Russian economy to lose nearly third of its value March 14, 2022 Russia’s economy will be plunged into turmoil this year as a result of the country being frozen out of the global economy in retaliation to Moscow invading Ukraine. The country’s output will tumble around 30 per cent this year, far worse than the amount it lost during the financial crisis, according to forecasts by the [...]
Oligarchs’ London mansions are ‘gold bricks to launder money’ says Sadiq Khan as Mayor labels UK refugee response ’embarrassing’ March 14, 2022 London Mayor Sadiq Khan described properties owned by Russian oligarchs in London as “gold bricks used to launder money”. Repeating his call for some to be used to house refugees from Ukraine, he said it would be a form of “poetic justice”. He told Times Radio: “I, for some time, with others, have been complaining [...]
Chaos at the Kremlin: Isolated Putin detains senior FSB security chiefs while third Russian general is killed in Ukraine March 13, 2022 Two senior officers in the Russian security service, the FSB, have been put under house arrest by President Vladimir Putin, according to a report this weekend. Andrei Soldatov, of the investigative website Agentura, reported that Sergei Beseda, the head of the Fifth Service – the FSB’s foreign intelligence branch – and his deputy have been [...]
Seizing companies’ assets would take Russia back to Bolshevik revolution, Putin ally says March 12, 2022 Russian mining billionaire Vladimir Potanin has warned Putin against seizing control of assets owned by the foreign firms that have exited Russia, after arguing that doing so would drag Russia back to the time of the Bolshevik revolution. Multi-billionaire mining magnate Potanin, who in 2018 appeared on the US Treasury’s list of 210 individuals with [...]
Russia to block Instagram on Monday after branding Meta an ‘extremist organisation’ March 12, 2022 The Kremlin has told Russian Instagram users they have until the end of the weekend to transfer any photos or videos they have saved on the social platform, onto their own computers, after confirming Instagram will be “definitively blocked” from midnight on Monday. The comments come after Russia’s media watchdog, Roskomnadzor, said it will be [...]
Putin’s girlfriend Alina and their four children go into hiding in luxury chalet in Switzerland March 11, 2022 The long-term girlfriend of Russian president Vladimir Putin - Alina Kabaeva - has reportedly gone into hiding in Switzerland, together with the couple's four young children.
Kremlin threatens to take control of assets owned by multinationals that exited Russia over Ukraine March 11, 2022 The Kremlin has threatened to take control of assets owned by multinational companies that have pulled out of Russia in response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Speaking to President Putin yesterday, Russia’s prime minister Mikhail Mishustin said he had prepared a draft law which would allow the Russian government to take control of assets [...]
Russia sent ‘400 mercenaries’ to kill Ukraine’s President Zelensky March 11, 2022 Vladimir Putin sent more than 400 Russian assassins to kill Ukraine’s democratically elected president Vlodymyr Zelensky – and break up his government. Kyiv was placed under a ‘hard’ curfew for 36-hours last week, after news of the mercenaries reached its government, and its army tried to clamp down on any possible infiltrators. A source close [...]
Boris Johnson to ask Brits to open their homes to some of the 2.2m Ukrainians fleeing Russian invasion March 11, 2022 The British public will be asked by the government to open their homes to Ukrainians fleeing the fighting in their country amid continuing criticism of its response to the refugee crisis. Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove will set out on Monday details of a new “sponsored” humanitarian route to allow Ukrainians without family links to [...]
Chelsea in race to find new backer or risk administration as Abramovich sanctions bite March 10, 2022 Chelsea face a race to find a new benefactor after Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government – or run the risk of administration. The sanctions prevent any new money going into the Premier League club, effectively forcing Abramovich to offload Chelsea or watch it run out of money. The club have consistently spent [...]