The bulletin

EVENTS
The Kerch incident – Putin’s motives and the Kremlin’s fears
MAIN ACTORS
Sergei Kiriyenko – growing political influence
Andrei Fursenko and the ‘science vertical’
PROCESSES
Irritation to the relationship between Russia and the West
The Kremlin protects rappers and Sokurov, but closes its eyes to the sentencing of Ponomaryov

EVENTS
Vladimir Putin and Shinzo Abe meet in Singapore: Is Russia ready to hand over the disputed Kuril Islands?
MAIN ACTORS
GRU chief Igor Korobov died. Who is his successor?
Metropolitan Tikhon’s influence is on the increase.
Khakassia’s new governor. How will the Kremlin manage opposition-minded regions?
Aleksei Navalny creates more problems.

PROCESSES
The ‘influence centres’ of Russia’s Arctic policy

EVENTS
The Russian Government versus Oil Companies

MAIN ACTORS
United Aircraft Corporation to Be Merged into Rostec.
Yandex at Risk of “Neutralization”.
New Presidential Envoy to Northwestern Federal District Appointed.
New Zabaykalsky Krai Governor Appointed.

PROCESSES
Growing Internal Discussion of Putin-Trump Dialogue: should Vladimir Putin take a pause?

EVENTS
Orthodoxy Split: internal ideological conflicts within the Russian Orthodox Church, its relations with the State, and the vulnerability of Patriarch Kirill’s position.

MAIN ACTORS
The Magomedov Brothers.
New regional governors

PROCESSES
The exposure of Russian GRU agents and its potential political ramifications.
Political protests in Ingushetia.

EVENTS
Syria: Il-20 shot down and S-300 missile system delivered

MAIN ACTORS
Permutations in the Presidential administration
New regional governors

PROCESSES
Decriminalization of Article 282 of the Criminal Code

EVENTS
Gubernatorial elections: how the Kremlin lost campaigns and what influence the conflicts among the elite had on the defeats of candidates from the ruling party

MAIN ACTORS
Victor Zolotov against Alexei Navalny: what’s going on with Rosgvardia?
Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov’s interview: what is the point of Vladimir Putin’s strange admissions?

PROCESSES
Political consequences of the protest vote: beginning of a new phase in the transformation of the regime

EVENTS
Murder of Alexander Zakharchenko and the new acting head Denis Pushilin: how has this affected competition between the overseers of Donbass in Russia?

MAIN ACTORS
Change in the Presidential Envoy in the Volga Federal District: the overly independent Mikhail Babich escorted out of the region and a compromise among the elite in the person of Igor Komarov.

PROCESSES
Russia prepares for new sanctions from the US: how Vladimir Putin is navigating among the centers of influence on Russian foreign policy.
Rising influence of the Presidential Administration on the government: the Cabinet of Ministers is falling into place under Anton Vaino, Sergei Kirienko and Dmitry Shalkov. Where has Dmitry Medvedev gone?

EVENTS
Russia-US summit in Helsinki: what did the Russian leader propose?

MAIN ACTORS
Sergei Kirienko – Hero of Russia. How receiving the highest honor provoked an attack of political opponents.
Dmitry Peskov’s nomination: how power among the groups of influence in charge of digitization of Russia’s economy will be distributed.

PROCESSES
Escalation of tension surrounding Vyacheslav Volodin: the elite’s resistance to the pension reform crystallizes, as Putin remains absent from the debate.

EVENTS
Karine Tsurkan’s Arrest.
Igor Sechin takes a hit.

MAIN ACTORS
New Figures in the Presidential Administration. Who is Alexander Matovnikov?

PROCESSES
Preparations for the Meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump: how Putin is preparing to play at give-away.

EVENTS
Raising of the retirement age in Russia.
How the Kremlin is trying to contain risks against a backdrop of substantive shifts in the collective consciousness.

MAIN ACTORS
Staffing decisions for the Presidential administration: who are the two more nominations from the special services and when will Vladislav Surkov and Yury Ushakov be fired?

PROCESSES
Strengthening of Sergei Kirienko’s positions: the overseer of domestic policy “has set the profit” after Vladimir Putin’s successfully conducted electoral campaign.

EVENTS
Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Russia.
How the Kremlin perceives the French leader and why the topic of Gazprom splitting up could become relevant.

MAIN ACTORS
Ministers of the new government: who’s behind all of this?

PROCESSES
Weakening of the “system liberals”: political threats to German Gref and Alexei Kudrin.

EVENTS
Appointment of Dmitry Medvedev as Prime Minister.
What is happening between Putin and Medvedev, and what fate awaits Alexei Kudrin.

MAIN ACTORS
Dmitry Medvedev’s Deputies in the Future Government: the reasoning behind the nominations and the influence of corporate special interest groups.

PROCESSES
US withdrawal from the nuclear deal with Iran: Moscow’s attempts to set up a multifaceted game and seize windows of opportunity.