President Xi Jinping of China and Russia's Vladimir Putin doubled down on their alliance against the West this week during the Kremlin leader's visit to Beijing.
Vladimir Putin won a landslide reelection victory, taking some 87% of all ballots following three days of voting derided by Russia's opposition and the West as neither free nor fair.
Putin forever? Russia's president goes into this week's election with no serious contenders, cementing his already quarter-century hold on the Kremlin through at least 2030.
Despite fears of a police crackdown, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's funeral in southeast Moscow went on peacefully, two weeks after his mysterious death in an Arctic penal colony.
Russian President Vladimir Putin issued explicit nuclear threats to the West, even as he assured Russians their country could both win the war in Ukraine and thrive economically.
The Russian leader had a busy week, one that saw him exude confidence about Russia's military and economic resilience as Ukraine has increasingly struggled on the battlefield.
When asked whether his political activities put him in danger, Boris Nadezhdin quoted a proverb, "If you are afraid of wolves, you should not go to the forest."
If the Russian president continues to burn through his reserves of oil and gas money, ordinary people will become a threat to his power, according to one outspoken activist.
Yulia Navalnaya appeared on her late husband's YouTube channel in a forceful challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of murder. Navalnaya says she will carry on her husband's work.
The death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison was shocking, but hardly surprising. It follows a long line of fallen critics and opponents of Russian leader Vladimir Putin.