Displaying items by tag: Vladimir Putin

Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:34

Russia: and the winner is …

To nobody’s surprise, Vladimir Putin was declared the winner of Russia’s presidential election, with over 87% of the votes cast. In his victory speech, he showed his confidence by mentioning Alexei Navalny by name for the first time, claiming that he had agreed to a prisoner exchange for him shortly before Navalny died in prison. The Kremlin dismissed accusations of Navalny's murder by his widow, Yulia, as false: Putin callously referred to his death as a part of life. The election saw a variety of protests, including pouring dye into a ballot box and setting off Molotov cocktails: Putin played down their impact. The election faced criticism internationally for lack of fairness; British officials condemned Putin's victory as undemocratic and likened him to Stalin. Despite this reaction, the election has solidified his grip on power and given him a mandate to pursue the war with Ukraine more actively.

Published in Europe
Thursday, 14 March 2024 22:03

Ukraine: drone attacks on Russian oil refineries

On 12 and 13 March, Ukraine conducted heavy drone attacks on several Russian oil refineries, seriously damaging one and causing a fire at another, in one of the most serious attacks against Russia's energy sector in recent months. Oil prices rose 2% partly due to concerns about supply disruption following the attacks which Vladimir Putin said were an attempt to disrupt his country's presidential election this week. Russia and Ukraine have both used drones to strike critical infrastructure and military targets, with Kyiv stepping up attacks on Russian refineries and energy facilities in recent months. Ukraine's SBU security service claimed responsibility for the strikes, stating that they aim to weaken Russia's economic strength. The attacks targeted key sources of Russia's income, potentially reducing gasoline and diesel output. Ukrainian forces also targeted a Russian airbase and military airfield. The escalation underscores the intense conflict between the two nations and the potential economic impact of attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure.

Published in Europe
Thursday, 15 February 2024 22:25

Russia: new law targets critics of the military

On 14 February Vladimir Putin signed a law enabling authorities to seize assets from individuals convicted of spreading false information about the military. The law, approved swiftly by parliament, targets those discrediting the government or inciting extremism, potentially affecting exiled critics who have property in Russia. A Kremlin spokesman dismissed concerns about misuse, stating it aims to penalise traitors and scoundrels. The law expands on existing legislation which is used to silence dissent, particularly about the war in Ukraine. Thousands have faced imprisonment or fines for criticising the government. The timing of this new law, a month before the election in March, underscores the restricted political environment in Russia. Putin’s main rival Alexey Navalny is in prison, and Boris Nadezhdin, critical of the war in Ukraine, has been barred from standing.

Published in Europe
Thursday, 14 December 2023 21:59

Ukraine war to continue - Putin

On 12 December Vladimir Putin asserted that peace will elude Ukraine until Russia achieves its unchanging objectives, despite nearly two years of heightened tensions with the West due to the ongoing conflict. During a lengthy year-end news conference, Putin offered some insight into Moscow's "special military operation" in Ukraine. He dismissed the idea of a second wave of reservist mobilisation, stating that there are already 617,000 Russian soldiers in Ukraine, including 244,000 conscripts supporting professional military units. He emphasised Russian military advances in Ukraine, while accusing Kyiv of sacrificing its troops to gain Western aid. Putin, who has been in power for nearly 24 years, held this press conference as Ukraine seeks more US aid amid a faltering counteroffensive and waning Western backing. It was the first time he had faced questions from Western journalists since the conflict began. He also took questions from ordinary Russian citizens; reportedly at least two million questions were sent in.

Published in Europe

In an unexpected virtual appearance at the G20 summit, Vladimir Putin called on world leaders to ‘stop the tragedy’ of the war with Ukraine but bizarrely ignored his own role in starting the conflict. In February 2022, after weeks of growing aggression near the Ukrainian border, the Russian president ordered his forces into Ukraine. He claimed it was important to ‘demilitarise’ the country and made baseless neo-Nazi allegations about the Ukrainian government to justify the invasion. Ukraine has only agreed to peace negotiations if Russia agrees to hand back all of the land which it has illegally annexed since 2014 - including the Crimea peninsula, which Putin claims now belongs to Russia. He also broke international law by illegally annexing four other regions in eastern Ukraine in September 2022. In his G20 appearance, Putin also tried to deflect attention from the war by focusing on the conflict between Israel and Hamas, for which he has tried to position himself as a potential mediator.

Published in Europe
Thursday, 14 September 2023 21:59

Russia: Putin seeking military aid from North Korea

Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un toasted their friendship with Russian wine after Putin showed Kim around the country's most modern space launch facility. Kim is currently in Russia, where he has vowed to support the Kremlin's ‘sacred war’ against Ukraine, raising concerns that the two nations could bolster their military capabilities. At the end of the reception, Kim courteously invited Putin to visit the DPRK at a convenient time. Putin accepted the invitation with pleasure and reaffirmed his desire invariably to carry forward the history and tradition of the Russia-DPRK friendship. They also held talks alongside their defence ministers and called each other ‘comrades’. The growing friendship has concerned the West that North Korea will supply Russia with weapons. The USA said that this visit has made it clear that Putin will set aside any concern to achieve victory in Ukraine. If an arms deal was reached, the USA would slap additional sanctions on them. In a further surprise development, Kim has extended his stay in Russia: see

Published in Europe

Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is presumed dead, having been named as one of ten passengers in a private jet that crashed north of Moscow. A key ally of Vladimir Putin, his private military company has played a key role in Ukraine following Moscow's invasion in February 2022. But his relationship with Putin soured after he ordered his troops to march on Moscow in a day-long rebellion against Russia's military leaders in June. The details of the crash are not clear, but claims that it was shot down have not been substantiated. The following day Putin said he had sent condolences to Prigozhin’s family.  His death will leave Putin stronger in the short term, removing a powerful figure who had played an important part in the war but had also been openly critical of Russia’s military leaders.

Published in Europe
Friday, 28 July 2023 09:56

Russia: warnings and dangers

After Ukraine’s recent drone attacks, there have been warnings of tough retaliatory measures. Putin’s closest ally Dmitry Medvedev, of Russia's Security Council, said Moscow must ‘choose unconventional targets for our strikes - not just storage facilities, energy hubs and oil bases.’ He also warned of a global conflict breaking out as nuclear tensions rise and concerns about climate change intensify: ‘The world is sick, and quite probably on the verge of a new world war.’ Officials in Moscow have repeatedly warned that the world faces the most dangerous decade since World War 2. At NATO’s arms control conference recently, the USA said, ‘We have watched and worried that Putin would use his non-strategic tactical nuclear weapon for a managed risk escalation. It’s critical that we remain watchful.’ NATO’s secretary general said Putin’s plan to place tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus was part of a years-long pattern of ‘dangerous, irresponsible nuclear rhetoric’ which intensified with the ‘brutalisation of Ukraine’. See

Published in Europe
Friday, 28 July 2023 09:49

Russia: facts for informed intercession

We can pray into Putin’s situation as he tries to crack down on the increasing resistance by his ex-supporters, the nationalists. Their abandoning him falls in line with the growing war-weariness across Russia. Russian ultranationalist Igor Girkin was arrested after he criticised Vladimir Putin’s handling of the Ukraine war, calling for a transfer of power. He said online that the Russian army is no longer loyal to Putin; he expects the Ukrainian counteroffensive to break the Russian front. He also promised to form an opposition party of ‘angry patriots’ to save Russia from collapse. There are other nationalists and dissenters also criticising Putin’s handling of the war. Putin still depends on Wagner’s generals, which means a weakened Russian military and more mistrust. China supported Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Western sanctions gave Putin economic tensions. Now selling the Chinese yuan indicates his dependence on Beijing. 

Published in Europe
Thursday, 20 July 2023 18:08

South Africa: danger of declaring war

South Africa’s president says that arresting Vladimir Putin if he attends Johannesburg’s economic summit would be a declaration of war by his country. The August summit brings together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - developing economies known as BRICS. Putin wants to attend the gathering, but officials are trying to persuade him to stay away to avoid legal and diplomatic fallout because of an international arrest warrant for his alleged war crimes while invading Ukraine. As a signatory to the Rome statute which established the arrest warrant, South Africa would be obligated to arrest Putin if he visits the African nation. President Ramaphosa recently joined a peace mission to Kyiv and Moscow to negotiate ending the war. He does not want to start another war. In an action before the High Court in Pretoria, South Africa’s opposition party has tried to compel the government to pledge to arrest Putin.

Published in Worldwide
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