Latest Vladimir Putin News
Police raid Moscow gay bars after a Supreme Court ruling labeled LGBTQ+ movement 'extremist'
Russian security forces raided gay clubs and bars across Moscow Friday night, less than 48 hours after the country’s top court banned what it called the “global LGBTQ+ movement” as an extremist organization. Police searched venues across the Russian capital, including a...
Russia brings new charges against jailed Kremlin foe Navalny
MOSCOW (AP) — Imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been handed new charges by Russian prosecutors. The 47-year-old is already serving more than 30 years in prison after being found guilty of crimes including extremism — charges that his supporters characterize as...
Putin orders the Russian military to add 170,000 troops for a total of 1.32 million
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday ordered the country's military to increase the number of troops by nearly 170,000 to a total of 1.32 million, as Moscow’s military action in Ukraine continues into its 22nd month. Putin's decree was released by the Kremlin...
The director of Russia's Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev, is also put in charge of the Bolshoi
MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian government on Friday named Valery Gergiev, the renowned director of the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, to also lead Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre. Gergiev is replacing Vladimir Urin at the Bolshoi. Urin announced Thursday that he was stepping down after a...
Russia’s Supreme Court effectively outlaws LGBTQ+ activism in a landmark ruling
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Russia’s Supreme Court effectively outlawed LGBTQ+ activism on Thursday, the most drastic step against advocates of gay, lesbian and transgender rights in the increasingly conservative country. Ruling in response to a lawsuit filed by the Justice Ministry,...
Russia's foreign minister faces Western critics at security meeting and walks out after speech
SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov faced Western critics while attending international security talks Thursday in Northern Macedonia, where he blamed “NATO’s reckless expansion to the East” for war returning to Europe. Lavrov arrived in...
Hungary will not agree to starting EU membership talks with Ukraine, minister says
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary will not support any European Union proposal to begin talks on making Ukraine a member of the bloc, a government minister said Thursday. Gergely Gulyas, the chief of staff to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, said at a news conference in...
Ukraine insists it sees no sign of NATO war fatigue even as fighting and weapons supplies stall
BRUSSELS (AP) — Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba insisted on Wednesday that NATO allies are showing no sign of war fatigue and remain committed to helping Ukraine defend itself against Russia and take back occupied territory. Speaking to The Associated Press, Kuleba also...
Putin accuses the West of trying to 'dismember and plunder' Russia in a ranting speech
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, in a ranting speech before a presidential election campaign, cast Moscow's military action in Ukraine as an existential battle against purported attempts by the West to destroy Russia. Putin, who has been in power for more...
Putin signs Russia's largest national budget, bolstering military spending
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a national budget for the next three years that increases spending by around 25% and reportedly devotes a record amount to defense as the the country's military operation in Ukraine drags on. The budget foresees...
