Displaying items by tag: Russia

Russia’s war waged against Ukraine has created devastating consequences for freedom of the press. Reporters have been killed and injured in the field and censorship not seen since the Soviet period’s massive disinformation. Five journalists and media workers died from gunfire during the first month of Russia’s offensive. The Russian military has targeted news sources in territories it occupies and bullies the local media to cooperate. The government has complete control of Russian news and extensive wartime censorship, blocking the media, and pursuing non-compliant journalists. Many are forced into exile. In 2021 Putin toughened the law, labelling the media as ‘foreign agents’. This information control does not stop at Russia’s borders. The Kremlin is imposing its version of the war on its neighbours, especially Belarus, where independent journalists have been persecuted since the 2020 controversial presidential election, and 20+ media workers languish in prison. (Globally 59 journalists were killed and 524 imprisoned this year).

The Americans, French, and British agree that ‘kamikaze’ drones unleashed by Russia into Ukraine were made in Iran and violate a UN security council resolution barring Iranian transfers of certain military technologies. Ukraine has identified the drones - or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) - as Iranian Shahed-136 weapons, called kamikaze drones after the Japanese fighter pilots who flew suicide missions in World War Two. Iran denies supplying weapons to Russia, but the USA said, ‘Russia's plan is to import hundreds of Iranian UAVs of various types. There is extensive proof of Russia using them in Ukraine. The deepening alliance between Russia and Iran is something the whole world should see as a threat. Russia and Iran provided key military support for President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian civil war.’ The EU's foreign policy chief said it is ‘gathering evidence’ on the Iranian drones and is ready to act - implying intensification of sanctions.

When the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church is the most vocal supporter of Moscow's conflict in Ukraine, calling the conflict ‘war’ can land you in jail; it takes courage to speak out. But Father Grigory has been doing that ever since the Kremlin first set its sights on Ukraine. Once a Russian Orthodox priest, he has now set out to prove that not every Russian stands behind Putin's acts of aggression. Grigory's number one priority is helping the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees trapped across Russia since February. His religious group, the Russian Apostolic Church, has assisted 7,000 refugees over the past eight months. He said, ‘In April our organisation and the St Petersburg parish opened a centre for helping refugees. Many refugees need different types of help. Some need tickets to leave Russia, some need clothes or various medicines. So we do all that we can do to help.’ Grigory is adamant that supporting an aggressive war goes against the tenets of true faith.

Russians are closing evangelical Protestant churches claiming ‘only one faith would be tolerated - Orthodoxy’. They raided Grace Baptist Church while a worship service was being broadcast live. Viewers watched online while they halted the service, registered the names of all present, detained several ministers, and gave the pastor 48 hours to leave the city. They closed Melitopol’s largest Protestant charismatic church with a 1,000-seat auditorium. They tore down its cross and turned the building into a ‘cultural sports entertainment complex’. They are doing the same as they did when they seized and annexed Crimea: they raided places of worship, closed churches, banned missionary activity, fined people for leading worship meetings, seized religious literature, and forced religious communities to re-register with the state, refusing re-registration to the majority. Christians were also driven to the underground churches in the Soviet era, surviving seventy years of Soviet totalitarian rule - demonstrating that persecution can often strengthen the Church.

On 10 October Russian troops began launching a daily series of missile strikes, targeting civilians and energy facilities in populated regions to kill and create chaos. President Volodymyr Zelensky said, ‘They want to destroy our energy system. They are incorrigible. The second target is people. Such a time and such goals were specially chosen to cause as much damage as possible. We are dealing with terrorists trying to wipe us off the face of the earth.’  On 13 October Ukraine’s allies from fifty countries meeting at NATO headquarters announced deliveries to Kyiv of advanced air defence weapons, including missiles and radars. The USA earlier made a similar pledge. One high-tech system from Germany is already in Ukraine. Kyiv hailed the summit as ‘historic’. Hours later, while people slept, Russian shelling hit a five-storey residential building in Mykolaiv, destroying the upper two floors.

The withdrawal of Russian troops from important Ukraine towns has prompted two powerful Putin allies publicly to ridicule the war machine's top brass. Chechnya leader Ramzan Kadyrov said, ‘Nepotism in the army will lead to no good. The commander of Russian forces should be stripped of his medals and sent to the front line with a gun to wash away his shame with blood.’ Such public contempt for those running Russia's war indicates the growing level of frustration among Putin’s elite with his war tactics. The powerful mercenary Yevgeny Prigozhin congratulated Ramzan’s comments, saying, ‘Ramzan - you rock man! All these ******** should be sent barefoot to the front with automatic guns.’

On 29 September a fourth leak was found on the Nord Stream gas pipelines, amid sabotage allegations that the two underwater pipelines running from Russia to Germany had been damaged by explosions recorded in the Baltic Sea. Russia and the West have traded blame over the mysterious leaks. The sea surface is bubbling up as gas escapes. While the pipelines were not operational during the alleged sabotage, they still contained natural gas. The incident raises fears of an environmental disaster. According to experts, the leaking methane will be the biggest burst of the potent greenhouse gas on record. ‘Whoever ordered this should be prosecuted for war crimes and go to jail’, said a university climate scientist.

Five British nationals captured by Russian-backed forces in Ukraine have returned to the UK. Aiden Aslin, John Harding, Dylan Healy, Andrew Hill, and Shaun Pinner have been reunited with their families after landing at Heathrow Airport. Ten detainees, including the five Britons, were released after Saudi Arabia brokered an exchange between Russia and Ukraine. The Praesidium Network confirmed the five men are now safely home. Mr Pinner's sister Cassandra told the BBC: ‘We are just so happy he's home, safe and sound. He's in good spirits - just as funny as always!’ She thanked those involved in organising his return and said she was ‘just amazed this day has come’. In a video recorded on the plane, Mr Pinner said they had escaped ‘by the skin of our teeth’.

On 24 August a total of 33 cargo ships carrying 719,549 tons of foodstuffs left Ukraine, under a deal brokered by the UN and Turkey. Although the pace of exports has risen in September, volumes are well below last season’s levels. Ukraine also has a rail link to Moldova that could be used to carry ten million tons of freight a year. See On 2 September American media reported that Ukraine says Russia is using cargo ships to ferry weapons to the Black Sea. Kyiv has asked Turkey to block passage of sanctioned vessels making journeys from Syria through straits controlled by Ankara. See also the world article on the Horn of Africa.

Vladimir Putin delayed his TV address to Russia to be urgently treated for 'chest pains'. The eventual speech the next day warned of Russia’s use of nuclear weapons and mobilising troops. The delayed broadcast allegedly happened only because doctors had urgently treated him. Comments surrounding his health have intensified in recent months. Russia’s General SVR Telegram channel routinely claims that 69-year-old Putin suffers from illnesses such as cancer or Parkinson’s disease. His mental and physical wellbeing have been in sharp focus since he invaded Ukraine. In the delayed announcement he ranted about purging Ukraine of ‘neo-Nazis’ and wanted referendums in occupied regions. But for thousands of Russians watching TV at home, the most notably worrying elements of the broadcast was the ordering of 300,000 army reservists into battle and preventing 25 million reservists from fleeing Russia. This news has shocked and alarmed even his closest confidants.