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☆ State treason trial of Russian physicist begins in St. Petersburg
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 1 (Reuters) - The criminal trial of a prominent Russian physicist accused of state treason opened in St Petersburg on Thursday amid tight secrecy and concerns over the health of the elderly defendant. The case, marked as "top secret", is closed to the media and public, the St Petersburg court has said. Maslov was a professor and researcher at the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, one of Russia's top scientific centres. Soon afterwards, Maslov was sent to Lefortovo prison in Moscow, a former KGB interrogation site, before being transferred to St. Petersburg to stand trial. Russia's parliament voted in April to increase the maximum penalty for treason to life imprisonment from 20 years.

Persons: Anatoly Maslov, Maslov, Lucy Papachristou, Gareth Jones Organizations: Kremlin, Reuters, Khristianovich, of Theoretical, Mechanics, Thomson Locations: Russian, St Petersburg, Siberian, Novosibirsk, Petersburg, Maslov, Moscow, St, hypersonics, China

"The selfless actions of Russian servicemen repelled three attacks by Ukrainian terrorist formations," the Russian ministry said. Ukraine denies its military is involved in the incursions into Belgorod and says they are conducted by Russian volunteer fighters. BORDER ATTACKReuters was able to verify video footage which showed damaged military targets near Shebekino but not the date of the images. The attacks on Belgorod, Peskov said, would have absolutely no impact on the course of what the Kremlin calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine. Another group, known as the Freedom of Russia Legion, posted footage of armed soldiers and vehicles.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Gladkov, Putin, Guy Faulconbridge, Felix Light, George Sargant, Andrew Cawthorne, Gareth Jones Organizations: Reuters, Russia Kremlin, Ukrainian, Russian, Federal Security Service, Kremlin, Kyiv, Russian Volunteer Corps, of Russia Legion, Milan Pavicic, Thomson Locations: Russia, MOSCOW, Ukraine, Moscow, Shebekino, Belgorod, Ukrainian, Russian, Novaya Tavolzhanka, Tbilisi, London, Gdansk

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

☆ Russian mercenary boss slams army 'clowns' as he marks birthday at training camp
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Celebrating his 62nd birthday on Thursday at a training camp, Prigozhin also confirmed that his men would finally leave the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut on June 5 after handing it to the Russian army. The Wagner mercenaries captured the devastated city in late May after months of grinding warfare. He then engaged in a detailed description of the prosthetic legs which his wounded men have received, including those who continued to fight. Prigozhin said his men wanted to rest at camps in Russian-controlled Ukraine for around a month and then things would become clearer. Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge Editing by Gareth JonesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Read, Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Sergei Shoigu, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Staff, Thomson Locations: Bakhmut, Russia, Ukraine, MOSCOW, Russian, Ukrainian

☆ Russia fines WhatsApp for first time for not deleting banned content
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies This content was produced in Russia where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in UkraineMOSCOW, June 1 (Reuters) - A Russian court on Thursday fined messenger service WhatsApp three million roubles ($37,080) for not deleting banned content, its first fine in Russia for that offence. Other Meta services, Facebook and Instagram - now banned in Russia - have been fined over content, as have the likes of Twitter and Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google. WhatsApp, however, has previously been fined for its alleged refusal to comply with Russian data law and store Russian users' data on servers in the country. It has previously said information that Russian authorities complained about was well-sourced and in line with Wikipedia standards. Moscow has for years clashed with Big Tech over content, censorship, data and local representation in disputes that escalated after Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

Persons: Meta, Alexander Marrow, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Meta, Inc, Facebook, Twitter, Google, Wikimedia Foundation, Russia, Wikimedia, Big Tech, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine MOSCOW, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ Russia says it destroys Ukraine's 'last warship'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, May 31 (Reuters) - Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday that its forces had destroyed what it described as Ukraine's "last warship" two days ago in the port of Odesa in a missile strike. Ukraine's navy declined to comment. "The last warship of the Ukrainian navy, the Yuriy Olefirenko, was destroyed at a warship mooring in the port of Odesa," Defence Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a daily briefing on the war. Oleh Chalyk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian navy, said he would not respond to any assertions made by Russia. The Ukrainian navy will not disclose any information about losses during the war, he added.

Persons: Yuriy Olefirenko, Igor Konashenkov, Oleh, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Ukrainian, Defence, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Odesa, Ukrainian, Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Krasnohorivka, Ukraine's, Donetsk, Moscow, Avdiivka

MOSCOW, May 31 (Reuters) - Russia's most powerful mercenary, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said on Wednesday that he had asked prosecutors to investigate whether senior Russian defence officials had committed any "crime" before or during the war in Ukraine. Prigozhin's request is his most blatant public challenge to date against President Vladimir Putin's top military brass, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov. The 61-year-old restaurateur-turned-mercenary has spent months insulting both Shoigu and Gerasimov, who are leading Russia's war effort, for alleged treachery. He says loyalty to Putin is part of his political stance, which he summed up as: "I love my motherland, I serve Putin, Shoigu should be judged and we will fight on." Prigozhin is not directly challenging Putin but rather playing a jester role and acting with the approval of those dismayed by the military's conduct of the war, officials, diplomats and analysts have told Reuters.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Sergei Shoigu, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Prigozhin, PUTIN'S, Wagner, Putin, Russia's, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Staff, Investigative Committee, Russian Federation, Defence Ministry, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Ukraine, Bakhmut

☆ Kremlin says Russia will take part in BRICS summit at 'proper level'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, May 30 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia would take part at the "proper level" in a planned summit in South Africa of the BRICS nations, responding to a question on whether President Vladimir Putin would attend the gathering. South Africa, a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), would theoretically be required to arrest Putin under a warrant issued by the court for his arrest for alleged war crimes. However it has invited Putin to the Aug. 22-24 summit of the BRICS grouping of emerging economies, which comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. And Russia will take part in this summit at the proper level," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a regular news briefing. The ICC issued an arrest warrant in March for Putin, accusing him of the war crime of forcibly deporting children from Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine.

☆ Russia's Shoigu says West 'stepping up' supplies to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 30 (Reuters) - Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Tuesday that the West was stepping up equipment and arms supplies to Kyiv ahead of what he said would be a "large-scale" Ukrainian offensive, and said Moscow would strike any supply routes it detected. Speaking on state television, Shoigu also said Russia was inflicting "effective fire damage on the enemy" and that the Western weapons would not change the outcome of Moscow's "special military operation" in Ukraine. He was speaking shortly after Ukraine launched its biggest ever drone attack on Moscow, though Shoigu's ministry said Russian air defences had destroyed all eight of the drones. A Ukrainian presidential aide denied Kyiv was directly involved in Tuesday's attack on Moscow, but said Ukraine was enjoying watching events and forecast more to come. Ukraine has signalled it will soon embark on a long-anticipated "counter-offensive" backed with Western weapons to try and drive Russian occupiers from its territory.

Persons: Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu, Shoigu's, Vladimir Putin, Gareth Jones Organizations: Russian Defence, Kyiv, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Kyiv, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian

☆ Kenya and Russia to sign trade pact, President Ruto says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Speaker of the National Assembly of Kenya Moses Wetangula shakes hands with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Nairobi, Kenya May 29, 2023. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERSNAIROBI, May 29 (Reuters) - Kenya will sign a trade pact with Russia aimed at boosting cooperation between businesses, President William Ruto's office said on Monday, after hosting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Nairobi. Kenya's presidency said in a statement that bilateral trade with Russia was still low despite the potential and the pact would give business the "necessary impetus". Russia says its invasion of Ukraine, launched on Feb. 24, 2022, is aimed at protecting its own security against Ukraine's pro-Western leadership. Lavrov has visited the African continent at least three times this year, while Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba travelled to countries including Ethiopia, Rwanda and Mozambique last week.

☆ Polish president signs 'Tusk Law' on undue Russian influence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Opposition figures have nicknamed it Lex Tusk, using the Latin word for law. "In a normal democratic country, somebody who is president of that country would never sign such a Stalin-esque law," PO lawmaker Marcin Kierwinski told private broadcaster TVN 24. CONCERNSThe Polish Judges' Association Iustitia said the law breached European Union values and could prompt more punitive EU measures over democratic backsliding in Poland. Poland's dependence on Russian energy has progressively declined, even before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal, allowing the import of non-Russian gas, started when Tusk was in power.

☆ Turkey election runoff 2023: what you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Women display flags with images of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan next to an election campaign point, ahead of the May 28 presidential runoff vote, in Istanbul, Turkey May 25, 2023. Here is a guide to the runoff, the two candidates and the key issues as well as details on how the May 14 parliamentary election unfolded:PRESIDENTIAL VOTETurks will be electing a president for a five-year term. As president, Erdogan sets policy on Turkey's economy, security, domestic and international affairs. The ZP received 2.2% of votes in the parliamentary election. On foreign affairs, under Erdogan, Turkey has flexed military power in the Middle East and beyond, forged closer ties with Russia, and seen relations with the European Union and United States become increasingly strained.

Kilicdaroglu, chair of the secularist Republican People's Party (CHP), received 44.9% in what was seen as the biggest electoral challenge to Erdogan's 20-year rule. A third candidate, nationalist Sinan Ogan, obtained 5.17% and both Erdogan and Kilicdaroglu are expected to seek his endorsement in negotiations this week. Turkey hosts the world's largest refugee population of around 4 million, according to official figures. Supporters of Kemal Kilicdaroglu, presidential candidate of Turkey's main opposition alliance, rally outside the Republican People's Party (CHP) headquarters on election night in Ankara, Turkey May 14, 2023. In Wednesday's video, Kilicdaroglu also accused Erdogan of cooperating with the network Ankara accuses of orchestrating a 2016 coup attempt.

☆ Erdogan says Black Sea grain deal extended for two months
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ISTANBUL, May 17 (Reuters) - The Ukraine Black Sea grain deal has been extended for two more months, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, one day before Russia could have quit the pact over obstacles to its grain and fertilizer exports. Erdogan's comments, made in a speech to officials of his ruling AK Party, came after the last ship left a Ukrainian port under the deal, which allows for the safe export via the Black Sea of Ukrainian grain and was due to expire on Thursday. "The Black Sea grain corridor deal has been extended by two months with the efforts of Turkey," he said in his televised speech, also thanking the Russian and Ukrainian leaders and U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres for their help. The United Nations and Turkey brokered the Black Sea deal for an initial 120 days in July last year to help tackle a global food crisis that has been aggravated by Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, one of the world's leading grain exporters. To convince Russia in July to allow Black Sea grain exports, the United Nations agreed at the same time to help Moscow with its own agricultural shipments for three years.

☆ Twitter objects to Turkish court orders after pre-election warnings
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ISTANBUL, May 16 (Reuters) - Twitter said it had filed objections to Turkish court orders requesting a ban on access to some accounts and tweets on the platform, after keeping its service available during an election weekend despite warnings from authorities in Ankara. The court orders, which were shared by Twitter, requested the access bans on the grounds that they posed a threat to public order and national security. "So in order to keep Twitter available over the election weekend, we took action on four accounts and 409 Tweets identified by court order." Twitter said five court orders had been issued against it regarding these actions and it had already objected to four of them. Social media companies are required to appoint Turkish representatives and they face bandwidth being throttled by up to 90% immediately after a court order should the representative fail to provide information to the authorities.

Erdogan got 49.5% in Sunday's vote and fell just short of the majority needed to avoid a runoff in a vote seen as a referendum on his autocratic rule. But many of his supporters, including first-time voter Asim, were gloomy about Kilicdaroglu's chances in the runoff vote. The election is being closely followed in Washington, Europe and across the region, where Erdogan has asserted Turkish power. Opinion polls had shown Erdogan trailing Kilicdaroglu, but Sunday's outcome suggested he and his Islamist-rooted AKP were able to rally conservative voters despite Turkey's economic woes. Kilicdaroglu and his alliance want to restore a parliamentary system of government and scrap the powerful executive presidency introduced by Erdogan.

☆ Turkey's market rout deepens after Erdogan's strong election showing
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Libgeorge Canan Sevgili | Canan Sevgili | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Ahead of the elections, opinion polls had showed Kilicdaroglu in the lead, and investors expected him to scrap some of Erdogan's economic policies, including costly efforts to prop up the lira currency. Longer-dated, dollar-denominated government bonds saw the biggest falls in fixed income markets, although key corporate and banking sector bonds also edged lower. Credit ratings agency Fitch said the political and economic uncertainty would continue at least until after the runoff. Banking stocks, which had surged in the week ahead of the election on hopes of a policy change, tumbled another 8% (.XBANK) to take their losses since the election to nearly 20%. The overall Istanbul bourse index (.XU100), which had notched a 6.1% fall on Monday, its largest daily percentage drop since early February, was mostly flat.

☆ For Turkey runoff, potential kingmaker draws red line at Kurdish concessions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Ogan won 5.2% in Sunday's first round of the presidential election. President Tayyip Erdogan, who led after the Sunday vote, and Kilicdaroglu will take part in the runoff, set for May 28. "We will consult with our voter base for our decision in the runoff. But we already made clear that the fight against terrorism and sending refugees back are our red lines," Ogan, who took 5.2% of the initial vote, told Reuters in an interview on Monday. Reporting by Orhan Coskun and Birsen Altayli; Writing by Huseyin Hayatsever; Editing by Jonathan Spicer and Gareth JonesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Erdogan's milestones as Turkey faces May 28 runoff vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

[1/2] Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan greets supporters at the AK Party headquarters in Ankara, Turkey May 15, 2023. August 2001: He establishes the Justice and Development Party, or AK Party (AKP), and is elected chairman. November 2002: The AKP wins elections with nearly 35% of votes after the worst economic slump since the 1970s, promising to break with past mismanagement and recessions. June 2018: Erdogan wins snap presidential elections. Though his popularity has suffered due to a cost-of-living crisis, Erdogan wins more votes than his rival but falls short of the 50% threshold needed to win in the first round, teeing up a May 28 runoff.

We are experiencing the result of this marathon with you tonight," Erdogan, 69, told thousands of flag-waving supporters from the balcony of his party's headquarters. But Erdogan, a veteran of a dozen election victories, emerged comfortably ahead of Kilicdaroglu, though just short of the majority needed to win. The outcome reflects the strong support Erdogan still commands, especially in religiously conservative regions where voters long felt marginalised by a once-dominant secular elite. Over two decades, Erdogan has redrawn Turkey's domestic, economic, security and foreign policy, rivalling historic leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk who founded modern Turkey a century ago. Erdogan's government said the purge was justified by threats from coup supporters, as well as Islamic State and the PKK.

"The winner has undoubtedly been our country," Erdogan said in a speech to cheering supporters at the headquarters of his ruling Islamist-rooted AK Party in the capital Ankara overnight. Going into the election, the opposition had sensed its best chance yet of unseating Erdogan, encouraged by polls showing him trailing his main challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu. But the results suggested Erdogan and his AK Party had been able to rally conservative voters despite a cost-of-living crisis. [1/4] Supporters of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and AK Party (AKP) gather on election night, in Istanbul, Turkey May 15, 2023. "During the campaign period ahead of the runoff, President Erdogan is likely to emphasise stability as he already retains the majority in the parliament," Dalay said.

[1/5] Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan greets supporters at the AK Party headquarters in Ankara, Turkey May 15, 2023. His six-party alliance did not attract as many nationalist voters as expected, partly due to support for Kilicdaroglu's candidacy from a large pro-Kurdish party, the officials said. Both Erdogan and Kilicdaroglu are expected to meet Ogan in person in the coming days. Given their conservative views, Erdogan and Ogan are seen as easier allies, even though the president's alliance includes a small Islamist Kurdish party that Ogan also opposes. "His motto will be: if you vote for Kilicdaroglu he will be a lame duck," said another senior opposition official who acknowledged a tough road ahead.

☆ Belarus leader Lukashenko avoids stroll, skips lunch after Moscow parade
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Lukashenko, a close Putin ally, looked tired and a little unsteady on his feet, and a bandage was visible on his right hand. His appearance sparked speculation online about his health, though he otherwise showed no obvious sign of being unwell. In a rare departure from custom, the Belarusian president then missed the state lunch hosted by Putin in the Kremlin and attended by the other leaders. Lukashenko later on Tuesday resurfaced for the Victory Day wreath-laying ceremony in Minsk but in another departure from tradition he wore civilian clothes - not a military uniform - and made no speech. At Tuesday's Victory Day parade Putin said Russia was engaged in a "sacred" fight with the West over Ukraine.

☆ Factbox: Why does Russia celebrate Victory Day on May 9, and what does it mean for Putin?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Victory Day is one of Russia's most important public holidays. WHEN WAS THE FIRST VICTORY DAY? In Moscow it was already May 9, which became the Soviet Union's "Victory Day". The Soviet Union celebrated the 20th and 40th anniversaries of Victory Day with Red Square parades in 1965 and 1985. Under Putin, Victory Day increasingly became a muscular display not only of marching battalions but also of Russia's latest weaponry, including warplanes, tanks, and nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles.

☆ Russia to hold Victory Day parade amid tight security after drone attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Gareth Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] Russian service members march in columns before a rehearsal for a military parade, which marks the anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Moscow, Russia May 7, 2023. Russia is also reeling from drone attacks, including one on the Kremlin on May 3 which it said was an attempt to assassinate President Vladimir Putin. Putin has repeatedly likened the Ukraine war - which he casts as a battle against "Nazi"-inspired nationalists - to the challenge the Soviet Union faced when Hitler invaded in 1941. Kyiv says this is absurd and accuses Russia of behaving like Nazi Germany by waging an unprovoked war of aggression and seizing Ukrainian territory. However, reflecting increased security concerns caused partly by the drone attacks, authorities have cancelled the traditional flyover.

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