Kazakhstan Targets Protesters, RFE/RL, And Other Media On Election Day
Kazakh authorities detained two RFE/RL journalists and refused accreditation to seven more during a tightly controlled snap election intended to name a successor to former President Nursultan Nazarbaev, who resigned on March 19.
VISUAL REPORTS
Dozens Detained As Kazakhs Protest Presidential Vote
The June 9 election -- Kazakhstan’s first ballot for a new president in three decades -- was marred by the arrest of hundreds of anti-government protesters. Arrests continued on June 10 as demonstrators gathered in Almaty to protest the poll’s official results, according to which interim President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, former President Nursultan Nazarbaev’s handpicked successor, won more than 70 percent of the vote.
Kazakh Students Report Being Forced To Attend Ruling Party Forum
Kazakhstan's ruling Nur Otan party held a forum in Nur-Sultan on June 7 in support of presidential candidate and interim President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev. Some of the students who attended said they were "forced" to participate in the forum by university authorities.
Detained Russian Investigative Reporter Appears In Court
Ivan Golunov, a prominent Russian investigative journalist working for the Latvia-based independent Meduza news site, has formally been charged with drug offenses in a case that Russian and international journalists and rights organizations say has been brought in retaliation for his reporting.
Heaps Of Trouble: Residents React To Moscow Waste
Moscow's garbage dumps are overflowing, but plans to transfer waste to Russia's provinces have infuriated local residents. Some Muscovites are taking the trash troubles into their own hands.
The Dukhobors, Georgia's Pacifist 'Spirit Warriors'
In Georgia, members of a small Christian sect called the Dukhobors preserve the faith they brought with them from Russia in centuries past. Their forebears were persecuted and exiled for their unconventional beliefs and refusal to serve in the army.
OTHER NEWS
U.S. Gives Turkey July 31 Deadline To Abandon Russian Missile Deal
The United States has given Turkey a deadline of July 31 to reverse its purchase of a Russian missile-defense system or face the loss of subcontracting work on the U.S.-led F-35 fighter jet project, and the expulsion of Turkish pilots training in the United States to fly the planes.
Moldova Plunged Into Political Crisis
Moldova has plunged deeper into political crisis after the country's top court suspended President Igor Dodon, and his appointed replacement dissolved parliament and called for snap elections. The crisis adds more instability to Moldova, long plagued by corruption and deeply divided between pro-EU and pro-Russian forces.
Russian Newspapers Issue Joint Statement On Golunov Arrest
Vedomosti, Kommersant, and RBC, three of Russia’s leading newspapers, have published identical front pages questioning the motives behind the arrest of investigative reporter Ivan Golunov, and demanding an investigation.
World Bank Warns Russia's Banking Sector At Risk
The World Bank says Russia's banking sector is stabilizing but remains at risk despite recent state bailouts of Russian banks totaling tens of billions of dollars.
In Russian Cities, Mock Gravestones Sound Putin's Death Knell
Yet another mock gravestone bearing the name and image of President Vladimir Putin has appeared in Russia, this time in the southwestern city of Voronezh. Since March, mock gravestones with Putin's face have been spotted in at least eight cities, in what appears to be a coordinated protest campaign.
Local Council Looks To Keep Skripal House From Becoming Tourist Trap
A regional council in England is considering buying the house where ex-Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter were poisoned, fearing the dwelling could be bought and used as a business looking to cash in on its notoriety.
Hague Arbitration Court To Hear Arguments In Ukraine-Russia Sea Dispute
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague will begin hearings this week of Kyiv's case, filed in September 2016, against Moscow's alleged violations of its rights to coastal waters around Ukraine's Crimea region, which Russia seized in 2014.
Russian Agents Detain Crimean Activists And Search Homes
Russian security agents have detained Crimean Tatar activists Eskender Suleymanov and Enver Omerkovar, and are searching the houses of others on the peninsula whom they claim are “terrorist supporters” linked to the Hizb ut-Tahrir organization, which is banned in Russia. (in Russian, Current Time TV).
Zelenskiy Pardons Ukrainian Listed For Possible Exchange With Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has signed a decree pardoning 72-year-old, Russia-born Vyacheslav Vysotsky, a Ukrainian citizen who had been convicted of high treason and espionage for an unidentified foreign state and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Georgia's Breakaway South Ossetia Region Holds Elections
Elections for the legislative body in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia were held on June 9. Ninety-eight candidates competed for 34 seats in the so-called national parliament.
MAJLIS PODCAST: Kazakhstan’s Planned Presidential Succession Goes Off Script