Interesting news and stories translated into English from Russia and the Russian-language internet.
-
Depardieu spoke to the press during a visit to Grozny, where he's filming, saying that he considers Putin to be on a par with Mitterand and the former pope.1
-
A man is currently in custody after spraying pepper spray and then shooting another customer after a fight broke out standing in the queue for the cash machine.
-
Chelyabinsk, the place that hit the headlines earlier this year due to the meteor strike, now has a vacancy posted for a gondolier, who must "sing in Italian".
-
Netizens react to news that a third level secretary at the US embassy in Moscow has been detained in connection with attempts to recruit Russians to spy for the US.
-
Netizens deplore their postal service in the wake of a fire that broke out in one of the firm's buildings, destroying an area of 10 square metres worth of letters.
-
Despite the G4S scandal that hit the London 2012 Olympics, Vladimir Putin and David Cameron have agreed on limited support from British security services at Sochi.
-
A young man has been killed in Volgograd by a homophobic group, who also decided to mutilate the body, cut off his genitals and insert beer bottles into his anus.
-
-
A bronze bust of Stalin on a granite pedestal has been unveiled on private land in Yakutsk, after several years of work by the local communist party, who are happy.
-
Despite suggestions earlier this year the railway services would look into providing smokers with dedicated smoking areas, they have now said this will not happen.
-
A man has escaped from a prison in Moscow, Sailor's Silence, according to the capital's police force. He has been found guilty of murder and illegal arms trading.
-
Ramzan Kadyrov, head of Chechnya, has responded to a British Government warning not to visit the republic by saying it is safer than the UK, and Brits should visit.
-
Russia's Chief Medical Officer Gennadiy Onischenko has said that holidays are bad for Russians' health live on Echo Moskvy. Netizens unsurprisingly disagree.
-
Putin has chosen five people to award the title of Hero of Labour to today, harking back to old Soviet times. Netizens discuss what the award's true purpose is.
-
Former pornstar Sasha Grey has agreed to come to Russia to take part in a car rally, and to learn to cook pelmeni, at the invitation of a popular car website.
-
A survey has been published that has found that more than three quarters of Russians are happy, an increase of 10% from two years ago. Netizens are not so sure.
-
Vladimir Putin and the Japanese Premier are to meet today in their first official meeting since 2003, and they hope to discuss the notorious Kuril Islands dispute.
-
Netizens discuss a new sniper weapons system that has been developed in Russia and revealed by Dmitry Rogozin, the deputy prime-minister on Saturday this week.