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☆ In India’s 2024 election, BJP’s main opposition appears increasingly weak in face of Modi juggernaut
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Helen Regan | Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +21 min

Supporters of India's opposition party, Indian National Congress, during an election rally in Puducherry on April 15, 2024 R. Satish Babu/AFP/Getty ImagesDemocracy under threat? Dipam Bhachech/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Modi worked his way through the ranks of the BJP, establishing himself as a respected politician. Tobias Schwarz/AFP/Getty Images Modi hugs French President Emmanuel Macron after a ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, on June 3, 2017. Brent Lewin/Bloomberg/Getty Images India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses Congress at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on June 22, 2023. Pedro Ugarte/AFP/Getty Images Modi offers a toast during a State Dinner with President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington, on June 22, 2023.

Persons: ”, Narendra Modi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Indira Gandhi, Gandhi, ” Hazari Lal Rajput, Satish Babu, Modi, Modi’s, Matthew Abbott, Hiraben, Damodardas, Dipam Bhachech, Lal Krishna Advani, Subhas Chandra Bose, Kalpit Bhachech, Kalpit, Negi Yasbant, Amit Dave, Ajit Solanki, Kevin Frayer, Saurabh Das, AP Modi, Manish Swarup, Lucas Jackson, Barack Obama, Adrien Helou, Reuters Modi, Adnan Abidi, Stringer, Mark Zuckerberg, David Paul Morris, Marco Longari, Angela Merkel, Tobias Schwarz, Emmanuel Macron, Charles Platiau, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, India's, Jair Bolsonaro, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Amit Shah, Money Sharma, Boris Johnson, Phil Noble, Anthony Albanese, Brent Lewin, Pedro Ugarte, Joe Biden, Doug Mills, Paul Mashatile, Jacoline, Imtiyaz Khan, Amr Alfiky, Arati Jerath, “, it’s, Rahul Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Indira, India’s, Jawaharlal Nehru, gunning, ” Modi, shouldn’t, Mohammad Irfan, —, Arvind Kejriwal, Altaf Qadri, Kejriwal, Atishi, you’re, Jerath, Gandhi ‘, ’ Modi, Christophe Jaffrelot, CNN Modi, Rasheed Kidwai, Rahul, Diptendu Dutta, Mamata Banerjee, Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin, ” Kidwai, ” Jerath Organizations: CNN, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Indian National Congress, Getty, Democracy, Modi’s BJP, Pew, New York Times, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Modi, Hospital, Narendra, India Today, AP, India's, Madison, Garden, Reuters, Washington , D.C, French National Space Agency, of Yoga, Meta, Facebook, Bloomberg, European, Saudi Arabia's Crown, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Kyodo, British, Summit, Qudos Bank, White, Anadolu Agency, Anadolu, United, United Arab Emirates, Developmental Inclusive Alliance, Indian, Aadmi Party, Delhi, AAP, Aam Aadmi Party, All, Trinamool, West, All India, Congress, “, “ Democracy Locations: India, Uttar Pradesh, Ramlila, Puducherry, Modi’s, Sydney, Australia, Gujarat, Ahmedabad, Ahmadabad, Varanasi, New Delhi, United States, Washington, Washington ,, Toulouse, France, Xian, AFP, Menlo Park , California, U.S, Pretoria, South Africa, China, Berlin, Paris, Rashtrapati, Russian, Brasilia, Glasgow, Red, Ayodhya, Abu Dhabi, United Arab, INDIA, Delhi, India’s, Lok Sabha, Atishi, ”, Manipur, Siliguri, West Bengal, Tamil

☆ Graham Sutherland’s study for the portrait Winston Churchill hated goes up for auction
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Caitlin Chatterton | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Churchill is talking about his own portrait, commissioned to celebrate his 80th birthday, as it is unveiled in London’s Westminster Hall in November 1954. This painted study of Churchill by Sutherland, made in preparation of the portrait, is up for auction for the first time. Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Sotheby'sWhile “The Crown” is not a documentary, it is true that the 80th birthday portrait —described by Churchill as “filthy and malignant” in a letter to his personal doctor — was burned. “(Sutherland) caught him in a much more relaxed, intimate way,” Zlattinger said of the study, a small canvas painted in oils. Graham Sutherland, seen with his-then unfinished but eventually much-maligned portrait of Churchill.

Persons: it’s, ” Winston Churchill, John Lithgow, Graham Sutherland, Stephen Dillane, ”, Churchill, ” Sutherland, “, Judas, Churchill’s, Clementine, Harriet Walter, Sutherland, Tristan Fewings, —, ” Andre Zlattinger, “ He’d, He’d, Churchill —, Alfred Hecht, ” Zlattinger, Hatshepsut of, Baron, Queen Elizabeth I, Robert Blyth ,, Elizabeth “, Queen Victoria, Elizabeth, Ira B, Nadel, ” Blyth, Elizabeth I, Blyth, ” Dr Caroline Rae, Stalin, ” Bryn Sayles, Jacob Epstein, Alexis Schwarzenbach, Queen Elizabeth, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, Cecil Beaton, Sayles, Gary Oldman’s Organizations: CNN, Hall, Modern, Irish, Sotheby’s New, Royal Museums Greenwich, Art, University College London, Conservative Party Locations: Sotheby’s, Sotheby’s New York, London, Sutherland, Queen, Downing, Suez, Blenheim, Oxford, New York, British, Swiss

☆ India general election 2024: Polls open in world’s biggest vote
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Polls will open Friday for the first phase of India’s marathon general election, kicking off a vote in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking to win a rare third consecutive term. Challenging the BJP is India’s main opposition party, the Indian National Congress, and its newly formed INDIA alliance of parties. India’s Election Commission has imposed restrictions on media, including CNN, that limits the publication of reporting and analysis in the run-up to and during polling days. Supporters of India's opposition party, Indian National Congress (INC) during the election campaign in Puducherry on April 15, 2024. Among the most politically important states is Uttar Pradesh, home to 240 million people who vote in all seven phases.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Biju Boro, Modi, ”, Satish Babu, Mamata Banerjee, Dravida, Stalin, Altaf Qadri Organizations: CNN, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Indian, Bharatiya Janata, United Nations Security Council, Indian National Congress, Getty, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, All, Trinamool, Tamil Locations: India, Guwahati, AFP, India’s, Puducherry, Lok Sabha, Uttar Pradesh, Lok, Tamil Nadu, Chennai, Dravida, INDIA, . West Bengal, Trinamool Congress, Nicobar Islands, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Myanmar, Manipur

☆ India general election 2024: What to know about the world’s biggest vote
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Helen Regan | Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Under Modi, India has become the world’s fastest growing major economy, pushing the country of 1.4 billion people to near-superpower status. Here’s what you need to know about the largest election in human history:How does India vote? Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses his supporters during an election campaign rally in Pushkar on April 6, 2024. Congress senior party leader Rahul Gandhi during the release of the party manifesto on April 5, 2024 in New Delhi. The ruling BJP’s symbol is a lotus, while the Congress party is a raised, open-palmed hand.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, Noah Seelam, Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal, Congress ’ Mamata Banerjee, Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin, Himanshu Sharma, Modi’s, Kejriwal, Sanjeev Verma, Nasir Kachroo, Biju Boro Organizations: CNN, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, European Union, Getty, Indian National Congress, Congress, Developmental Inclusive Alliance, Aam Aadmi Party, Delhi, West, All India, Modi, Hindustan Times, Minorities, Analysts, Bahujan Samaj Party, Farmers, for Media Studies Locations: India, United States, Russia, Lok, Hyderabad, AFP, INDIA, West Bengal, Tamil, Pushkar, Delhi, New Delhi, Ayodhya, Agriculture, Himachal Pradesh, China, Lohore Sapori, Assam

☆ ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ review: Ewan McGregor traces Russian history from the prison of a hotel in Showtime series
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Spanning decades of Russian history from the confines of a luxury hotel, “A Gentleman in Moscow” provides another strong TV showcase for Ewan McGregor, this time playing opposite his wife, Mary Elizabeth Winstead. At the same time, the show manages to be quite funny and even romantic, nicely developing the other lives that Alexander touches. Plus, there’s the added kick of seeing McGregor and Winstead (who met shooting the third season of FX’s “Fargo”) sink their teeth into such juicy, flamboyant roles. And while Alexander might not be able to leave, viewers who voluntarily check into the Hotel Metropol will have plenty of reasons to enjoy their stay. “A Gentleman in Moscow” premieres March 29 on Paramount+ with Showtime and March 31 at 9 p.m.

Persons: Ewan McGregor, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, “ Obi, Wan, “, ” McGregor, Count Alexander Rostov, Alexander, Winstead, Johnny Harris, Joseph Stalin, Russia, McGregor Organizations: CNN, Moscow ”, Paramount, Showtime Locations: Moscow, Russian, Fargo

For Evan Gershkovich, the dozen appearances in Moscow's courts over the past year have fallen into a pattern. Guards take the American journalist from the notorious Lefortovo Prison in a van for the short drive to the courthouse. The periodic court hearings give Gershkovich’s family, friends and U.S. officials a glimpse of him, and for the 32-year-old journalist, it’s a break from his otherwise largely monotonous prison routine. Friends and family say Gershkovich is relying on his sense of humor to get through the days. Every day, Milman said, “I wake up and look at the clock.”“I think about if his lunchtime has passed, and his bedtime," she said.

Persons: Evan Gershkovich, He’s, Gershkovich, it’s, “ It’s, ”, Ella Milman, Milman, Nicholas Daniloff, Emma Tucker, ” Milman, Evan, Francesca Ebel, Josef Stalin's, he’s, Polina Ivanova, He's, Pjotr Sauer, ” Sauer, Mikhail Gershkovich, doesn't, “, Biden, Lynne Tracy, Gershkovich “, Vladimir Putin, Vadim Krasikov, ” Ebel, Journal's Tucker, I’m, Tracy Organizations: Wall, Journal, Federal Security Service, U.S, Associated Press, Russian Foreign Ministry, Moscow Times, Washington Post, Financial Times, Arsenal, British, Guardian, West Locations: Lefortovo, Yekaterinburg, Washington, Russia, Ukraine, “, New Jersey, Moscow, Russian, Germany, Berlin, Georgian

☆ Why the scale of Putin's landslide win matters so much
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

As of 7 a.m. Moscow time on Monday, Putin has secured around 87% of the vote in the presidential election. This marks a record win for Putin, who took home 77% of the votes in 2018. His opponents — who are far from Putin's level of clout and influence — were pre-approved by Russia's election commission and posed no serious challenges to the incumbent leader. David Szakonyi, a political science professor at George Washington University, told Business Insider last week that voter turnout is an extremely important metric for Putin. AdvertisementTo be sure, there are other factors at play in Putin's victory besides Russia's strong economy.

Persons: —, Vladimir Putin, Putin, David Szakonyi, Szakonyi, Denis Volkov, Volkov, Alexei Navalny, Josef Stalin Organizations: Service, Business, George Washington University, Putin, Monetary Fund, Levada, New York Times, Times Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Russia

☆ Russia election is set to tighten Putin's grip on power despite noon protest
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen on a screen during a meeting with his confidants for the 2024 election at Gostiny Dvor in Moscow, Russia January 31, 2024. President Vladimir Putin is poised to tighten his grip on power on Sunday in a Russian election that is certain to deliver him a landslide victory, though some opponents staged a symbolic noon protest at polling stations against his rule. The election comes just over two years since Putin triggered the deadliest European conflict since World War Two by ordering the invasion of Ukraine. War has hung over the three-day election: Ukraine has repeatedly attacked oil refineries in Russia, shelled Russian regions and sought to pierce Russian borders with proxy forces — a move Putin said would not be left unpunished. Russia is not Putin."

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Josef Stalin, —, Putin's, Alexei Navalny, Alexei, Yulia Organizations: Gostiny Dvor, KGB Locations: Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Budapest

A CNN team at a polling station in Moscow said the line grew rapidly over a five to ten minute spell at around noon, and estimated 150 people had arrived. The CNN team said that police were letting people in batches through the gates to pass through security, with metal detectors and bags being checked inside the building. I think everybody in this queue knows why.”Voters queue at a polling station in St. Petersburg, Russia, at noon local time on Sunday. He posted a video of himself voting at a polling station near Moscow. The Navalny team also posted an image from the city of Novosibirsk with the caption: “Today is #noon.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, ”, Boris Nadezhdin, Navalny, Navalny’s, Yulia, “ Alexey, Putin, Navalnaya, Molotov, Vladimir Putin, Putin’s, Joseph Stalin Organizations: CNN, YouTube Locations: Russia, Moscow, St . Petersburg, Social, St Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Siberia, Ukraine, Alaska, Kaliningrad, Soviet

☆ Vladimir Putin set to win 2024 Russian presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Minutes after polls closed on Sunday, the head of the Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) said Putin was in the lead with 87.9% of the vote, with 24.4% of the count in. More constitutional changes in 2020 removed presidential term limits, potentially allowing Putin to stay in power until 2036. Russia also held the presidential election in four Ukrainian regions it annexed during its full-scaled invasion. APThe election comes after more than two years of war which have exacted huge costs on the Russian population. After the election, Russia is set to continue to press home its growing advantage in Ukraine.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Russia’s, Joseph Stalin, – Putin, ”, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Alexey Navalny, Navalny, Novichok, “, Navalny’s, Yulia Navalnaya, Molotov, Ella Pamfilova, Dmitri Lovetsky, Levada Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, Russian, Election Commission, Russian Security Service, Sunday, CEC, West Locations: Soviet, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, St . Petersburg, Germany, China, North Korea, Iran, Avdiivka, United States, Europe

CNN —A wave of Ukrainian drones has targeted Russia on the third and final day of voting in Russia’s presidential election. Ukraine launched a total of 36 drones overnight over Russia, aimed at various parts of the country, including the capital Moscow, Russia’s Ministry of Defense said on Sunday. In Belgorod, which borders Ukraine, a 16-year-old girl was killed due to shelling, the governor of Belgorod, Vyacheslav Gladkov, posted on Telegram. A polling station in the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region was also attacked by two Ukrainian drones on Sunday, according to Vladimir Rogov, member of the Russian-installed Zaporizhzhia administration. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces shot down 14 drones over the Odesa region on Sunday after they were launched by Russia overnight, according to the Ukrainian Air Force.

Persons: “, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Vladimir Rogov, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Joseph Stalin, CNN’s Christian Edwards Organizations: CNN, Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Defense, district’s Dispatch Service, Ukrainian Air Force Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Yaroslavl, Belgorod, Kursk, Kaluga, Rostov, Oryol, Bryansk, Krasnodar Krai, Slavyansk, Russian, Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Alaska, Kaliningrad, Soviet

The woman is Lutfiye Zudiyeva, a Crimean Tatar, and she shared video of the moment on her social media accounts. It’s inevitable.”Arrests like hers, as well as large mass raids, especially, but not exclusively, in areas predominantly inhabited by Crimean Tatar communities, have been common since 2014. “The situation is only getting worse,” said human rights lawyer Emil Kurbedinov, himself a Crimean Tatar. AFP/Getty ImagesThe major concern now is that Crimea is a template for the other four Ukrainian regions now fully or partially occupied by Russia. Propaganda effortWhen it comes to Crimea, Russia has tried to hide its oppression under a veil of public investment, and patriotism.

Persons: “, ”, Russia’s, ” Zudiyeva, Joseph Stalin, Emil Kurbedinov, Daniel van Moll, NurPhoto, Kurbedinov, Ukraine –, Viktor Yanukovich’s, ” —, Baz Ratner, Yanukovich –, Sergey Aksyonov, Sean Gallup, ” Kurbedinov, Krzysztof Janowski, ” Janowski, Vladimir Putin, Irina Volk, Zaporizhzhia –, Volk, didn’t Organizations: CNN, United Nations, Tatars, Soviet Union, Fleet, Reuters, Research, Russia, Crimean, Getty, UN, Ukrainian, Moscow Locations: Crimean, Ukrainian, Crimea, Crimean Tatar, Ukraine, Soviet Union, Crimean Tatars, Russia, Simferopol, Sevastopol, Russian, Soviet, Moscow, Kyiv, Russian Republic of Crimea, AFP, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Avdiivka, Kerch, “

☆ Putin seen winning an expected landslide 88% of Russian election vote
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

President Vladimir Putin won a record post-Soviet landslide in Russia's election on Sunday, cementing his grip on power. The election comes just over two years since Putin triggered the deadliest European conflict since World War Two by ordering the invasion of Ukraine. War has hung over the three-day election: Ukraine has repeatedly attacked oil refineries in Russia, shelled Russian regions, and sought to pierce Russian borders with proxy forces - a move Putin said would not be left unpunished. As noon arrived across Asia and Europe, hundreds of people gathered at polling stations at Russian diplomatic missions. Putin says the West is engaged in a hybrid war against Russia and that Western intelligence and Ukraine are trying to disrupt the elections.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Josef Stalin, Putin's, Alexei Navalny, Yulia, Ruslan Shaveddinov, Leonid Volkov, Navalny, Joe Biden, Nikolas Gvosdev, Biden, Donald Trump, William Burns, China Organizations: Soviet, Research, National Security, KGB, Corruption, Criminal Court, Hague, Kremlin, Research Institute, Trump's Republican, Kyiv, CIA Locations: United States, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, St Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Asia, Europe, Russian, Berlin, Vilnius, West, Philadelphia, Congress, Ukrainian, Crimea, Kyiv

☆ Finland follows France and raises possibility of deploying troops to Ukraine, says report
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Finland's Foreign Minister says the West shouldn't rule out deploying troops against Russia. AdvertisementFinland's Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said the West can't rule out the possibility of deploying troops against Russia, Politico reports. "We are not right now sending any troops and not willing to discuss that," she said. He again said that sending Western troops into Ukraine shouldn't be ruled out, though he said the current situation doesn't require it, AP reported. Despite the Biden administration's firm stance against sending US troops to Ukraine, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby stressed on Friday that the decision ultimately lies with individual nations.

Persons: Elina Valtonen, Macron, —, Valtonen, Emmanuel Macron, Le Monde, Olaf Scholz, Putin, Vladimir Putin, ALEXANDER NEMENOV, Ukraine shouldn't, Jonathan NACKSTRAND, Ivo Daalder, Kurt Volker, John Kirby Organizations: Finland's, Politico, Service, NATO, Stalin's Red Army, Getty, Reuters, AP, NATO Nordic, AFP, Biden, National Security Locations: Russia, Finland, Sweden, Soviet Union, Moscow, Paris, Ukraine, Russian, Swedish, AFP Ukraine, Avdiivka

☆ As Putin Pitches His Vision, Voters Avert Their Gaze From the War
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Valerie Hopkins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Vladimir V. Putin’s vision of Russia — successful, innovative and borderless — is on display at one of Moscow’s biggest tourist attractions, a Stalin-era exhibition center that currently houses a sleek showcase called Russia 2024. The exhibition promotes what the Kremlin portrays as Russia’s achievements in the past two decades, roughly the period Mr. Putin has been in power, and his promises for the future after he secures another six-year term in rubber-stamp elections this weekend. The exhibition is in many ways a microcosm of a country whose people largely — at least in public — avert their gaze from the big and bloody war in Ukraine that Mr. Putin started more than two years ago. The centerpiece is a grand hall housing pavilions featuring all the Russian regions, including five illegally annexed from Ukraine. Visitors to one pavilion are greeted by two LED screens attached to robotic arms displaying tulip fields that portray the region of Belgorod, which borders Ukraine, as calm and peaceful.

Persons: Vladimir V, Russia —, Stalin, Putin Organizations: Mr, Visitors Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Belgorod, Ukrainian

☆ Putin is coasting towards another term in power. Here’s what to know about Russia’s presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —Russia is holding a presidential election that is all but certain to extend Vladimir Putin’s rule throughout this decade and into the 2030s. But this is not a normal election; the poll is essentially a constitutional box-ticking exercise that carries no prospect of removing Putin from power. But that is not to say Russians expect the election to change the direction of the country. Russia’s elections are neither free nor fair, and serve essentially as a formality to extend Putin’s term in power, according to independent bodies and observers both in and outside the country. In order to vote against Putin, you just need to vote for any other candidate,” he said on February 8.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, Putin, Alexey Navalny, Natalia Kolesnikova, Joseph Stalin, Putin’s, Dmitry Medvedev, euphemistically, —, Abbas Gallyamov, Gallyamov, ”, Callum Fraser, Nikolay Kharitonov, Leonid Slutsky, Vladislav Davankov, Davankov, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Boris Nadezhdin, Yekaterina Duntsova, Duntsova, Leonid Volkov, Volkov, Stringer, Alexey Navalny –, –, Yulia Navalnaya, “, “ Putin, Don’t, Navalnaya Organizations: CNN, Russian, Duma, Getty, Levada, Central, Commission, Royal United Services Institute, Communist Party, Slutsky, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, Kremlin, CEC, Freedom, Putin, European Union, Foreign Affairs Locations: Russia, Ukraine, AFP, Soviet, Lithuanian, Vilnius, Chechen, Grozny, Moscow, Russian

☆ Russia presidential election: Putin set to sweep to fifth term in power
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) approved only three candidates to oppose Putin: Leonid Slutsky of the Liberal Democratic Party, Vladislav Davankov of the New People Party and Nikolay Kharitonov of the Communist Party. “A vote for Slutsky and LDPR is absolutely not a vote against Putin,” he said. Although the ruling United Russia party has declared its “full support” for the president, Putin is running as an independent candidate, placing himself above party politics. A local election commission member prepares a polling station for early voting in the Republic of Karelia, March 10, 2024. Polls are set to open in Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka at 8 a.m. local time on Friday (4 p.m.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Joseph Stalin, Leonid Slutsky, Vladislav Davankov, Nikolay Kharitonov, Slutsky, “, ”, Stringer, Yekaterina Duntsova, Boris Nadezhdin, Alexey Navalny, Navalny “, Navalny, “ Putin, Yulia Navalnaya, Don’t, Natalia Kolesnikova, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, Dmitry Serebryakov Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, Commission, Liberal Democratic Party, New People Party, Communist Party, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, United, Getty, CEC, Russian Security Service, The New York Times, TASS, Russia Locations: Alaska, Kaliningrad, Ukraine, Russia, Soviet, United Russia, AFP, Moscow, Republic of Karelia, Avdiivka, Russia’s, Kamchatka

☆ Analysis: As Putin sails to re-election, Russia’s leader has a succession problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Russian President Vladimir Putin is widely expected to sail to re-election in a nationwide vote that begins on March 15, securing a fifth term in office and a full third decade as Russia’s paramount leader. As Kremlin chairman, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin would become the country's leader temporarily if Putin were to die or be incarcerated while in office. In 2008, Putin reached the end of his second presidential term, and stepped aside for a handpicked placeholder, Dmitry Medvedev. Some Russian political observers speculate that the real competition to succeed Putin is not likely until the 2030s, when Putin reaches his sixth term. Even the former president Medvedev, who lost the number two slot in 2020 when he stepped down in a government shakeup, may still have aspirations.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexey Navalny, Joseph Stalin, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Putin “, Joe Biden, Putin’s, …, ”, Andreas Umland, “ Putin, ” Umland, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin –, “ It’s, Umland, Mikhail Mishustin, Gleb Schelkunov, Dmitry Medvedev, Medvedev, Irina Buzhor, Leonid Brezhnev, Alexander Lukashenko, Xi Jinping, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Nazarbayev, President Kassym, Tokayev, Andrey Pertsev Organizations: CNN, Stockholm Centre, Eastern European Studies, Russian, Russian Federation, Soviet, Air Force One, United Russia, Russian Security Council, AP, Chinese Communist Party, country’s Security, Kremlin Locations: Soviet, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, Russian, Belarusian, Kazakhstan

☆ Russian Embassy in US in Contact With State Department Ahead of Elections, Ambassador Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-10 | by ( March | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) - The Russian embassy in Washington is in "close contact" with the U.S. State Department ahead of the presidential election in Russia this week to ensure the security of the diplomatic mission, ambassador Anatoly Antonov said on Monday. President Vladimir Putin, who launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago, is set to win a new six-year term in the March 15-17 vote. This would enable him to overtake Josef Stalin and become Russia's longest-serving leader for more than 200 years. "We are in close contact with the secret service of the State Department. We expect that the Americans will fulfil their obligations to ensure the security of the diplomatic mission."

Persons: Anatoly Antonov, Vladimir Putin, Josef Stalin, Antonov, Joe Biden's, Biden, Putin, Lidia Kelly, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Reuters, U.S . State Department, State Department, Union Locations: Russian, Washington, Russia, Ukraine, U.S, Moscow, Melbourne

☆ Elon Musk is going to war with Google
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Elon Musk has been heavily criticising Google over the past week. Since the launch of Google's Gemini image generator, he's shared and replied to more than 100 posts about the company. Sharing a screenshot of one of Krawczyk's posts, Musk wrote : "This nut is a big part of why Google's AI is so racist & sexist." To give Musk some credit, Google's AI also appeared to be hard on him personally. After taking a similar issue with OpenAI's ChatGPT, Musk founded his own AI company and released Grok, a competing chatbot.

Persons: Elon Musk, —, Elon, he's, Demis Hassabis, Musk, Jack Krawczyk, Gemini, Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, Grok, OpenAI's, ChatGPT's Organizations: Google, Service, Big Tech, Gmail, Republicans, Krawczyk, BI, V1.5

☆ An ex-KGB agent says every American that Putin can imprison is 'an asset that you can trade' as Moscow detains a US ballerina
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

AdvertisementEvery US citizen detained by Russia gives the Kremlin an "asset that you can trade," ex-KGB agent Jack Barsky said. Barsky, a former sleeper agent for Soviet intelligence in the 1970s and 1980s, told Fox News' Martha MacCallum on Monday that the practice of arresting Americans for this purpose is "nothing new." "That happened during Stalin's time, all the way through today. Because, you know, an American in prison is an asset that you can trade," said Barsky on MacCallum's "The Story." This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Jack Barsky, Martha MacCallum Organizations: Fox News, Business Locations: Russia

☆ Russia’s presidential election is nearing. We already know who the winner will be
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —Russia is nearing a presidential election that is all but certain to extend Vladimir Putin’s rule throughout this decade and into the 2030s. The president’s dominance over the Russian electoral system has already been reinforced as the election looms. Voting will be held from Friday March 15 until Sunday March 17, the first Russian presidential election to take place over three days. The region makes up more than a third of Russia’s total territory but has only about 5% of its population. In order to vote against Putin, you just need to vote for any other candidate,” Navalny said on February 8.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, Putin, Alexey Navalny, Maxim Shemetov, Joseph Stalin, Putin’s, Dmitry Medvedev, ” Callum Fraser, Nikolay Kharitonov, Leonid Slutsky, Vladislav Davankov, Davankov, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Boris Nadezhdin, Yekaterina Duntsova, Duntsova, Leonid Volkov, Volkov, Vladimir Nikolayev, euphemistically, Abbas Gallyamov, Gallyamov, Alexey Navalny –, –, ”, ” Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya, “, “ Putin, Don’t Organizations: CNN, Russian, Duma, Federal, Reuters, Kommersant, CEC, Royal United Services Institute, Communist Party, Slutsky, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, Kremlin, Freedom, Putin, Levada, EU, Foreign Affairs Council, European Union Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russia’s, Soviet, AFP

The GOP has been softening its stance on Russia ever since Trump won the 2016 election following Russian hacking of his Democratic opponents. Now the GOP's ambivalence on Russia has stalled additional aid to Ukraine at a pivotal time in the war. Things are changing just not fast enough.”Those who oppose additional Ukraine aid bristle at charges that they are doing Putin's handiwork. Even before Trump, Republican voters were signaling discontent with overseas conflicts, said Douglas Kriner, a political scientist at Cornell University. Skeptics of Ukraine aid argue the war has already decimated the Russian military and that Putin won't be able to target other European countries.

Persons: Republican Sen, Ron Johnson of, Vladimir Putin, “, Johnson, “ Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, Putin, Mike Johnson, ”, “ Putin, ” Republican Sen, Thom Tillis, Mitch McConnell of, Alexei Navalny, Joe Biden, Tillis, ” Johnson, Missouri Sen, Eric Schmitt, ” Alabama Sen, Tommy Tuberville, Tucker Carlson’s, Matt Gaetz, Trump, Douglas Kriner, ” Kriner, ” Trump, didn’t, Olga Kamenchuk, ” Kamenchuk, That’s, “ He's, he's, ” Henry Hale, Russell Vought, Sergey Radchenko, Joey Cappelletti, Mary Clare Jalonick, Lisa Mascaro Organizations: Republican, GOP, Trump, Democratic, Republicans, NATO, ” Republican, Republican Party, ”, Cornell University, Northwestern University, Ukraine, Pew Research, George Washington University, Management, Center, Johns Hopkins ’ School, International Studies, Associated Press Locations: Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Ukraine, Russian, Russia, Europe, U.S, North Carolina, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, America, Missouri, ” Alabama, Waterford Township , Michigan, ” Russia, “, Moscow, Soviet Union, Putin's U.S, Israel, Taiwan, Western Europe, Soviet, Lithuania, Estonia, Washington

☆ Alexey Navalny: Arrests, vigils, and Kremlin silence as Russia marks Putin critic’s death
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Sophie Tanno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The prosecutor’s office in Moscow warned that any demonstrations in the capital over the death of Navalny were forbidden. Stringer/ReutersSince Navalny’s death more than 366 people have been detained, according to OVD-Info, an independent Russian human rights group that monitors Russian repression. “Navalny’s death is terrible: hopes have been smashed,” he said. On some of Russia’s state media channels, however, reports of Navalny’s death have been scant. The claims follow condemnation from Russia’s foreign ministry over the West’s response to Navalny’s death.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Putin, “ Putin, Josef Stalin, SOTA, Stringer, Vladimir Putin’s “, ”, “ Navalny, Alexander, Andrei Bok, Mikhail, Surgut, Alexei Navalny, Peter Nicholls, Maria Zakharova, –, “, CNN’s Eve Brennan, Uliana Pavlova Organizations: CNN, Reuters, Don, Nizhny, Russian, Russian Embassy, CIA, Russia, Foreign, NATO, Putin, Kremlin Locations: Russia, Berlin, Paris, Hague, ”, Moscow, Siberian, Novosibirsk, St Petersburg, Murmansk, Rostov, Nizhny Novgorod, OVD, Ukraine, Germany, Soviet, Surgut, Siberia, St . Petersburg, Belgorod –, Chelyabinsk, Russia’s, London

☆ Opinion: Alexey Navalny, one man who stood up to a dictatorship
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

We’re looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets. “In his courageous and too short life,” wrote Russia scholar Daniel Treisman, “Navalny became a symbol of hope for the younger generations of his compatriots. “He never gave up on the prospect of what he called ‘the beautiful Russia of the future,’” Treisman noted. “For a ‘beautiful Russia of the future’ to emerge in coming years, Putin must lose the war he started. Navalny understood this.”“Navalny’s death represents the extinguishing of all hope for Russia’s turnaround,” wrote Sasha Vasilyuk.

Persons: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Joseph Stalin “, “, ”, you’ve, Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s, Navalny, fearlessly, Putin, Daniel Treisman, “ Navalny, Navalny’s, ’ ” Treisman, Sasha Vasilyuk, Alexey Navalny’s, Peter Bergen, Andrei Sakharov, ” Putin, Bergen, Nick Anderson, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, authoritarians, Bill Bramhall, James Mattis, ” Peter Bergen, Frida Ghitis, Fidel Castro’s playbook, Patrick Mahomes, Andy “, Amy Bass, New York Democrat Tom Suozzi, George Santos, ” Suozzi, CNN Suozzi didn’t, Biden, isn’t, Long, Max Burns, ” “, Alejandro Mayorkas, ” “ Suozzi, Burns, Robert Hur’s, Norm Eisen, Richard Painter, Joshua Kolb, Hur, ” Joel Pett, Lawrence C, Levy, Julian Zelizer, Dean Obeidallah, Mark Dent, Dent, Saw, Clay Jones, David Orentlicher, ” Orentlicher, Will Cooper, Fani, Willis, Nathan, Wade, ” “ Willis, Antony Blinken, Batniji, Blinken, Fatah, Hussein, Don’t, David Horsey, Agency Jill Filipovic, Lynda Gorov, Taylor Swift, Jim Parrott, Mark Zandi, Brigid Schulte, Yuliya, Kara Alaimo, Frankie de la, Jackie Robinson’s, Jon Stewart’s, Jon Stewart, Matt Wilson, Jon Stewart skewered Trump, Bill Carter, Stewart, ” “ Stewart Organizations: CNN, IK, Moscow Times, Kremlin, Twitter, Facebook, Soviet, Tribune, Agency, Republican, Senate, Agency Former US Defense, Trump, , Kansas City Chiefs, Chiefs, nab, New, New York Democrat, Democratic, GOP, Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church, Super Bowl, Kansas, West Bank Locations: Soviet, Germany, Ukraine, Russia, New York, Washington, Georgia, ,, York, Glen Cove, Joel Osteen’s, Houston, Kansas City, America, ”, Kansas, Gaza, San Francisco, Israel, Iran

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