Russia

World News

Occupied regions of Ukraine vote to join Russia in staged referendums

6:23pm September 27, 2022

The so-called referendums — which Ukraine, the U.S. and others have denounced as shams — are widely viewed as an initial Kremlin move toward formal Russian annexation of the territories.

A Steag coal power plant in Herne, Germany, on Aug. 25. The Essen-based energy company Steag wanted to convert the old coal-fired power plant Herne 4 into a gas-fired power plant at the beginning of the year. In March, Steag decided to postpone the conversion and to continue firing the old power plant with coal.

Amid an energy crisis, Germany turns to the world's dirtiest fossil fuel

10:47am September 27, 2022

by Rob Schmitz

Coal-fired power plants across Germany were scheduled to be shut down by the end of the year. But with Russia cutting gas deliveries, Germany is turning to coal.

Social media company Meta's headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. The Facebook parent company says it has removed a Russian network pushing a pro-Kremlin view of the war in Ukraine and a Chinese network targeting the U.S. midterm elections.

Politics & Government

Facebook takes down Russian network impersonating European news outlets

8:15am September 27, 2022

by Shannon Bond

Meta says it has disrupted a large Russian network of fake accounts pushing a pro-Kremlin view of the war in Ukraine and a separate Chinese campaign targeting the U.S. midterm elections.

Police officers detain a man in Moscow on Wednesday, following calls to protest against mobilization announced by President Vladimir Putin.

World News

Ukraine war updates: Regions vote on joining Russia, Putin orders a draft (Sept. 26)

12:31pm September 26, 2022

by NPR Staff

Catch up on key developments and the latest in-depth coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Passengers walk in the new hall of Istanbul Airport on the first day after moving from Ataturk International airport on April 6, 2019, in Istanbul. Many Russian men (not pictured) have been buying up tickets for Turkey since their government issued a draft to fight in Ukraine.

World News

Russian men flee the country. Many are showing up in Istanbul

9:21am September 26, 2022

by Fatma Tanis

Men are fleeing Russia by land or air days after President Vladimir Putin said he was mobilizing more forces into Ukraine. NPR met Russians arriving in Turkey, where they don't need visas to enter.

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Police and paramedics work at the scene of a shooting at school No. 88 in Izhevsk, Russia, Monday, Sept. 26, 2022. A gunman on Monday morning killed 13 people and wounded 21 others in a school in central Russia, authorities said.

World News

13 dead and 21 wounded in Russia school shooting

6:47am September 26, 2022

by The Associated Press

A gunman killed 13 people, including seven children, and wounded 21 other people in a school in central Russia on Monday, authorities said.

Riot police detain demonstrators during a protest against mobilization in Moscow on Wednesday. Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilization of reservists in Russia, effective immediately.

World News

Russians are protesting and fleeing the country as Putin orders a draft for Ukraine

4:51pm September 23, 2022

by Charles Maynes

The mobilization of thousands more troops to bolster the military campaign in Ukraine is rippling across Russia, as the military swiftly drafts new recruits and signs of discontent appear to spread.

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People arrive at a parking lot in Zaporizhzhia from places like Melitopol and Kherson, areas that have been occupied by Russia for months now.

World News

Russia begins annexation vote, illegal under international law, in occupied Ukraine

1:07pm September 23, 2022

by The Associated Press

Ukrainians are fleeing from Russian-held areas to avoid the sham referendums, which could pave the way for annexation. "It was all staged," said one Ukrainian. "How can you vote when they have guns?"

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Yaroslav Holovatenko (left) and a friend with their McDonald's meals in Kyiv on Wednesday.

World News

McDonald's reopens in Ukraine, feeding customers' nostalgia — and future hopes

11:34am September 22, 2022

All of the chain's 100-plus locations in Ukraine closed after Russia invaded in February. Three reopened in Kyiv this week, for delivery only. "It's a nice gift from McDonald's," one customer says.

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Luda Toryanyk, 58, walks across the railroad tracks in Kozacha Lopan, Ukraine, on Sunday. The village was retaken by Ukrainian troops on Sept. 11 after being occupied by Russian forces for more than six months. Toryanyk carries home bags of food that Ukrainian volunteers were distributing in the center of the village.

World News

In a retaken border village, Ukrainians point to signs of Russian abuse of civilians

10:26am September 22, 2022

by Jason Beaubien

Villagers describe allegations of abuse and officials say they found a torture chamber in Kozacha Lopan, in the Kharkiv region, which Russian forces invaded and took over at the start of the war.

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