
The mystery of Ramzan Kadyrov’s flailing health PRO Members Public
Russia’s top domestic political story last month was the mystery swirling around Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov after it emerged that the 46-year-old feudal warlord, a key figure in the Putin system, has serious health problems. In mid-September, Chechen opposition Telegram channels even reported his death. In a bid to

THE BELL WEEKLY: Ramzan Kadyrov’s mystery illness PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at yet another round of rumors over the deteriorating health of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and assess his standing with the Kremlin following the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin. We also unpick what a record court case in London brought by a jailed Russian billionaire could

Russia’s wartime budget PRO Members Public
Hello! This is Alexandra Prokopenko with your weekly guide to the Russian economy — brought to you by The Bell. Today's top story is an analysis of Russia’s 2024-2026 budget, which foresees a record level of military spending. We also look at a proposal to make the Russian

A year on from Russia’s ‘partial mobilization’, a second wave seems inevitable PRO Members Public
Last week was the first anniversary of Russia’s mobilization drive, announced on Sep. 21, 2022. At the time, Putin told Russians in an early-morning address to the nation that the country was facing “the entire military machine of the collective west” in Ukraine. At least 300,000 mobilized Russians

How the Kremlin’s internet propaganda HQ operates PRO Members Public
The low-profile non-profit organization Dialog started life as a way for the Russian authorities to stay in contact and gather feedback from different parts of society. Since then, it’s evolved into one of the Russian internet’s most prolific pro-Kremlin propaganda mouthpieces. Journalists from The Bell, Meduza and IStories

Fresh Karabakh conflict dents Russia’s standing in the Caucasus PRO Members Public
Last week, Azerbaijan launched fresh military action to seize control of Nagorno-Karabakh, a separatist republic in the Caucasus populated mainly by ethnic Armenians but which is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan. Not only did this one-day “anti-terrorist operation,” as Baku called it, seemingly bring an end to any independent

THE BELL WEEKLY: A blow to Russia in the Caucasus PRO Members Public
Hello! This week we look at how Azerbaijan’s use of military force to seize control of Nagorno-Karabakh has dealt yet another blow to Russia’s standing in the Caucasus. We also summarize a new investigation into Dialog, a major player in the Kremlin’s online propaganda machine, and assess

Will the West tap Russia’s frozen assets? PRO Members Public
Hello! This is your weekly guide to the Russian economy — brought to you by The Bell. Our top story is a look at whether the West might be on the verge of utilizing Russian assets that were frozen as the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. We also look

Russia’s authorities are talking about blocking WhatsApp. What would this mean in reality? PRO Members Public
For the first time in 18 months of war, Russian authorities alarmedWhatsApp users with talk of blocking the popular messaging app. Along with YouTube, it is one of two international services that the Kremlin has long wished to switch off, but fears a public backlash too much to follow through.

EU bans Russian-registered cars while lifting sanctions on the oligarch who helped Putin’s friends seize the media PRO Members Public
The EU’s sanctions policy continues to throw up paradoxes. Following last week’s scandal around the confiscation of personal items that Russians bring into Europe, the EU confirmed a ban on driving Russian-registered vehicles into its member states. At the same time, the European Commission lifted sanctions on three