Adding to the blistering pace of new taxes on the Russian population which has seen tarrifs on automobiles hiked over 300%, Russia has entered a new phase of economic extraction as the Kremlin deepens its wartime spending. From July 1, 2025, taxes for housing and communal services across the country have risen by as much as 50% this year in some regions.
Maria Drokova, a former press secretary of the pro-Kremlin youth movement “Nashi,” worked within Jeffrey Epstein’s public-relations network in the years before his final arrest, according to a new investigation by the British outlet Byline Times. The report adds an unexpected Russian dimension to the long-running scrutiny of Epstein’s circle, detailing how Drokova and a colleague helped manage the financier’s media strategy during 2017 and 2018.
Collapsing Russian oil industry delivering windfall profits to Western oil majors
Ukraine’s precision strikes on Russia’s oil infrastructure — combined with tightening Western sanctions — are crippling the Kremlin’s energy sector and unexpectedly enriching Western oil companies. Since mid-2025, Ukrainian drones have hit nearly 160 oil extraction and refining facilities across Russia,
Largest Employer in Russia Posts Massive Losses
In a stark indicator of Russia's economic woes, Russian Railways (RZD) — the country’s largest employer with over 800,000 staff — has reported a net loss of ₽4.207 billion ($52.6 million) under Russian Accounting Standards (RAS) for January to September 2025.
Desperate Putin Begs Trump to Save His War
The Kremlin has dispatched its chief Ukraine negotiator to Washington in a stark admission: Vladimir Putin is running out of diplomatic options. Sources confirm that Kirill Dmitriev—a close associate of Putin and former investment banker at Goldman Sachs—is in the U.S. urging Donald Trump to intervene and salvage Russia’s standing in the war.
FBI Agent goes public with Russian intelligence operation that hooked Musk and Thiel
A former FBI special agent is currently out on $100,000 bond after being arrested for attempting to expose what he described as a covert Russian intelligence campaign to gain influence over leading American tech figures—namely
Polish prosecutors have charged a former civil registry employee in Warsaw with espionage, accusing him of helping Russian intelligence fabricate false identities for undercover operatives.
