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Longest-held Russian dissident freed in swap says ‘colors get brighter by the day’ in his new life
Read full article: Longest-held Russian dissident freed in swap says ‘colors get brighter by the day’ in his new lifeOf all the Russian dissidents freed in the historic East-West prison swap on Aug. 1, Andrei Pivovarov spent the most time behind bars – three years.
Under Putin, the uber-wealthy Russians known as 'oligarchs' are still rich but far less powerful
Read full article: Under Putin, the uber-wealthy Russians known as 'oligarchs' are still rich but far less powerfulWhen Vladimir Putin came to power in 2000, the outside world viewed “Russian oligarchs” as men who whose vast wealth, ruthlessly amassed, made them almost shadow rulers.
Kremlin critic jailed over denouncing Ukraine war
Read full article: Kremlin critic jailed over denouncing Ukraine warRussian authorities have opened a criminal case against a prominent opposition activist and remanded him in pre-trial detention for allegedly spreading “false information” about the country’s armed forces.
Amid Russia's new crackdowns, small signs of defiance emerge
Read full article: Amid Russia's new crackdowns, small signs of defiance emergeRussia has unleashed a harsh crackdown on dissent over the past year by imprisoning opposition leader Alexei Navalny and silencing his supporters and his organization.
Some Russian oligarchs speak out, cautiously, against war
Read full article: Some Russian oligarchs speak out, cautiously, against warRussia’s war on Ukraine has sent shockwaves through the global community of wealthy Russians who have built luxurious lives in the West while keeping close to the Kremlin.
Russia gets partial win in $50B case over bankrupt oil giant
Read full article: Russia gets partial win in $50B case over bankrupt oil giantThe Dutch Supreme Court has handed Russia at least a temporary victory in its appeal of a $50 billion arbitration award to former shareholders of bankrupted oil giant Yukos.
Russia opposition stifled but unbowed as Duma election nears
Read full article: Russia opposition stifled but unbowed as Duma election nearsIn the months before Sunday's parliamentary election in Russia, authorities unleashed an unprecedented crackdown on the opposition, making sure the best-known and loudest Kremlin critics didn’t run.
Russian opposition activist sent to jail amid crackdown
Read full article: Russian opposition activist sent to jail amid crackdownA Russian court has sent a prominent opposition activist to jail pending a criminal probe as authorities continue to crack down on dissent ahead of the country’s September parliamentary election.
AP Interview: Kremlin cracking down on dissent before vote
Read full article: AP Interview: Kremlin cracking down on dissent before voteRussian authorities are cracking down on dissent before a crucial parliamentary election in what a leading Kremlin critic has described as an attempt to sideline opponents.
Dutch Supreme Court adviser: Reject Russia's Yukos appeal
Read full article: Dutch Supreme Court adviser: Reject Russia's Yukos appealA key legal adviser to the Dutch Supreme Court has recommended dismissing Russia’s appeal against the reinstatement of a $50 billion compensation award to former shareholders of the Yukos oil company.
Police detain participants in Russian opposition forum
Read full article: Police detain participants in Russian opposition forumA man stands near a police bus after he was detained in Moscow, Russia, Saturday, March 13, 2021. Russian police on Saturday detained about 150 participants of a forum of independent members of municipal councils, an action that comes amid the authorities' multi-pronged crackdown on dissent. They included Ilya Yashin, an opposition politician who leads one of Moscow's municipal districts; former Yekaterinburg mayor Yevgeny Roizman; and Moscow municipal council member Yulia Galyamina. The police crackdown on Saturday's forum follows the arrest and imprisonment of Russian opposition leader, Alexei Navalny. Russian authorities have rejected the accusation.
Russian court sentences activist under law on 'undesirables'
Read full article: Russian court sentences activist under law on 'undesirables'(AP Photo)MOSCOW – A Russian court on Thursday handed a suspended sentence to an activist accused of membership of an “undesirable” organization, part of the authorities’ effort to tighten control over the nation's political scene. Anastasia Shevchenko, 41, was accused of engaging in political activities under the aegis of Open Russia, a group funded by self-exiled Russian tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Prosecutors had asked the court in Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia to sentence Shevchenko to five years in prison, but the court handed her a four-year suspended term. AdShevchenko’s case has attracted broad nationwide attention, marking the first attempt by authorities to prosecute under a 2015 law introducing criminal punishment for membership in “undesirable” organizations. The laws have been widely criticized as part of the Kremlin’s efforts to stifle dissent, but the Russian authorities have described them as a due response to the alleged Western efforts to undermine the country.
Toxic tea: Multiple Russians hit by suspected poisonings
Read full article: Toxic tea: Multiple Russians hit by suspected poisoningsMOSCOW When Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny collapsed in an airplane bathroom Thursday, his supporters immediately suspected poisoning. If true, he wouldnt be the first prominent, outspoken Russian to be the target of toxic attack. A British inquiry found that Russian agents had killed Litvinenko, probably with President Vladimir Putin's approval. At the time of Litvinenkos poisoning, he had been investigating the killing of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya three weeks earlier. PYOTR VERZILOVVerzilov, a member of Russian protest group Pussy Riot, ended up in an intensive care unit after a suspected poisoning in 2018 and had to be flown to Berlin for treatment.