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Spotlight | Russia
Russian elites torn ten months into war in Ukraine

Russian president Vladimir Putin toasts soldiers holding the title Heroes of Russian after presenting them with a Gold Star medal on 8 December 2022 in Moscow. © Mikhail Metzel/Kremlin Pool/Planet Pix via ZUMA Press

Intelligence Online takes the temperature in Moscow as its elites try to make sense of the war, sanctions and the new opportunities they have generated. Political decision-makers, diplomats and security professionals are searching for a new geopolitical identity and points of reference. [...]

Published on 19.12.2022 at 06:00 GMT Reading time 5 minutes

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Government Intelligence

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Adidas
DIT
Mikhail Mishustin
National Institute of Standards and Technology
NATO
Nikolai Patrushev
Ramzan Kadyrov
Rostec
Russian International Affairs Council
Sergey Kirienko
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France, Russia
Kherson clan a driving force behind Danone Russia takeover

The takeover of the Russian subsidiary of French food giant Danone at the height of the Russia-Ukraine cereal export battle has strengthened the network of Chechen minister Yakub Zakriev, active in both Russia and Ukraine.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 25.07.2023

Minister of Agriculture and Deputy Prime Minister of Chechnya, Yakoub Zakriev was appointed CEO of Danone Russia on July 16, 2023.

Russia, Ukraine, United States
Free Russia Foundation, a shadowy Washington group at the heart of a network of anti-Russia activism

Working in tandem with a largely invisible sister entity, the Foundation seeks to pave the way for a "post-Putin" era and opposes Russia's war in Ukraine. Citing security, the group keeps its grantees confidential.

Subscribers only Corporate Intelligence 14.07.2023

Russia
PM Mishustin tightens grip on Russian defence industry

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Security Council deputy chairman Dmitry Medvedev are jockeying for oversight of Russia's wartime military industry production through the creation of rival working groups.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 05.04.2023

Russia
Shoygu, Kadyrov and FSB fight over plan to appoint new deputy emergency situations minister

The prospect of Chechen spetznatz Daniil Martynov replacing deputy emergency situations minister Aleksandr Chupriyan has set the Moscow power clans against each other.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 06.03.2023

Minister Alexander Kurenkov (center right) with his deputy ministers (from left to right : Nikolay Grechushkin, Aleksandr Chupriyan, Alexey Serko), in Moscow, on 25 May 2022.

Russia
Nikolai Patrushev strengthens Karelia clan in Russia's security apparatus

Among the close-knit interest groups in the Kremlin security apparatus, a group of former FSB officers who have risen in the shadow of the national security council secretary is growing in influence.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 23.02.2023

Secretary of the Russian National Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev.

Russia
Kremlin-linked Kiriyenkos consolidate influence over cyber and big data markets

Anton Gerasimov's appointment as deputy head of the Ministry of Emergencies adds another link in the chain forming between the Ministry of Digitalisation and Rostelecom around presidential adviser Sergey Kiriyenko.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 13.02.2023

Russia
Alexander Khinshtein, the deputy pushing the national guard's legislative needs

The career journalist Alexander Khinshtein is very involved in the Duma and is working especially hard to increase the rights of the Russian National Guard, or Rosgvardia, where he previously served as chief communicator.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 30.01.2023

United Russia majority party MP Alexander Khinshtein.

Russia
Arms conglomerate Rostec expands its asset portfolio as war puts wind in its sails

The Russian military industry giant has snapped up dozens of Russia's small and medium-sized enterprises, and is consolidating its image as the new war economy's cornerstone.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 17.01.2023

Spy Way of Life | Russia
Victor Pelevin, the novelist on Russian security elites' bedside tables

Across the world, spies have their own inside jokes and references, which give them a shared sense of belonging. Those can in turn shape the public's image of the intelligence world. In Russia, a writer shrouded in secrecy attracts the adoration - and occasionally the wrath - of the country's intelligence community, which he portrays with his own particular brand of subtle audacity.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 13.01.2023

Russian novelist Victor Pelevin, author of numerous bestsellers published by Eksmo, has remained in the shadows since the late 1990s.

Russia
Financial intelligence remains last Russian bastion open to international cooperation

The discreet Russian financial intelligence service Rosfinmonitoring, which has been closely involved in international cooperation against the financing of terrorism, is an anomaly among Russian agencies, keeping the door open to cooperation on intelligence sharing with foreign partners.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 15.12.2022

Spotlight | France, Russia, Ukraine, Vatican
Pope courts Macron to mediate negotiations with Moscow and Kyiv

Eager to play the role of neutral mediator between the warring parties in Ukraine, Pope Francis entertains the idea of hosting negotiations at the Vatican which would be facilitated by the French president. The Kremlin appears receptive to the pontiff's proposal.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 12.12.2022

Pope Francis and French President Emmanuel Macron during a private audience at the Vatican, October 2022.

Russia
Russian defence group Rostec cosseted by the Kremlin and the Duma

Within the Russian state security apparatus, everything is being done to keep the arms conglomerate up and running. The Kremlin has given the intelligence services the green light to place new orders with it, while the State Duma has eased restrictions on public sector ordering procedures.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 08.12.2022

Russia
Russia diplomacy redraws map

As Moscow grows increasingly isolated from the West, it is turning toward Asia and preparing to transfer large numbers of staff from its European to its Asian department.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 05.12.2022

Spotlight | Russia
Brain drain stymies Moscow city council's security plans

Getting his record budget through was easy for the Russian capital's powerful mayor, Sergey Sobyanin, but implementing its new security projects is proving much more complicated as the city faces a dearth of critical staff.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 22.11.2022

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin on a screen during a parade on Red Square on 7 November 2018.

Russia
Siloviki eye facial recognition as potential windfall in their search for funds

With the final touches being put to the 2023 federal budget, Moscow's political class and biometric technology providers are queuing up for the public funds that could be allocated to facial recognition projects.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 04.11.2022

Russia
Kremlin puts its think tank in media spotlight

The Russian Institute of Strategic Research, headed by former external intelligence chief Mikhail Fradkov, is under orders to raise its media profile.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 01.11.2022

Russia
Russian establishment divided as status-quo faction emerges

Moscow military circles continue to speculate about who will succeed Sergey Shoigu while on the civil side, top technocrat Sergey Kiriyenko is doing his best to hold sway. Some high up in the Russian administration want to keep the status quo for the sake of stability.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 26.10.2022

In Moscow, speculation continues about the potential replacement of Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu (left), while former Prime Minister Sergei Kirienko is trying to keep his hand in.

Russia, Vietnam
Rosoboronexport suffers setbacks in Kubinka and Hanoi

The Russian military equipment exporter, which has been hit by components shortages, has seen its global sales fall sharply. The latest blow has come from Vietnam, which has decided to freeze its dealings with the Russian group.

Subscribers only International Dealmaking 08.09.2022

Russia
Internal rivalries rage in Russian presidential administration

The Russian presidential administration is split into factions with conflicting views of the future of the country's leadership, some, like Sergey Kirienko, readying themselves to take the reins if needed, and others, like Anton Vaino, wishing to maintain the status quo.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 05.07.2022

Head of the Presidential Administration Anton Vaino, President Vladimir Putin and First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Sergey Kirienko.

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Moscow's shadow advisers, intelligence officers and lobbyists lay low

As the hunt for those responsible for Russia's setbacks in Ukraine continues, lobbyists, private consultants and advisers close to the Kremlin, as well as former and current civil servants, are fearing a wave of purges.

Subscribers only Government Intelligence 20.04.2022

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DIT
Mikhail Mishustin
National Institute of Standards and Technology
NATO
Nikolai Patrushev
Ramzan Kadyrov
Rostec
Russian International Affairs Council
Sergey Kirienko
Sergey Narishkin
Sergey Sobyanin
SVR
Wagner
Yevgeny Prigozhin
Yuri Ushakov

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