The Moscow Times

Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia region was rocked by protests this week after five activists opposing a controversial investment treaty with Russia were detained and held by security services. Though all detainees were released on Tuesday after nearly 24 hours of protests, tensions persist as the region’s parliament is set to vote on ratification of the divisive treaty on Friday. To make sense of the latest events in the volatile region and what Russia has to do with it, The Moscow Times has gathered all the latest news and expert commentary: What is the treaty about? Abkhazia’s Economic Minister Kristina Ozgan signed the investment agreement during the meeting with Russia’s Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov in Moscow last month. Ozgan signed the treaty without the approval of Abkhazia’s parliament as required by law and despite widespread criticism of the agreement by parliamentary opposition and activists who dubbed it as harmful to the partially recognized state’s economic and security interests.

Foreigners arriving in Russia through four Moscow airports and a land border checkpoint with Kazakhstan will be required to submit their photos and fingerprints starting next month, according to a Russian government decree.

Moscow's Gulag History Museum announced its temporary closure on Thursday, citing fire safety violations amid what critics say is a broader attempt by the Russian authorities to downplay Soviet-era repression.

Moscow military enlistment offices have started issuing notifications to conscripts warning of potential travel restrictions and other penalties

A Russian military court has sentenced a theater director to eight years in prison for anti-war comments that include calls to kill President Vladimir Putin, the independent news website Mediazona reported Thursday.

Residents displaced by fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in the Kursk region have grown increasingly vocal about government failures to

Russia’s political and business elites, as well as their friends and family, have for years been able to travel abroad using diplomatic passports, the investigative news outlet The Insider reported Thursday, citing documents it obtained.

As news of North Korean troops being sent to Russia to fight against Ukraine made global headlines, some sources claimed these troops were being trained at a military base in Ulan-Ude, Buryatia, to be sent to the Ukraine front line “disguised as Buryats” (since both Koreans and Buryats are Asians and ostensibly hard to tell apart). Buryats are an Indigenous Siberian nation of Mongolic origin which is known to be very significantly overrepresented both among Russia’s invading forces in Ukraine and among the Russian-side casualties of the war.“Putin has negotiated that Koreans from the DPRK [North Korea] would fight in Ukraine under the guise of Buryats, the media writes.

A Russian military court sentenced on Thursday a man to 24 years in prison for the attempted arson of a military recruitment office, state media reported.

High-ranking Kremlin officials and Russia’s security services were behind the decision to shutter Moscow’s award-winning Gulag History Museum, Moscow officials close to the matter have said.