Questions tagged [russian-federation]
For questions about or involving the Russian Federation, successor of the Soviet Union. Located in Eurasia, Russia is the largest country by land mass, and it operates as a semi-presidential republic. For questions about the Soviet Union (USSR), use tag: [soviet-union].
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Have anti-Ukraine-war parties in Russia explained what their preferred end state looks like?
There're definitely people in Russia who are against the "special military operation" - c.f. protests after Putin ordered a partial mobilization.
Have any of these people explained what ...
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Where are the ships with Ukrainian grain?
Recently, I've read an article on Politico about those ships with grain:
"Excluding Turkey as the mediator country, almost all the grain exported from Ukraine is flowing not to the poorest ...
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How is the Chinese officialdom, press, or intelligentsia discussing Russia's possible use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine war?
It's certainly known that the Chinese press and officials have openly blamed NATO and the USA more specifically for the war in Ukraine.
On the other hand, China officially has a "no first use&...
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Why doesn't Ukraine use its control on Russian pipelines as negotiation leverage?
Ukraine could threaten both Russia and Europeans to blow up or simply shut down the pipelines passing on their territory if Russians get too aggressive and if Europeans do not convince Putin to calm ...
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Is Putin a valid military target in this war? What about Moscow based senior political and governmental figures with roles related to the war effort?
Putin apparently believes the head of state of Ukraine is a valid target, suitable to be dispatched by any means. Or at least that seems to be a reasonable interpretation of some reports. Doesn't ...
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How do those who claim it envision that Ukraine would destroy Russia as a country?
I have seen the declarations like "For Russia this conflict is about preservation not only of its elites, but the country itself". It looks that there are people who think that Russia can be ...
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What position exactly did Merkel express about the Minsk agreements in this December 2022 interview?
Former German chancellor Angela Merkel gave an interview to the Zeit - but the Zeit is paywalled and I don't speak German. In that interview, she supposedly said:
I thought that the introduction of ...
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What level of autonomy do regions within the Russian Federation have?
So, in the United States, of course, there is the 10th Amendment to the constitution, stating that powers not enumerated as adhering to the federal government are reserved either to the states or to ...
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Why hasn’t Ukraine joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)?
Ukraine was part of the USSR and made themselves independent. Vladimir Putin called the separation of the USSR a "major geopolitical disaster of the century". I am aware of the Russian ...
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Who was allied with Yevgeny Prigozhin?
Who in the Russian ruling elite was behind the late Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner Group?
Most media accounts do not list his high-level allies, other than Vladimir Putin himself. But ...
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What is the Trump administration's legal basis for not imposing sanctions on Russia?
In July, Congress passed, in a near-unanimous vote, a law called the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which among other things imposes sanctions on Russia for their interference ...
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What does Russia gain by recognizing the separatist regions in the Donbas as sovereign?
If Putin's goal is to stop NATO expansion into Ukraine, then the recognition of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions doesn't help much - they are too small to provide a meaningful buffer. Also, there is a ...
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Did Turkey take revenge of Russian attacks on ISIS by downing the plane? [closed]
Is it possible that Turkey downed the Russian jet because they did not want Russia to be attacking ISIS (and maybe the Syrian Rebels)?
It is quite clear that Turkey is the one who buys Oil from ISIS ...
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How can India reconcile with the new reality as to the relationship with Russian Federation?
Over the last few years, India has been getting closer with the US camp while also maintaining a relationship with Russia as to arms trade. According to a US report, India has been the largest ...
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Why does Russia back Serbia?
On YouTube, I heard Can Kosovo survive as an independent state?, which states that Russia prevents Kosovo from joining the United Nations (UN) because Russia backs Serbia, and Serbia doesn't want ...
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What are the upsides or advantages to the USA of intervening in Syria?
As Syria is a Russian ally/client state, U.S. intervention in Syria's civil war was bound to anger Russia and draw them into the conflict to protect their sphere of influence. It has turned into a ...
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Why would countries attack civilian facilities like hospitals during war?
Very recently, on 8th March 2022, Russia allegedly has bombed a Ukrainian children’s hospital in Mariupol, as reported by among others CNN and BBC.
There have been similar incidents in the past: USA ...
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What does 'Donbass, whom the Ukrainian army has been bombing for the last 8 years' refer to?
Russian chess supergrandmaster Sergey Karjakin (Pro-Putin, but Ukrainian-born) says in tweets here and here to international master Kostya Kavutskiy:
Have you also collected money for the residents ...
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Is the postponement of the release of the Intelligence Security Committee’s report on Russian interference in UK elections abnormal?
Over the last couple of weeks, there has been criticism of the government over the decision to postpone the release of the report until parliament reconvenes after the election. This comes despite the ...
CDJB♦
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Do extra-territorial laws violate some basic principle of democracy?
The US Congress has recently passed a law penalizing foreign companies and individuals in Europe for working on a gas-pipeline from Russia to Germany. This law affects non-US citizens in Europe and ...
user29459
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Why is Russia going to withdraw from Syria?
According to this news article, President Putin says that Russia will start withdrawing from Syria, after a relatively brief presence in the area. Why does he choose to withdraw at this moment, and ...
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What exactly was Russia supposed to get as part of the Black Sea Grain Initiative?
The Black Sea Grain Initiative, was brokered in July of 2022 by Turkey (and the UN?), and involved Russia, Ukraine and other world states. Russia has recently (July 2023) allowed the deal to expire ...
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Do the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk have the right to declare independence from Ukraine under the Minsk Agreements?
Recently the DPR and the LPR declared their independence which Russia recognized. This declaration and subsequent recognition are not seen as legitimate by the international community. Is there a ...
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Why do the US and Russia not seem to support INF anymore?
According to Time, Donald Trump plans to withdraw US from Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty:
President Donald Trump revealed Saturday the United States intends to
withdraw from a 31-...
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Concretely speaking, what is at stake for Ukranians during the current Ukraine-Russia conflict?
Apologies for the controversial question, but this is something I'm curious about.
Historically, and particularly in recent history, invasions of one country into another are generally justified as &...
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Can Russia be cut off from the internet? [closed]
A great variety of sanctions have been discussed and implemented with more to follow.
One sanction I have never heard being discussed, and that is cutting off Russia from the internet.
Now I am aware ...
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How much is Russia actually a federation?
The official name of Russia is Federation of Russia. Federations are normally a bunch of semi-independant federated states that have their own local laws and tax-collecting habits, but that defer ...
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What does the the 1992 treaty between Russia and Finland say specifically about alliances?
I only found a brief 3rd party summary that says:
In accordance with the new agreement, Finland was free to enter any political or military alliance with a third party.
But I'm having trouble ...
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Has Russia, as of August 21st, violated any gas contracts with Germany?
With the looming winter, the question of Russia delivering sufficient gas for power, warmth, and industry is frequently discussed across German media. However, as far as I am aware, only the possible ...
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Why does Russia consider the Ukrainian elections as "invalid/stolen"?
A recent question says (among other things):
In Ukraine, one claim used by Russia to justify its invasion is that the current regime is a "puppet regime", that is, the elections by which it ...
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What is "crypto-mobilization"?
For the past few days, the Institute for the Study of War has been mentioning "crypto-mobilization" in the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. For example:
Russian officials ...
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Does the U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have any means to force Ukraine into negotiating peace with Russia? Does the U.S.?
U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley urged Ukraine
and Russia to find a "political solution", saying that the war in
Ukraine is unwinnable by purely military means.
Does ...
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Which countries have blocked access to rt.com?
We know that the EU countries have blocked access to rt.com, and some people in India have also reported that they can no longer get to it. But not all western countries have blocked it. Does anyone ...
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What is the rationale of Russian troops not allowing civilians to evacuate from the encircled cities?
According to Aljazeera, civilians have a hard time evacuating from Mariupol which was surrounded by the Russian troops:
Previous attempts to establish evacuation corridors to allow civilians
to ...
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Is China's view in line with Russia's view on Ukraine?
Blinken reported the American position on Ukraine. Wang Yi pointed out
that solving the Ukraine problem lies in the New Minsk Agreement
[Minsk II] . Minsk II gained the approval of the UNSC, and all ...
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What domestic benefits might Putin expect from endorsing Trump?
This is a follow up from my other question. The answers in the linked question agreed that Putin's incentives for endorsing Trump were primarily domestic, such as pushing anti-U.S. government ...
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What caused the Republican Party members' dramatic shift on views on Russia?
The recent data published by The Economist/YouGov (PDF, ##26, 28) taken on December 10-13 2016, clearly indicate a dramatic change on Republican Party members' view on Russia and Putin:
The surveys ...
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What mechanisms are available to "bear witness" in an explicitly non-partisan fashion, on the Bucha massacre?
As we are learning about the massacres in Bucha, it is becoming apparent there are two camps in receiving this news on the world stage:
It's real, it happened. This is certainly Ukraine and the West'...
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Designate a country as "State Sponsor of Terrorism"
Now, when petition to "Designate Russia as State Sponsor of Terrorism" has reached the required number of 100,000 signatures, I am trying to figure out for myself, what exactly does this term mean, ...
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How much "Russian money" have Russian oligarchs injected into the UK's economy and contributed to UK politicians?
The following compares statements by two very disparate British commentators, Christopher Steele and the fictional reporter Johnathan Pie.
Steele
The notes below Sky News' April 1, 2022 Beth Rigby ...
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What political benefit would there be in stronger ties with Putin and Russia?
I was reading this article about Marine Le Pen stating that
[Ms. Le Pen] vows to... strengthen ties Vladmir Putin's Russia.
What is so significant about strengthening ties with Russia, and why ...
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What evidence has the ICC relied on in ordering the arrest of the President of Russia?
A few days ago, International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan said:
Today, the Pre-Trial Chamber has issued arrest warrants in relation to the following two individuals:
Mr Vladimir Putin, ...
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What would happen if Russia is convicted of war crimes?
Today President Zelensky has accused Russia of war crimes, and
the International Criminal Court (ICC) - which examines war crimes - is looking to open an investigation.
What would happen if ...
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How is the ICC warrant supposed to restrict Putin's travel abroad given that he's in possession of diplomatic immunity?
According to The Guardian:
Putin is likely to evade justice in the near future: Russia does not
recognise the court’s jurisdiction, and insisted on Friday it was not
affected by the warrants. But the ...
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Why is the world silent on the alleged use of phosphorus in Aleppo?
Ok I can understand that Russia has the Veto power but still there is not even a word of condemnation on use of White Phosphorus by Russia on the innocent civilians in Aleppo. (Worthy note that White ...
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What is the basis for Russia calling the ICC "the puppet of the West"?
Citing it straight from the horse's mouth, @ Tass
The International Criminal Court (ICC), which is ready to exercise pseudo-justice on the orders of the West, has proved its inferiority, Russian ...
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Is there any evidence or report of a genocide in the Donbass region?
In his address before the "special military operation" in Ukraine began, Vladimir Putin stated that
In this context, in accordance with Article 51 (Chapter VII) of the UN Charter, with ...
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What is the difference between the National Guard and the MVD Internal Troops?
Recently, Putin signed the law that creates the National Guard of Russia (Росгвардия), seemingly replacing the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD, МВД).
What is the difference ...
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Where can I find videos of russian tv shows covering the russian invasion of Ukraine?
I was watching a tv show in my country on the matter and they showed some footages of the russian tv shows, if I remember well one of them was called "60 minutes". The focus was on the ...
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Was there a formal rebuke of NATO's expansion by the Russia Duma, before 2004?
The NYT took note in 2004 that parliamentary opposition to NATO's expansion was growing in Russia
While Russia has resigned itself to NATO's expansion, albeit grudgingly, the reality of NATO forces ...
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