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☆ US intelligence is trying to figure out what apparently caused Prigozhin's plane to crash, and early theories range from missiles to bombs
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

US intelligence is trying to figure out what led a plane to crash in Russia, apparently killing Yevgeny Prigozhin. Theories include an explosion caused by a bomb or other sabotage. Early theories on what may have caused the plane to plummet from the sky reportedly include an explosion caused by a bomb, a surface-to-air missile, or some other kind of sabotage like tampered-with fuel. AdvertisementAdvertisementA bomb or another device placed on the jet could have caused the blast, the anonymous officials told the Times. Gen. Patrick Ryder told reporters Thursday there was no indication to suggest that a surface-to-air missile caused the plane crash.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, —, Wagner, Prigozhin, Dmitry Utkin, Vladimir Putin, Alexey Druzhinin, Vladimir Putin's, Patrick Ryder, Ryder, Putin Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Associated Press, Anonymous, Sputnik, Getty, AP, New York Times, Times ., Times . Anonymous, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Pentagon, Defense Department Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, States, Moscow, Russia's Tver, Saint Petersburg

☆ Russian Putin critics like Prigozhin who met an early death
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Lauren Said-Moorhouse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

No evidence has been presented that points to the involvement of the Kremlin or Russian security services in the crash. Nemtsov’s death came two days before he was set to lead an opposition rally in the Russian capital. Alexander PerepilichnyyOver the years, suggestions have emerged of the possible use of a rare plant poison in the death of Russian financier Alexander Perepilichnyy. ANDREY SMIRNOV/AFP/AFP/Getty ImagesRussian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky died in a Russian prison in 2009. The most prominent voice of dissent in Putin’s Russia, the lawyer, politician and corruption activist for years orchestrated massive street protests.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, Wagner, –, Bill Browder, “ Putin, Boris Nemtsov, Boris Yeltsin, Ilya Yashin, Nemtsov, Vladimir Putin, ”, Nemtsov’s, Boris Berezovsky Boris Berezovsky, Warrick Page, Boris Berezovsky, Putin, Berezovsky, Alexander Perepilichnyy, Perepilichnyy, Sergei Magnitsky, ANDREY SMIRNOV, Magnitsky, Browder, Alexander Litvinenko Alexander Litvinenko, Alexander Litvinenko, Litvinenko –, Robert Owen, Putin “, Litvinenko, Marina Litvinenko, Anna Politkovskaya, JENS SCHLUETER, Lom, Ali Gaitukayev, Politkovskaya, Chechen Republic …, ” Drownings, Prigozhin, Gennady Lopyrev –, “, Lopyrev, Pyotr Kucherenko, Pavel Antov, Vladimir Budanov, Budanov, Alexander Buzakov, Anatoly Gerashchenko, Ravil Maganov, Lukoil, Maganov “, Alexey Navalny, Navalny, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Sergei Skripal, Skripal, Yulia Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, Getty, Republican Party of Russia, Party, Newsweek, of Justice, Royal Botanic, AFP, Getty Images, Hermitage Capital, KGB, Authorities, The, Protect Journalists, RIA Novosti, Russia’s, Science, Higher Education, Gazprom, Lukoil, Reuters, Moscow Aviation Institute, TASS, Putin’s United, “ Locations: Russia, Boris Nemtsov Russian, AFP, Moscow, Ukraine, Russian, London's, Europe, England, Soviet Union, Britain, Surrey, London, Kew, American, Chechnya, Leipzig, Germany, The New York, Chechen Republic, Washington, Gelendzhik, ”, Cuba, India, Putin’s Russia, Putin’s United Russia, United States

☆ Did Putin kill Prigozhin? It's one of 3 possible explanations Russia watchers came up with for the deadly plane crash
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is presumed dead after his plane crashed on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear if Prigozhin was on the downed plane, though his name was on the flight manifest. Yevgeny Prigozhin and Russian President Vladimir Putin in happier times — a 2010 tour of a school lunch factory outside Saint Petersburg. Following the Wednesday plane crash, US President Joe Biden suggested Putin could be behind the crash in comments to reporters. AdvertisementAdvertisementIn the early hours following the plane crash, some on social media considered the possibility that Prigozhin had somehow faked his death, perhaps sending a double in his place.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Putin, Prigozhin, Dmitry Utkin, Vladimir Putin, Simon Miles, Robert English, Bill Burns, Alexey Druzhinin, Burns, Miles, Alexander Lukashenko, ”, lelXsOcPSV, Julia Ioffe, Joe Biden, —, flaunting, Sergei Surovikin, Matthew Schmidt, Schmidt Organizations: Security, Service, Russian Federal Air Transport Agency, Wagner, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union, University of Southern, CIA, Sputnik, Getty, Reuters, Press, Prigozhin, New York Times, University of New, Pentagon, Kremlin Locations: Russian, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Russia, Soviet, Ukraine, University of Southern California, Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Saint Petersburg, Aspen, Belarus, St . Petersburg, Africa, Belarusian, Concord, University of New Haven

CNN —A top Russian general who went missing after the mercenary group Wagner’s insurrection in June has been fired from his role as head of the country’s aerospace forces, Russian state media reported Wednesday citing unnamed sources. Gen. Sergey Surovikin has spent four decades as part of the Russian military, including a brief stint running Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. A Russian lawmaker said in July that Surovikin is “resting.”Documents shared with CNN in June suggested that Surovikin was a secret VIP member of Wagner. As the head of the aerospace forces, Surovikin oversaw the Kremlin’s campaign in Syria, during which Russian combat aircraft were accused of causing widespread devastation in rebel-held areas. Surovikin’s official bio on the Russian Defense Ministry’s website still lists him as the head of the aerospace forces.

Persons: Sergey Surovikin, Surovikin, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Sorovikin, Gen, Viktor Afzalov, Surovikin’s, Ivan Popov, Vladimir Putin, Gleb Irisov, –, ” Irisov, KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV, Alexey Venediktov Organizations: CNN, The New York Times, RIA Novosti, Aerospace Forces, Moscow’s Defense Ministry, Kremlin Press Office, Russian, Human Rights Watch, Getty, Ministry of Defense, RBC, Russian Defense, Russian Ministry of Defense Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Kerch, Crimean, Russia, Afghanistan, Syria, Moscow, AFP

☆ Apparent death of Wagner boss Prigozhin might pay dividends for the Kremlin
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The Ukrainians and their allies, Solovyov insinuated, were “spreading a fake message about the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin” based on a report from Rossiya-24, a Russian state television channel. After all, Russian investigative outlets have reported that the Wagner head apparently employed at least one body double. Awaiting an impartial report from the Investigative Committee is like expecting a Russian state TV host to stop taking talking points from the Kremlin. The crash of Prigozhin’s plane happened just about two months after Prigozhin and Wagner staged their insurrection, the biggest challenge to Putin’s rule in over two decades. Russian investigative journalist Artem Borovik died in 2000 shortly after his plane to Kyiv crashed after take-off from Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, Wagner, Prigozhin, Vladimir Solovyov, Solovyov, Yevgeny Prigozhin ”, Prigozhin –, Batya, –, Vladimir Putin’s, Alexey Navalny, Putin, “, Russia, That’s, Alexander Lukashenko, defenestration, Artem Borovik, Alexander Lebed –, cui bono –, Vanda Felbab, Brown, liquidating Wagner, ”, Vladimir Putin Organizations: CNN, Embraer, Kremlin, Russian Federation, Brookings Institution Locations: Kuzhenkinskoe, Russia’s Tver, Russian, Rossiya, Moscow, Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Africa, St . Petersburg, Niger, Kyiv, Moscow’s Sheremetyevo, East

☆ Tornado Cash founders charged with laundering more than $1 billion, including millions for North Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Two founders of Tornado Cash, the widely known Russian cryptocurrency mixer, have been charged with laundering more than $1 billion in criminal proceeds. Charges in the indictment include conspiring to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit sanctions violations and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. The third co-founder, Alexey Pertsev, who is not mentioned in this action, faces trial in Amsterdam over his involvement with Tornado Cash. Tornado Cash is used by some people as a legitimate way to protect their privacy in the still-nascent crypto market. Using a crypto mixing service like Tornado Cash masks those details by anonymizing the funds and concealing the identity of the buyer.

Persons: Roman, Semenov, Storm, James Smith, Alexey Pertsev, Roman Semenov, Damian Williams, Brian Klein, Waymaker, Klein, Lazarus Organizations: Tornado, Lazarus, Justice Department, CNBC, Tornado Cash, Storm, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Foreign Assets, Lazarus Group, U.S . Treasury, Treasury Department Locations: Russian, Korean, Washington, York, Amsterdam, U.S, Harmony

☆ Treasury sanctions Russian FSB operatives in 2020 poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department on Thursday issued new sanctions against Russian security operatives for the 2020 poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The sanctions come two weeks after a Russian court sentenced Navalny to an additional 19 years in prison on extremism charges. Panyaev is described by Treasury as an "FSB operative who reportedly tailed Navalny on multiple occasions prior to the attack." The sanctions complement the State Department's announcement of visa restrictions against the operatives for involvement in gross violations of human rights. FSB officers used the nerve agent Novichok, which was created by the Soviet Union, to poison Navalny, the Treasury memo said.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, WASHINGTON —, Navalny, Brian E, Nelson, Alexey Alexandrovich Alexandrov, Konstantin Kudryavtsev, Ivan Vladimirovich Osipov, Vladimir Alexandrovich Panyaev, Sergei Magnitsky Organizations: IK, WASHINGTON, Treasury Department, Treasury, Terrorism, Financial Intelligence, Russian Federal Security Service Criminalistics Institute, CNBC, Treasury's, Foreign Assets Control Locations: Russian, Moscow, Melekhovo, Vladimir, Tomsk, Novosibirsk, Navalny, Russia, Soviet Union, U.S

☆ Yevgeny Prigozhin: Where in the world is the Wagner warlord?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-13 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

It was a stark contrast to the fate of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner. Back in June, Prigozhin led the abortive mutiny that presented the biggest challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin in over two decades of rule. Speaking after Wagner fighters relocated to Belarus, Prigozhin suggested he remained focused on this core African market. In a recent Telegram message, Prigozhin hinted that Wagner might be ready to offer its services there. “And this is the (the reason for the) love for PMC Wagner, this is the high efficiency of PMC Wagner.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Prigozhin hasn’t, –, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Andrei Kelin, Kelin, “, ” Kelin, Vladimir, Kara, Murza, … Prigozhin, CNN's Christiane Amanpour, Candace Rondeaux, Rondeaux, it’s, ” Rondeaux, Mateusz Morawiecki, Morawiecki, ” Prigozhin, Sudan –, PMC Wagner, Mohamed Bazoum, Tatiana Stanovaya Organizations: CNN, Central African Republic, Kremlin, Amanpour, Putin’s, NATO, Polish, Wagner Group, PMC Wagner, PMC, Russian Foreign Ministry, Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, Putin Locations: Russian, Moscow, Russia, Africa, St . Petersburg, Orchestra_W, United Kingdom, Ukrainian, Bakhmut, America, Prigozhin, Putin’s Russia, Poland, Belarus, Lithuania, Sudan, Libya, Niger, Putin Russia

CNN —Jailed Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny on Friday took aim at Russia’s “corrupt” elite that placed President Vladimir Putin in power. “I hate Yeltsin, […] Chubais and the rest of the corrupt family who put Putin in power,” he said, referring to former Russian President Boris Yeltsin and former high-level Russian official Anatoly Chubais. “Is there any other country where so many ministers of (a) government of reforms became millionaires and billionaires? But he said “Russia will still have a chance” to turn things around into the democratic direction. Moscow has denied involvement in the poisoning, with Putin himself saying in December 2020 that if Russian security services had wanted to kill Navalny, they “would have finished” the job.

Persons: CNN —, Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin, ”, – Navalny, ” Navalny, “, Yeltsin, Putin, Boris Yeltsin, Anatoly Chubais, Navalny, didn’t, Russia “, Novichok Organizations: CNN, Soviet Union Locations: Moscow, Soviet, Russia, “ Russia, ”, Germany

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during the Second Summit Economic And Humanitarian Forum Russia Africa on July 27, 2023 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin is weighing whether to attend his first in-person meeting with Western leaders since his forces invaded Ukraine in 2022, a Kremlin source tells NBC News. In 2014, after Russia's annexation of Crimea, Putin was publicly shunned and sidelined during the G20 meeting in Australia. Next month's G20 summit is already set to be the most contentious in years and an important litmus test of many countries' true positions on Ukraine. "And some of the leaders, including President Biden, already decided to ignore President Putin and not take any picture with him."

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, hasn't, Xi Jinping, Alexey Maslov, Maslov, Jonathan Eyal, Dmitry Peskov, Nirmala Sitharaman, Cyril Ramaphosa, Andrei Fedorov, Russia's, Putin's, Fedorov, Biden, Jamal Khashoggi, Modi, Eyal Organizations: Russia Africa, Summit ., Western, NBC News, Kremlin, Institute of, Studies, Moscow State University, Royal United Services Institute, International, ICC, United Nations, Washington Post, Mr Locations: Saint Petersburg, Russia, Ukraine, New Delhi, Russian, Belarus, China, Central, London, Crimea, Australia, Bali , Indonesia, France, Bali, Russia's, Johannesburg, Brazil, India, South Africa, Rome, United States, Saudi Arabia, Saudi

☆ An author is suing Apple and Tetris, accusing them of adapting his book about the game into a film without permission, listing 22 similarities
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Dan Ackerman wrote the 2016 book "The Tetris Effect: The Game That Hypnotized the World." And he's accusing The Tetris Company of adapting his work into this year's film about the video game. His lawsuit lists 22 similarities between the book and film, as well as the underlying plot. The editor-in-chief of tech publication Gizmodo is accusing Apple and The Tetris Company of adapting his book about the video game into a movie without his permission. Apple and The Tetris Company did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, sent outside US working hours.

Persons: Dan Ackerman, Taron Egerton —, Maya Rogers, Ackerman, Tetris, Alexey Pajitnov Organizations: Tetris Company, Apple Locations: New York, USSR

A view shows Russian rouble coins in this illustration picture taken March 25, 2021. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/IllustrationAug 9 (Reuters) - The rouble hit a more than 16-month low on Wednesday, hampered by strong foreign currency demand and limited supply, with Russia's shrinking trade surplus and widening budget deficit also hurting sentiment. By 1023 GMT, the rouble was 0.2% weaker against the dollar at 97.32 , earlier hitting 97.48, its weakest point since March 25, 2022. It has been under pressure all year from Russia's shrinking balance of trade, as export revenues fall and imports rebound, dropping around 28% year-to-date from levels near 70 to the dollar. Brent crude oil , a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was 0.7% higher at $86.80 a barrel.

Persons: Maxim Shemetov, Egor Zhilnikov, Alexey Antonov, Antonov, Alexander Marrow, Andrew Heavens, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, Alor Broker, Brent, Thomson Locations: Alor

☆ The wartime economy is making Russians hoard cold hard cash more than ever — the money in circulation reached a record $187 billion in June
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In June, the amount of cash in circulation in Russia hit a record $187 billion, per its central bank. Russians are hoarding cold, hard cash amid economic uncertainty, an economist told Novaya Gazeta. Compensation to families of dead fighters and increased demand in Russian-occupied Ukrainian regions also add to the cash in circulation. In June, the amount of cash in circulation in Russia hit a record 17.9 trillion rubles, or $187 billion, data from the Russian central bank shows. To tame inflation, the Russian central bank its central bank raised interest rates by one percentage point on July 21 — double the 0.5 percentage point analysts polled by Reuters had expected.

Persons: Igor Lipsits, there's, Alexey Zabotkin, Wagner, Nikolay Korzhenevsky Organizations: Novaya Gazeta, Service, HSE University, RBC, Wagner Group, Bloomberg, Reuters Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Ukraine, —, Kazakhstan, Russia's

CNN —Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny is facing an even longer stint in jail after being sentenced to 19 years in prison on extremism charges, Russian media report, a fresh blow to a fierce critic of Russia’s President Putin that comes amid an intensifying crackdown on dissent. Navalny was accused of creating an extremist community, financing extremist activities and a number of other crimes. Navalny is already serving sentences totaling 11-and-a-half years in a maximum security facility on fraud and other charges that he says were trumped up. Putin himself said in December 2020 that if Russian security services had wanted to kill Navalny, they “would have finished” the job. Peaceful protests were quickly shut down and thousands arrested after Moscow’s invasion.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, Russia’s, Putin, Navalny, Mr Navalny, ” Navalny, Novichok, ” Organizations: CNN, IK, European Union, Reuters, Russian Security Service, Facebook Locations: Russian, Melekhovo, Moscow, Ukraine, Russia, Germany, Soviet, Berlin, Siberian, Omsk, Navalny, Siberia

"I said that this should be absolutely excluded and all officials of the country should drive domestic cars," Putin said, telling officials they should strive to develop domestic brands, domestic cars, and other domestic products. Chinese carmakers are seizing market share in Russia, capitalising on the departure of Western players, auto industry data shows. Russia's Lada holds the number one spot in the domestic market, with its share for January-June at 32.6%, up from 21.6% last year. Lada's share slipped slightly in July year on year, as Chinese carmakers' sales continued rising rapidly, the data showed. Chinese brands, such as Haval (601633.SS), Chery and Geely (0175.HK), accounted for the next six spots in terms of market share in July.

Persons: VAZ, Alexey Malgavko, Vladimir Putin, PPK, Putin, capitalising, Russia's Lada, Lada's, Gleb Stolyarov, Alexander Marrow, Mark Potter Organizations: Lada, REUTERS, Mercedes, Benz, Renault, Nissan, Reuters, Chery, Geely, HK, Thomson Locations: Soviet, Izhevsk, Russia, Ukraine, Crimean, Kyiv, Moscow, Crimea

☆ Russia's world champion beach footballers pining for international return
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/11] Russian national beach football team's forward Fedor Zemskov attempts a bicycle kick during a practice session, at a training camp, held ahead of the Nations Cup 2023 four-team international tournament in Moscow, Russia, July 18, 2023. That applies to beach football too and, while the ban is clearly negative for Russia, captain Anton Shkarin believes the wider game has also suffered. "When you disconnect a national team such as ours, the class falls immediately," he told Reuters at a training session in Moscow. "We communicate well with the guys from Europe who play and everyone is upset that we're banned." Reporting by Alexey Petrov; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Ken FerrisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Fedor Zemskov, Maxim, Anton Shkarin, we're, Mikhail Likhachev, Stanislav Kosharnyi, Alexey Petrov, Alexander Marrow, Ken Ferris Organizations: Nations, REUTERS, soccer, UEFA, FIFA, Reuters, United Arab Emirates, Games, Thomson Locations: Russian, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine MOSCOW, Ukraine, Europe, St Petersburg, Iran, Senegal, Belarus, Brazil, India, China, South Africa

"I had no hesitation, I immediately did whatever was possible to get out," Sossinsky told Reuters in a phone interview. Fluent in three languages and still delivering classes to students in Russia via Zoom, he now expects to live out his life in exile. She fled Russia in 1923 with her mother and sisters. Alexey got his first taste of Russia in the mid-1950s, after the death of Stalin, when the family visited there on holiday. "My daughter is absolutely panicked by the thought that I will return to Russia and will be put in prison and God knows what.

Persons: Alexey Sossinsky, Vladimir Putin, Sossinsky, Putin, Ariadna Chernova, Viktor Chernov, fleetingly, Bronislav Sossinsky, Alexey, Bronislav, Stalin, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Mark Trevelyan, Peter Graff Organizations: Reuters, Constituent, Bolsheviks, White Army, Moscow State University, KGB, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, France, United States, Istanbul, Russia's, New York, Moscow, Soviet Union

☆ Crimea Bridge: why is it important and what happened to it
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A cargo ship sails next to the Crimea bridge in the Kerch Strait, Crimea, March 14, 2023. The RBC-Ukraine news agency reported that explosions were heard on the bridge, with Russian military bloggers reporting two strikes. The bridge is a crucial supply route for Russian forces in Ukraine. In October, the bridge was damaged in a powerful blast, with Russian officials saying the explosion was caused by a truck that blew up while crossing the bridge, killing three people. CRIMEA AND RUSSIA LINKThe 19-km (12-mile) Crimea Bridge over the Kerch Strait is the only direct link between the transport network of Russia and the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in2014.

Persons: Alexey Pavlishak, Sergei Aksyonov, Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Putin, Arkady Rotenberg, Lidia Kelly, Michael Perry Organizations: REUTERS, RBC, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Crimea, Kerch, Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Kyiv, CRIMEA, RUSSIA, Moscow, Sevastopol, Ukraine's Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Melbourne

☆ Russian tourists flee Crimea after attack on landmark bridge
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/4] A train moves along the Crimean Bridge, a section of which was damaged by an alleged overnight attack, as seen from the city of Kerch, Crimea, July 17, 2023. State-run news agency RIA said a tailback of more than 5 km (3 miles) had formed as Russian tourists made for home - using the Chonhar bridge, which was briefly put out of action by a missile attack last month. Moscow blamed the attack on the Crimean bridge, the second since Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine, on Kyiv. HOLIDAY CANCELLATIONS MOUNT UPKyiv says Russian tourists - more than 9 million of whom visited in 2021 - have no business holidaying on seized territory, especially while Ukraine is being bombed. The 19-km (12-mile) Crimean Bridge, a prestige project for President Vladimir Putin, is the route most Russian tourists choose to reach the peninsula, as well as a supply route for the Russian army in Ukraine.

Persons: Alexey Pavlishak, RIA, Vladimir Saldo, Elena Bazhenova, Crimea's, Ilya Umansky, Vladimir Putin, Andrew Osborn, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Kyiv, Russian Union of Travel Industry, Thomson Locations: Kerch, Crimea, Ukraine, Russia, MOSCOW, State, Moscow, Kyiv, Ukrainian, Russian, Ukraine's Kherson, Simferopol

☆ Opinion: Welcome to the ‘looking-glass’ world of Putin’s Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Opinion Daniel Treisman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Welcome to the weird, through-the-looking-glass world of Vladimir Putin’s Russia, where everything is its opposite and almost nothing is what it seems. That may hold as well for the still-murky fate of last month’s mutineer, Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner group. Daniel TreismanWorse yet for the Kremlin, Prigozhin’s claim — coming from a diehard nationalist — will seem quite believable to many Russians. In this looking-glass world, the president has no time for politics. After the war started, Navalny offered a 15-point program for ending it and rebuilding a democratic Russia.

Persons: Daniel Treisman, “, ”, Vladimir Putin’s, mutineer, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Prigozhin, Putin, Alexey Navalny, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Orwell, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Emmanuel Macron, Navalny, Angela Merkel Organizations: University of California, CNN, Russian Federal Penitentiary Service, Russian, Putin, Kremlin, Twitter, Facebook Locations: Los Angeles, Moscow, Belarus, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Belarusian, Minsk, St . Petersburg, Kremlin, Russian, Melekhovo, Vladimir, Russia, Kara, Rostov, Sochi, Ukraine, Dagestan, Crimea, “

Colonel General Sergei Surovikin attends a briefing in the Russian Defense Ministry in Moscow, Russia, on June 9, 2017. Rumors about his whereabouts — and his potential role in the short-lived insurrection — have been swirling in recent days. CNN has reached out to the Kremlin and Russian Ministry of Defense for comment on Surovikin’s whereabouts. Surovikin first served in Afghanistan in the 1980s before commanding a unit in the Second Chechen War in 2004. He was the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces during Russia’s operations in Syria, which saw Russian combat aircraft causing widespread devastation in rebel-held areas.

Persons: Sergei Surovikin, Pavel Golovkin, Sergey Surovikin, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, —, Surovikin, “, Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin, Peskov, Putin, “ Surovikin, Alexey Venediktov –, –, Sergey Markov, ”, Surovikin “, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, Mikhail Gorbachev, Organizations: Russian Defense Ministry, Moscow Times, CNN, Kremlin, Russian Ministry of Defense, General Staff, Defense, Ministry, Echo, New York Times, Russian Aerospace Forces, Washington DC, Jamestown Foundation, Human Rights Watch Locations: Moscow, Russia, Russian, Surovikin, Echo Moscow, Rostov, Afghanistan, Syria, Idlib

☆ Wagner merch soars in price after abortive mutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/File PhotoMOSCOW, June 29 (Reuters) - Online prices for merchandise bearing the insignia of Russia's Wagner group - a human skull against a black and red backdrop - have shot up since its abortive armed mutiny, with buyers posting five-star reviews and support for the mercenaries. A deal brokered by the leader of Belarus abruptly halted the mutiny late on Saturday. E-commerce leader Wildberries' weekly price breakdowns showed how costs have risen. On a review of a Wagner flag on Wildberries, one buyer, Vladimir, said: "The Wagner Private Military Company is the best. Under Saturday's deal that ended the mutiny, fighters of the Wagner group were allowed to join their leader Prigozhin in exile in Belarus, to be integrated into Russia's regular armed forces or to return to their families.

Persons: Wagner, Evgenia, Russia's Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wildberries, Tatiana, Vladimir, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Ramzan Kadyrov, Alexey Navalny, Prigozhin, Alexander Marrow, Gareth Jones, Alison Williams Organizations: REUTERS, Mercenary, Private Military Company, Don, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Yefremov, Tula region, Russia, MOSCOW, Moscow, Belarus, Ukraine, Rostov, Russian, St Petersburg

The commander of the Russian air force Sergey Surovikin and the Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin have not been seen in public in days as questions swirl about the role Surovikin may have played in Prigozhin’s short-lived mutiny. The Russian air force commander Sergey Surovikin (left) and the Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin APWhy is everyone talking about Surovikin? Prigozhin meanwhile, played the central role in the short-lived insurrection – it was he who ordered Wagner troops to take over two military bases and then march on Moscow. Putin assembled Russian security personnel in Moscow Tuesday, telling them they “virtually stopped a civil war” in responding to the insurrection. Prigozhin was last spotted leaving the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don Saturday, after abruptly calling off his troops’ march on Moscow.

Persons: Sergey Surovikin, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Surovikin, “ Surovikin, ”, Alexey Venediktov –, –, Sergey Markov, Surovikin’s, “, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Prigozhin, Sergei Shoigu, Valery Gerasimov, Don Saturday, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, Peskov, ” Peskov, Mikhail Gorbachev, , Joe Biden, Josep Borrell Organizations: CNN, Moscow Times, Russian Telegram, Baza, Yevgeny Prigozhin AP, New York Times, PMC Wagner, Russian Ministry of Defense, Kremlin, Street, Belarusian, General Staff, Defense, Ministry, Washington DC, Jamestown Foundation, Russian Aerospace Forces, Human Rights Watch, Union’s, Foreign Affairs Locations: Kremlin, Russian, Moscow, Rostov, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Minsk, St . Petersburg, Ukraine’s, Afghanistan, Syria, Idlib, ”, Brussels, Dagestan, Derbent

☆ After Wagner mutiny, jailed Kremlin critic Navalny asks who is the real extremist?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

In tweets posted by his aides, Navalny said he had been allowed no radio or conversations in his penal colony since June 1. "Instead the prosecutor came in and we continued the trial in which I stand accused of forming an organization to overthrow President (Vladimir) Putin by violent means," Navalny said. He blamed Putin squarely for the mutiny by the Wagner mercenary force that was allowed to recruit hardened convicts in exchange for promises of pardon and that the president allowed to become powerful. Navalny is serving 11-1/2 years for fraud and contempt of court on charges that he says were trumped up to silence him. He is now on trial on charges including creation of an extremist organisation and making public appeals to commit extremist activity.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Navalny, Read, Alexey Navalny, Wagner, Vladimir, Putin, Vladimir Putin's, Sergei, Shoigu, Kevin Liffey, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Court, ACF, Corruption, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia

First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov said demand for foreign currency had increased sharply in about 15 regions. "The rouble in the cash market sold off sharply on Saturday with buy/offer spreads widening out substantially," said Goldman Sachs in a note. "Should the response to the events over the weekend be additional spending, we think this would be followed by a weaker rouble." Rouble opens at 15-month low vs dollarInvestors globally were watching for ripple effects from the aborted mutiny, with some expecting a move into safe havens such as U.S. government bonds and the dollar. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index (.IMOEX) was 1.2% lower at 2,762.5 points.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Andrei Belousov, Belousov, Alexey Antonov, Goldman Sachs, Rouble, Alexander Marrow, Karin Strohecker, Kim Coghill, Ed Osmond Organizations: rouble, Alor Broker, Brent, Sinara Investment Bank, Thomson Locations: Russian, Russia, Rostov, Moscow, Voronezh, Lipetsk, Alor

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