Russia’s main independent TV channel PRO Members Public
Alexei Korostelev, a presenter on Russian independent TV channel Dozhd was dismissed last week after he said on-air that “we hope that we were able to help many soldiers, for example with equipment and basic amenities.” That phrase — which some took as an admission Dozhd was sending supplies to Russian
Russia bans books mentioning LGBT issues PRO Members Public
Russian shops are clearing the shelves of any novels featuring LGBT characters for fear of falling foul of “gay propaganda” laws, while libraries are hiding texts written by “foreign agents,” a Soviet-era term used by the Russian authorities. * Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law Monday a draconian “gay propaganda”
Limits on Russian oil unlikely to pose critical threat to economy PRO Members Public
This week sees the start of several new restrictions on Russian oil exports. An embargo came into force Monday that blocks Russian seaborne oil supplies to Europe. Moreover, on Friday evening, the European Union finally agreed on an important accompanying measure — a price cap on Russian oil that companies from
Oil price cap PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story looks at why the West’s price cap for Russian oil is unlikely to have any major immediate impact on the Russian economy. We also look at the claims and counterclaims after a presenter on independent TV channel Dozhd apparently misspoke on air and
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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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