The Russian president, in a much-anticipated speech on his country’s most important holiday, did not proclaim an escalation of the fight in Ukraine.
Author: Anton Troianovski
How Putin Has Hijacked Russia’s May 9 Holiday, Victory Day
Under President Vladimir V. Putin, Victory Day, marking the defeat of Nazi Germany, has come to celebrate modern Russian military might. The war in Ukraine is shifting its meaning further.
Why the Battle for Mariupol Is Important for Putin
A victory in the predominantly Russian-speaking city could give a veneer of credibility to the Russian leader’s false claims of ridding Ukraine of “Nazis.”
Russia Said It Has Successfully Tested a New ICBM That Can Evade Defenses
Though officials said the missile is not yet ready to deploy, President Vladimir V. Putin said the launch of the Sarmat missile “will force all who are trying to threaten our country in the heat of frenzied, aggressive rhetoric to think twice.”
Bleak Assessments of Russian Economy Contradict Putin’s Rosy Claims
While Vladimir Putin boasts that Russia is holding up under Western sanctions, his central bank chief and the mayor of Moscow warned that the worst was yet to come.
Atrocities in Ukraine War Have Deep Roots in Russian Military
Like the shelling of cities, the seemingly pointless, close-up killing of individuals recalls wars in Chechnya. Do they reflect intent, or only indifference, propaganda and a military culture of violence?
Putin Calls Talks a ‘Dead End’ but Limits War Aim to Eastern Ukraine
It was the first time that President Vladimir Putin himself had defined a more limited military goal: taking control of the Donbas region in the east of Ukraine — not the whole country.
Spurred by Putin, Russians Turn on One Another Over the War
Citizens are denouncing one another, illustrating how the war is feeding paranoia and polarization in Russian society.
Vladimir V. Zhirinovsky Dies at 75; Ultranationalist Russian Politician
His antics kept him at center stage in Russia for three decades, and his once fringe views on imperial expansion had gone mainstream with the invasion of Ukraine.
Moscow calls U.S. intelligence on Putin’s military advice a ‘complete misunderstanding.’
The Kremlin spokesman also played down the prospect of an April meeting between Presidents Vladimir V. Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky.