Putin took the stage in the company of his "rivals," Kremlin-friendly lawmakers Vladislav Davankov, Nikolai Kharitonov, and Leonid Slutsky, who ran against Putin in the election. All three praised Putin and offered their support.
"(I) look forward to working together to further strengthen the time-tested Special & Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia in the years to come," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said.
At the same time, Andrii Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence said that mobilization has continued in Russia throughout the campaign and election.
Russian President Vladimir Putin received congratulatory remarks from North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, and a few other leaders of Russia-friendly countries.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia would not be "intimidated" and thanked his supporters for delivering him another term in office after having secured 87.2% of the vote.
Key developments on March 17: * Media: 12 Russian oil refineries successfully hit in recent attacks by Ukraine * Putin ‘wins’ rigged Russian election, preliminary results show * 1 killed, 6 injured, including child, in Russian attack on Mykolaiv * Shoigu calls for better Navy defense in visit to Black Sea Fleet, Russian Defense
"He is afraid of only one thing – justice,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said. "(Putin) must end up in The Hague. That is what we must ensure, everyone in the world who values life and integrity."
Russian authorities on March 15-17 held a presidential election in two countries – Russia and the regions of Ukraine brutally occupied by the Kremlin. The voting was neither free nor fair, with the result known in advance. In the occupied areas, voting was held illegally at gunpoint. In Russia, the elections
Russia's presidential election entered its third and last day on March 17, with the state-controlled news agency Interfax reporting over 70% voter turnout as of 3 p.m. local time in Moscow.
At least 15 criminal cases on alleged "obstruction of the electoral comissions' work" had been opened during the first day of the Russian presidential election, Russian media outlet Novaya Gazeta Europe reported on March 15, citing regional investigation committees.
The governor of Russia's Samara Oblast reported on March 16 that two Rosneft oil refineries in the area were targeted by Ukrainian drones, resulting in no casualties but leaving one facility on fire.
For global audiences watching Moscow’s tightly-choreographed “election-style event” this weekend, Russia appears to be a country transformed – a militarized society where dissent is simply no longer tolerated. But the truth is that in the two years since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, for the majority, life
The U.N. Security Council will hold a meeting on March 15 to discuss illegally organized voting in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine as part of the country’s presidential election, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations Sergiy Kyslytsya announced.
A source in the military intelligence agency confirmed to the Kyiv Independent it was currently making attempts to disrupt the vote, adding: "There are no elections or democracy there anyway."
The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, mocked Vladimir Putin on the first day of the Russian pseudo-democratic presidential elections that are expected to grant him six more years in power.
Putin's comment marks the 11th nuclear threat the Russian president has issued since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion.
Many critics of Western support for Ukraine have claimed that providing arms to Kyiv "unnecessarily prolongs the war," alleging that peace would come faster if the weapons stopped flowing. Ukrainian officials have dismissed this idea, arguing that such a step would only hasten Russian occupation of the country.
Putin claimed the goal of the reported breakthrough was "to get a trump card for the exchange of territories in possible negotiations" and to create an "information effect."
International Criminal Court (ICC) Judge Tomoko Akane, who was placed on a Russian wanted list after issuing an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March 2023, was elected president of the ICC on March 11.
Stoltenberg's comments came during Sweden's flag-raising ceremony at NATO headquarters which marked the final step of its accession into the alliance.
The comments came after French President Emmanuel Macron recently said that Western military presence in Ukraine cannot be “ruled out” in the future. The U.S. and multiple European allies, as well as NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, have distanced themselves from Macron’s statement.
Key developments on March 9-10: * CNN: US prepared 'rigorously' for potential Russian nuclear strike in Ukraine in 2022 * UK, Italy oppose deploying Western troops to Ukraine * UK Defense Ministry: Ukraine increasing fortifications along the front line * Zelensky denounces Pope Francis' proposal to negotiate peace with Russia * Air Force: Ukraine downs
Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Russian President Vladimir Putin has consistently weaponized and distorted history throughout his time in power since 2000. In a recent interview with U.S. far-right commentator Tucker Carlson, Putin went back more than 1,000 years to justify
Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking advantage of delays in U.S. aid to Ukraine to further Russian military efforts, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said at a press conference on March 4.
Russian President Vladimir Putin must be held responsible for the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the European Parliament said in a resolution adopted on Feb. 29.
There will be "tragic consequences" if NATO troops are sent to Ukraine, and the West's support for Kyiv "risks a conflict using nuclear weapons," Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed during a two-hour State of the Nation address on Feb. 29.
Speaking at the parliament, Yulia Navalnaya accused Russian authorities of orchestrating Navalny's death, which, in her words, showed that "Putin is capable of anything and that you cannot negotiate with him.
North Korea reportedly sent 6,700 ammunition containers to Russia following the Sept. 2023 summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, South Korea's Defense Ministry announced on Feb. 27.
Editor's note: This investigation, based on leaks obtained by Delfi Estonia and compiled for a joint investigation with VSquare and Frontstory.pl, Expressen, Meduza and iStories, Paper Trail Media, Der Spiegel and ZDF, Der Standard, and Tamedia publications, has been republished by the Kyiv Independent with VSquare's permission. “I will
The criminal case against Oleg Orlov was launched in 2023 when the human rights advocate published a translation of a French article called "They wanted fascism. They got it" on his Facebook.
Negotiations were in progress for a prisoner exchange involving Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny at the time of his death on Feb. 16, but no proposal had been presented to the Kremlin, two Western officials briefed on the discussions told Politico.
It is difficult to pin down the exact moment that Russia began morphing into a totalitarian state. For over a decade, the Kremlin was taking away civil liberties and feeding the population a revamped and increasingly more aggressive version of nationalism. For nearly a decade, most Russians didn't seem to
