“Kleptocracy at its worst” is how US Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently characterized dealings at 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a heavily indebted state development fund currently under investigation for fraud… Read more »
Iran in large part considers peaceful activism a “threat to national security,” and those who warn about festering popular grievances and rampant corruption are treated as seditionists, notes Tara Sepehri… Read more »
Targeted, personal sanctions aimed at oligarchs create a genuine problem for Vladimir Putin’s hold on power, notes analyst Natalie Nougayrède. Russia is an authoritarian kleptocracy. The elite’s loyalty to the… Read more »
A critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly had his visa revoked by the State Department, according to multiple reports, The Hill reports. British citizen Bill Browder [left] tweeted… Read more »
Russians are not so restricted by a“’cultural code’ of serfdom and paternalism” that the only way forward is to rely on “an enlightened ruler who bases himself on a group… Read more »
Russia’s political shift to an authoritarian kleptocracy started with Vladimir Putin’s prosecution and jailing of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, according to Bill Browder, CEO, Hermitage Capital, and author of “Red Notice: A… Read more »
Proponents of an accommodation with the Kremlin fail to appreciate the nature of the regime in Russia, says The Economist’s Edward Lucas. “The idea of a holy homeland besieged by… Read more »
The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) should suspend Azerbaijan’s membership for failing to carry out key reforms, a coalition of 21 groups including Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, PEN International,… Read more »
There is “clear evidence” of direct Russian involvement in British elections, a Labour former minister has said. Former Europe minister Chris Bryant also warned that many believed some of the… Read more »
An exiled Russian Opposition MP has told the ABC he has “no doubt” the suspected poisoning of Vladimir Kara-Murza, one of the country’s most prominent pro-democracy activists, was authorised by… Read more »