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☆ Putin Opponent Alexei Navalny Dies in Arctic Jail, Russia Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

By Guy Faulconbridge, Felix LightMOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia's most prominent opposition leader Alexei Navalny collapsed and died on Friday after a walk at the "Polar Wolf" Arctic penal colony where he was serving a long jail term, the Russian prison service said. "Russian authorities publish a confession that they killed Alexei Navalny in prison," Navalny aide Leonid Volkov wrote on social media. "Alexei Navalny paid with his life for his resistance to a system of oppression," France's Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said. "My sincere belief is that it was the conditions of detention that led to Navalny's death," Russian newspaper editor and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov told Reuters. Navalny long forecast Russia could face seismic political turmoil, including revolution, because he said Putin built a brittle system of personal rule reliant on sycophancy and corruption.

Persons: Guy Faulconbridge, Felix Light, Alexei Navalny, Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Leonid Volkov, Stephane Sejourne, Vladimir Putin's, Navalny's, Kira Yarmysh, Dmitry Muratov, Putin, Yulia, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Federal Penitentiary Service, Nenets Autonomous, IK, Kremlin, Peace, Reuters, KREMLIN, U.S, CIA Locations: Nenets, Nenets Autonomous District, Kharp, Moscow, Russian, Russia, Germany, Siberia, Europe

☆ Kremlin Denies Reuters Report That Putin Offered a Ceasefire in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin on Wednesday denied a Reuters report that Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a ceasefire in Ukraine to the United States via intermediaries. Asked if the Reuters report that Russia had made peace proposals was true, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "No. Russian President Vladimir Putin sent signals to Washington in 2023 in public and privately through intermediaries, including through Moscow's Arab partners in the Middle East, that he was ready to consider a ceasefire in Ukraine, Russian sources told Reuters. Intermediaries met in Turkey in late 2023, according to three Russian sources, and White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan telephoned Putin's foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, in January. The Latest Photos From Ukraine View All 91 ImagesPhotos You Should See View All 22 Images(Writing by Felix Light; Editing by Mark Trevelyan/Guy Faulconbridge)

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Jake Sullivan, Yuri Ushakov, Felix Light, Mark Trevelyan, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: Wednesday, Reuters, Kremlin, White House National Locations: MOSCOW, Ukraine, United States, Russia, Washington, Turkey

☆ Russia's Military Drone Production Ramping Up, Says Defence Minister
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said in footage published by his ministry on Saturday that the country's production of military drones had ramped up in the past year, though certain technical issues still needed tackling. Russia has made extensive use of drones in the course of the almost two year-long military campaign in Ukraine, but has often had to rely on cheap Iranian-made Shahed drones. "The production capacities that have been created allow us to complete most of the tasks that we are faced with today," Shoigu said during a tour of drone production facilities in the Volga river region of Udmurtia. He was shown telling a meeting of officials that issues related to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in drones and electronic warfare still needed to be resolved. The Latest Photos From Ukraine View All 91 ImagesMoscow has in recent months been signalling that its military industrial complex has stepped up production, as Russia seeks to break months of military deadlock in Ukraine.

Persons: Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu, Felix Light, Helen Popper Organizations: Russian Defence, Reuters Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Ukraine, Udmurtia, Moscow

☆ Russia Says It Foiled Ukrainian Drone Attack on Civilian Cargo Ships in Black Sea
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia said on Saturday it had repelled an attempted Ukrainian drone attack on Russian "civilian transport ships" on Friday evening in the southwestern part of the Black Sea, a key artery for grain and oil exports from both countries. It said Russian patrol boats and warplanes had averted the attack, destroying one Ukrainian naval drone by artillery fire and disabling the rest by electronic warfare. A day later, Ukraine said it would adopt the same stance on ships bound for Russian and Russian-controlled Ukrainian ports. The southwestern part of the Black Sea adjoins Turkey's Bosphorus Strait through which cargoes leaving the sea travel. Ukraine has in recent months mounted a series of drone and missile attacks on Russian military targets in the Black Sea, sinking at least one naval vessel and damaging others.

Persons: ReutersWriting, Felix LightEditing, Helen PopperEditing, Mark Heinrich, Giles Elgood, Helen Popper Organizations: Civilian, Russia's Defence Ministry Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Ukrainian, Russian, Moscow, Ukraine, Turkish

☆ U.S. Investor Calvey Pleads Guilty to Russian Embezzlement Charge - Ifax Cites Court
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. investor Michael Calvey pleaded guilty to embezzling 2.5 billion roubles ($27.7 million), Interfax reported on Thursday, citing a court of cassation. Calvey, the founder of Russia-focused private equity group Baring Vostok, was detained along with other executives in early 2019 on charges of embezzlement linked to mid-sized lender Vostochny. In 2021, he was given a five and a half year suspended sentence. Lawyers for Calvey could not be immediately reached for comment. ($1 = 90.3675 roubles)(Writing by Felix Light; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)

Persons: Michael Calvey, cassation, Baring, Felix Light, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: Calvey Locations: MOSCOW, Russia

☆ One Killed in Flood at Mine in Russia's Arctic North - Emergency Services
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - One miner was killed and another injured by a flood at a coal mine in the Russia's Arctic Komi region, Russia's emergencies ministry said on Monday. Groundwater broke through into the Zapolyarnaya mine, flooding parts of it at a depth of 600 metres. Around 60 people were working in the mine at the time, three of whom were at the site where the water broke through, the ministry said. In a statement, VorkutaUgol, the company that operates the mine, said that all miners had been evacuated to the surface and work at the shaft stopped. It said that a special commission was working to establish the causes of the accident.

Persons: VorkutaUgol, Felix Light, Guy Faulconbridge Locations: MOSCOW, Komi

☆ Russian Poet Lev Rubinstein Dies at 76 -Daughter
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Lev Rubinstein, a Russian poet known for his conceptual art work subverting traditional Soviet era forms, died on Sunday, his daughter Maria said on Sunday. "My papa, Lev Rubinstein, died today," she wrote on her blog. Rubinstein, who was 76 years old, was hit by a car in Moscow on Jan 8 and spent several days in a coma before succumbing to his injuries. Rubinstein began his literary career in the 1960s, and rose to prominence as a founder and leader of the Moscow Conceptualist school of artists and poets. In recent years, he had been a defender of Russia's embattled opposition, taking public stances against the Kremlin's crackdown on LGBT rights, and, since 2014, its military interventions in Ukraine.

Persons: Lev Rubinstein, Maria, Rubinstein, Felix Light, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: Moscow Locations: MOSCOW, Russian, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ Karabakh refugees in Armenia face uncertainty and poverty in exile
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/5] Elada Sargsyan, 54, a refugee from Nagorno-Karbakh region, poses for a picture in a disused kindergarten, where she now lives temporarily along with dozens of other refugees from Karabakh, in the town of Masis, Armenia November 22, 2023. Born in the Azerbaijani capital Baku, Sargsyan fled her hometown in 1988, aged 19, as the Soviet Union began to fall apart. In 2020, they lost another home, when Azerbaijan - by now closely allied with Armenians' bête noire, Turkey - reconquered much of Karabakh including their village in a second war. Like many refugees, they have struggled to find work in Armenia. Alvina, a grandmother aged 65, has become the family’s main breadwinner, earning a little money selling homemade "jingalov hats" or "green bread", a flatbread stuffed with herbs that is a staple for Karabakh Armenians.

Persons: Elada Sargsyan, Irakli, Sargsyan, I’ve, they’ll, Masis, Alina Harutyunyan, Harutyunyan, I'd, Lilia Abrahamyan, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Soviet Union, Mount, Karabakh, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Masis, Armenia, Azerbaijan, MASIS, Baku, Soviet, Soviet Armenia, Aknaghbyur, Turkey, Armenia’s, Yerevan, Mount Ararat, Harutyunagomer, Ottoman Turks, Karabakh's, Vanadzor, Alvina

☆ OSCE Limps Through Another Year as Russia Relents on Veto
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Dec. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

SKOPJE (Reuters) - The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) should continue to function for another year as frequent holdout Russia joined others on Friday in approving Malta as OSCE chair for 2024 and extending four senior officials in their positions. The OSCE is the successor to a body set up during the Cold War for the east and west to engage with each other. In recent years, however, and especially since it invaded Ukraine, Russia has used what is effectively a veto each country has to block many key decisions, often crippling the organization. Russia spent months preventing NATO member Estonia from becoming the next OSCE chair as originally planned. While relenting on vetoes that could have brought the OSCE even closer to collapse, Russia showed no sign of warming to its critics among the OSCE's 56 other member states, particularly the United States.

Persons: Russia, Helga Schmid, Ukraine's, Sergei Lavrov, Antony Blinken, relenting, Lavrov, Blinken, OSCE Michael Carpenter, Fedja Grulovic, Felix Light, Francois Murphy Organizations: Reuters, Organization, Security, Cooperation, OSCE, NATO, Russian, Union Locations: SKOPJE, Europe, Malta, Ukraine, Russia, Estonia, Friday's, Macedonia, Skopje, Baltic, U.S, United States, Moscow

☆ Russia's Kaliningrad digitises hometown philosopher Kant's works
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] A visitor stands next to a copy of German philosopher Immanuel Kant's death mask exhibited in the museum located at the Cathedral, also known as the Koenigsberg Cathedral, in Kaliningrad, Russia, November 26, 2023. "The principal mission of libraries is to preserve books," said Ruslan Aksyonkin, an expert at the culture and education centre at Baltic University in the city of Kaliningrad. Even so, modern-day Kaliningrad remains fond of its most famous German resident, despite the abstruseness of his ideas. The city's university bears his name, and Kant's tomb and a small exhibition on the philosopher have pride of place in the restored German cathedral. "But we do have certain items, and they are Kant's works published during his lifetime."

Persons: Immanuel Kant's, Stringer, Ruslan Aksyonkin, Immanuel Kant, Kant, Little, Germany's, Marina Yadova, They're, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Baltic University, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Kaliningrad, Russia, KALININGRAD, Poland, Lithuania, Baltic, Prussian, Koenigsberg, Soviet Union

☆ Russian court extends pre-trial detention of U.S. journalist until Feb. 5
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Alexey Nasyrov Acquire Licensing RightsKAZAN, Russia, Dec 1 (Reuters) - A Russia court extended the detention of Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva on Friday as she awaits trial for failing to register as a "foreign agent". The court in the city of Kazan prolonged her detention untilFeb. 5. Kurmasheva holds both U.S. and Russian passports, and entered Russia on May 20 to deal with a family emergency, RFE/RL said. According to court documents, Kurmasheva was fined 10,000 roubles ($103) on Oct. 11 for failing to register her U.S. passport with Russian authorities. Kurmasheva is the second U.S. journalist detained in Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Persons: Alsu Kurmasheva, Alexey Nasyrov, Jeffrey Gedmin, Alsu, Kurmasheva, Evan Gershkovich, Gershkovich, Joe Biden, Felix Light, Mark Trevelyan Organizations: Radio Free, Radio Liberty, RFE, REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Congress, Wall, U.S, Reuters, Thomson Locations: American, Radio Free Europe, Kazan, Russia, Prague, Ukraine, U.S, Moscow

☆ Russia Says Dual Russian-Italian National Arrested for Train Bombing on Behalf of Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Dec. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian investigators said on Friday a dual Russian-Italian national had been detained for planting bombs on railway tracks as part of a sabotage campaign orchestrated by Ukrainian military intelligence. After his arrest, the man, born in 1988 and a resident of Ryazan, confessed to planting home-made bombs that derailed a freight train in central Russia on Nov. 11, according to investigators. The Committee said the detained man admitted undergoing "sabotage training in Latvia with the direct participation of the Latvian special services." Ukrainian military intelligence could not be reached for immediate comment. (Writing by Felix Light; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Jamie Freed)

Persons: Felix Light, Guy Faulconbridge, Jamie Freed Organizations: Main Intelligence, Ministry of Defense, Reuters Locations: MOSCOW, Russian, Ukrainian, Ryazan, Russia, Ukraine, Latvia, Latvian, Rybnoe, Moscow

☆ Russia accuses Bulgaria of malice over diplomatic overflight ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Russia accused Bulgaria of malice and stupidity on Thursday for refusing to allow Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's plane to fly through its airspace. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, who is under European Union sanctions, said her presence on board the plane was the reason given by Bulgaria's foreign ministry for denying access to its airspace. Zakharova suggested that Russia could apply similar overflight bans to "thousands of NATO functionaries", and accused Bulgaria of creating "a dangerous precedent". Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania declared a boycott of the meeting in Skopje in protest of the Russian delegation's presence. Athens took all the steps required before allowing the overflight, the official added.

Persons: Sergei Lavrov's, Lavrov, Dmitry Peskov, Maria Zakharova, Zakharova, Felix Light, Mark Trevelyan, Kevin Liffey, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Organisation for Security, Cooperation, Kremlin, Russian Foreign Ministry, European Union, Bulgarian, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Bulgaria, Greece, Europe, Skopje, North Macedonia, Russian, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Athens

☆ Possible Polish plan to send troops to Russian border will stoke tensions -Kremlin
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Closed Vaalimaa border station between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland on November 29, 2023. Finland closes temporarily its sole remaining border crossing with Russia. "A team of military advisors will provide on-site knowledge on border security, also in operational terms," he said. Finland has closed its border with Russia after a sudden wave of refugee arrivals that Helsinki said was orchestrated by Moscow, something Russia has denied. In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in reference to Poland's possible moving of troops to the border: "This is an absolutely redundant measure to ensure border security, because there is no threat there."

Persons: Lehtikuva, Lauri Heino, Jacek Siewiera, Sauli Niinisto, Andrzej Duda, Dmitry Peskov, Anne Kauranen, Felix Light, Andrew Osborn, Bernadette Baum Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, stoke, Poland's National Security, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Finland, Russia, Virolahti, MOSCOW, HELSINKI, Poland, Helsinki, Moscow, Warsaw

☆ Kremlin warns of tensions if Poland sends troops to Finnish-Russian border
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Closed Vaalimaa border station between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland on November 29, 2023. Finland closes temporarily its sole remaining border crossing with Russia. "A team of military advisers will provide on-site knowledge on border security, also in operational terms," he said. Finland's Border Guard and the interior ministry both said they were unaware of any plan to bring Polish military advisers to Finland's eastern border. Finland infuriated Russia earlier this year when it joined NATO, ending decades of military non-alignment, due to the war in Ukraine.

Persons: Lehtikuva, Lauri Heino, Jacek Siewiera, Dmitry Peskov, Sauli Niinisto, Andrzej Duda, Anne Kauranen, Felix Light, Andrew Osborn, Gareth Jones Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Kremlin, Polish National Security Bureau, NATO, Finland's Border Guard, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Finland, Russia, Virolahti, MOSCOW, HELSINKI, Moscow, Poland, Helsinki, Finnish, Warsaw, Ukraine

☆ Three dead as storm hits Crimea and Russia's Black Sea coast
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Fierce storms killed three people on the Russian and Crimean Black Sea coast on Monday, with hundreds evacuated. Storms have been raging in the Black Sea since Friday. Video published online showed large waves sweeping over the seafront in Sochi, and carrying away cars. The Russian-installed governors of Crimea and Sevastopol, both of which Moscow seized and unilaterally annexed from Ukraine in 2014, declared states of emergency. In the Russian port of Novorossiysk, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium and Russia's Transneft state oil pipeline company announced a halt to loadings due to weather conditions.

Persons: Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: TASS, Energy Ministry, Caspian Pipeline Consortium, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Crimean, State, Sochi, Kerch, Crimea, Russian, Yevpatoriya, Sevastopol, Ukraine, Dagestan, Krasnodar, Rostov, Russia, Novorossiysk

☆ Kremlin notes Argentina President-elect Milei's comments on Russia, but hopes for good ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday it had taken note of statements about Russia from Argentina's President-elect Javier Milei, but wanted to maintain strong ties with Buenos Aires. Milei has also expressed support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia and has said that he sees the United States and Israel as Argentina's main partners. "We support the development of bilateral relations with Argentina," added Peskov. Argentina's outgoing centre-left government had maintained close ties with Russia, importing Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 and pushing to join the Moscow-backed BRICS group of nations. Reporting by Reuters Writing by Felix Light Editing by Andrew OsbornOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Javier Milei, Milei, Dmitry Peskov, Felix Light, Andrew Osborn Organizations: Argentina's, Sunday, Ukraine, COVID, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Buenos Aires, China, Brazil, United States, Israel, Argentina, Moscow

☆ Georgia boils Caucasian grape candy as wine harvest ends
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( David Chkhikvishvili | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Roman Churikov/ File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTBILISI, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Georgia's grape harvest may be over, but vineyard owner and hotelier George Piradashvili's work for the year is far from finished. At his winery in the eastern region of Khakheti, Piradashvili is boiling leftover grape juice from this year's harvest - on strings, together with flour and walnuts, to produce a signature delicacy: churchkhela. Throughout Georgia, the sticks of hard-boiled grape juice studded with walnuts hang from market stalls and shops. Chewy churchkhela sticks go some way to sweetening an otherwise heavy and often spicy diet. The grape juice must be stirred to prevent it setting too soon as it boils and thickens in great vats for hours on end - a highly physical task.

Persons: George Piradashvili, George Piradashvili's, Piradashvili, Fabrizio, Gvantsa, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Telavi , Georgia, Rights TBILISI, Khakheti, Throughout Georgia, Georgia, Russia, Turkey, Tbilisi, Argentina

☆ Russia: Armenia Skipping CSTO Summit Is Latest Anti-Russian Move Orchestrated by West
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Wednesday that Armenian Prime Minister's Nikol Pashinyan's decision to stay away from a summit of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) was the latest anti-Russian move by Armenia orchestrated by the West. Relations between Russia and Armenia, which are formally allies, have soured in recent months, with Yerevan publicly questioning the value of its partnership with Russia and trying to deepen ties with the West. Some Armenians blamed Russia for failing to stop what Baku called an anti-terrorist operation, an allegation that Moscow has rejected. Russian Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that Russia saw Pashinyan's refusal to attend the CSTO summit as the latest in a "chain" of events. The West, whose plans in Ukraine have failed, is now gripping Armenia, trying to tear it away from Russia," she said.

Persons: Minister's Nikol, Maria Zakharova, Armenpress, Dmitry Antonov, Felix Light, Andrew Osborn Organizations: Security, Organisation, West . Relations, West, Russian Foreign, Russia Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Armenia, Yerevan, Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Baku, Moscow, Russian, Ukraine

☆ Google fined $164,000 for failing to store user data inside Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

An illuminated Google logo is seen inside an office building in Zurich, Switzerland December 5, 2018. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Google (GOOGL.O) was fined 15 million roubles ($164,000) on Tuesday for repeated refusal to store Russian users' data on servers inside Russia, a Moscow court said. Russia has repeatedly clashed with foreign technology companies over content, censorship, data and local representation in a simmering dispute that intensified after Moscow sent its armed forces into Ukraine in February 2022. Google's Russian subsidiary has been under pressure in Russia for failing to delete content Moscow deems illegal and for restricting access to some Russian media on YouTube. The technology giant's Russian unit filed for bankruptcy in summer 2022 after authorities seized its bank account, making it impossible to pay staff and vendors.

Persons: Arnd, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, YouTube, Kremlin, Twitter, Facebook, Google, Thomson Locations: Zurich, Switzerland, Russia, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ Russian gold miner Uzhuralzoloto announces IPO despite UK sanctions on owner
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Anastasia Lyrchikova | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Alfa Bank analysts valued UGC's share capital at 140.5-170.8 billion roubles ($1.53-1.86 billion). Britain imposed sanctions on 29 individuals and entities in Russia's gold and oil sectors on Wednesday, including Strukov and two of Russia's largest gold producers, Nord Gold and Highland Gold Mining, but not UGC itself. Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) also issued an alert to financial institutions, warning them about Russian attempts to use gold to evade sanctions. Strukov said the IPO would allow UGC to reach more investors, diversify the shareholder structure and lower its debt burden. A string of small offerings has breathed some life into Russia's equity capital markets in recent months.

Persons: Uzhuralzoloto, Konstantin Strukov, Strukov, Anastasia Lyrchikova, Felix Light, Alexander Marrow, Mark Potter Organizations: UGC, Alfa Bank, Reuters, Nord, Highland Gold Mining, Crime Agency, Astra, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine MOSCOW, Moscow, Britain, Ukraine, Nord Gold

☆ Anti-Semitic riot in Russia's Dagestan leaves some local Jews shaken
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] A view of gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in the ancient city of Derbent on the Caspian Sea coast in the Caucasus region of Dagestan, Russia, November 2, 2023. With row after row of gravestones engraved with the Star of David or portraits and pictures of the dead, Derbent's Jewish cemetery gives an indication of how large this coastal city's Jewish population once was. One of a string of enclaves of so-called Mountain Jews that pepper both Russia's Caucasus and neighbouring Azerbaijan, Derbent's Jews still speak a dialect of Persian that evokes their hometown's rich history. Today there are barely 2,000 Jews still living in Dagestan, once home to 10 times that." Alexander Fedotov, who was visiting Derbent's Jewish cemetery with Zoya Solomonova, said he thought the airport riot had been planned by someone intent on spoiling ties between Russia and Israel.

Persons: Kazbek Basayev, Zoya Solomonova, Vladimir Putin, David, Derbent's, Derbent, Shneor Segal, Alexander Fedotov, Eduard Ilgiyaev, I've, I'm, Andrew Osborn, Felix Light, Daniel Wallis Organizations: REUTERS, West, Star, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Derbent, Caucasus, Dagestan, Russia, St Petersburg, Makhachkala, Tel Aviv, Gaza, Ukraine, Soviet Union, Israel, Moscow, Chechnya, Azerbaijan

☆ Russian oligarch Kuzmichev put under formal investigation in France - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Nov 1 (Reuters) - French investigative judges on Wednesday put Russian tycoon Alexey Kuzmichev under formal investigation, a source at the financial prosecutor's office said. Kuzmichev, who had been held for questioning since Monday, was put under formal investigation over allegations of laundering of tax evasion proceeds, money laundering and concealed work, the source said. While the financial prosecutor's office had sought for Kuzmichev to be placed in pre-trial detention, he will be set free under judicial supervision, the source said. Being placed under formal investigation in France does not imply guilt or necessarily lead to trial but shows judicial authorities consider there is enough to the case to proceed with the probe. Kuzmichev was one of very few Russian tycoons who stayed in the West after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Persons: Alexey Kuzmichev, Kuzmichev, Vladimir Putin, Forbes, Russian tycoons, Ingrid Melander, Felix Light, Diane Craft, Sandra Maler Organizations: Wednesday, Kuzmichev's Paris, European Union, Russia's Alfa Bank, Thomson Locations: France, Ukraine, Russian, West, Russia

☆ Russia Arrests Man in Crimea for Passing Secrets to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Monday that it had detained a Russian man in Crimea on suspicion of treason, accusing him of passing military secrets to Ukraine, according to a state news agency. In a statement quoted by RIA, the FSB said that the unnamed man had "collected and transmitted information about specified sites with reference to geographic coordinates to a representative of the Ukrainian military". Crimea, which is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, has been under de facto Russian control since 2014. (Writing by Felix Light; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

Persons: Felix Light, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Federal Security Service, RIA Locations: MOSCOW, Russian, Crimea, Ukraine

☆ Kremlin: Dagestan airport violence result of 'outside influence'
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People walk as Pro-Palestinian protesters storm an airport building, in Makhachkala, Russia, October 29, 2023, in this screengrab taken from a video obtained by Reuters. Video Obtained by Reuters/via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Oct 30 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday that the storming of an airport in the capital of the southern Russian region of Dagestan by an anti-Israeli mob on Sunday was the result of "outside influence". In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "It is well known and obvious that yesterday's events around Makhachkala airport are largely the result of outside interference, including information influence." He did not specify who the Kremlin believed had engineered the violence, or why. Russia's interior ministry said on Monday that 60 people had been arrested after hundreds of anti-Israel protesters stormed the airport in Makhachkala on Sunday, shortly after a plane from Israel arrived.

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Makhachkala, Russia, Russian, Dagestan, Gaza, Israel

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