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Geopolitics

Pyongyang Lessons: Putin Leans In To Role As World’s Autocrat-In-Chief

Vladimir Putin presents himself as the leading advocate for multipolarism, but continues to reveal his true world view, where we are divided among those that respect nothing but personal power — and fools.

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Russia-Ukraine War

Kadyrov’s Gift To Putin: Inside The Unforgiving World Of Chechen Mobilization

Reports abound of forced mobilization taking place in the Chechen Republic, where the regime of Ramzam Kadyrov, in an effort to gain Vladimir Putin’s favor, is using pressure and blackmail to force its men to join the Russian war effort.

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Russia-Ukraine War

My Fellow Ukrainians, The Russian Federation Is Stronger Than You Think

While Ukrainians may be hoping for Russia to disintegrate, history shows otherwise. Only when Putin’s authoritarian regime will come down, will it be possible for Chechens, Dagestanis, Buryats, Yakuts, or Bashkortostans to gain any kind of autonomy or democracy vis a vis Moscow.

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LGBTQ Plus Society

When The Police Torture Of A Straight Man Shows How Vile Anti-Gay Hatred Is In Russia

On Jan. 29, Armenia granted asylum to Salman Mukaev, a Chechen who was tortured in his homeland due to suspicions of being gay. In an interview inVazhnyye istorii, Mukaev recounts his four-year ordeal, and reveals the depth of anti-LGBTQ hatred in the Russian republic.

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Russia-Ukraine War

Is Wikipedia The Last Hope For Free Speech In Putin’s Russia?

Wikipedia remains one of the few independent platforms accessible in Russia, but since the war in Ukraine started, the online encyclopedia has come under increasing pressure. Stanislav Kozlovsky, the director of Wikimedia.ru, the nonprofit organization supporting the Russian segment of Wikipedia, explains how he manages (barely) to keep the Kremlin censors at bay.

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Russia-Ukraine War War in Ukraine

What’s Driving Chechen Fighters To The Frontlines Of Ukraine

Thousands of foreign soldiers are fighting alongside Ukraine. German daily Die Welt met a Chechen battalion to find out why they are fighting.

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Geopolitics Russia-Ukraine War

How Russia Planned For The Wrong War — With The Wrong Army

Russia is losing in Ukraine not just because of Putin’s madness and the heroism of Ukrainians, but also because Russia’s army is built for rapid invasion and occupation, not for the type of grinding war it is now fighting in Ukraine.

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Russia-Ukraine War

Inside Russia’s “Game Of Thrones” To Succeed Putin

As Vladimir Putin’s end increasingly seems near (political or physical), the battle to replace the Kremlin strongman heats up. Here are the main characters in this very Russian blood sport.

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In The News

Why Putin’s Choice For New Ukraine Commander Is All About Closing Ranks At Home

The choice of General Valery Gerasimov to replace General Sergey Surovikin is a political defeat for Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin and Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov — and a sign that Putin may be getting skittish on the home front.

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In The News

Kadyrov’s Bully Tactics Won’t Help Russia Recruit More Soldiers In Chechnya

A skirmish between two law enforcement officers in Chechnya turned deadly last month, and ultimately led to a widespread crackdown by authorities. Strongman Ramzan Kadyrov taking sides in the dispute raises deeper questions about the lack of Chechen soldiers showing up for the war in Ukraine.

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Geopolitics Russia-Ukraine War

Chechen Pride Or Kremlin Ambitions? Tracking Kadyrov’s Long Game

Ramzan Kadyrov, the strongman leader of Chechnya, is one of the most recognizable (and hawkish) figures in the orbit of Russian President Vladimir Putin. But beyond his online bluster, he is keeping his options open as Moscow loses ground in the war in Ukraine.

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In The News

An Old, Ugly Russian Habit: Hiding Its War Dead

Dating back to Afghanistan and Chechnya, the Kremlin prefers not to offer an accurate public toll of its military lost on the battlefield. And now in Ukraine, victory at all costs continues to be the approach from Moscow.

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In The News

Could Ramzan Kadyrov Be Putin’s Successor?

The Chechen strongman is reaching outside his native territory to affirm his power, and test his ambitions. At 69, Vladimir Putin shows no signs of settling down, but he won’t live forever.

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Geopolitics Society

After Terror Attack, France Asks If It Has A ‘Chechen Problem’

A wave of immigrants arrived in France from Chechnya during the early 2000s after the wars with Russia. A minority of this Muslim community has been radicalized, including an 18-year-old who beheaded a French schoolteacher in October.

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In The News OneShot

Watch: OneShot — Fairest Of Them All

OneShot — Fairest of them all, 1996

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In The News OneShot

Watch: OneShot — Portrait Of Zalina

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Geopolitics Syria Crisis

After Russia Enters Syria War, A Spike In Terror Threats At Home

MOSCOW — Russian intelligence services are pursuing a network of Islamic State (ISIS) militants operating in Russia as the country faces an increase in terrorist activity, in response to Moscow’s recent air campaign in Syria. Kommersant has learned that a group of terror suspects, said to be trained in Syria, were detained after a raid […]

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Economy Geopolitics

Putin’s Nemesis Speaks: The Alexei Navalny Interview

The anti-corruption activist, under house arrest in Moscow, says that Putin is pursuing war in Ukraine to consolidate his power and fulfill his ambition to be Russia’s “president for life.”

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Ukraine Winter

In Donetsk, The Chechens Have Arrived

From a once-contested region in the Russian Federation, anti-Kiev forces are spotted in the battleground eastern region of Ukraine. They are “more Russian than the Russians,” says one.

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Geopolitics

As Sochi Games Begin, Russia’s Dagestan Simmers With Violence

MAKHACHKALA — A woman is standing near the police cordons, looking into the dark space where the Golden Empire restaurant stood until a few moments earlier. First came the grenades, and then a car exploded in front of the entrance. All that’s left now is debris. When the woman repeatedly tries calling her sister, a […]

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Geopolitics Ideas

From Northern Ireland To South Sudan, Global Lessons On The *Process* Of Peace

Peace is a process, never a single event. Negotiations for peace are always far more complicated than the public understands, and the results are not always miraculous. Even so, the majority of modern conflicts — 80%, according to the School for the Culture of Peace in Barcelona — eventually end after negotiations. The school’s reports […]

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Geopolitics Migrant Lives Society

Influx Of Chechens Drives Record Number Of Russians Asylum Seekers In Germany

BERLIN — There are a record number of asylum seekers pinning their hopes on Germany this year, and refugees from Russia by far represent the largest group. Of those, some 90% are from the North Caucasus, particularly Chechnya. German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich has characterized the situation as “unsettling.” Germany has more asylum requests than […]

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Eyes on the U.S.

Chechens Suspected In Marathon Bombing: One Dead, Another At Large As Boston On Lockdown

AP, REUTERS, CNN, NEW YORK TIMES (U.S.), BBC (UK) Worldcrunch WATERTOWN — Two suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing killed an MIT university police officer, injured a transit officer in a firefight and threw explosive devices at police during their getaway attempt in a long night of violence that left one of them dead and […]

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Geopolitics

South Sudan Ferry Tragedy, Egypt Referendum, Lost Johnny Cash Song

OVER 200 DROWN IN SOUTH SUDAN FERRY ACCIDENT Between 200 and 300 people are believed to have drowned in a ferry accident on the White Nile river, AFP reports an army spokesman as saying. The civilians were trying to flee from the town of Malakal where there is intense fighting, but the boat was overcrowded. […]

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Geopolitics

Six Years Later, Children Of Murdered Russian Journalist Fight For Justice

MOSCOW – In a new twist in the case of Anna Politkovskaya, the prominent Russian investigative journalist murdered in 2006, her children are filing a petition to rescind a plea bargain reached with one of the men involved in their mother’s assassination. Politkovskaya was a well-known investigative journalist who reported extensively for the Russian paper […]

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Geopolitics

Putin Assassination Trial Highlights Ongoing Problems With Chechnya

KOMMERSANT (Russia), KOMMERSANT UKRAINE, ROSBALT (Ukraine) Worldcrunch ODESSA – The second of two men accused of planning a plot against Russian president Vladimir Putin and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadirov, Ilya Pyanzin, filed an appeal on Thursday with the local appeals to court in an attempt to fight extradition to Russia. Adam Osmaev, the man Pyanzin […]

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