Page 70 - RusRPTAug24

half years in prison in absentia for spreading “fake news” about the Russian army, as part of Russia’s intensifying crackdown on opposition media.
Police in Moscow have arrested another military official on suspicion of corruption. Andrey Belkov — the current CEO of the Military Construction Company, or “VSK” (a wholly owned subsidiary of Russia’s Defense Ministry) — is reportedly charged with abusing his previous office at the Main Military Construction Department (GVSU) by supervising the purchase of medical equipment at inflated prices. The case is also potentially linked to the prosecution of former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, who oversaw Belkov at VSK before being arrested in April for allegedly accepting 1.2 billion rubles ($13.3 million) in bribes for non-competitive military contracts. The newspaper Kommersant reports that Belkov’s work at VSK, personal earnings, and personal connections are all “under a microscope,” given his past relationship with Ivanov.
On July 23, it emerged that a court in Kazan sentenced Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist for Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) to 6.5 years in prison. The sentence, which was passed on the same day as the sentence of WSJ correspondent Evan Gershkovich, was for “spreading false information” about the Russian military—the Russian authorities’ codephrase for saying or writing anything about the war in Ukraine that does not correspond to the Kremlin’s narrative. Kurmasheva has been in Russian custody since October 2023. It is possible, as King’s College professor Sam Greene suggested, that by passing both sentences on the same day, Russia is preparing to offer to exchange the two American journalists for Russian citizens held in the West—or possibly, for sanctions relief.
Over two thirds of European Union citizens believe corruption is widespread in their country, according to polling published Wednesday. `The Eurobarometer survey found 68% of Europeans said corruption was prevalent, with the highest percentages recorded among residents of Greece (98%), Portugal (96%), Malta (95%) and Slovenia (95%). The lowest percentages were recorded in Finland (18%), Denmark (26%) and Luxembourg (43%). About a quarter of Europeans (27%) said they had personally experienced in corruption in their daily lives, and 75% said business and politics were too closely linked, creating the conditions for corruption to flourish. The polling was released in tandem with the European Commission’s annual Rule of Law Report, which takes stock of anticorruption measures in EU member countries. The 2024 report raised the alarm about “certain criminal law reforms” in the bloc that “risk undermining the fight against corruption.” It singled out Slovakia, where lawmakers in February approved a plan to reduce the penalties for corruption and fraud, and Italy, which recently scrapped the crime of abuse of office.
70 RUSSIA Country Report August 2024 www.intellinews.com