Meduza in English

Meduza in English

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Breaking news in Russia, investigative reports, interviews, and opinions. In English. You’re welcome. https://meduza.io/en

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Russia has accused jailed election expert Alexander Kynev of violating its “foreign agent” rules. A rights group says he was beaten during his arrest and suffered a broken leg. He also faces drug charges, which he denies. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioJailed Russian political scientist Alexander Kynev faces new ‘foreign agent’ allegation as broken leg leaves him unable to use cell toilet — MeduzaPolitical scientist Alexander Kynev, who was arrested for allegedly attempting to sell drugs, has been cited for violating “foreign agent” regulations.
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In Omsk, Russia, online reviews of a military recruitment center allege that men are being seized on the street, forced to sign military contracts, and sent to fight in Ukraine. Relatives and friends describe the alleged roundups on the 2GIS maps app. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioOnline reviews of a military recruitment center in Omsk, Siberia, say local residents are being picked up off the streets and sent to war — MeduzaReviews posted on the 2GIS page for the “Sirius-55” military recruitment center in Omsk say city residents are being forced to sign contracts with Russia’s Defense Ministry and go to war. The Omsk…
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A Russian IT worker joined the army to “benefit society,” expecting to operate drones. Instead, he was sent into a deadly assault and went missing. His wife told iStories she believes his commanders also stole 1.5 million rubles from his bank account. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioA Russian IT worker joined the army to ‘benefit society’ and was promised a job operating drones. Now he’s missing in Ukraine, and his wife believes his commanders stole his money. — MeduzaAn IT specialist from Chelyabinsk signed a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry that promised him service in the drone forces. Instead, he ended up in what’s known as a “meat grinder regiment.”…
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Russia’s internet regulator wants to limit how much time children under 14 spend online and require social media platforms to verify users’ ages. Roskomnadzor says the proposed restrictions would help keep children away from banned content. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussia’s internet regulator proposes limiting screen time for children under 14 and requiring social media platforms to verify users’ ages — MeduzaRoskomnadzor, Russia’s federal media regulator, has sent a bill to the information policy committee of the State Duma, the lower house of Russia’s parliament, proposing mandatory identification…
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The ceasefire in Russian-occupied Oleshky will last until 10:59 p.m. on November 1, said David Arakhamia, head of the Servant of the People faction and a member of the Ukrainian negotiating group. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioUkraine says ceasefire in Oleshky will last until November 1 — MeduzaThe ceasefire in Russian-occupied Oleshky will last until 10:59 p.m. on November 1, said David Arakhamia, head of the Servant of the People faction and a member of the Ukrainian negotiating group.
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Donald Trump Jr. spent two days hunting in Mongolia with Umar Kremlev, a Kremlin-linked Russian businessman who helped bankroll his wedding, the FT reports. The two reportedly tried to avoid being photographed together. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioDonald Trump Jr. went hunting in Mongolia with a Kremlin-linked Russian businessman who helped bankroll his wedding — MeduzaDonald Trump Jr., 48, the son of U.S. President Donald Trump, traveled to Mongolia in August 2026 to hunt, spending two days there with Umar Kremlev, head of the International Boxing Association and…
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The defense ministers of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and Poland have named Russia Europe’s main long-term security threat and pledged continued support for Ukraine. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioEuropean countries with the largest defense budgets name Russia their main security threat and pledge continued support for Ukraine — MeduzaDefense ministers from the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Poland, and France met in Paris on October 26 as members of the E5 group — the countries with the largest defense budgets — to discuss…
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Putin wants to change what Russians see when they search for abortion information. Under his proposal, search engines would show “social support” programs for women ahead of abortion clinics. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioPutin orders search engines to steer women seeking abortion information toward ‘social support’ programs instead — MeduzaRussian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the government to draft proposals for changing search engine results on abortion-related queries, according to a list of presidential instructions.
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A teacher and reported Ukraine war veteran is suspected of killing his 2-year-old son and the boy’s grandmother in St. Petersburg. The boy’s body was allegedly hidden in a refrigerator, and his mother was badly beaten, according to local reports. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioSt. Petersburg schoolteacher who reportedly served in Russia’s war against Ukraine suspected of killing his 2-year-old son and the boy’s grandmother — MeduzaA math and physical education teacher in St. Petersburg is suspected of two murders and an attempted murder. Local news outlets Fontanka and Rotonda reported that the victims were a 2-year-old boy…
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Crypto exchange Binance gave Russian investigators a detailed report on Yuri Belenky’s donations to Ukraine’s military, according to a rights group. A Russian military court has now sentenced the IT specialist to 13 years in prison. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussia sentences an IT specialist to 13 years for donating to Ukraine’s military. Binance helped investigators prove their case. — MeduzaThe Second Western District Military Court has sentenced Yuri Belenky, a 49-year-old IT specialist, to 13 years in prison for financing terrorism, the human rights project Pervy Otdel reported.
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Moscow may restrict mobile internet access in the city center on October 27–29 during Russia–Africa and gas-exporting nations summits, the Digital Development Ministry says. Officials cite security concerns and say Wi-Fi and voice calls will still work. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioMobile internet to be restricted in central Moscow October 27-29 during Russia-Africa and gas exporters’ summits — MeduzaMobile internet access in central Moscow could be restricted from October 27 to 29, Russia’s Digital Development Ministry said.
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A former Rosneft executive is suing Azerbaijani traders tied to Russia’s shadow oil exports after a diesel deal in Brazil went awry. The WSJ says the fight — in Dubai and Brazilian courts — offers a rare look at Moscow’s sanctions-era oil trade. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioInside Russia’s shadow oil trade: WSJ examines how a failed business partnership led to multimillion-dollar lawsuits and allegations of threats involving Chechen fighters — MeduzaAfter Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian oil came under sanctions, and little-known intermediaries using shell companies and a shadow fleet of tankers took over a large share of its…
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Russian political scientist Alexander Kynev has begun a hunger strike in jail, his lawyer says. A cast on his broken leg prevents him from using the hole-in-the-floor toilet in a cell with 34 other detainees. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussian political scientist Alexander Kynev launches hunger strike over inaccessible toilet in overcrowded jail cell, lawyer says — MeduzaPolitical scientist Alexander Kynev, who is in pretrial detention on charges of attempting to sell drugs, has gone on a hunger strike, the legal advocacy project Slovo Zashchite reported.
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Serbia’s election winners say they won’t impose sanctions on Russia, despite defeated leader Aleksandar Vučić’s prediction that they will by spring. Meduza finds little sign of imminent changes for Russian émigrés, though EU pressure could eventually affect them. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioTens of thousands of Russians have made Serbia their home. A change in government raises new questions about their future. — MeduzaThe opposition “Student List” won a decisive victory in Serbia’s parliamentary elections last Sunday. Former President Aleksandar Vučić, who heads the Serbian Progressive Party, conceded defeat and…
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Paweł Pawlikowski's new film "Fatherland" follows Thomas Mann through divided postwar Germany. He talks to Meduza about 1949's competing visions of the future and their echoes today, though he wasn't thinking of Putin's Russia when making the film. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioFilmmaker Paweł Pawlikowski grew up in a world where the Cold War made everything seem clear. Today’s world, he says, feels like science fiction. — MeduzaAfter festival premieres in Cannes, Telluride, Toronto, New York, and London and its selection as Poland’s Oscar entry, Paweł Pawlikowski’s “Fatherland” is opening in theaters worldwide. The film…
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Moscow prosecutors are seeking criminal charges against human rights activist Anna Karetnikova under Russia’s “foreign agent” and “extremism” laws. She has worked with Memorial for over 20 years; Russia banned the group as “extremist” in April. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioMoscow prosecutors seek criminal charges against prominent human rights activist Anna Karetnikova — MeduzaMoscow’s Lefortovsky Interdistrict Prosecutor’s Office has gathered materials to open a criminal case against human rights activist Anna Karetnikova.
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Senior Democrats are preparing to investigate Donald Trump’s diesel deal with Moscow and have demanded that American companies preserve all documents related to imports of Russian fuel, Axios reported. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioUS Democrats demand banks, ports preserve documents on Trump’s Russia diesel deal for future investigation — MeduzaSenior Democrats are preparing to investigate Donald Trump’s diesel deal with Moscow and have demanded that American companies preserve all documents related to imports of Russian fuel, Axios…
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The Black Sea has become the world’s deadliest shipping route, the FT reports. At least 40 sailors have been killed there this year — compared with 24 in the Strait of Hormuz. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioRussia’s war against Ukraine has turned the Black Sea into the world’s most dangerous shipping route — MeduzaRussia’s full-scale war against Ukraine has turned the Black Sea into the world’s most dangerous waters for commercial shipping, the Financial Times reported. At least 40 sailors have died there…
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Ukraine is pushing to move up the three-way talks, which sources had previously said would take place in Abu Dhabi “in mid-November,” by at least a week. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.io‘When you have no electricity, water, or heating, every day matters’: Ukraine wants to move up trilateral talks with Russia and the U.S. by a week — MeduzaUkraine is pushing to move up the three-way talks, which sources had previously said would take place in Abu Dhabi “in mid-November,” by at least a week.
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Players from Moscow soccer club Lokomotiv were aboard a train hit by Ukrainian drones in Russia’s Voronezh region, Russian media report. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioPlayers from Moscow soccer team were aboard train hit by Ukrainian strike in Russia — MeduzaLokomotiv soccer players were riding in a train car hit during a Ukrainian strike in the Voronezh region, Russian media outlets including Mash and MSK1 reported, citing sports journalist Ivan Karpov.…
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Alexander Kondratov, a production designer for the Russian TV series Liquidation, has died in a Moscow hospital after being jailed on treason charges. The 52-year-old, who lived in Kyiv, was detained while visiting Russia to renew his passport. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussian TV production designer dies in Moscow hospital after arrest on treason charges — MeduzaAlexander Kondratov, the production designer for the Russian TV series Likvidatsiya (Liquidation”), has died at Botkin Hospital in Moscow after being arrested on treason charges, the Russian human…
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Serbia’s student-backed opposition has won parliamentary elections, ending Vučić’s bid to return to power as prime minister. Vučić claims the winners will impose sanctions on Russia, but the movement insists it has no plans to do so. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioSerbia’s student-backed opposition has defeated Vučić at the ballot box. He says the winners will impose sanctions on Russia — but they say otherwise. — MeduzaSerbia held snap parliamentary elections on October 25. Among the candidates was former president Aleksandar Vučić, who had resigned just a month earlier but was hoping to return to power as prime…
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Russia wants to move strategically important data centers underground or into bunkers to protect them from drone attacks, Kommersant reports. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussia’s Digital Development Ministry proposes placing strategically important data centers underground or in bunkers — MeduzaRussia’s Digital Development Ministry has approved recommendations for protecting data centers from drone attacks and other aerial threats, the Russian business daily Kommersant reported, citing…
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The Belgorod branch of Russia’s Federal Security Service has opened a criminal case against Nikita Parmenov, editor-in-chief of the outlet Pepel, on charges of justifying terrorism. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioCriminal case opened against editor-in-chief of Russian border-region outlet Pepel on charges of justifying terrorism — MeduzaThe Belgorod branch of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has opened a criminal case against Nikita Parmenov, editor-in-chief of the outlet Pepel, on charges of justifying terrorism, Fonar…
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Putin’s Valdai residence is now surrounded by about 50 air defense towers, nearly half as many as in and around Moscow, RFE/RL reported. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRFE/RL: 16 more air defense towers spotted near Putin’s Valdai residence, bringing total to about 50 — nearly half the number in Moscow and its outskirts — MeduzaAt least 15 new towers appeared in October within a 50-kilometer radius (31 miles) of Vladimir Putin’s residence in Valdai, likely intended to carry Pantsir or Tor surface-to-air missile systems,…
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A Russian satellite made an extraordinarily close approach to a Western commercial spacecraft that provides imagery to Ukraine. A retired Russian colonel portrayed the maneuver as a warning to companies aiding Kyiv, including Starlink. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioRussia is escalating its confrontation with the West in orbit. Its satellites are pursuing spacecraft from companies helping Ukraine — and Starlink has been put on notice. — MeduzaThere has long been talk of “hunter” satellites and an intensifying confrontation in space between Russia and the United States. But this week brought an unprecedented escalation in the new “star…
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Serbia’s student protest movement has gone from demonstrations over a deadly train station collapse to defeating Aleksandar Vučić’s party at the polls. Belgrade residents celebrated the victory after record election turnout. meduza.io/en/short/202...

meduza.ioBelgrade erupts in celebration after Serbia’s student-led opposition defeats Aleksandar Vučić — MeduzaSubscribe to Meduza’s newsletter and don’t miss the next major event in the post-Soviet region. Available everywhere with an Internet connection. Protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy…
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At its peak, A7 was processing at least 58 tons of cash a month. Leaked records examined by investigative journalists reveal how the Russian firm turns cash from Moscow markets into overseas payments, largely to China, circumventing Western sanctions. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioFor Russia’s sanctions-busting A7 payment service, international transfers start with bags of cash at Moscow markets. At its peak, it processed at least 58 metric tons in a single month. — MeduzaSanctions against Russian banks and payment systems, along with their disconnection from SWIFT after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, gave rise to shadow intermediaries offering Russians…
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Serbia’s former president Aleksandar Vucic has conceded defeat in Sunday’s parliamentary election. He projected 135–140 seats for the student-led opposition and 105 for his own side, with final results still pending. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioSerbia’s former President Aleksandar Vučić concedes defeat in parliamentary election to student-led opposition — MeduzaFormer Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić conceded defeat in the October 25 snap parliamentary election.
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An FT long-read traces a backchannel to Putin that opened in 2022 with assurances that Washington sought no regime change in Moscow. Intermediaries then floated terms that would have left Crimea under Russian control. The channel later lost momentum. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioAn American lawyer helped open a backchannel between Biden’s White House and Putin. A Financial Times report details the exchanges, a later unofficial peace bid, and how it fell apart. — MeduzaThe Financial Times has published details of back-channel talks between U.S. leaders and Vladimir Putin in 2022 and early 2023. The effort began with Richard Conn, an American lawyer who had worked…
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70 years ago today, Hungarians rose against Soviet rule and nearly broke free. In a Meduza retrospective, historian Alexey Uvarov examines why Moscow agreed to pull troops from Budapest before crushing the revolt — and why the U.S. didn’t intervene. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioIn 1956, Moscow agreed to withdraw its troops from Budapest. One week later, it launched a 60,000-soldier operation to crush Hungary’s revolution. — MeduzaOn October 23, 1956, hundreds of thousands of Budapest residents took to the streets to demand political reforms, free elections, and the withdrawal of Soviet troops. Peaceful demonstrations quickly…
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In three years, Meduza's publishing house has released more than 30 books. Now our staff are sharing their personal favorites — from novels set in wartime Ukraine to books on Chechnya, dictatorship, and the Wagner Group. meduza.io/en/slides/th...

meduza.ioThe best books from Meduza’s publishing house, according to the people who work here — MeduzaIn the three years since Meduza launched its publishing house, we’ve published more than 30 books in Russian. Now, when people ask which we recommend, we have to ask a few questions: Fiction…
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Serbia votes on Sunday after Aleksandar Vucic resigned as president to run for prime minister. Barred from a third presidential term, he called a snap election for the earliest legally permitted date — giving a student-led opposition movement just 46 days to campaign. meduza.io/en/feature/2...

meduza.ioCan Serbia’s student protesters stop Aleksandar Vučić from becoming prime minister? The country’s longtime leader has called an early election to extend his hold on power. — MeduzaJust over a month ago, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić addressed the nation on television. He lamented the difficult circumstances but said that, despite everything, the country had “managed…
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A Moscow court ordered four critics of billionaire Oleg Deripaska, including two investigators from Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, to pay him 40 million rubles in a defamation suit. (He had sought 1 billion.) meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioMoscow court orders four critics to pay Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska 40 million rubles in defamation case — MeduzaMoscow’s Tagansky District Court has ruled partly in Oleg Deripaska’s favor in his defamation lawsuit against Anti-Corruption Foundation investigators Maria Pevchikh and Sergey Yezhov, former Popular…
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Russia labeled Echo a “foreign agent” in July. Now it has added the outlet’s editor-in-chief, Maksim Kurnikov, to the registry. Echo was founded abroad by former journalists from the Echo of Moscow radio station. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussia designates Maxim Kurnikov, editor-in-chief of exiled news outlet Ekho, a ‘foreign agent’ — MeduzaRussia’s Justice Ministry has added journalist Maxim Kurnikov, editor-in-chief of the news outlet Ekho, to its register of “foreign agents.”
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Russia's new "civil death" registry now lists 12 people facing frozen Russian bank funds, property-sale bans, and loss of consular services. It includes former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky and political scientist Ekaterina Schulmann. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioRussia’s deputy justice minister defends a new blacklist that effectively imposes ‘civil death’ on dissidents living abroad — MeduzaRussia’s Justice Ministry has published a registry of people subject to “temporary restrictive measures” on its website.
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Austria is expelling four Russian diplomats suspected of spying. A review began after the investigative outlet Proekt reported on Russian diplomats' ties to Moscow's intelligence agencies, according to the Austrian magazine Profil. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioAustria orders expulsion of four Russian diplomats suspected of spying — MeduzaAustria will expel four Russian diplomats suspected of spying. Three worked at the Russian Embassy in Vienna and the fourth at Russia’s mission to the Organization for Security and Cooperation…
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Cyprus is investigating alleged tax evasion by Roman Abramovich after reporters accused Deloitte’s local branch of helping conceal $672 million in assets, including mansions, yachts, and private jets. Abramovich and Deloitte deny wrongdoing. meduza.io/en/news/2026...

meduza.ioCyprus police investigate Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich for possible tax evasion after reports implicate accounting giant Deloitte — MeduzaPolice in Cyprus have launched an investigation into reports that Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich may have evaded taxes with help from the accounting firm Deloitte. A Cypriot Justice Ministry…