Russia, Explained
Pyotr Mironenko, co-founder of The Bell, and Denis Kasyanchuk, our economics editor, take a closer look at the week's top Russia stories, and explain why they matter. An in-depth look at how Russia works, what is bothering the elite, how public opinion is changing, and how to read between the lines of state propaganda.
Havana Syndrome: Could Russia’s roads go full Cuban? PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at how a hike in car import fees is becoming one of the government’s most unpopular domestic policies in years, and prompted predictions that decades-old Western cars could soon be lining Russian roads. Planned hike in cost of foreign cars triggers rare public backlash
How Putin’s allies benefit from internet shutdowns PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we report on how businesses loyal to the Kremlin are winning out as mass internet blackouts become a feature of daily life for millions of Russians. On again, off again: How the authorities keep their friends online after switching off the internet With Russia having got used
Western firms face Russian asset risks — Italy shows the scale PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at how Russia could retaliate if Europe moves ahead with plans to more boldly use Russia’s frozen assets to fund Ukraine. With Western companies sure to be in the firing line, we calculate how much firms from just one country, Italy, stand to lose.
Russia's Eurovision rival PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at Intervision, the revived Soviet-era song contest designed to rival Eurovision that was light on the camp and heavy on the propaganda. Intervision, Moscow’s propaganda-filled song contest Russia staged the Intervision music contest over the weekend, a Vladimir Putin-ordered Eurovision clone, designed to show
Yandex founder's $20 billion comeback PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at the comeback of Arkady Volozh, the Yandex founder who has struck it rich—again—thanks to a mega deal for his new AI infrastructure startup. From startup to sanctions and back again Last year, Arkady Volozh, one of the founders of Russia’s most
Propaganda in Russian schools PRO Members Public
Hello! As a new school year kicks off in Russia, we dig into how the authorities are pushing propaganda into Russian schools and glorifying the invasion of Ukraine in lessons for children as young as three. Instilling ideology: How the Kremlin raises young loyalists Much like during the Soviet era,
Russia’s digital Gulag PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at Russia’s plans to significantly tighten control and surveillance on the internet through a spate of new laws, restrictions and punishments. Online crackdown looms Russia’s parliament has spent all summer passing a raft of prohibitive legislation to give the authorities more control and
Russia's fuel crisis PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we analyze Russia’s domestic fuel crisis, what it says about the war, the state of the economy and how it could affect peace negotiations. Ukrainian strikes hit Russians at the pump A new wave of Ukrainian long-range drone attacks on Russian oil refineries has triggered the
Fallout from the Alaska summit PRO Members Public
Hello! This week, as Vladimir Zelensky and European leaders meet Donald Trump in the White House, we analyze the fallout from the Alaska summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump and why it is seen in Moscow and beyond as a triumph for the Kremlin. The Alaska summit: No deal,
Putin-Trump summit brings Ukraine ceasefire closer PRO Members Public
Negotiations about achieving peace in Ukraine have been upended. Unless there is a last-minute problem, Russian President Vladimir Putin will next week meet his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump to discuss a plan to freeze the conflict. With Putin likely to demand guarantees that NATO will not expand, any deal
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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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