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Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, denies the espionage charges. When asked by the judge if he needed translation, Gershkovich said in Russian that he understood everything. The Kremlin has said Gershkovich, the first U.S. journalist detained in Russia on espionage charges since the end of the Cold War, was caught "red-handed". "He is reading a lot in prison - Russian literature in the original Russian," Nozhkina told Reuters, adding that he was reading Leo Tolstoy's masterpiece "War and Peace" about the French invasion of Russia in 1812. Asked about the prison food, Nozhkina said Gershkovich was being given porridge in the mornings and that the food was normal.
State prosecutors, who had requested the court jail him for 25 years, had accused him of treason and of discrediting the Russian military after he criticised what Moscow calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine. In a CNN interview broadcast hours before he was arrested, Kara-Murza had alleged that Russia was being run by a "regime of murderers." He had also used speeches in the United States and across Europe to accuse Moscow of bombing civilian targets in Ukraine, a charge it has rejected. I also know that the day will come when the darkness over our country will dissipate," he had said. Kara-Murza's lawyers say that as a result, he suffers from a serious nerve disorder called polyneuropathy.
MOSCOW, April 17 (Reuters) - Facing up to a quarter of a century in jail on treason charges he denies, Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza is expected to learn his fate on Monday when a Moscow court pronounces a verdict and sentences him. The court is expected to start delivering its verdict at 11 a.m. (0800 GMT). In his final speech to the court, Kara-Murza compared his trial to one of Josef Stalin's show trials in the 1930s. He declined to ask the court to acquit him and said he stood by and was proud of everything he had said. I also know that the day will come when the darkness over our country will dissipate," he said.
Kira Yarmysh, his spokeswoman, said in a video clip on Twitter accompanied by disturbing background music. Navalny's supporters cast him as a Russian version of South Africa's Nelson Mandela who will one day be freed from jail to lead the country. Navalny accused the Russian state of trying to kill him, something it denied. Yarmysh said medicine sent to Navalny's prison by his mother was not collected by prison officials from the post office and was returned. Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Andrew Osborn Editing by Peter Graff and Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
MOSCOW, April 12 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Wednesday that a move to bring in electronic draft papers for the first time in Russia's history was needed to sort out what it called "a mess" at military recruitment offices. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday that the problems in drafting men into the army had come to light last year when Moscow launched what it calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine. The State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, on Tuesday gave its backing to a package of legislative amendments that will bring in electronic draft papers and close numerous loopholes exploited by draft dodgers. "When the special military operation began, you and I saw that in some places we had a lot of mess in the military recruitment offices," said Peskov. "That is exactly the purpose of this legislative initiative: to clear up this mess and to make it (the system) modern, effective and convenient for citizens."
"(This plan) is not connected to mobilisation," he said, repeating previous assurances that there were no plans for a second wave of mobilisation. Under the current system, men targeted by military recruiters are sent paper summons to their registered addresses. Under the new proposals, summons would be sent electronically to a potential draftee's personal account on the main government portal. Once the electronic summons is received, under the legislation, citizens who fail to show up at the military enlistment office would be automatically banned from travelling abroad. Reporting by Andrew Osborn and Caleb Davis Editing by Gareth Jones and Andrew OsbornOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
The appeal to release Vladimir Kara-Murza, 41, came ahead of a court hearing in Moscow as his trial, which the journalists likened to the political terror meted out by Soviet leader Josef Stalin in the 1930s, draws to a close. Russian state prosecutors on Thursday requested a 25-year prison sentence for Kara-Murza, a father of three and author and former journalist who holds Russian and British passports. The letter petitioning for Kara-Murza's release was signed by many journalists who have fled the country. "We demand that the Russian authorities, law enforcement officers and judges return to the path of justice. Russian authorities deny any involvement in the alleged attacks.
MOSCOW, April 10 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday that China had every right to respond to what it called repeated "provocations" against it and carry out military exercises around Taiwan. In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said everyone should respect China and its actions which were in line with international law. "In a very short period of time, you and I have witnessed repeated actions that have been provocative toward the People's Republic of China," said Peskov. "And, of course, China has the sovereign right to respond to these provocative actions, including conducting military manoeuvres in strict compliance with international law." During his visit to China, Macron called on Chinese leader Xi Jinping to "bring Russia back to its senses" over Ukraine.
MOSCOW, April 10 (Reuters) - Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, told Russia's defence minister on Monday that he wanted guarantees that Moscow would defend his country if it was attacked, the state-owned BelTA news agency reported. BelTA cited Lukashenko as making the remarks to Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu during a meeting in the Belarusian capital Minsk. "In general, it sounded at the talks (with Putin) that in the case of aggression against Belarus, the Russian Federation would protect Belarus as its own territory. These are the kind of security (guarantees) we need," Lukashenko was quoted as saying. Belarus, which currently hosts a contingent of Russian forces, has offered assistance to Moscow during its military campaign in Ukraine which Russia calls "a special military operation."
MOSCOW, April 10 (Reuters) - Russia plans to overhaul its air defence forces after gaining new experience in the war in Ukraine and will also bolster its air defences to counter Finland's accession to the NATO military alliance, a commander in Russia's aerospace forces said. Since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24 last year in what it calls "a special military operation", the fighting has descended into a grinding artillery war with extensive use of drones and missiles, testing the air defences of both Russia and Ukraine. In an interview published on Monday with the Red Star newspaper, Lieutenant General Andrei Demin, deputy commander-in-chief of aerospace forces, said air defence forces had faced a number of challenges in the face of Ukrainian strikes. In Ukrainian regions under Russian control, air defence units had been set up to defend key installations, Demin said, while Russia had ramped up production of the RLK-MC anti-drone system. Demin said that Russia would also bolster is defences after Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (800-mile) border with Russia, joined NATO.
MOSCOW, April 4 (Reuters) - Russia's commissioner for children's rights on Tuesday dismissed International Criminal Court (ICC) allegations that she was responsible for unlawfully deporting children from Ukraine as false. The Hague-based ICC on March 17 issued arrest warrants for President Vladimir Putin and Children's Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for the war crime of unlawfully deporting children from areas of Ukraine occupied by Russian forces. The ICC said it had information that hundreds of children had been taken from orphanages and children's care homes in areas of Ukraine claimed by Russia. CHILDRENSince the invasion, Ukraine has cast Russia as a brutal imperial aggressor that has committed war crimes, including the theft of children. Putin allies have cast the ICC, which countries including China and the United States do not recognise, as a "legal nonentity."
Russia: Finland's NATO accession carries risk of escalation
  + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +2 min
April 4 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia would be forced to take "counter-measures" to Finland's accession to the NATO military alliance, as Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the move raised the prospect of the conflict in Ukraine escalating further. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the expansion of NATO - long criticised in Moscow - was an "encroachment on our security and on Russia's national interests" and that Moscow would watch closely for any NATO military deployments in Finland. Shoigu told Russia's military leadership in a meeting that Finland's accession "creates the risks of a significant expansion of the conflict" in Ukraine, according to a transcript published by the Defence Ministry. But he said it would not affect the outcome of what Russia calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine. Shoigu said Russia was also taking practical steps to boost the nuclear strike potential of its close ally Belarus in response.
The woman arrested - Darya Trepova - was a Russian citizen who had previously been detained for protesting against the war in Ukraine, the state news agency TASS said. Some Russian commentators saw the bombing as the latest sign that violence related to the war in Ukraine is increasingly spilling onto Russian territory. Russian investigators said they had arrested Trepova, a 26-year-old, who they said was suspected of bringing the explosives into the St Petersburg cafe. Darya Dugina, the daughter of a prominent Russian nationalist ideologue, was killed in a car bomb attack outside Moscow last summer that Russia blamed on Kyiv. Simonyan, like other hawkish commentators, made it clear on Telegram that she wanted Russia to hit back hard against whoever had killed Tatarsky.
MOSCOW, March 30 (Reuters) - Russia's FSB security service said on Thursday that a reporter with the U.S. newspaper The Wall Street Journal, Evan Gershkovich, had been detained in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg on suspicion of espionage, the Interfax news agency reported. In a statement quoted by Interfax, the FSB said it had "stopped the illegal activities of U.S. citizen Gershkovich Evan, born in 1991, a correspondent of the Moscow bureau of the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, accredited at the Russian Foreign Ministry, who is suspected of spying in the interests of the American government". No comment was immediately available from the newspaper. The statement said Gershkovich had been tasked "by the American side" with gathering information on "the activities of one of the enterprises of the military-defence complex". Reporting by Reuters, Editing by Andrew Osborn and Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
March 30 (Reuters) - Alexei Moskalyov, a Russian man sentenced to two years in prison for discrediting the Russian army, and whose daughter was taken into care, has been detained after fleeing house arrest, lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov told Reuters on Thursday. "He has been detained, yes," Zakhvatov said, without providing more details. The Russian-language news outlet SOTA reported earlier that Moskalyov, 54, had been arrested in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, a staunch Russian ally. He was later charged with discrediting Russia's armed forces in connection with separate anti-war comments he was alleged to have made on social media. Later the same day, a court sentenced him in absentia to two years in a penal colony.
Summary Russia accuses detained U.S. journalist of spyingSays he was trying to gather state/military secretsWall Street Journal denies the allegationsMove latest blow to dire Russia-U.S. tiesLONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - Russia's FSB security service said on Thursday it had detained a reporter for U.S. newspaper The Wall Street Journal on suspicion of spying for Washington, the most serious public move against a foreign journalist since Russia invaded Ukraine. The Wall Street Journal said in a statement it was "deeply concerned" for Gershkovich's safety and that it "vehemently denies the allegations from the FSB and seeks the immediate release of our trusted and dedicated reporter". TOUGH CENSORSHIP LAWS[1/5] Reporter for U.S. newspaper The Wall Street Journal Evan Gershkovich appears in an undated handout image taken in an unknown location. Other foreign journalists covering Russia expressed support for Gershkovich online, saying he was a professional reporter, not a spy. Gershkovich, who has covered Russia since 2017, previously worked at The Moscow Times newspaper and at Agence-France Presse news agency before joining the Wall Street Journal's Moscow bureau in January last year.
Russia said on Wednesday it would voluntarily stick to agreed limits on the number of nuclear warheads it can deploy regardless of the U.S step. Putin justified Russia's suspension last month by saying, without providing evidence, that the West had been directly involved in Ukrainian attacks against bases for Russian strategic bomber planes deep inside Russian territory. He said NATO demands that Russia should allow inspections of its nuclear bases under the New START treaty were therefore absurd. Signed in 2010 and due to expire in 2026, the New START treaty caps the number of strategic nuclear warheads that both countries, the world's largest nuclear powers, can deploy. Under its terms, Moscow and Washington may deploy no more than 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads and 700 land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.
March 29 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Wednesday it was not up to Russia to advise Chinese President Xi Jinping on whether he should visit Ukraine or not. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has extended an invitation to the Chinese leader to visit, the Associated Press reported earlier on Wednesday. China's Xi visited Putin in Moscow last week and the pair issued a joint statement referring to a 12-point Chinese proposal for dialogue and an eventual ceasefire in the Ukraine war. The Chinese plan met with a dismissive response in Washington, given Beijing's refusal to condemn Russia's invasion. Ukraine has welcomed China's diplomatic involvement but Zelenskiy has said he will only consider peace settlements after Russian troops leave Ukrainian territory.
LONDON, March 28 (Reuters) - Russian forces are moving forward in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut despite fierce resistance and have almost taken full control of a metals plant there, a Russian-installed leader in the region said. His assertion ran counter to Ukrainian and Western descriptions of the situation in the city, which they have said is stabilising as a Russian offensive falters. "The (Wagner) guys are moving forward, of course they are moving forward, though it takes their hardest efforts to do that," Pushilin told state TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov. British military intelligence has said that the Russian assault has stalled, mainly as a result of heavy troop losses. Ukrainian military commanders have said their own counter offensive - backed by newly-delivered Western hardware - is not far off, but have stressed the importance of holding Bakhmut in the meantime.
March 28 (Reuters) - Belarus said on Tuesday it had decided to host Russian tactical nuclear weapons after years of pressure from the United States and its allies aimed at changing its political and geopolitical direction. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that Moscow would in future look to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus, a staunch ally, escalating a standoff with the West. "Over the last two and a half years, the Republic of Belarus has been subjected to unprecedented political, economic and information pressure from the United States, the United Kingdom and its NATO allies, as well as the member states of the European Union," the statement said. Minsk said the Russian nuclear plans would not contravene international non-proliferation agreements as Belarus itself would not have control over the weapons. Reporting by Reuters Editing by Andrew OsbornOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
The statement from the foreign ministry was the government's first since Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that Moscow will deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and would build a nuclear weapons storage facility there. Although Putin did not say when the deployment would take place, or give further detail, the announcement appeared to pave the way for Moscow's first deployment of nuclear weapons outside its borders since the 1991 Soviet collapse. The Belarusian foreign ministry said Russia's nuclear bombs offered protection after what it called a campaign of pressure from the United States and its allies aimed at overthrowing the government of President Alexander Lukashenko. Minsk said the Russian nuclear plans would not contravene international non-proliferation agreements as Belarus itself would not have control over the nuclear weapons. Its own troops have so far not fought in the war however, while stepping up joint military training with Russian forces deployed in Belarus.
LONDON, March 27 (Reuters) - Russia has warned Armenia of "serious consequences" if it submits to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) which has issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin, the RIA news agency reported on Monday. The ICC issued the warrant this month, accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine, a move condemned by the Kremlin as a meaningless and outrageously partisan decision. RIA, a state Russian news agency, cited a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry as saying that Moscow regarded Armenia's ICC plans as "unacceptable". The ICC warrant has the potential to complicate Putin's global travel plans if a country he wants to travel to is an official party to the Rome Statute. Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Alison WilliamsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
March 27 (Reuters) - A giant recruitment advert for Russia's Wagner mercenary force has appeared on the facade of an office building next to a highway in north-east Moscow. The advert, which covers 17 storeys, shows the group's logo and slogans such as "Join the winning team!" Wagner, which fights alongside Russian forces in eastern Ukraine, has sought to replenish troop numbers ahead of a potential Ukrainian counteroffensive. The group is thought to have sustained heavy losses as it battles for control of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, in what has become the longest, bloodiest battle of the war. Moscow has backed Wagner with equipment and arms, and has made extensive use of its forces during its military campaign in Ukraine.
Summary This content was produced in Russia, where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine. MOSCOW, March 27 (Reuters) - An ally of President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia has the weapons to destroy any enemy, including the United States, if its own existence is threatened, accusing Washington of underestimating Moscow's nuclear might. "American politicians trapped by their own propaganda remain confident that, in the event of a direct conflict with Russia, the United States is capable of launching a preventive missile strike, after which Russia will no longer be able to respond. But it has modern unique weapons capable of destroying any adversary, including the United States, in the event of a threat to its existence", he said. On Saturday, President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would station tactical nuclear missiles in its close ally Belarus, which borders both Ukraine and Russia, sending a warning to NATO over its military support for Kyiv and escalating a standoff with the West.
MOSCOW, March 24 (Reuters) - Russia wants to create demilitarised buffer zones inside Ukraine around areas it has annexed, an ally of President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, saying it might be necessary to push deeper into Ukraine if such zones cannot be set up. More than a year into Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Putin's core war aims remain unfulfilled despite Russian control of nearly a fifth of the country. Russia would have to push further into Ukraine if such zones were not established, he said, taking Kyiv the capital or even the Western Ukrainian city of Lviv. Russia insists it will achieve all of its war aims and has cautioned the West against testing its resolve. The West says that what CIA Director William Burns calls Putin's "hubris" will be pierced by battlefield defeat in Ukraine.
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