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☆ 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

☆ China is on pace to buy a record amount of Russian oil this month
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China's intake of Russian crude is set to reach a record this month, Kpler data cited by Bloomberg shows. The shift is due to tighter enforcement of Western sanctions, that's diminishing the discount on Russian oil. AdvertisementChinese imports of Russian crude are on course to reach record volumes this month, as Beijing takes over diminishing Indian demand. 1.7 million barrels a day are expected to ship into the country, Bloomberg said, citing Kpler data. That same month, Indian imports of Russian crude fell by 420,000 barrels a day.

Persons: —, India —, Wang Yi, it's, That's, Sovcomflot, Bloomberg Organizations: Bloomberg, Sokol, Service, Foreign, Group Locations: Beijing, India, China, Moscow, Russia

☆ Ukraine drones attack multiple oil refineries in the campaign against Russia's strategic energy industry
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ukraine attacked another Russian oil refinery on Saturday night. AdvertisementA long week of attacks on oil and gas infrastructureThis past week, Ukraine has made a concerted effort to degrade Russia's oil production capabilities. The governor of Russia's Samara Oblast reported on March 16 that Ukrainian drones had attacked two Rosneft oil refineries. One attack had hit another major oil refinery operated by Lukoil in the southwestern Volgograd region. Similar incidents had occurred across Russia in January, hitting the Slavneft-Yanos oil refinery, an oil refinery in Tuapse, a storage facility in Klintsy, and a Baltic sea Ust-Luga terminal.

Persons: —, Ukrainska, Russia's, Andriy Yermak, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelensky, Краснодарському кра РосВдео Organizations: Bloomberg, Service, Business, Astra, Ukrainska Pravda, Security Services, Security Service, Stringer, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Reuters, Staff, Lukoil, НПЗ Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Krasnodar, Moscow, Russia, Russia's Samara Oblast, Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Leningrad, Lukoil's Norsi, Russia's Belgorod, Norsi, Ukrainian, Volgograd, Tuapse, Klintsy, Baltic

☆ Ukraine has been a disaster for Russia's troubled army, but the deadlock is shifting things in Moscow's favor, US intelligence says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewRussia's military has suffered serious damage in the Ukraine war, but after more than two years of hard fighting, the deadlock on the battlefield is shifting the momentum in Moscow's favor, according to a newly released US intelligence assessment. This figure, which is based on information available as of late-January, is much lower than more recent Western estimates. "Nonetheless, this deadlock plays to Russia's strategic military advantages and is increasingly shifting the momentum in Moscow's favor," the report continued. AdvertisementA destroyed Russian tank is seen as Ukrainian serviceman rides a tractor and tows a Russian military vehicle near the village of Dolyna in Ukraine's Kharkiv region in September 2023.

Persons: —, Vladimir Putin, Jose Colon, There's, Gleb Garanich, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Russia's Organizations: Service, Russia, Business, Anadolu, Getty, Russian, intel, REUTERS, Bakhmut, White Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia, Moscow, Dolyna, Ukraine's Kharkiv, Ukrainian, Avdiivka, Bakhmut, Anadolu, United States

☆ Russian assault forces varied wildly in the battle for Avdiivka, from well-trained to 'just confused,' Ukrainian soldiers say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Ella Sherman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ukrainian soldiers report inconsistent training and combat abilities in Russian troops. Despite the ineffectiveness of poorly trained troops, these waves can strain Ukrainian defenders. Advertisement"Russian forces likely used poorly trained personnel to carry out mass daily attacks on Ukrainian positions and employed trained personnel with better equipment to assault specific positions after exhausting Ukrainian forces," they said. ISW experts say it's also possible that Russia used "Storm" units, penal units made up of convicts, in Avdiivka. Given that these convicts are poorly trained for battle, experts have also noted they are usually ineffective and these units provide "marginal combat power."

Persons: —, Shultz, it's, Wagner, ISW, 3rd Brigade Mykola Zynkevych's Organizations: Service, Washington Post, 3rd Assault Brigade, National Security, Institute for, 2nd Assault Battalion, 3rd Brigade Locations: Avdiivka, Ukrainian, Russia

☆ Israel may have just torched its relationship with Russia, promising to supply Ukraine with 'early-warning systems'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A spokesperson for Israel's foreign ministry told Business Insider that the system was "not Iron Dome," Israel's most advanced air defense system. Using the system in Ukraine will likely mean that Israel will need to send specialist soldiers to help Ukrainians integrate it. AdvertisementPalestinian Hamas militants are seen during a military show in the Bani Suheila district on July 20, 2017 in Gaza City, Gaza. Meanwhile, Tehran has also been providing Russia with Iranian-made Shahed drones that ahve been used to bombard cities in Ukraine. "Israel will take a more aggressive stance against Russia" from now on, he believed, adding that if the Ukraine war is not over by the time Israel has dealt with its local problem.

Persons: —, Gilad Erdan, Erdan, Israel, Chris McGrath, Bashir al, Israel's, Amir Weitmann, Mikhail Bogdanov, Weitmann Organizations: Service, United Nations, Business, Israel Defense Forces, Getty, Likud Party, Islamic, Russia, Ukraine, RT Locations: Ukraine, Gaza, Israel, Russia, Ukraine's, Bani Suheila, Gaza City, Iran, Assad, Syria, Tehran, Iranian, Israel's, Moscow, Russia's

☆ Russia may be replacing 100 tanks a month — but with older models which 'smacks of absolute desperation,' expert says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Russia is generating 100+ tanks a month, largely replacing its battlefield losses, UK intel said. Nicholas Drummond, a defense analyst, agreed, telling BI that Russia is relying on older models as its ability to produce new ones is limited. AdvertisementBut Drummond is skeptical that Russia can even make battle-ready 100 of the older tanks a month. Ramping up productionRussia has seemingly been increasing its output of new tanks, while still relying on older models. AdvertisementBut another expert said these older tanks can still create a problem for Ukraine.

Persons: —, William Alberque, Nicholas Drummond, DIMITAR DILKOFF, Drummond, George Barros, Russia's, Oleksii, It's, Alberque, Rajan Menon, Menon, it's Organizations: intel, Service, UK Ministry of Defence, International Institute for Strategic Studies, Getty, Institute for, Anadolu Agency, Getty Images, Defense Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russian, AFP, Dmytrivka, Kyiv region, Getty Images Russia, Ukrainian

☆ Analysis-Russia's GDP Boost on Military Spending Belies Wider Economic Woes
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

Other economists say Russia is pumping the economy with one-time, unproductive investments that yield limited future benefit. 'NOT ALL GROWTH IS GOOD'The International Monetary Fund expects Russia's economy to grow faster than all G7 economies this year but less than emerging European economies. Military expenditure has supported economic growth of countries at war throughout history. According to Rosstat, Russia's labour productivity index, one of Putin's key national development goals, fell 3.6% year-on-year in 2022, its steepest annual fall since the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2009. "I don't see current economic growth as lasting or qualitative," said Nadorshin.

Persons: Darya Korsunskaya, Alexander Marrow, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Khestanov, Alexandra Suslina, CAMAC, Rosstat, Anton Kotyakov, Yevgeny Nadorshin, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Darya, Gareth Jones Organizations: Statistics, Reuters, Soviet Union, International Monetary Fund, IMF, Labour, PF, Central Bank Governor Locations: Russia, Ukraine

The highest court in sports sanctioned Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva for doping violations at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. The ruling set the stage for U.S. skaters to receive gold medals after they finished second behind Valieva and her teammates in the team competition. A look at the case, and what happens next:ABOUT THE MEDALSPolitical Cartoons View All 253 ImagesThe International Olympic Committee controls Olympic medals. When Valieva's case first erupted, the IOC decided not to award medals from the event while the skaters were in Beijing. But what the Valieva case exposed was the fact that, even 10 years after Sochi, things are still not back to "normal” in Russia.

Persons: Kamila Valieva, Valieva, There's, they've, ”, Evan Bates, Madison Chock, — “, —, Thomas Bach, It's, would've, Dave Skretta, Graham Dunbar, ___ Organizations: Russia's, Sports, Olympic, IOC, Russian, Russian Olympic Committee, Doping Agency, AP Sports Locations: Russian, Beijing, Russia, Japan, Canada, Montreal, U.S, Ukraine, RUSSIA, ROC, Sochi, Kansas City, Geneva

☆ Russia Says It Finds Ukraine IDs, Tattooed Body Parts at Plane Crash Site
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Friday it had recovered Ukrainian identity documents and tattooed body parts from the site where a Russian military plane that Moscow says was carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war crashed two days earlier near the Ukrainian border. Ukraine has neither confirmed nor denied that its forces downed the plane and said there is no proof of who was on board. On Thursday the Investigative Committee said preliminary findings showed the plane was struck by a surface-to-air missile fired from Ukraine. Ukraine has rejected a Russian assertion that it was forewarned that a plane carrying Ukrainian POWs would be flying over Belgorod region at that time. Russia state media said the black boxes from the plane had been delivered to a special defence ministry laboratory in Moscow and investigators were already working on them.

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Mark Trevelyan, Alison Williams Organizations: Russian, Federal Penitentiary Service, . Security, Reuters Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Russian, Moscow, Ukrainian, Russia's Belgorod, Ukraine, Belgorod

☆ Apple has paid a $13 million fine that will go directly into Russia's state budget as Putin ramps up war spending, report says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Apple has paid a $13 million Russian fine over alleged illegal app store practices, per the FT. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AdvertisementApple has reportedly paid a $13 million Russian fine as President Vladimir Putin escalates his crackdown on foreign tech firms. Like many other Western companies, Apple has largely abandoned Russia since Putin launched an invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, though it still operates its app store in the country. However, the war has left the Russian economy struggling with spiraling food prices and a shortage of workers .

Persons: —, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Russia's Organizations: Apple, Google, Service, FAS, Financial Times, Big Tech, Business Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russian

☆ Ukraine War Drives Shift in Russian Nuclear Thinking -Study
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

NSNWs include all nuclear weapons with a range of up to 5,500 km (3,400 miles), starting with tactical arms designed for use on the battlefield - as opposed to longer-range strategic nuclear weapons that Russia or the U.S. could use to strike each other's homeland. "The Russian perception of the lack of credible Western will to use nuclear weapons or to accept casualties in conflict further reinforces Russia's aggressive NSNW thought and doctrine," it said. But he has shifted Russia's stance on key nuclear treaties and said he is deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. NUCLEAR DEBATEWestern analysts and policymakers have been closely tracking a debate among Russian military experts about whether Moscow should lower its threshold for nuclear use. William Alberque, author of the IISS report, said Karaganov was part of a wider discussion in Russia on the failure of its military to win the Ukraine war decisively and quickly.

Persons: Mark Trevelyan, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, hawkish, Russia's, Sergei Karaganov, William Alberque, Karaganov, Alberque, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Mark Trevelyan LONDON, NATO, International Institute for Strategic Studies, Russian Federation, Pentagon Locations: Ukraine, Moscow, Western, Russia, U.S, West, Russian, Belarus, Europe, United States

☆ West Stands to Lose at Least $288 Billion in Assets if Russian Assets Seized -RIA
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Russia's state RIA news agency said on Sunday it had calculated that the West stood to lose assets and investments worth at least $288 billion if it confiscated frozen Russian assets to help rebuild Ukraine and Moscow then retaliated. After President Vladimir Putin sent forces into Ukraine in February 2022, the U.S. and its allies prohibited transactions with Russia's central bank and finance ministry, blocking around $300 billion of sovereign Russian assets in the West. It said EU nations held $223.3 billion of the assets, of which $98.3 billion was formally held by Cyprus, $50.1 billion by the Netherlands and $17.3 billion by Germany. It said the top five European investors in the Russian economy also included France with assets and investments worth $16.6 billion and Italy with $12.9 billion. It said the United States had $9.6 billion worth of Russian assets at the end of 2022, Japan $4.6 billion and Canada $2.9 billion.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, RIA, Andrew Osborn, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Reuters, Seven, Kremlin, European Union, RIA Locations: Ukraine, Moscow, U.S, West ., Belgium, Russia, Europe, Australia, Switzerland, Russian, Cyprus, Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, Britain, United States, Japan, Canada, Norway

☆ Two Russian Nationals Were Passengers on Jet Which Went Missing Over Afghanistan - TASS
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) - Two Russian citizens were passengers on a charter flight bound for Moscow that disappeared over Afghanistan, Russia's state-run TASS news agency said on Sunday, citing a source "in the operational services". A manifest list for the plane which named everyone on board and which was published by the SHOT news outlet appeared to show that the crew were Russian nationals too. Russian aviation authorities said on Sunday a Russian-registered plane with six people thought to be on board had disappeared from radar screens over Afghanistan the previous night, after local Afghan police said they had received reports of a crash. Russia's RIA news agency said the flight was a medical evacuation from Thailand to Moscow. Russian investigators said on Sunday they had opened a criminal investigation to determine whether there was any violation of safety rules.

Persons: Maxim Rodionov, Andrew Osborn Organizations: Reuters Locations: Moscow, Afghanistan, Russian, Thailand

☆ Ukraine says one of its 'FrankenSAM' air-defense weapons just recorded its first kill
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. In early December, the Pentagon announced technical assistance "to start local production of some of the FrankenSAM projects." Later that month Kamyshin announced that "FrankenSAM" systems were already in use on the front lines. Kamyshin did not mention what type of weapon was used in the strike, which Business Insider could not independently verify. AdvertisementInexpensive exploding drones have been central to Russia's strategy of bombarding key Ukrainian infrastructure, often forcing Ukraine to counter with more costly air defenses.

Persons: —, Oleksandr Kamyshin, Kamyshin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Erin Snodgrass Organizations: Service, Business, Economic, Suspilne, Pentagon, RIM, AIM, Soviet, Patriot, New York Times Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Davos, Switzerland

☆ Russia has shifted beyond its 'stupid' missile attack strategy, and it is bad news for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

AdvertisementRussia has changed its longstanding missile strategy to one that could have worse effects for Ukraine's effort on the battlefield, experts say. During its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has used its guided missiles to knock out the heating and electrical systems Ukrainians need to get through the winter. A local resident takes a photo of a missile crater and debris of a private house ruined in the Russian missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, in December 2023. Related storiesThat involves targeting Ukraine's equipment, either at the manufacturing plants or while it is en route the front line. But Russia is increasing its missile production, and Ukraine says it desperately needs more air defense systems, as Russia tries to wear them down.

Persons: —, I'm, Fabian Hoffmann, Hoffmann, it's, Ukraine Vitalii, Timothy Wright, Russia's Organizations: Service, AP, University of Oslo, Ukrainian Armed Forces, Getty, International Institute for Strategic Studies Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russian, Kyiv, Norway, Poland

[1/5] Russian President Vladimir Putin visits the "Russia" forum and exhibition celebrating the country's major achievements in Moscow, Russia, December 4, 2023. Putin was given an explanation of a Soviet nuclear bomb design and shown a mock control panel for launching a nuclear test, before observing images of a blast and mushroom cloud through a viewing window. Since the start of the Ukraine war, Putin has frequently reminded the West of the size and capabilities of Russia's nuclear arsenal, saying anyone who tried to launch a nuclear attack against it would be wiped from the face of the earth. Supporters of Putin dismiss that analysis, pointing to independent polling which shows he enjoys approval ratings of above 80%. They say that Putin has restored order and some of the clout Russia lost during the chaos of the Soviet collapse.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Voskresensky, Putin, Oleg Saitov, Boris Yeltsin, Josef Stalin, Catherine the Great, Mark Trevelyan, Gareth Jones Organizations: Sputnik, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Kremlin, State, Thomson Locations: Russia, Moscow, Soviet, Ukraine, Belarus, Soviet Union, Putin's Russia, London

☆ Putin Greets Kids, Views 'Nuclear Button' as Re-Election Bid Nears
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Dec. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

Putin was given an explanation of a Soviet nuclear bomb design and shown a mock control panel for launching a nuclear test, before observing images of a blast and mushroom cloud through a viewing window. Since the start of the Ukraine war, Putin has frequently reminded the West of the size and capabilities of Russia's nuclear arsenal, saying anyone who tried to launch a nuclear attack against it would be wiped from the face of the earth. Putin was shown a replica of Stalin's office during his exhibition tour. Supporters of Putin dismiss that analysis, pointing to independent polling which shows he enjoys approval ratings of above 80%. They say that Putin has restored order and some of the clout Russia lost during the chaos of the Soviet collapse.

Persons: Guy Faulconbridge, Mark Trevelyan MOSCOW, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Oleg Saitov, Boris Yeltsin, Josef Stalin, Catherine the Great, Mark Trevelyan, Gareth Jones Organizations: Kremlin, State Locations: Soviet, Ukraine, Belarus, Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union, Putin's Russia, London

☆ Exclusive: EU nuclear agency sees some Russia imports up again in 2023 from before Ukraine war
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Gabriela Baczynska | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Its overall imports from Russia's nuclear energy industry held steady last year despite rising demand for nuclear power driven by high energy costs and a push to cut carbon emissions. The trend highlights challenges EU faces in reaching its long-term goal of achieving VVER fuel self-sufficiency. EU imports of natural uranium from Russia fell 16% last year from 2021, a drop compensated by increase in deliveries from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, ESA said. In 2022, the EU's Russian nuclear energy imports were worth around 750 million euros ($823 mln), or 1% of the bloc's Russian gas imports, according the European Commission. Sources said, however, that the proposal - which is not public - does not include sanctions on Russia's nuclear energy industry.

Persons: Radovan Stoklasa, ESA's, Stefano Ciccarello, Ciccarello, Finland's, Gabriela Baczynska, Anne Kauranen, Timothy Gardner, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS, Union, Euratom Supply Agency, ESA, Reuters, U.S, Westinghouse, Commission, U.S ., Thomson Locations: Mochovce, Slovakia, Russia, BRUSSELS, Russian, Moscow, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, France, Sweden, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Europe, United States, Brussels, Helsinki, Washington, Budapest

☆ Chechen leader's 16-year-old son named to post in rifle battalion
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ramzan Kadyrov, head of Russia's Chechnya, waits before an annual state of the nation address attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, December 1, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 29 (Reuters) - Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's teenage son, who was shown beating a prisoner in custody this year, has been named as an observer in a new battalion that is part of Russia's defence ministry forces, a senior Chechen official said late on Tuesday. On Tuesday, Adam Delimkhanov, who heads the Chechen division of the Russian national guard and is also a member of Russia's parliament, said the young Kadyrov was named a curator, or observer, of a rifle battalion. The Chechen rifle battalion was created earlier this month, according to Russia's state media. Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ramzan Kadyrov, Vladimir Putin, Maxim, Ramzan Kadyrov's, Adam Kadyrov, Adam, Adam Delimkhanov, Kadyrov, Delimkhanov, Lidia Kelly, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Kremlin, REUTERS, Chechen, Russian, Thomson Locations: Chechnya, Russian, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Melbourne

☆ Inmates at one of Russia's harshest detention centers are forced to listen to Bon Jovi and AC/DC on repeat, detainee says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Detainees at Kapotnya-7 are subjected to daily blasts of Bon Jovi and AC/DC songs, an inmate said. He shared the songs featured on a playlist that those awaiting trial are made to listen to every day. AdvertisementDetainees in one of Russia's strictest pre-trial detention centers are forced to listen to songs by Bon Jovi and AC/DC on repeat every morning, according to a prisoner being held there. Newsweek was the first to report on the repetitive playlist, which detainee Grigory Melkonyants said is blasted via a loudspeaker at the Kapotnya-7 pre-trial detention center. "Grigory Melkonyants, who has spent 100 days in a pre-trial detention center, recorded which songs are played on the internal radio in the pre-trial detention center in the morning," the message said.

Persons: Bon, Russia's, —, Bon Jovi, Grigory Melkonyants, Melkonyants, Golos, Moby, Alexei Navalny, Ilya Yashin Organizations: Bon Jovi, Service, Newsweek, Facebook Locations: Kapotnya, Russia, American, Russian

☆ Ukraine says spymaster's wife is recovering after being poisoned by heavy metals, and an expert believes Russia is a prime suspect
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A top Ukrainian military official's wife was diagnosed with heavy metal poisoning, officials said. An expert said Russia is a prime suspect given the country's penchant for poison. AdvertisementThe wife of Ukraine's top military intelligence official is recovering in a hospital after being poisoned by heavy metals, Ukrainian officials said Tuesday. While the motive and perpetrator behind Budanova's poisoning remains unclear, an expert on Russia and Ukraine said Russia is the obvious suspect. Russia's penchant for poison points to "a precedent and pattern for this type of behavior," Miles told Business Insider.

Persons: Marianna Budanova, —, Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine's Elle, Budanova, Simon Miles, Alexei Navalny, Sergeĭ Skripal, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Miles, Budanov, Kyiv —, Budovna Organizations: Service, Associated Press, Local, AP, Washington Post, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union, Business, Kyiv, Ukrainska Pravda Locations: Russia, Local Ukrainian, Ukraine, Soviet, Russian, Ukrainian

☆ Russia says it downed dozens of Ukrainian drones headed for Moscow, following a mass strike on Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

An explosion of a drone is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Nov. 25, 2023. Moscow's Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports also briefly shut down because of the drone attack, according to Russia's state-run news agency Tass. The attack was "the most massive air attack by drones on Kyiv" in the war so far, Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv city administration, said on Saturday. Ukrainian air force spokesman, Yurii Ihnat, confirmed later that same day that air defenses shot down 66 air targets over the Ukrainian capital and surrounding region throughout the morning. The Ukrainian air force early on Sunday said it had brought down eight of nine Iranian-made Shahed drones fired overnight by Russian forces.

Persons: Sergei Sobyanin, Andrei Vorobyev, Moscow's, Vitali Klitschko, Serhii Popko, Yurii Ihnat, Denis Pushilin Organizations: Sunday, Russia, Russian Defense Ministry, Russian Telegram, Military, Russian, Kyiv, Ukrainian General Staff, Ukrainian, Staff Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Kyiv, Moscow, Tula, Ukrainian, Russia, Soviet Ukraine, Azov, Crimea, Kyiv ., Donetsk, Mariupol, Avdiivka, Washington

☆ Ukraine got the top tanks it wanted from the West, but they're not yet changing the game
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Ukraine got the Leopard, Challenger, and Abrams tanks it asked its Western partners for. It's up to Ukraine to either use the tanks to defend against Russian offensives or preserve them for next spring, experts told Business Insider. AdvertisementNow, almost two years into the war, Ukraine has a force of advanced Western tanks at its disposal. Advertisement"These Western type of tanks are qualitatively superior to even the best Russian tanks that the Russians are using in Ukraine," Gentile told Business Insider. There are also questions of whether or not these will be the only Western tanks Ukraine gets, or if there are more in the pipeline.

Persons: Abrams, —, Seth G, Jones, Harold Brown, There's, Gian Gentile, RAND's, Austin Berner Ukraine, M1 Abrams, Gentile, Iraq's, DANIEL LEAL, hasn't, it's, Philipp Schulze, there's, they're Organizations: Russian, Service, Leopards, Transnational, Center for Strategic, International Studies, RAND's Arroyo Center, US Army, Army Staff, Challenger, M1, Soviet, Defense, Ministry of Defence, Getty, Business, Bundeswehr, Ukraine Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, Fort Benning, Ga, Soviet, Russia, Soviet Union, England, Zaporizhzhia, Azov, Crimea, Avdiivka, Russian, Lower Saxony, Bergen

☆ Russia deploys new nuclear missile in Kaluga region - RIA
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Visitors gather near a Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system at an exposition of the international military-technical forum Army-2023 at Patriot Congress and Exhibition Centre in the Moscow region, Russia, August 18, 2023. REUTERS/Stringer/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 22 (Reuters) - Russia has deployed a new Yars intercontinental ballistic missile at the Kozelsk base in the Kaluga region, southwest of Moscow, the RIA news agency cited the defence ministry as saying on Wednesday. Russia has described the Yars missile, developed in the 2000s and capable of carrying multiple thermonuclear warheads, as one of its newer weapons capable of piercing the missile shield used by the United States and its allies. The Kozelsk regiment, where the new missile was loaded into a silo, was the first one in Russia's Strategic Missile Forces to start upgrading to silo-based Yars missiles, RIA said. The missiles were initially deployed at other regiments in a mobile version.

Persons: Stringer, Robert Birsel Organizations: Patriot Congress, Exhibition, REUTERS, Strategic Missile Forces, RIA, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russian, Moscow, Russia, Kaluga, United States

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