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☆ Kim Jong Un tested a new rocket that could hit Seoul — and may aid Russia against Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Mikhaila Friel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Kim Jong Un oversaw tests for a rocket capable of hitting Seoul in South Korea, Bloomberg reported. Russia and North Korea have previously denied reports of an arms deal between the two nations. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok on April 25, 2019. Russia and North Korea have previously denied an arms deal exists between the two countries. Business Insider reported in October that North Korea was on track to become "one of Russia's most significant foreign arms suppliers."

Persons: Kim Jong Un, —, Yang, Vladimir Putin, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Simon Miles, Miles, Kelly Grieco, it's Organizations: Bloomberg, Service, Ukraine, Korean People's Army, Korean Central News Agency, Asan Institute, Policy Studies, NK News, North Korean, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Kremlin, Soviet Union, AP News, Business, pushback, US, Stimson Center Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, Korea, Russian, Vladivostok, Soviet

☆ The US and Israeli defeat of Iranian missiles is a big boost for its strained regional alliance
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-17 | by ( Paul Iddon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

That's a boost for the regional air defense network the US wants. AdvertisementThe United States shot down more of the incoming Iranian drones than Israel and played a central role in the "multinational air defense operation" consisting of British, French, and Jordanian air forces. An anti-missile system operates after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel on April 14, 2024. "Russia will seek to offset the US success in backing Israel by looking to buttress Iran's defense with advanced Russian systems such as the Su-35," Heras said. There were also reports last year indicating Iran also seeks the advanced Russian S-400 air defense missile system.

Persons: —, Biden, Jordan, MEAD, Nicholas Heras, Amir Cohen, Heras, Nadimi, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Su Organizations: Service, Biden, East Air Defense, UAE —, New Lines Institute, United Arab Emirates, REUTERS, Washington Institute for Near East, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, AP Locations: Israel, Russia, Iran, Ukraine, Britain, France, Saudi Arabia, States, Jordanian, Israeli, Mar, Ashkelon, United States, Tehran, Russian, Syria, Moscow, Su

☆ Exclusive: Hackers stole Russian prisoner database to avenge death of Navalny
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( Sean Lyngaas | Darya Tarasova | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Within hours of opposition leader Alexey Navalny’s death in February in a Russian prison, a group of anti-Kremlin hackers went looking for revenge. This screenshot, provided to CNN by hackers claiming responsibility, shows a hacked website tied to the Russian prison system display messages of support for late Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny. Obtained by CNNIt took several hours for the administrator of the online prison shop to notice that Russians were buying food for pennies, according to the hacker involved. CNN was able to match multiple prisoner names in screenshots shared by the hackers with people that, according to public records, are currently in Russian prison. The online prison shop that the hackers appear to have breached is owned by the Russian state and officially known as JSC Kaluzhskoe, according to Russian business records reviewed by CNN.

Persons: Alexey Navalny’s, “ Long, Alexey Navalny, Yulia, Navalny, ” Tom Hegel, ” Hegel, Vladimir Putin, Joe Biden, Alexander Zemlianichenko, ”, Putin, Ukraine “, Hegel, “ Hacktivism, “ Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, JSC Kaluzhskoe, Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service, JSC, US, Russian Federal Penitentiary Service Locations: Russian, Russia, Russia’s, US, Yamalo, Moscow, Ukraine, Ukrainian

☆ Russia’s political class is taking a dark and vengeful turn
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Now comes another shock to the system, with the appalling murder of at least 139 people in a terror attack at a concert hall just outside Moscow. And with its brutal official response to the attack, Russia seems to have taken an even darker turn. But after Friday’s Crocus City attack, the brutality of Russian security services appeared on naked display. It sends a message to ordinary Russians – and the world – that Russian state security forces are capable of anything. “Everyone asks me, what is to be done?” Medvedev said, according to Russian state news agency TASS.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Putin, – implausibly, ”, Dmitry Peskov, ” Peskov, ” Putin, Tatyana Makeyeva, Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, Margarita Simonyan, approvingly, Simonyan, “, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s, ” Medvedev, Vladimir Vasiliev Organizations: CNN, ISIS, “ Intelligence, Kremlin, KGB, Getty, VK, Putin, “, United Russia, Novosti Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Kyiv, United States, Chechnya, Crocus, Basmanny, AFP, Russian

☆ US Army instructors say Ukrainian soldiers were 'amazing' at mastering the Patriots they've used to shoot down Putin's overhyped missiles
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Ukrainian soldiers spent 10 weeks learning to use the US military's Patriot air-defense system. Business Insider recently visited Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where Patriot training took place last year, and spoke with two US Army instructors who were involved in the program. They described the Ukrainian soldiers as "awesome" students and "amazing" learners with a lot of drive to learn how to operate the system. AdvertisementFILE - Patriot missile launchers acquired from the U.S. last year are seen deployed in Warsaw, Poland, on Feb. 6, 2023. AdvertisementA Patriot missile is fired during a training exercise at the Black Sea training range in Capu Midia, Constanta, Romania, on Nov. 15, 2023.

Persons: —, Michal Dyjuk, Kevin McConkey, Ukraine —, McConkey, Sean Gallup, Austin Christie, Christie, George Calin Still, Vladimir Putin, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy Organizations: US, Patriot, US Army, Fort Sill, Service, Business, Army, U.S, AP, Getty, Ukrainian, Russian Air Force, Pentagon Locations: Ukraine, Fort Sill , Oklahoma, Fort Sill, Warsaw, Poland, Rzeszow Jasionska, Midia, Constanta, Romania, Moscow, Alexander Zemlianichenko Russia, Kyiv, Ukrainian, Germany, Netherlands

☆ Opinion: Russian elections weren’t always like this
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Opinion Ekaterina Kotrikadze | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Editor’s Note: Ekaterina Kotrikadze is a news director and anchor for the independent Russian TV channel Dozhd (TV Rain). They couldn’t win elections, but they could participate, they could speak to independent media and convey their ideas to a significant audience. Thousands of people protest against the parliament elections in Moscow, on December 24, 2011. The Central Election Commission of Russia, of course, did not allow Nadezhdin to participate in the elections. While we cannot make the upcoming elections free, we can cover this circus as honestly as possible.

Persons: Ekaterina Kotrikadze, Kotrikadze, Read, Vladimir Putin, Ekaterina Kotrikadze Denis Kaminev, Putin, Boris Nemtsov, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Nemtsov, Yuri Kadobnov, Kara, ”, Alexey Navalny, Boris Nadezhdin, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Russia — Organizations: CNN, Faculty of Journalism, Moscow State University, Union of Right Forces, Getty, Putin, Commission, YouTube Locations: Russian, Europe, Netherlands, Russia, Moscow, AFP, Ukraine, Amsterdam

☆ Opinion: The real story behind Russia’s new ‘Stalin Centers’
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-20 | by ( Opinion Jade Mcglynn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Last month, a new ‘Stalin Center’ was opened in Barnaul, Siberia. According to the independent Levada Center, Stalin has taken first place in their ‘who is the greatest figure of all times and all people’ survey since 2012. Students of a military-sponsored school attend the opening of a series of busts of Russian leaders, including Josef Stalin (center), in Moscow, on September 22, 2017. What the West gets wrong about Stalin and PutinMoreover, these comparisons divert attention from important differences between the Stalin and Putin regimes. That is abundantly not the case in Putin’s Russia, where the government instead encourages a ritualistic patriotism and political apathy.

Persons: Jade McGlynn, “, Read, ’, Jade McGlynn Jade McGlynn, Stalin, Vladimir Putin’s, Josef Stalin, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Memorial, Gorbachev, Yury, Putin, Vladimir Putin, Alexander Nemenov, demonize ’ Stalin, —, weren’t, Mikhail Bulgakov Organizations: Center for Strategic, International Studies, CNN, Communists, Kremlin Russian Communist Party, Levada Center, YouTube, Communist, Reuters, Kremlin, Putin Locations: Putin’s Russia, Barnaul, Siberia, Russian, Penza, Bor, Communist, Russia, Vladimir Putin’s United Russia, Moscow, Perm, Baltic, Laski, Ukraine, today’s Russia, Kyiv, Putin Russia

☆ Ukraine may have risked exposing a precious Patriot launcher to take out 2 prized Russian planes, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Ukraine's apparent destruction of 2 Russian planes may have been due to Patriot missiles, experts said. AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, Pool, FileUsing a Patriot like this would be an extremely risky move for Ukraine. Getting close enough to Kyrylivka to be able to shoot down the A-50 would have meant putting the Patriot close enough to the active fighting that Russian weaponry could hit it, the experts said. However, this level of risk is why another expert said it was unlikely that Ukraine used a Patriot. He said that while it was just an informed theory, he thought a decades-old Soviet missile system, the S-200, was more likely to have been used.

Persons: —, Rajan Manon, Mattias Eken, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Eken, would've, Manon, Gustav Gressel, Gressel, Russia doesn't Organizations: Patriot, Patriots, Service, Ilyushin, RAND Corporation, AP, European Council, Foreign Relations, Soviet, REUTERS Locations: Ukraine, Azov, Ukrainian, Kyrylivka, Russian, Russia, Warsaw, Poland

☆ Ukraine Says It Downed Russian Surveillance Plane
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Ian Lovett | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Russia uses its surveillance planes to identify targets and threats over a wide area. Photo: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Associated PressKYIV, Ukraine—Ukrainian forces are struggling to hold back Russian troops on the ground, but they are proving adept at hitting high-value Russian targets, with the downing of a surveillance plane adding to string of recent blows to Moscow’s air force. Valeriy Zaluzhniy, the commander of the Ukrainian armed forces, said Monday on Telegram that Ukraine’s air force shot down an A-50 long-range radar detection aircraft, as well as a IL-22 bomber jet, over the Sea of Azov. He offered no details about how the planes had been brought down.

Persons: Alexander Zemlianichenko, Valeriy Zaluzhniy Organizations: Associated Press Locations: Russia, Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Azov

☆ Russia says it has got lots of requests for meetings with Lavrov at OSCE meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during a joint press conference with Venezuela's Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto in Moscow, Russia, November 16, 2023. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Russia's foreign ministry said on Wednesday it had received a lot of requests for one-on-one meetings with Sergei Lavrov, Moscow's top diplomat, on the sidelines of an OSCE meeting in North Macedonia. "I can confirm that there are a lot of requests for bilateral meetings," Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry, told reporters. "There will be multilateral meetings in multilateral formats, and bilateral meetings are planned as well," she said. She said that the foreign ministry will provide details on Lavrov's schedule in Skopje later.

Persons: Sergey Lavrov, Yvan Gil Pinto, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Sergei Lavrov, Lavrov, Maria Zakharova, Lavrov's, Dmitry Antonov, Guy Faulconbridge, Andrew Osborn Organizations: Russian, Venezuela's, Rights, OSCE, Organization for Security, Cooperation, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, Moscow's, North Macedonia, Europe, Skopje, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania

☆ Kremlin: unacceptable for Biden to compare Putin to Hamas
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov leaves after the talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden in Geneva, Switzerland, June 16, 2021. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Oct 20 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Friday that remarks by U.S. President Joe Biden comparing Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Palestinian militant group Hamas were "unacceptable". In remarks on Thursday, Biden sought to compare Hamas's actions to those of Putin, whose forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "Hamas and Putin represent different threats, but they share this in common: They both want to annihilate a neighbouring democracy," he said. Israel has responded to Hamas's attack with heavy daily bombardments of the enclave that have killed almost 4,000 people, Palestinian officials say.

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin, Joe Biden, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Israel, Biden, Putin, Hamas, Peskov, Kevin Liffey, Christina Fincher Organizations: U.S, Rights, Hamas, Russian Federation, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Geneva, Switzerland, Gaza, Israel, Ukraine, Russia, Cairo

☆ Tank battles in Ukraine are putting several generations of 'crappy Russian armored vehicles' and their flaws on display
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AdvertisementAdvertisementT-72s, T-80s, and T-90sUkrainians load a Russian T-72 onto a truck outside Izyum in September 2022. It also has a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun mounted in the hull and a 12.7mm heavy machine gun on the turret. AdvertisementAdvertisementUS soldiers examine a Ukrainian T-80 tank during an exercise in September 2014. AdvertisementAdvertisementA Danish instructor leads a Ukrainian tank crew and translators through training on a Leopard 1A5 in Germany in May. AdvertisementAdvertisementA Ukrainian Leopard 1 tank crew at a test site in Ukraine in September.

Persons: —, ANATOLII STEPANOV, ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO, Sean Gallup, Uralvagonzavod, Russia hasn't, Sven Creutzmann, Barry Posen, John Moore, Posen Organizations: Service, Getty, REUTERS, NATO, Soviet, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, LB, Leopard 2A5, Royal United Services Institute, 47th Mechanized Brigade Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Soviet, Russian, Izyum, AFP, Moscow, Ukrainian, Kharkiv, Syria, Poland, Soviet Union, Germany, Posen, Spain, Norway, Canada, Portugal, Denmark, Sweden, British

☆ With Putin and Kim Jong Un set to meet, the West fears what Russia and North Korea are planning
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un shake hands during their meeting in Vladivostok, Russia, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Alexander Zemlianichenko | Pool | APThe leaders of North Korea and Russia are scheduled to meet this week, with deepening military, economic and geopolitical cooperation on the official agenda. There are also fears about what Moscow might offer the economically isolated and heavily sanctioned North Korea in return. A fire assault drill by North Korean rocket artillery units at an undisclosed location in North Korea in March 2023 in this photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). For their part, Russia and North Korea have both denied claims of alleged arms dealing.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Kim Yong Un, Putin, Pat Ryder, Edward Howell, Kim Jong Un, Kim Ju, Howell, scot, Dmitry Peskov, Kim, Peskov, It's, —, Pyongyang's, Jung Yeon, Victor Cha, Andrius Tursa, Sergei Shoigu's, John Kirby, Wagner, Vladimir Putin grimaces Organizations: White, North, Pentagon, Ukraine, North Korean, Korean Central News Agency, Reuters, UN, North Korea —, Oxford University, CNBC, North Korea's Central News Agency, Kcna, Nuclear Weapons, UN Security Council, Kremlin, Getty, Eastern Economic, U.S, U.S . National Security, Zvezda Shipbuilding, Bolshoi Kamen Locations: Vladivostok, Russia, North Korea, Russian, Korea, Pyongyang, Ukraine, Moscow, Korean, Pakistan, Syria, Libya, North Korea's, London, Washington, Japan, South Korea, U.S, Bolshoi

☆ Putin and Kim's meeting will be full-scale visit, Kremlin says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photo during their meeting in Vladivostok, Russia, April 25, 2019. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Sept 11 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's trip to Russia and meeting with President Vladimir Putin will be a full-scale visit, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Kim has set off for Russia aboard a special train, a South Korean source said, as Pyongyang and Moscow on Monday confirmed a summit with President Vladimir Putin amid Russia's deepening isolation over its actions in Ukraine. Video of his remarks were posted to social media by a Kremlin journalist Pavel Zarubin. According to Peskov, the main topic of the talks will be bilateral relations between the neighbouring countries.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Dmitry Peskov, Kim, Peskov, Pavel Zarubin, Vladimir Soldatkin, Maxim Rodionov Organizations: Rights, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Vladivostok, Russia, Korean, Pyongyang, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ North Korea's Kim appears to have departed for Russia for summit with Putin -YTN
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photo during their meeting in Vladivostok, Russia, April 25, 2019. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Sept 11 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears to have departed for Russia for a summit with President Vladimir Putin, South Korean broadcaster YTN reported on Monday, citing an unnamed senior government source. Kim appears to be headed to North Korea's northeastern border on a special train, with the summit likely to be held as early as on Tuesday, according to the report. His last trip abroad in 2019 was also to Vladivostok for his first summit with Putin after the collapse of North Korea's nuclear disarmament talks with former U.S. President Donald Trump. Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi, Jack Kim; Editing by Toby Chopra and Himani SarkarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Alexander Zemlianichenko, YTN, Kim, Putin, Donald Trump, Soo, hyang Choi, Jack Kim, Toby Chopra, Himani Organizations: Rights, National Intelligence Service, U.S, Thomson Locations: Vladivostok, Russia, Rights SEOUL, South Korean, North

☆ Russia says it's using a new jet to launch Kinzhal 'hypersonic' missiles in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( David Cenciotti | The Aviationist | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russian state media says an Su-34 aircraft launched Kinzhal missile against a target in Ukraine. Until now, only MiG-31K aircraft were known to have employed the Kinzhal missile in combat. Russia touts the Kinzhal as a hypersonic weapon but it's really a conventional air-launched ballistic missile. "The Su-34 fighter jet used the Kinzhal hypersonic missile in the special military operation. Since then, Ukraine has reported downing Kinzhal missiles at least four more times, the last one last month.

Persons: Su, Russian Aerospace Forces Su, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Kinzhal, Fullback wasn't Organizations: Service, Russian Aerospace Forces, TASS, Russian State, Russian Air Force, 47M2, AP, Observers, Russian, U.S . Air Force, Kinzhal, Fullback Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Russian

☆ US says North Korea will 'pay a price' for any weapons supplies to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Providing weapons to Russia "is not going to reflect well on North Korea and they will pay a price for this in the international community," U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters at the White House. "We will continue to call on North Korea to abide by its public commitments not to supply weapons to Russia that will end up killing Ukrainians," Sullivan said. As Russia's isolation over its war in Ukraine has grown, it has seen increasing value in North Korea, according to political analysts. The United States in August imposed sanctions on three entities it accused of being tied to arms deals between North Korea and Russia. North Korea has conducted six nuclear tests since 2006 and had been testing various missiles over recent years.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Kim Jong Un, Jake Sullivan, Kim, Sullivan, Adrienne Watson, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Sergei Shoigu, Keir Giles, Andrei Lankov, Trevor Hunnicutt, Andrew Osborn, Heather Timmons, Grant McCool Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, U.S, White, . National Security, New York Times, Russia's, Chatham House's, Eurasia, Russia, Seoul's Kookmin University, The, China, . Security, Thomson Locations: Vladivostok, Russia, MOSCOW, North Korea, Ukraine, Moscow, Soviet Union, PYONGYANG, Korean, Pyongyang, North, Chatham House's Russia, Russian, Korea, The United States, U.S

☆ Opinion: Prigozhin seemed to be living on borrowed time
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Opinion Daniel Treisman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin — who the Russian aviation agency confirmed was a passenger on board a plane that crashed on Wednesday evening — seemed to be living on borrowed time. Video of the plane debris taken at the purported crash site in the western Tver region of Russia matches the plane registered to Prigozhin. Investigations were started within the armed forces, and probably within the security forces as well. Any effort to paint Prigozhin as wealthy and corrupt stopped almost immediately, and no new financial investigations were announced. And in what might have been the last straw for Putin, Prigozhin released a video on Monday of himself standing in what looked like an African desert, boasting of his men’s exploits.

Persons: Daniel Treisman, “, CNN — Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin —, Wagner, Vladimir Putin, Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Putin, William Burns, “ I, Alexander Zemlianichenko, –, —, Sergei Surovikin, Surovikin, Viktor Afzalov Organizations: University of California, CNN, Belarus, CIA, Kremlin, Central African, Investigations, Washington, Twitter, Facebook Locations: Los Angeles, Russian, Russia, Tver, Kuzhenkino, Tver region, Moscow, Africa, Mali, Central African Republic, Mozambique, Sudan, Ukraine, Petersburg, Sahel, St . Petersburg

☆ Russia has lost more than 2,200 tanks in Ukraine, and it may be reaching the limit of its ability to 'rebuild' older ones
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( David Hambling | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Russia has lost more than 2,200 main battle tanks since invading Ukraine in February last year. Russian storage depots are deep, but they don't have an unlimited supply of armor to throw into a new fight. In fact, Russia is rebuilding tanks rather than building them, and their capacity to do so may be reaching its limit. Russia has vast stockpiles of old tanks, from T-90s barely 20 years old to rusting T-62s from the 1960s. More importantly, Russia's supply of old tanks for rebuilding is showing signs of running down.

Persons: Alexander Zemlianichenko, Stalin, UVZ, Sergio Miller, Abrams, ANATOLII STEPANOV, Shoigu, Putin's, Dmitry Medvedev, OLGA MALTSEVA, Jakub Janovsky, Medvedev, Nobody, Putin, David Hambling Organizations: Service, Russia, Victory Day, AP, Stalin Ural Tank, British Army, Sierra Army, Omsk Transport Machine Factory, —, Getty, Defence, Moscow Times, Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, Aviation, Forbes, The, New, Popular Mechanics, WIRED Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, AP Russia, Nizhny Tagil, Moscow, Stalin Ural, Doyle , California, Omsk, St Petersburg, Siberia, Venezuela, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Russian, Rostov, Izyum, AFP, OmskTransMash, Laos, St . Petersburg, Buryatia, Mongolia, Urals, USSR, Germany, Kremlin, London

☆ Ikea left Russia — but yet another copycat has popped up in its place. The real store says it could take action.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Kylie Kirschner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Good Luck, an Ikea copycat, joins the ranks of rebranded dupes of many western chains in Russia. And now, a store called Good Luck has opened in Moscow as an Ikea copycat. "The departure of Ikea is not a reason to abandon the usual interior design," Good Luck writes on its website. There are no suppliers for bathroom and kitchen items yet, employees at the store told the Moscow Times. Vlad Karkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesConvincing Ikea dupe or not, Good Luck already has ambitious plans for expansion, it says.

Persons: Vladimir Putin's, McD's, Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr, —, it's, Good Luck, couldn't, McDonald's, ALEXANDER NEMENOV, Luck, Vlad Karkov Organizations: Ikea, Moscow Times, Service, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried, McDonald's, KFC, Starbucks, Getty, Swed, IKEA Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Kentucky, Moscow, McDonalds, Zara, Ukraine, Swedish, Russian, Belarusian, AFP, Soviet

☆ The 'taboo' of criticizing Putin has been 'significantly weakened,' which is why an influential pro-war blogger trashed him, UK intel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-22 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A pro-war Russian ultra-nationalist was arrested for criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin. The UK MoD said he made the comments as the "taboo" around criticizing Putin is weakened. Ivor Girkin, a Russian ultra-nationalist, was arrested on extremism charges on Friday after he called Putin a "cowardly mediocrity." Girkin, like many other Russian war bloggers, has been critical of Russia's military performance in Ukraine. The UK MoD noted that Girkin had "long been a critic" of Russia's military performance but that, in recent days, his comments had turned to criticizing Putin himself.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Wagner, Ivor Girkin, Girkin's, Russian Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Igor Girkin, ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, Insider's Erin Snodgrass, Girkin Organizations: MoD, Service, Wagner Group, Getty, MOD, Guardian Locations: Russian, Wall, Silicon, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Ukrainian Donetsk

☆ Russia has been scrambling to find missiles to fire at Ukraine, but it's not going to run out of them
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Russia has had to dig deep into its arsenal to find missiles to fire at targets in Ukraine. ReutersBy far, most missiles fired by Russia into Ukraine have been launched from aircraft — mainly Tu-95, Tu-22M, and Tu-160 bombers and Su-24 and Su-35 fighter-bombers. Other air-to-surface missiles used by Russia include the Kh-25, Kh-29, Kh-31, Kh-58, and Kh-59. Russia has also fired interceptor missiles from S-300 and S-400 air-defense batteries at targets in Ukraine. Remnants of Russian missiles and shells at a collection site in Kharkiv in December.

Persons: Ian Williams, Kinzhal, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Oleksii, Valentyna, Williams, Yan Dobronosov, Russia's Organizations: Service, Russian, Missile Defense, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Army, Reuters, CSIS, Russia, AP, Getty, Kharkiv Regional, reallocating, Ukraine Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarus, Kyiv, Alexandra, Alexander Zemlianichenko Russian, Kharkiv, United States

☆ Opinion: Welcome to the ‘looking-glass’ world of Putin’s Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Opinion Daniel Treisman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Welcome to the weird, through-the-looking-glass world of Vladimir Putin’s Russia, where everything is its opposite and almost nothing is what it seems. That may hold as well for the still-murky fate of last month’s mutineer, Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner group. Daniel TreismanWorse yet for the Kremlin, Prigozhin’s claim — coming from a diehard nationalist — will seem quite believable to many Russians. In this looking-glass world, the president has no time for politics. After the war started, Navalny offered a 15-point program for ending it and rebuilding a democratic Russia.

Persons: Daniel Treisman, “, ”, Vladimir Putin’s, mutineer, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Prigozhin, Putin, Alexey Navalny, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Orwell, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Emmanuel Macron, Navalny, Angela Merkel Organizations: University of California, CNN, Russian Federal Penitentiary Service, Russian, Putin, Kremlin, Twitter, Facebook Locations: Los Angeles, Moscow, Belarus, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Belarusian, Minsk, St . Petersburg, Kremlin, Russian, Melekhovo, Vladimir, Russia, Kara, Rostov, Sochi, Ukraine, Dagestan, Crimea, “

Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is not even in Belarus, Lukashenko told CNN – he is in Russia, Lukashenko claimed. Available satellite imagery has also not shown any signs of the kind of preparations and security that would be standard at a Russian nuclear facility. Russia has the world’s largest arsenal of nuclear weapons, with 4,477 deployed and reserve nuclear warheads, including around 1,900 tactical nuclear weapons, according to the Federation of American Scientists. “Putin does not need tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus to use those weapons,” Bergmann added. “But it is concerning to the US that tactical nuclear weapons could potentially be co-located in Belarus with Wagner fighters.

Persons: Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Lukashenko, CNN –, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Max Bergmann, “ Putin, ” Bergmann, Lukashenko’s, Alexander Nemenov, Angela, Prigozhin, Leonid Kasinsky, ” Lukashenko Organizations: CNN, Wagner Group, Wagner PMC, Federation of American Scientists, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Directorate of, Ministry of Defense, Soviet Union, Experts, NATO, European Union, Lithuanian President’s Communication, Georgetown University, Kremlin, Wagner, Russian Ministry of Defense Locations: Russia, Europe, Belarus, Russian, Minsk, Belarusian, Tsel, Soviet, Vilnius, Lithuania, AFP, Poland, Belarus US, St . Petersburg

☆ The US's biggest arms buyers are looking elsewhere for a next-generation fighter jet, but it won't be easy to find
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Paul Iddon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

But Washington has proved to be wary of selling those countries US-made stealth fighter jets. That leaves the Gulf states with various non-US options, which don't look all that promising — at least not any time soon. A prototype of Russia's Su-75 fighter jet at the MAKS-2021 air show outside Moscow in July 2021. AP Photo/Alexander ZemlianichenkoIn 2021, shortly after unveiling its Su-75 fighter, Russia offered to co-produce the jet, which is still in development, with the UAE. While China may eventually offer its FC-31/J-35 stealth fighter for export, it must first demonstrate the jet's effectiveness to attract serious buyers.

Persons: —, Sebastien Roblin, Chris Thornbury, Abraham, Abu Dhabi, FCAS, Roblin, Russia's Su, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Abu Dhabi's, Emily Hawthorne, RANE, Hawthorne, isn't, JOHANNES EISELE, Paul Iddon Organizations: Qatar —, Service, United Arab, —, US Air Force, Al Dhafra, Base, Staff, Abraham Accords, Reuters, AP, East, Korea's KF, Yonhap, Cooperation Council, KF, FC, Getty Locations: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Washington, Gulf, United Arab Emirates, Chris Thornbury But Washington, Israel, Riyadh, British, France, Germany, Turkey, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Abu Dhabi, Russian, North Africa, Sacheon, South Korea, Seoul, Korea, Zhuhai, AFP, China

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