The Moscow Times' weekly email digest, 8 December 2023 : Putin has confirmed he will run in next year’s presidential election, and more...

 

Dear reader, Welcome to The Moscow Times' weekly email digest, where we bring you the best of our reporting, opinion pieces and photo galleries. President Vladimir Putin has confirmed he will run in next year’s presidential election, ending months of speculation. Election officials said the vote will take place over three days next March. Critics have argued that multi-day voting enables voter fraud, as it becomes harder for monitors to ensure no irregularities take place. Here are the week’s other top stories: Kyiv says it assassinated a pro-Kremlin Ukrainian politician outside Moscow. Illia Kyva defected to Russia shortly after the invasion last year. The British government has accused Russia of operating a cyber espionage campaign against leading politicians, journalists and NGOs. Washington says Russia rejected a “substantial” proposal to secure the release of former Marine Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich. Kyiv’s allies have scaled back their support to Ukraine to the lowest level since February 2022, according to the Kiel Institute. We’ve been declared “foreign agents” by the Russian government. We refuse to be silenced. Every donation, no matter how small, will help us continue our unbiased coverage of Russia at this critical time. Did someone forward this email to you? Subscribe to receive our newsletter every Friday. Podcast: Has Russia Made it Illegal To Be LGBT? To understand the changes and risks for Russia's LGBT community after the Supreme Court labeled the so-called “international LGBT movement” as a banned “extremist" group, we spoke with LGBT people living in Russia as well as Dilya Gafurova, head of the Sfera foundation, and Alex (Sasha) Kayner from the Center-T transgender rights group. Listen here. Amid Ukraine War, a Quiet Battle of Memorials Unfolds in Russia While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is being immortalized in stone across the country, memorials dedicated to Soviet-era repressions are disappearing en masse. Read more. ‘I Wanted to Be With Ukraine’ Prominent Russian Journalist, Photographer, Speaks on Her Life in Kyiv In an interview with The Moscow Times, Russian journalist and photographer Victoria Ivleva discusses her work documenting the war in Ukraine since moving from Moscow to Kyiv in March 2022. Read more. ‘No One Knows Anything’: St. Petersburg’s Queer Community Grapples With ‘Extremist’ LGBT Ban The ban on the “international LGBT movement” by Russia’s top court has thrown the queer community of St. Petersburg, historically one of the country’s most LGBT-tolerant cities, into unprecedented uncertainty and fear. Read more. ‘Urban Madmen’: Russia’s Environmental Activists Targeted With Soviet-Style Punitive Psychiatry In the Soviet era, thousands of dissidents and suspected dissidents endured forced psychiatric treatment. Today, this practice has made a comeback — and is increasingly deployed against environmental activists. Read more. Three-year-old Manik the cow won the annual cattle beauty competition in the republic of Sakha. The pageant aims to bring attention to agricultural issues in Russia and promote animal welfare. Opinion Defending Human Rights in Russia Feels Hopeless. But I Still Do It By Dan Storyev I know I have no other choice. I want to see a Russia that is at peace with itself and its neighbors, a Russia that is prosperous and free. Read more. A Free Belarus Is Possible. But We Can’t Do It Alone By Alexandra Boguslawskaja I have spent two years of my life in exile, but I am determined to return to help my country become the best in the world. I am sure that time will come soon. Read more. Before we go... The Moscow Times is on Telegram! Get access to longer articles, in-depth analysis, and exclusive content that goes beyond our Twitter and Facebook accounts. Subscribe here.

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