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☆ Nikolai I. Ryzhkov, Soviet Premier Who Presided Over Economic Chaos, Dies at 94
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Robert D. Mcfadden | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Nikolai I. Ryzhkov, a premier of the Soviet Union who in 1990 took the brunt of the blame for economic chaos that engulfed the last years of Communist rule, leading to the nation’s political collapse and the end of the Cold War, has died. His death was confirmed on Wednesday by Valentina Matvienko, the head of the Federation Council, Russia’s upper chamber of Parliament, in a statement on Telegram. Starting as a welder in a factory in the Urals, Mr. Ryzhkov rose as a party loyalist with economic expertise to peaks of success as a protégé of the last leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail S. Gorbachev. The general secretary of the Communist Party, Mr. Gorbachev in 1985 named Mr. Ryzhkov as chairman of the Council of Ministers — a title more commonly known as premier — the second-most-powerful post in the Soviet hierarchy.

Persons: Nikolai I, Valentina Matvienko, Ryzhkov, Mikhail S, Gorbachev, Ministers — Organizations: Soviet Union, Federation Council, Communist Party, Ministers Locations: Soviet, Urals, Soviet Union

☆ Russia's Parliament to Vote on Suspending Moscow's OSCE Participation
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Russia's parliament will vote on Feb. 21 on suspending the country's participation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation (OSCE), Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said on Tuesday. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the organisation has been largely paralysed by Moscow's ongoing use of the effective veto each country has. "It's time for us to say goodbye to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly," Volodin said at a meeting of the Duma, the lower house of Russia's parliament, according to a statement on the Duma's website. The Latest Photos From Ukraine View All 91 ImagesBoth chambers of the Russian parliament, the Duma and the Federation Council, will vote simultaneously on suspending participation and on stopping Moscow's payments to the OSCE, Volodin said. Ukraine and its Baltic allies, which are Russia's neighbours, refused to attend the OSCE annual foreign ministers meeting late last year over the presence of Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov there.

Persons: Vyacheslav Volodin, Volodin, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Lavrov, Lidia Kelly, Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Sonali Paul Organizations: Reuters, Organization for Security, OSCE, Soviet, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Duma, Federation Council, United, Russia's Locations: Parliamentary, Ukraine, U.S, Russia, Washington, United Russia, Baltic

Russia's parliament approved a federal budget Wednesday that increases spending by around 25% in 2024-2026 and devotes a record amount to defense. The budget was passed unanimously by the Federation Council — the upper chamber of the Russian parliament — and will be sent to President Vladimir Putin to sign it into law. Under the budget, the country’s largest, defense expenditure is expected to overtake social spending next year for the first time in modern Russian history. It comes as the Kremlin is eager to shore up support for President Vladimir Putin before a March presidential election. Record low unemployment, higher wages and targeted social spending should help the Kremlin ride out the domestic impact of pivoting the economy to a war footing but could pose a problem in the long term, analysts say.

Persons: —, Vladimir Putin, Vyacheslav Volodin, ”, Richard Connolly Organizations: Federation Council, Royal United Services Institute Locations: Russia, Ukraine, London

MOSCOW (AP) — The upper house of the Russian parliament on Wednesday revoked the ratification of a global nuclear test ban in what Moscow has describes as a move to establish parity with the United States. The Federation Council voted to endorse a bill rescinding the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, also known as the CTBT. There are widespread concerns that Russia could move to resume nuclear tests to try to discourage the West from continuing to offer military support to Ukraine. Political Cartoons View All 1218 ImagesPutin has noted that while some experts have argued that it's necessary to conduct nuclear tests, he hasn’t yet formed an opinion on the issue. Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said earlier this month that Moscow will continue to respect the ban and will only resume nuclear tests if Washington does it first.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Sergei Ryabkov, Ryabkov, ” Ryabkov Organizations: MOSCOW, The Federation Council, Comprehensive, Russian Foreign Ministry Locations: Moscow, United States, U.S, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, Israel, Iran, Egypt, Russia, Ukraine, Washington

☆ Russia says it has a 'glaring issue:' More than half of its wounded soldiers are amputees
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

More than half of Russian troops injured in the Ukraine war have had amputations, a Russian official said. Hundreds of thousands of Russian troops have been injured or killed since the start of the war. AdvertisementAdvertisementMore than half of the Russian troops wounded in the Kremlin's grinding war against Ukraine are now amputees, according to a Russian government official who called the situation a "glaring" problem. Upper limb amputations account for 20% of the amputations that Russian soldiers wounded on the battlefields in Ukraine have had, Vovchenko noted, Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported. AdvertisementAdvertisementVovchenko said that an average of three prosthetic and medical care products have been prescribed to injured Russian troops seeking treatment.

Persons: Alexey Vovchenko, Gazeta, —, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Vovchenko, Oleksandr Vynogradov Organizations: Service, Labor, Social, Russian Federation, Rossiyskaya, Federation Council, New York Times Locations: Ukraine, Russia

☆ European leaders say they can’t fully replace U.S. support to Ukraine as funding fears grow
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Gathering in Granada, Spain, for a summit of the European Political Community, European leaders sought to reaffirm their commitment to Ukraine amid Russia's full-scale invasion. He has insisted, however, that a majority of members across both major parties support funding Kyiv. "Ukraine needs the support of the European Union, which is sure, they will have it and we will increase it. "As far as I oversee the situation in the United States, I am very confident of support for Ukraine from the United States. Asked whether the EU could step in if the U.S. does not resume its support for Ukraine, Rutte said, "It is not necessary.

Persons: Josep Borrell, Jorge Guerrero, Joe Biden, Robert Fico, Washington's, Borrell, Viktor Bondarev, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy, Ursula von der Leyen, Biden, Mark Rutte, Rutte Organizations: EU, Representative, Union for Foreign Affairs, Palacio, Congreso, Afp, Getty, Political Community, Wednesday, Republican, U.S . Congress, European Union, Kyiv, Russia's Federation, Committee, Defense, Security, European Commission, Congresos, Political, Europa Press, Dutch, U.S . House, Representatives, Hague, Ukraine Locations: Granada, Spain, U.S, Ukraine, Europe, Russian, Slovakia, Kyiv, EU, America, Russia, Andalusia, United States, Netherlands

Zuppi will meet Biden on Tuesday at the White House where they will discuss the suffering caused by the war, humanitarian aid and "the Papal See’s focus on repatriating Ukrainian children forcibly deported by Russian officials," the White House said. The Kyiv government estimates nearly 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea since February 2022, in what it condemns as illegal deportations. The International Criminal Court (ICC) in March issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. Earlier in June, he visited Kyiv and met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. The plan calls for restoring Ukraine's territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops and cessation of hostilities, and the restoration of Ukraine's state borders.

Persons: Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Pope Francis, Joe Biden, Zuppi, Biden, Vladimir Putin, Grigory Karasin, Francis ., Kirill, Russia's, Maria Lvova, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Philip Pullella, Costas Pitas, Federica Urso, Grant McCool Organizations: CITY, U.S, White, Criminal Court, ICC, Federation Council, Church, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Washington, Crimea, Kherson, Russian, Ukraine's, Zuppi, Moscow, Kyiv

CNN —The Russian State Duma, or lower house of parliament, has voted in favor of a new law banning nearly all medical help for transgender people including gender reassignment surgery, in a raft of new anti-LGBTQ laws in Russia. These recent legal developments in Russia expand the constraints on the LGBTQ community and reflect a tightening of regulations and control over transgender rights in the country. Russia’s first transgender politician, Yulia Alyoshina, has warned of the severe consequences of the proposed transgender bill. The latest restrictions seem to be closely intertwined with the ongoing dissent on the political and human rights activity in Russia. The Russian state labeled OVD-Info a foreign agent in 2021 under a law that critics say suppresses dissent.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Russia’s, Yulia Alyoshina, “, ” Alyoshina, Alyoshina Organizations: CNN, Russian State Duma, Federation Council, Putin, State Duma, Civic Initiative, Federal Security Service, FSB, Armed Forces Locations: Russia, Ukraine, State, Russian, Oryol

☆ Turkey eyes recalibration with the West as Russia’s isolation grows
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Zeena Saifi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

His delicate balancing act has given Turkey a unique position of being the only NATO nation whose ear Russia has. “By backing Sweden’s NATO bid…Ankara is signaling a recalibration in ties with the West, which have been strained for a while now,” said Memet Celik, editorial coordinator for the pro-government Daily Sabah newspaper. “In a larger sense, Russia’s unjustified war against Ukraine reminded the West of the importance of geography, hard military power, and alliance commitments – and thus the value of Turkey,” he said. Turkey, however, is likely to continue to be relevant to both Russia and the West. “Due to proximity, power, and relations with both Kyiv and Moscow, Turkey will be a key player in conflict resolution and whatever peace deal ultimately emerges,” said Outzen.

Persons: CNN —, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, ”, Memet Celik, Joe Biden, Washington, Biden, Tuesday’s, ” Erdogan, Rich Outzen, –, “, ” Viktor Bondarev, Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia’s ‘, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Putin’s, Outzen, Russia’s “, Ukraine ”, Sinan Ulgen, Erdogan’s, Russia aren’t Organizations: CNN, Nordic, European Union, NATO, …, Daily, West, White House, Atlantic Council, Ukraine, “, Ankara, Russia’s Federation, Committee, Defense, Security, Putin, Kyiv Locations: NATO, Russia, Moscow, Ukraine, Turkey, Turkish, … Ankara, Daily Sabah, Vilnius, Lithuania, Ankara, “, “ Ankara, Istanbul, “ Turkey, Celik

☆ Moscow says 700,000 children from Ukraine conflict zones now in Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Pavel Klimov/File PhotoJuly 3 (Reuters) - Russia has brought some 700,000 children from the conflict zones in Ukraine into Russian territory, Grigory Karasin, head of the international committee in the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, said late on Sunday. "In recent years, 700,000 children have found refuge with us, fleeing the bombing and shelling from the conflict areas in Ukraine," Karasin wrote on his Telegram messaging channel. Moscow says its progranme of bring children from Ukraine into Russian territory is to protect orphans and children abandoned in the conflict zone. However, Ukraine says many children have been illegally deported and the United States says thousands of children have been forcibly removed from their homes. In July 2022, the United States estimated that Russia "forcibly deported" 260,000 children, while Ukraine's Ministry of Integration of Occupied Territories, says 19,492 Ukrainian children are currently considered illegally deported.

Persons: Pavel Klimov, Grigory Karasin, Karasin, Lidia Kelly, Michael Perry Organizations: Federation Council, Ukraine, United, Ukraine's Ministry, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Mariupol, Moscow, United States, Melbourne

☆ The widow of Putin's political mentor and mother of his rumored goddaughter is increasingly voicing concerns about Russia's war in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A prominent Russian senator with close ties to Putin is increasingly criticizing the war in Ukraine. Sen. Lyudmila Narusova, whose late husband was a mentor to Putin, has been a skeptic of the war since the start. "Nobody has explained how victory is supposed to look," Narusova told an interviewer with Forbes Russia in an April video, according to a translation in The Washington Post. "I think they themselves do not know what they are doing," Narusova told the independent Dozhd channel in February 2022, per The Times. His widow's public defiance is a sign of the worry growing among top Russian officials ahead of Ukraine's much-anticipated counteroffensive.

April 12 (Reuters) - Sberbank (SBER.MM), Russia's dominant lender and a leading technology company, is finding graphics cards the trickiest hardware item to replace in the absence of Western providers, CEO German Gref said on Wednesday. Sberbank needs the cards for its artificial intelligence services and super computers and Western sanctions over Moscow's actions in Ukraine have curbed Russia's access to some technology imports. "We depend first and foremost on technology called hardware," Gref told lawmakers in the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament. "And probably the most critical position is graphics cards, microelectronics - video cards for high-performance computing." In the absence of Western imports, local companies have enhanced efforts to increase domestic production and cushion the blow.

☆ Activists rally, some governments seek change as world marks Women's Day
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Demonstrators take part in a march to call for gender equality and protest against gender discrimination, marking the International Women's Day in Tokyo, Japan March 8, 2021. REUTERS/Issei KatoMarch 8 (Reuters) - Activists planned rallies and marches to celebrate International Women's Day on Wednesday while governments in several countries promised action to help improve the lot of half the world's population. International Women's Day has its roots in the U.S. socialist and labour movements of the early 20th century when many women were fighting for better working conditions and the right to vote. In Russia, where International Women's Day is one of the most celebrated public holidays, the head of its upper house of parliament used the occasion to launch a vehement attack on sexual minorities and liberal values promoted by the West. Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Raju Gopalakrishnan; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russia backs banning of maps disputing official 'territorial integrity'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] A woman walks past a building with Russian flags placed on its wall in Saint Petersburg, Russia April 24, 2022. REUTERS/Anton VaganovJan 8 (Reuters) - Russia's government extended support to a legislative amendment that would classify maps that dispute the country's official "territorial integrity" as punishable extremist materials, the state-owned TASS news agency reported on Sunday. The amendment to Russia's anti-extremism legislation stipulates that "cartographic and other documents and images that dispute the territorial integrity of Russia" will be classified as extremist materials, the agency reported. The new amendment, TASS reports without citing sources, emerged after its authors pointed out that some maps distributed in Russia dispute the "territorial affiliation" of the Crimean Peninsula and the Kuril Islands. Ukrainians and their government have since often objected to world maps showing Crimea as part of Russia's territory.

☆ Brazil's Lula calls for peace at meetings with Russia, Ukraine representatives
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SAO PAULO, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva met on Saturday with representatives of Russia and Ukraine ahead of his inauguration and called for an end to the war between the two countries. Lula, who will be sworn in on Sunday, said on Twitter he had separately met with the speaker of Russia's Federation Council, Valentina Matvienko, and Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko. The two were in Brazil to represent their countries at Lula's inauguration and met both him and his future foreign relations minister, Mauro Vieira, according to pictures shared by the leftist leader. Lula said he told Matvienko that Brazil wishes for "peace and for the parties to find common ground to end the conflict," which began when Moscow sent troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24. Reporting by Gabriel Araujo, Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russia's Kudrin to leave Audit Chamber, opening door to Yandex move
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kudrin, who has been seen as both a pro-Western economic liberal and close ally of President Vladimir Putin throughout his career, would become the highest profile government official to leave a post since Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February. "In total, I spent about 25 years in the public sector," Kudrin wrote on his Telegram channel. He served as a powerful finance minister for more than a decade between 2000 and 2011, and while maintaining close ties with Putin, Kudrin kept a relatively low profile in his current role as head of the Audit Chamber, Russia's public spending watchdog. In a late-night meeting last week, Kudrin and Putin discussed Yandex's future, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Reporting by Marina Bobrova, Jake Cordell and Alexander Marrow; Editing by Himani SarkarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Putin introduces martial law in illegally annexed Ukrainian regions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday introduced martial law in the four regions of Ukraine that Russia illegally annexed last month. The decision, announced as Putin addressed a meeting of the Russian Security Council on Wednesday, will likely mean that the regions' civil administrations will be replaced by military ones. "Constitutional laws on the admission of four new regions into the Russian Federation have come into force. Putin said he had signed a decree on the introduction of martial law in these four regions and this will now be sent for approval by the Federation Council, or Senate. Martial law is often introduced as a temporary measure when civil authorities are deemed to be in crisis and struggling to function.

☆ Russia fines Amazon over banned content for first time
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies This content was produced in Russia, where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine. The Tagansky District Court said it had fined Amazon 4 million roubles in two separate cases, although its statement did not specify what these were. It also fined Amazon's streaming service Twitch 8 million roubles, also for not removing banned content. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterInterfax news agency reported that Amazon's fines concerned content about the distribution of drugs and information about how to commit suicide. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Alexander Marrow; additional reporting by Felix Light; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Kevin LiffeyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Kremlin says no decisions taken on border closure amid mobilisation
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MOSCOW, Sept 26 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday that no decisions had been taken on closing Russia's borders, amid an exodus of military-age men since President Vladimir Putin declared a partial mobilisation last Wednesday. Asked about the possibility of border closures in a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "I don't know anything about this. Russian media have reported a string of cases of elderly or medically exempt men being called up for service in Ukraine. The comments come amid rising fears of a border closure, with Russia's frontiers seeing an unprecedented outflow of military-aged men since the partial mobilisation was declared last week. On Sunday, Novaya Gazeta reported that 261,000 men had left the country since partial mobilisation was declared, citing an unnamed source in Russia's presidential administration.

☆ Senior Russian lawmakers express concern over Putin's mobilization drive 'excesses'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Hyder Abbasi | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Amid increasing public anger about Russia's mobilization drive, two of the country's most senior lawmakers ordered regional officials to solve the “excesses” that have stoked protests and seen flocks of military-age men attempt to flee. “Appeals are coming in,” Volodin, speaker of the Duma, Russia’s lower chamber of Parliament, said in a post Sunday. Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin in St. Petersburg in April. It said hundreds of people had been detained by police across Russia for protesting against the mobilization and the war. The territory controlled by Russian or Russian-backed forces in the four regions represents about 15% of Ukrainian territory.

☆ Putin allies express concern over mobilisation 'excesses'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Governor of the Novgorod region Andrei Nikitin in the city of Veliky Novgorod, Russia, September 21, 2022. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS/File PhotoSept 25 (Reuters) - Russia's two most senior lawmakers on Sunday addressed a string of complaints about Russia's mobilisation drive, ordering regional officials to get a handle on the situation and swiftly solve the "excesses" that have stoked public anger. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterRussia's top two parliamentarians, both close Putin allies, explicitly addressed public anger at the way the mobilisation drive was unfolding. Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the State Duma, Russia's lower chamber, also expressed concern in a separate post. The Kremlin has twice denied it actually plans to draft more than one million, following two separate reports in independent Russian media outlets.

☆ Russian soldiers who desert their posts could face up to 10 years in jail under legislation that passed the lower house of parliament a day before Putin announced 'partial mobilization'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia's lower house of parliament approved a bill that toughens punishments for soldiers. The bill increases jail time for soldiers deserting their posts and adds a reference to "mobilization." The law was approved just a day before President Putin announced a "partial mobilization." The State Duma passed the bill on Tuesday that increases jail time for soldiers who desert their unit from five years to up to 10 years. The bill passed just a day before Putin announced plans for a "partial mobilization" of the country's military reserve forces, drafting about 300,000 reservists, according to The Washington Post.

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