As Western sanctions seek to isolate Russia, they also perversely reinforce the country’s mythic view of itself as a special place that outsiders want to destroy.
Replacing ships like the Moskva will be pricey. The flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet recently sank after suffering damage.
Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP
Russia is on the verge of defaulting on its foreign debt, which not only could have severe economic consequences but could also complicate Putin’s ability to wage a prolonged war in Ukraine.
To the nationalist right, Vladimir Putin embodies similar qualities to Donald Trump’s: determination, virility and attachment to traditional values.
Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP
Former US president Donald Trump continues to wield an important influence within the Republican Party. Notwithstanding the war in Ukraine, he and his supporters continue to look up to Vladimir Putin.
A forensic worker exhumes several bodies from a grave in Bucha, Ukraine, on April 12, 2022.
Anastasia Vlasova/Getty Images
Russia and Ukraine have held several rounds of failed peace talks. Understanding the challenges to successful peace talks helps illuminate the struggle for peace in Eastern Europe.
A person shops at a supermarket in Moscow in April. War-related sanctions have caused inflation to soar – 2% per week in the first three weeks of the war and 1% per week thereafter, equivalent to 68% per year.
Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP
While the country’s Central Bank may have managed to offset some of the tougher sanctions, the West’s economic broadside has caused long-term damage to “Fortress Russia”.
There are unconfirmed reports that Russia has used chemical weapons in Ukraine. Syria’s recent chemical weapons use offers context for understanding this tactic. Chemical weapons terrify civilians.
People bought the last remaining groceries at a Finnish PRISMA store that was closing down in in St. Petersburg in March.
AP Photo
‘Vranyo’ is the Russian word for a lie that you tell to make yourself look good, whether people believe it or not.
Cut off: a Ukrainian soldier takes shelter in a trench near the village of Luganske in the Donetsk region of Donbas, eastern Ukraine, 2016.
EPA/Vadim Kudinov
Ukraine and Russia have already been facing off in Donbas for eight years. Now the stage is set for a crucial confrontation there.
Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in an ice hockey match between former NHL stars and officials at the Shayba Arena in Sochi, Russia, in 2015. A patriarchal notion of masculinity has been central to Putin’s rule.
(AP Photo/Artur Lebedev)
Putin has been consumed with presenting a hyper-macho image throughout his presidency. And in recent years, he’s ramped up sexist and LGBTQ-phobic rhetoric.
A group of Ukrainian teens writes about what they will do when the war ends. ‘The first thing that I would do is play the piano. I will play as long as I can,’ writes one.