Russia’s State Duma says it is impossible to protect St. Petersburg from drones
“Defense Ministry does not have sufficient air defense resources to fully protect St. Petersburg from drone raids,” Defense Committee Chairman Andrei Kartapolov said.
Category Eastern Europe
A Nizhny Novgorod resident was given five days of arrest in Russia for wearing earrings in rainbow colors
She received five days of arrest under the article on “demonstration of prohibited symbols” (Russia’s Supreme Court recognized the “international LGBT movement” as extremist and banned it).
Bloomberg: The wealth of the richest Russians has grown by $7.95 billion since the beginning of the year
For example, "Severstal" shareholder Alexei Mordashov got rich by as much as $2.14 billion. His fortune amounted to $23 billion.
Kadyrov’s daughter Khadijat has become the first deputy chief of Chechnya’s government, the mass media say
Previously, she held the post of head of Grozny’s preschool education department.
In Novosibirsk, Russia, an accident occurred on a power line. More than 2000 people are left without light
About 10 substations – 149 objects – were damaged. Repair work has already begun, but is complicated by difficulties due to frozen ground.
Another diplomatic victory for Russia
Iran will not cancel visa-free travel for Russians. Starting February 4, the Islamic republic will simplify entry for tourists from 28 countries, including Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Alireza Bigdeli told IRNA.
Putin has said that the IL-76 with allegedly Ukrainian POWs was shot down near Belhorod by a US Patriot system
According to him, this fact has been established by an expert examination, Russia insists on an international investigation into the crash of the plane.
The Russian State Duma has passed a law on confiscation of property for those convicted under the article on “fakes” about the Russian army
Politician Boris Nadezhdin submitted his signatures to the CEC
The CEC received 105,000 signatures in favor of his nomination as a candidate for the presidential “election” in Russia.
Russian banks make record profits despite Western sanctions – Financial Times
A report by Russia’s central bank says that despite Western sanctions, Russian banks’ profits in 2023 totaled 330 billion rubles ($37 billion), about 16 times more than the previous year.