June 7:
With anti-Western sentiment in Russia soaring as a result of the crisis in Ukraine, Russians have latched on to a new - and unlikely - hero: cyber-hacker Evgeniy Bogachev. London’s Telegraphi> reports that the 30-year-old Russian, who now tops the FBI’s “most wanted” list after electronic heists against U.S. financial institutions that netted more than $100 million, lives in comfort in the Black Sea town of Anapa in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai, where his exploits - now public - have brought him the support and admiration of fellow citizens and locals. Russian authorities, meanwhile, have remained silent on whether Bogachev will face any repercussions for his cyber-crimes.
June 8:
Russia’s recent actions in Ukraine continue to exact an economic toll on Moscow. The BBC reports that, in what represents the latest product of European pressure, Bulgaria’s government has ordered a halt to all work on the South Stream natural gas pipeline. The Gazprom-financed project is intended to ship Russian gas to western Europe by way of the Balkans. But Bulgaria’s government, skittish over becoming the target of European economic measures, has frozen work on the energy route. "We will decide on further developments following consultations with Brussels," Bulgarian Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski has announced.
June 9:
As relations between Russia and the West continue to deteriorate, Russian companies are increasingly switching from the dollar to alternative currencies, such as the Chinese yuan. Russia Today reports that recent weeks have seen an upsurge of Russian commercial transaction carried out in non-dollar currencies, tracking with a greater emphasis on Asian markets in the face of U.S. and European sanctions.
In what some are calling a renewed crackdown on civil society, Russia’s Justice Ministry has designated five Russian NGOs as “foreign agents” for “conducting political activities using foreign sources of funding.” The Moscow Times reports that the blacklisting comes just days after President Vladimir Putin signed a law allowing the Justice Ministry to register organizations as "foreign agents" without their consent. Some of the targeted organizations are now attempting to fight back; one NGO official has told the Times that “we do not agree with the decision [to label us a foreign agent], and our lawyers are preparing a complaint.”
June 10:
Lithuania is lashing out at Russia’s natural gas giant. The Moscow Times reports that Lithuania’s Competition Council, which regulates and guarantees competitive business practices within the Baltic state, has fined Gazprom $48 million for hampering market competition there. At issue is the Russian conglomerate’s refusal to negotiate a deal on gas exchange with Lithuanian power company Leituvos Energijos Gamyba back in 2012 - a decision that effectively raised energy rates for Lithuanian consumers.
Russian president Vladimir Putin may have softened his bellicose rhetoric against Ukraine in recent days, but the conflict continues to simmer under the surface. According to the New York Times, “numerous Russians, most of them war veterans, Cossacks or ultranationalists, have signed up to fight in Ukraine in recent weeks, either with recruiters or through one of several websites established expressly for enrolling them.” The Kremlin has denied a role in this activity, but experts believe that Moscow continues to play a significant, albeit quiet, role in fueling the fighting. It is clear “that Russia has been assisting [pro-Russian fighters] in their efforts,” says Carol Saivets of MIT, “and now, as it becomes an increasingly professionalized force, there have to be questions about how much support Russia is giving. My bet is a lot.”
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