Culture & Customs

“What reason is there for us to do this?” 

                                   – A Ukrainian official speaking on the murder of Darya Dugina

Ukrainian and American artists launch the project "Flowers for Hope" to encourage hope and support humanitarian funds in Ukraine.

The Estonian city of Narva, on the Russian border, quietly dismantled a Soviet memorial featuring a T-34 tank.

A man arrested for disorderly conduct escaped when his guard dozed off.

A working group of the Russian State Duma has compiled a list of cultural figures who have denounced the war in Ukraine. They can either "repent" or quit their jobs.

“There was a certain girl here who was handing out some permission to paint to artists, complete nonsense. I gave her this work, and the first thing she said was that it was a very dangerous job, because if Gorbachev saw it, he would not allow the unification of Germany and that she will send it to the senate of West Berlin, which was a different country, for approval.” 

                                   –  Dmitry Vrubel, the artist behind the Berlin Wall's "The Fraternal Kiss"

Since the annexation of Crimea in 2015, Russian authorities have been targeting Crimean Tatar activists.

Latvia's legislature has ruled Russia a "terrorism-supporting state" for its attacks on civilians in Ukraine.

“[This report] does not mean that Amnesty International holds Ukrainian forces responsible for violations committed by Russian forces, or that the Ukrainian military is not taking adequate precautions in other parts of the country. We must be very clear: nothing of the actions of the Ukrainian military, which we have documented, in any way justify Russia's violations.” 

                                   –  From a report released by Amnesty International

Moscow and St. Petersburg will see new shops filled with international goods where only top officials and their families can shop.

Three American tech leaders, Tinder, Whatsapp, and Snapchat, are being sued in a Russian court. 

Performers from both the United States and Ukraine are invited to participate in a circus festival in St. Petersburg this fall.