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☆ In Russia, Putin’s Puppets Are Coming to Life - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Mikhail Zygar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

This system has existed for a long time — at least since Mr. Putin’s first re-election in 2004 — and has always worked perfectly: It maintains the facade of Russia’s imitation democracy. Mr. Putin’s puppets have begun to come to life. Mr. Kiriyenko, who was prime minister for less than a year in 1998, forswore liberal politics to become a key figure in Mr. Putin’s administration. In his role, Mr. Kiriyenko has often relied on political puppets. Friends, including me, discouraged Ms. Sobchak from taking him up on the obviously suspect offer, but she agreed.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin’s, Boris Nadezhdin, Nadezhdin’s, Sergei Kiriyenko, Kiriyenko, Ksenia Sobchak, Sobchak, Kiriyenko’s, Nadezhdin, Putin Locations: St, Petersburg, Western, Russia

☆ Who is in Putin's delegation to China - and who stayed in Moscow?
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives for the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 18, 2023. Sputnik/Dmitry Azarov/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin is currently on a visit to China, his second only trip outside the former Soviet Union since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Who is in the Russian delegation with Putin - and who stayed in Russia? Before Putin left for China, he was shown at a meeting with defence and spy chiefs at his Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow. The following top officials are thought to be in Russia.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Azarov, Alexander Novak, Sergei Lavrov, Yuri Ushakov, Maxim Oreshkin, Dmitry Peskov, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Anton Siluanov, Maxim Reshetnikov, Dmitry Shugaev, Yuri Chikhanchin, Dmitry Chernyshenko, Igor Morgulov, Igor Sechin, Alexei Miller, Alexei Likhachev, Andrei Kostin, Igor Shuvalov, Leonid Mikhelson, Oleg Belozyorov, Kirill Dmitriev, Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Nikolai Patrushev, Alexander Bortnikov, Dmitry Medvedev, Anton Vaino, Sergei Kiriyenko, Mikhail Mishustin, Viktor Zolotov, Sergei Naryshkin, Guy Faulconbridge, Muralikumar Organizations: Forum, Sputnik, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Soviet Union, Putin, Kremlin, Central Bank Governor, Federal Service for Military, Gazprom, VEB, Russian, Russian Direct Investment, Russia Security, Federal Security Service, Russia's Foreign Intelligence, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Ukraine, Russia, CHINA, North Korea, China BUSINESSPERSONS, Moscow, Russian

The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said that several thousand Apple phones had been infected, including those of domestic Russian subscribers. "The FSB has uncovered an intelligence action of the American special services using Apple mobile devices," the FSB said in a statement. 'SOFTWARE VULNERABILITIES'The FSB said the plot showed the close relationship between Apple and the NSA, the U.S. agency responsible for U.S. cryptographic and communications intelligence and security. "The hidden data collection was carried out through software vulnerabilities in U.S.-made mobile phones," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement. Officials in Russia, which Western spies says has constructed a very sophisticated domestic surveillance structure, have long questioned the security of U.S. technology.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Sergei Kiriyenko, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones, Mark Potter Organizations: NSA, Apple, Russia Apple, Russia, Federal Security Service, . National Security Agency, FSB, Soviet, NATO, U.S, Harvard University's, Officials, Kremlin, KGB, Kommersant, Thomson Locations: Russia, Russian, Soviet Union, Israel, Syria, China, U.S, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Ukraine

☆ Kremlin tells officials to stop using iPhones - Kommersant newspaper
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, March 20 (Reuters) - Russia's presidential administration has told officials to stop using Apple (AAPL.O) iPhones because of concerns the devices are vulnerable to Western intelligence agencies, the Kommersant newspaper reported on Monday. At a Kremlin-organised seminar for officials involved in domestic politics, Sergei Kiriyenko, first deputy head of the presidential administration, told officials to change their phones by April 1, Kommersant said, citing unidentified sources. The Kremlin may provide other devices with different operating systems to replace the iPhones, Kommersant said. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he could not confirm the report, but that smartphones could not be used for official purposes anyway. President Vladimir Putin has always said he has no smartphone, though Peskov has said Putin does use the Internet from time to time.

☆ The Kremlin has reportedly told Russian officials to throw away their iPhones by the end of the month
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Grace Mayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some Russian officials were advised to ditch their iPhones, Russian newspaper Kommersant reported. Officials close to the presidential administration were reportedly told to get new phones by April. Sergei Kiriyenko, first deputy head of Russia's presidential administration, reportedly told the officials they had to replace their iPhones by April 1. The reported instruction comes amid undergoing campaign preparations for the upcoming 2024 Russian presidential election. Although those within the Russian presidential administration were reportedly told to get rid of their Apple iPhones, it's unclear whether all Russian government officials were advised to do so.

☆ Top Putin aide visits Ukraine's Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, Dec 28 (Reuters) - One of President Vladimir Putin's most powerful Kremlin aides has visited the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in a part of southern Ukraine Russia says it has annexed, a Moscow-installed official in the region said. "Sergei Kiriyenko visited the nuclear power plant — he checked the safety of the facility and the working conditions of Rosatom employees," Rogov said on Telegram. Special Russian military units guard the facility and Russian nuclear specialists are on site. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has six Soviet-designed VVER-1000 V-320 water-cooled and water-moderated reactors containing Uranium 235, which has a half-life of more than 700 million years. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi has proposed the establishment of a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the plant.

LONDON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - A St Petersburg politician has asked prosecutors to investigate Russian President Vladimir Putin for using the word "war" to describe the conflict in Ukraine, accusing the Kremlin chief of breaking his own law. Yuferev, who asked Reuters not to disclose his location, said Putin critics who publicly called the war a war have suffered harsh punishments. After publishing the open letter about Putin, Yuferev said he had received hundreds of hate messages. "War, in Russian society, is a frightening word. Everyone is brought up by grandparents who lived through World War Two, everyone remembers the saying 'Anything but war'," he said.

☆ Putin’s Propaganda Chief Urges ‘War Over People’s Minds’
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Benoit Faucon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

One afternoon late August, as Russia’s military pursued its invasion in Ukraine, one of Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s top advisers was mustering public-relations officials from government bodies and ministries for a fight on the home front. “The main war that is taking place right now is the war over people’s minds,” Sergei Kiriyenko , a longtime aide to Mr. Putin charged with key domestic and Ukraine policies, said in a speech at a closed meeting. “All of us in this room are the special forces fighting this war.”

☆ Russia demands Apple explain VK removal from App Store
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Alexander Marrow | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SummarySummary Companies This content was produced in Russia, where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine. MOSCOW, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Russia's communications regulator on Wednesday demanded an explanation from Apple (AAPL.O) after applications operated by the Russian state-controlled tech firm VK (VKCOq.L) were removed from the U.S. firm's App Store. VK runs Vkontakte, which with over 75 million monthly users is Russia's largest social network, often compared to Facebook. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterRoskomnadzor said Apple's actions had deprived millions of Russians of access to VK apps and demanded that it explain its decision. Regardless of location, the apps cannot be downloaded from any App store, said Apple, which terminated the developer accounts associated with the apps to comply with UK sanctions.

☆ Apple kicked Russia's biggest social media platform off the App Store
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Isobel Asher Hamilton | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Apple removed VK, Russia's biggest social media platform, from the App Store. Apple users can no longer download the VK app, although it will continue to work for users who'd already downloaded it. Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyApple has removed VK, Russia's biggest social media app, from its App Store, as first reported by The Verge. Major Western social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram were blocked by the Russian government at the onset of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It's not clear whether Google will bring in similar restrictions on VK in its own app store.

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