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☆ Putin ally accuses Western leaders of blood on their hands for supporting Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 4 (Reuters) - Russia's parliament speaker said on Tuesday that Western leaders have blood on their hands for supporting Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and that support has led to the creation of a "terrorist state" in Europe's centre. Vyacheslav Volodin, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, said that the killing of prominent war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky in St Petersburg over the weekend was a "terrorist act" committed by Kyiv. "The support of Washington and Brussels for the Kyiv authorities has led to the creation of a terrorist state in the centre of Europe," Volodin said on the Telegram messaging app. "The blood of the dead and wounded is on the hands of (U.S. President Joe) Biden, (President Emmanuel) Macron, (German Chancellor Olaf) Scholz and other heads of state who support the Zelenskiy regime." Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

March 25 (Reuters) - Russia's parliament speaker on Saturday proposed banning the activities of the International Criminal Court (ICC) after the court issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of the war crimes. Vyacheslav Volodin, an ally of Putin's, said that Russian legislation should be amended to prohibit any activity of the ICC in Russia and to punish any who gave "assistance and support" to the ICC. Any assistance or support for the ICC inside Russia, he said, should be punishable under law. The ICC issued an arrest warrant earlier this month accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The Kremlin says the ICC arrest warrant is an outrageously partisan decision, but meaningless with respect to Russia.

☆ Putin ally proposes banning ICC in Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Russia's parliament speaker on Saturday proposed banning the activities of the International Criminal Court (ICC) after the court issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of the war crimes. Vyacheslav Volodin, an ally of Putin's, said that Russian legislation should be amended to prohibit any activity of the ICC in Russia and to punish any who gave "assistance and support" to the ICC. Any assistance or support for the ICC inside Russia, he said, should be punishable under law. The ICC issued an arrest warrant earlier this month accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The Kremlin says the ICC arrest warrant is an outrageously partisan decision, but meaningless with respect to Russia.

☆ Reactions to ICC's arrest warrant for Putin citing Ukraine war crimes
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/Roman Baluk/File PhotoMarch 17 (Reuters) - Following are reactions to the news on Friday that the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegal deportation of children from Ukraine. There are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes." RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESWOMAN MARIA ZAKHAROVA"The decisions of the International Criminal Court have no meaning for our country, including from a legal point of view. Russia is not a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and bears no obligations under it." I welcome the decision of the International Criminal Court."

☆ ‘I Live in Hell’: The Psychic Wounds of Ukraine’s Soldiers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Photographs Antoine D Agata | Text Ellen Barry | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +15 min

The soldier’s ward is a quiet place, high-ceilinged, with chess boards and a Ping-Pong table; you could mistake it for a rest home, except that the door handles have been removed. Tap Click to read their stories Oleksandr, 21 Occupation: Soldier, former student “I finished school and joined the army in 2021. Now I’m mostly sad; I’m better off alone.” Yulia, 47 Occupation: Soldier; combat medic, independent forensic expert I’m a combat medic. Stanislav, 29 Occupation: Soldier, former cook “I didn’t plan to end up here. I adjust to each person in this way.” Serhii, 42 Occupation: Soldier, former employee at a shipping company On April 28 2022, I joined the air assault forces.

☆ Russia is recruiting female convicts to serve in Ukraine amid growing battlefield losses, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Reports have emerged of Russian efforts to recruit female convicts to fight in Ukraine. Ukrainian officials said a carriage full of female prisoners was seen heading towards Donetsk. The report suggested that Russia was seeking to find new sources of fighters against a backdrop of heavy losses. The region borders occupied Ukraine by way of the Kerch bridge that connects Russia to Crimea. Prigozhin later announced that he was ending this policy, amid reports that inmates were put off by the mounting death toll.

☆ Russia's air defence downs four missiles in Belgorod region - governor
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 13 (Reuters) - At least one person was wounded in the southern Russian region of Belgorod on Monday after Russian forces shot down four missiles over the region and its administrative centre Belgorod, the governor of the region bordering Ukraine said. "At this time one person is known to have been injured," Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on the Telegram messaging app. He did not say who he thought had fired the missiles but in the past he has accused Ukrainian forces on the other side of the nearby border of similar attacks. Belgorod borders Ukraine's Kharkiv region and has repeatedly come under fire since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine a year ago. Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia and on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.

☆ Russia's air defence downs three missiles in Belgorod region - governor
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 6 (Reuters) - At least one person was wounded in the southern Russian region of Belgorod on Monday after Russian forces shot down three missiles, the governor of the region bordering Ukraine said. "It's known about one wounded, a man with shrapnel wounds to his hand," Gladkov said. Belgorod borders Ukraine's Kharkiv region and has repeatedly come under fire since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine a year ago. Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia and on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine. Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russia tries to close ring on Bakhmut as Ukrainians mount 'furious resistance'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Yevhen Titov | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The leader of Russia's Wagner mercenary group said the Ukrainians were putting up "furious resistance" trying to hold the city at all costs. That came a day after Moscow accused Kyiv of launching a series of drone strikes on targets in Russia itself. [1/4] Ukrainian service members ride BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, near the frontline city of Bakhmut, Ukraine February 27, 2023. After losing extensive territory in the second half of 2022, Russian forces have been replenished by hundreds of thousands of reservists. Fighting near Bakhmut has been led by Wagner, which has recruited tens of thousands of convicts from prisons.

☆ Russian law amendments punish 'discrediting' military, including voluntary formations
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Igor RussakSummary This content was produced in Russia where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine. MOSCOW, March 1 (Reuters) - Russia brought new law amendments to parliament on Wednesday that further strengthen the country's censorship laws, envisaging up to 15 years in jail for discrediting the armed forces and voluntary military organisations such as the Wagner Group. "As well as public actions aimed at discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, volunteer formations, organizations and persons who are facilitated in the implementation of tasks assigned to the ... Armed Forces," would be punishable, Volodin wrote on the Telegram messaging platform. "This initiative will protect everyone who today is risking their lives to ensures the security of the country and our citizens ... ($1 = 75.1 roubles)Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russian fighter jet crashes in Belgorod region, near Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 23 (Reuters) - A Russian SU-25 fighter plane crashed on Thursday in Russia's Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine and the pilot was killed, the Russian defence ministry said. The cause of the crash was a "technical malfunction", according to preliminary information, the TASS news agency cited the ministry as saying. The plane crashed in an uninhabited area and there were no reports of other damage, it said. Earlier, in a post on the Telegram messenger app, Belgorod's governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said that emergency services and investigators were on the scene of the crash near the town of Valyuki, and that the cause was being investigated. Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine's Kharkiv region, has repeatedly come under fire since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine a year ago.

☆ Russia's parliament prepares to approve suspension of New START
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 22 (Reuters) - Russian officials on Wednesday blamed the United States and the West for President Vladimir Putin's decision to suspend Moscow's participation in the New START treaty, as Russia's parliament was set to rubber-stamp the move. "This decision was forced on us by the war declared by the United States and other NATO countries on our country. It will have a huge resonance in the world overall and in the United States in particular," Medvedev said in a post on the Telegram messaging app. Russia's parliament is expected to rubber-stamp the move to suspend the treaty, possibly as early as Wednesday. The head of Russia's Duma, the lower house of parliament, also blamed the United States for the breakdown.

[1/2] People stand in line to use an ATM money machine in Saint Petersburg, Russia February 27, 2022. For the majority, who bank in roubles with huge retail lenders, such as Sberbank (SBER.MM), the answer is: not much. "Nothing has changed for me at all," said Vyacheslav Fatikhovich, a taxi driver in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg. "The only thing is that customers are paying less by card and more often in cash," he said. "I quickly opened three UnionPay cards at different Russian banks," Andrey, who now works outside Russia, said.

[1/4] A Russian police officer stands in front of a branch of the Raiffeisen Bank in Moscow, Russia, February 27, 2016. It made a net profit of roughly 3.8 billion euros last year, thanks in large part to a 2 billion euro plus profit from its Russia business. Of UniCredit's more than 20 billion euro total revenue last year, Russia accounted for more than 1 billion euros. Meanwhile, Russian savers lodged more than 20 billion euros with the bank, which offers a place to deposit funds with fewer sanctions risks. It banned investors from so-called unfriendly countries from selling shares in banks, unless the Russian President grants an exemption.

Russia, without providing evidence, has repeatedly said the West was behind the blasts affecting the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines last September - multibillion-dollar infrastructure projects that carried Russian gas to Germany. In his blog post, entitled "How America Took Out The Nord Stream Pipeline", Hersh said a plan was hatched in 2021 at the highest levels in the United States to destroy the pipelines. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier this month that Washington was directly involved in the sabotage of the pipelines. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said there would be "consequences" for Washington, adding the report was not a surprise for Russia as it had long considered the United States and possibly other NATO members were behind the blasts. The United States should pay "compensation to countries affected by the terrorist attack", Volodin added.

☆ Russia calls for international probe into Nord Stream blasts after blogger report
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, Feb 9 (Reuters) - A blog by a U.S. investigative journalist alleging the United States was behind the explosions that ruptured the Nord Stream gas pipelines should become the basis for an international investigation, Russia's top lawmaker said on Thursday. Volodin said the United States should pay "compensation to countries affected by the terrorist attack." Moscow, without providing evidence, has repeatedly said the West was behind the explosions affecting the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines last September - multibillion-dollar infrastructure projects that carried Russian gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea. President Vladimir Putin has accused "Anglo-Saxon" powers of blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines, a Kremlin-designed project to circumvent Ukraine in exporting its gas directly to Germany and further to Europe. Russia's foreign ministry said on Wednesday the United States had questions to answer over its role in explosions on the undersea Nord Stream gas pipelines last year.

☆ War with Russia rages as Ukraine’s government confronts an old enemy: Corruption
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Raf Sanchez | Raf Sanchez Is A Foreign Correspondent For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

He is now one of around a dozen officials who resigned, were fired, or were put under investigation this week as Ukraine’s government confronts an old enemy: corruption. On Monday, Zelenskyy banned public officials from traveling abroad for anything other than work. “It demonstrates what President Zelenskyy has told us, that there will be zero tolerance for fraud or waste,” he said. Ukraine is currently ranked 132 out of 180 countries on a corruption index compiled by Transparency International, a good-governance nongovernmental organization. “I think that after the war, we will have a better Ukraine than we had before the war,” he said.

☆ A Russian graveyard reveals Wagner’s prisoner army
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +18 min

The resting places were adorned with simple wooden crosses and brightly coloured wreaths that bore the insignia of Russia’s Wagner Group - a feared and secretive private army. The news agency matched the names of at least 39 of the dead here and at three other nearby cemeteries to Russian court records, publicly available databases and social media accounts. He said gravediggers told him the bodies had come from the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, close to Russia’s border with Donetsk region. According to Russian court documents, Kochas and another man burst into the apartment of an acquaintance while drunk in an attempted robbery. But he refused, so he’s a fool.”A Russian graveyard reveals Wagner’s prisoner army By Felix Light and Filipp Lebedev in Tbilisi and Reade Levinson in London Photo editing: Simon Newman Graphics: Fielding Cage Art direction: Eve Watling Edited by Janet McBride

☆ Zelenskyy fired 9 top officials after reports that members of his government went on vacation to Spain and France and took bribes during the war
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired a slew of senior officials on Tuesday. In December, Symonenko went on holiday to Spain using a Mercedes owned by a prominent Ukrainian businessman, The Guardian reported. "Of course, now the main focus is the issue of defense, this is the issue of foreign policy, this is the issue of war," he said. On Monday, Zelenskyy banned officials from traveling abroad until the end of the war, except for when performing government duties. Zelenskyy's press office and Ukraine's Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

☆ Factbox: Who are the officials swept out in Ukraine's biggest shake-up of the war?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Max Hunder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERSKYIV, Jan 24 (Reuters) - A slew of high-level officials resigned or were dismissed from their posts on Tuesday in Ukraine's biggest internal shake-up since it was invaded by Russia on Feb. 24 last year. GOVERNOR OF DNIPROPETROVSK REGIONValentyn Reznichenko had served since 2015 as governor of Dnipropetrovsk region, the main wartime logistical and medical hub for Ukraine's eastern battlefront. He had already once been dismissed from the role by Zelenskiy in 2019 but reappointed in December 2020. TWO DEPUTY MINISTERS OF REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTIvan Lukeria and Vyacheslav Nehoda were dismissed as deputy ministers of regional development. DEPUTY MINISTER FOR SOCIAL POLICYVitaliy Muzychenko was dismissed from his role as deputy minister for social policy.

☆ Germany signals shift in veto on Leopard tanks for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Leopard tanks, which are held by an array of NATO countries but whose transfer to Ukraine requires Berlin's approval, are seen by defence experts as the most suitable for Ukraine. Western allies pledged billions of dollars in weapons for Ukraine last week but they failed to persuade Germany to lift its veto on providing the tanks. French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, said he did not rule out the possibility of sending Ukraine Leclerc tanks. Ukraine has never publicly said that the town was taken by Russian forces. On Sunday, the general staff of its armed forces said in a daily update that Russian forces had fired on Ukrainian positions in the area.

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Germany promises a decision on tanks; Russian official warns Ukraine allies risk own destruction
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Sunday that he expected a decision soon on the delivery of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, meanwhile, said Berlin would not block Poland from sending its own Leopard 2s to Ukraine. The comments on Sunday suggest a change in Berlin's position regarding the tanks after months of pressure to either offer Ukraine some of its own Leopard 2s or at least allow other allies with their own German-made tanks to export them to the war-torn country. Last Friday, defense chiefs from Ukraine's allied nations met in Germany to discuss the issue but no decision was reached. In other news, a high-profile Russian official has said countries that offer offensive weapons to Ukraine risk their own destruction, saying it could lead to a "global catastrophe."

☆ Russia official warns countries supplying Ukraine with more powerful weapons risk their own destruction
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The speaker of Russia's parliament warned Sunday that countries supplying Ukraine with more powerful weapons risked their own destruction, a message that followed new pledges of armored vehicles, air defense systems and other equipment but not the battle tanks Kyiv requested. "Supplies of offensive weapons to the Kyiv regime would lead to a global catastrophe," State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin said. "If it requires our sending some Abrams tanks in order to unlock getting the Leopard tanks from Germany, from Poland, from other allies, I would support that." Since invading Ukraine, Russia also has increased both the scope and the number of its joint military drills with China. Ukraine is asking for more weapons as it anticipates Russia's forces launching a new offensive in the spring.

☆ Putin ally says West's deliveries of new weapons to Kyiv will lead to global catastrophe
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 22 (Reuters) - A close ally of President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that deliveries of offensive weapons to Kyiv that threaten Russia's territories will lead to a global catastrophe and make arguments against using weapons of mass destruction untenable. "If Washington and NATO countries supply weapons that will be used to strike civilian cities and attempt to seize our territories, as they threaten, this will lead to retaliatory measures using more powerful weapons," Volodin said on the Telegram messaging app. "Arguments that the nuclear powers have not previously used weapons of mass destruction in local conflicts are untenable. Volodin's comments followed a similar threat last week by Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's former prime minister and president. "Deliveries of offensive weapons to the Kyiv regime will lead to a global catastrophe," he said.

☆ Putin ally suggests seizing property of war critics who fled Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 13 (Reuters) - A close ally of President Vladimir Putin suggested on Friday confiscating the property of Russians who have left the country and who "insult" the state and its armed forces from abroad. The proposal from Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the lower house of parliament, was clearly aimed at opposition figures - many already designated as "foreign agents" - who have condemned the Ukraine war after fleeing the country to avoid arrest. "Their goal is clear - to curry favour and try to maintain their well-being abroad," he wrote on his Telegram channel. At the same time, they allow themselves to publicly pour dirt on Russia, insult our soldiers and officers. Volodin, 58, has been speaker of the lower house, the State Duma, since 2016, having previously held a senior role in the presidential administration.

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