Politics
Team Navalny film about 1990s oligarchs divides Russia’s opposition Paid Members Public
The 1990s were a turbulent period following the collapse of the Soviet Union — and 30 years later it remains the most controversial era in modern Russian history. The rapid democratization of society and the switch from a planned to a market economy was accompanied by poverty, rampant crime and the
AI-powered internet censorship Paid Members Public
Russia’s internet watchdog wants to use artificial intelligence to block access to restricted information on the Russian internet. AI should help the agency block unwanted content three times faster — within an hour of publication — and strike down content more accurately, the authorities say. * Russia’s Roskomnadzor communications regulator plans
Unprecedented flooding unlikely to shake trust in Putin Paid Members Public
The main topic in Russia over the last few weeks has been the catastrophic flooding in the Orenburg region in the southern Urals, along the border with Kazakhstan. In Orsk, rising river waters burst through a poorly constructed dam, completely flooding the city of some 200,000 people. A few
Airlines told to roll out the red carpet for Russian soldiers Paid Members Public
Only a few weeks have passed since Russian President Vladimir Putin said those fighting in Ukraine were his country’s “new elite”, but already the privileges and special status being afforded to Russian soldiers who have served in Ukraine are racking up. Russia’s aviation agency last week advised airlines
Soviet dissident pursued by Putin in the Soviet Union arrested Paid Members Public
A St. Petersburg court has detained Soviet dissident Alexander Skobov on charges of “justifying terrorism”. Skobov is a Soviet dissident who was twice committed to psychiatric hospitals for enforced treatment over his anti-communist stance. Vladimir Putin, then a young KGB officer, was involved in the cases against him in the
Russia hit by wave of xenophobia after biggest terror attack in 20 years Paid Members Public
Central Asian migrants are facing a new surge in xenophobia after the Crocus City Hall attack. Gunmen, identified by Russian prosecutors as Tajik citizens, opened fire on concert-goers before setting the building ablaze in the worst terror attack in the country since 2004. More than 140 people were killed, including
Russian officials target Telegram over Moscow concert hall attack Paid Members Public
Russian officials spent the first week after 144 people were killed in the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack looking for links to Ukraine and debating how to censor the Telegram messaging app, which has long served as a substitute for state news media in Russia. Among the ideas were proposals
The opposition’s approach Paid Members Public
The Russian opposition saw its organizational structures demolished even before the war. As a result, there weren’t many options for what they could do during this contest. They adopted two main tactical approaches. * The first, backed by Alexei Navalny’s supporters, called for a significant election-day quasi-protest. Called “Noon
