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  • Trump-Zelenskyy talks will address security guarantees, reconstruction, Ukraine leader says

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida over the weekend.Related video above: Ukraine and U.S. discuss peace proposals on Christmas Day amid Russian attacksZelenskyy told journalists that the two leaders will discuss security guarantees for Ukraine during Sunday’s talks and that the 20-point plan under discussion “is about 90% ready.”The meeting will take place at Mar-a-Lago.An “economic agreement” also will be discussed, Zelenskyy said, but added that he was unable to confirm “whether anything will be finalized by the end.”The Ukrainian side will also raise “territorial issues,” he said. Moscow has insisted that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory it still holds in the Donbas — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70% of Donetsk — the two areas that make up the Donbas.Zelenskyy said that Ukraine “would like the Europeans to be involved,” but doubted whether it would be possible at short notice.“We must, without doubt, find some format in the near future in which not only Ukraine and the U.S. are present, but Europe is represented as well,” he said.The announced meeting is the latest development in an extensive U.S.-led diplomatic push to end the nearly four-year Russia-Ukraine war, but efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv.Zelenskyy’s comments came after he said Thursday that he had a “good conversation” with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that the Kremlin had already been in contact with U.S. representatives since Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev recently met with U.S. envoys in Florida.“It was agreed upon to continue the dialogue,” he said.Trump is engaged in a diplomatic push to end Russia’s all-out war, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, but his efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv. Zelenskyy said Tuesday that he would be willing to withdraw troops from Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland as part of a plan to end the war if Russia also pulls back and the area becomes a demilitarized zone monitored by international forces.Though Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday that there had been “slow but steady progress” in the peace talks, Russia has given no indication that it will agree to any kind of withdrawal from land it has seized.On the ground, two people were killed and six more wounded Friday when a guided aerial bomb hit a busy road and set cars aflame in Ukraine’s second biggest city, Kharkiv, mayor Ihor Terekhov wrote on Telegram.One person was killed and three others were wounded when a guided aerial bomb hit a house in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, while six people were wounded in a missile strike on the city of Uman, local officials said Friday.Russian drone attacks on the city of Mykolaiv and its suburbs overnight into Friday left part of the city without power. Energy and port infrastructure were damaged by drones in the city of Odesa on the Black Sea.Meanwhile, Ukraine said that it struck a major Russian oil refinery on Thursday using U.K.-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.Ukraine’s General Staff said that its forces hit the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Russia’s Rostov region.“Multiple explosions were recorded. The target was hit,” it wrote on Telegram.Rostov regional Gov. Yuri Slyusar said that a firefighter was wounded when extinguishing the fire.Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries aim to deprive Moscow of the oil export revenue it needs to pursue its full-scale invasion. Russia wants to cripple Ukraine’s power grid, seeking to deny civilians access to heat, light and running water in what Ukrainian officials say is an attempt to “weaponize winter.”

    KYIV, Ukraine —

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida over the weekend.

    Related video above: Ukraine and U.S. discuss peace proposals on Christmas Day amid Russian attacks

    Zelenskyy told journalists that the two leaders will discuss security guarantees for Ukraine during Sunday’s talks and that the 20-point plan under discussion “is about 90% ready.”

    The meeting will take place at Mar-a-Lago.

    An “economic agreement” also will be discussed, Zelenskyy said, but added that he was unable to confirm “whether anything will be finalized by the end.”

    The Ukrainian side will also raise “territorial issues,” he said. Moscow has insisted that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory it still holds in the Donbas — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70% of Donetsk — the two areas that make up the Donbas.

    Zelenskyy said that Ukraine “would like the Europeans to be involved,” but doubted whether it would be possible at short notice.

    “We must, without doubt, find some format in the near future in which not only Ukraine and the U.S. are present, but Europe is represented as well,” he said.

    The announced meeting is the latest development in an extensive U.S.-led diplomatic push to end the nearly four-year Russia-Ukraine war, but efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv.

    Zelenskyy’s comments came after he said Thursday that he had a “good conversation” with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that the Kremlin had already been in contact with U.S. representatives since Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev recently met with U.S. envoys in Florida.

    “It was agreed upon to continue the dialogue,” he said.

    Trump is engaged in a diplomatic push to end Russia’s all-out war, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, but his efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv.

    Zelenskyy said Tuesday that he would be willing to withdraw troops from Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland as part of a plan to end the war if Russia also pulls back and the area becomes a demilitarized zone monitored by international forces.

    Though Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday that there had been “slow but steady progress” in the peace talks, Russia has given no indication that it will agree to any kind of withdrawal from land it has seized.

    On the ground, two people were killed and six more wounded Friday when a guided aerial bomb hit a busy road and set cars aflame in Ukraine’s second biggest city, Kharkiv, mayor Ihor Terekhov wrote on Telegram.

    One person was killed and three others were wounded when a guided aerial bomb hit a house in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, while six people were wounded in a missile strike on the city of Uman, local officials said Friday.

    Russian drone attacks on the city of Mykolaiv and its suburbs overnight into Friday left part of the city without power. Energy and port infrastructure were damaged by drones in the city of Odesa on the Black Sea.

    Meanwhile, Ukraine said that it struck a major Russian oil refinery on Thursday using U.K.-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.

    Ukraine’s General Staff said that its forces hit the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Russia’s Rostov region.

    “Multiple explosions were recorded. The target was hit,” it wrote on Telegram.

    Rostov regional Gov. Yuri Slyusar said that a firefighter was wounded when extinguishing the fire.

    Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries aim to deprive Moscow of the oil export revenue it needs to pursue its full-scale invasion. Russia wants to cripple Ukraine’s power grid, seeking to deny civilians access to heat, light and running water in what Ukrainian officials say is an attempt to “weaponize winter.”

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  • Trump-Zelenskyy talks will address security guarantees, reconstruction, Ukraine leader says

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida over the weekend.Related video above: Ukraine and U.S. discuss peace proposals on Christmas Day amid Russian attacksZelenskyy told journalists that the two leaders will discuss security guarantees for Ukraine during Sunday’s talks and that the 20-point plan under discussion “is about 90% ready.”An “economic agreement” also will be discussed, Zelenskyy said, but added that he was unable to confirm “whether anything will be finalized by the end.”The Ukrainian side will also raise “territorial issues,” he said. Moscow has insisted that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory it still holds in the Donbas — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70% of Donetsk — the two areas that make up the Donbas.Zelenskyy said that Ukraine “would like the Europeans to be involved,” but doubted whether it would be possible at short notice.“We must, without doubt, find some format in the near future in which not only Ukraine and the U.S. are present, but Europe is represented as well,” he said.The announced meeting is the latest development in an extensive U.S.-led diplomatic push to end the nearly four-year Russia-Ukraine war, but efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv.Zelenskyy’s comments came after he said Thursday that he had a “good conversation” with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that the Kremlin had already been in contact with U.S. representatives since Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev recently met with U.S. envoys in Florida.“It was agreed upon to continue the dialogue,” he said.Trump is engaged in a diplomatic push to end Russia’s all-out war, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, but his efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv. Zelenskyy said Tuesday that he would be willing to withdraw troops from Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland as part of a plan to end the war if Russia also pulls back and the area becomes a demilitarized zone monitored by international forces.Though Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday that there had been “slow but steady progress” in the peace talks, Russia has given no indication that it will agree to any kind of withdrawal from land it has seized.On the ground, two people were killed and six more wounded Friday when a guided aerial bomb hit a busy road and set cars aflame in Ukraine’s second biggest city, Kharkiv, mayor Ihor Terekhov wrote on Telegram.One person was killed and three others were wounded when a guided aerial bomb hit a house in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, while six people were wounded in a missile strike on the city of Uman, local officials said Friday.Russian drone attacks on the city of Mykolaiv and its suburbs overnight into Friday left part of the city without power. Energy and port infrastructure were damaged by drones in the city of Odesa on the Black Sea.Meanwhile, Ukraine said that it struck a major Russian oil refinery on Thursday using U.K.-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.Ukraine’s General Staff said that its forces hit the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Russia’s Rostov region.“Multiple explosions were recorded. The target was hit,” it wrote on Telegram.Rostov regional Gov. Yuri Slyusar said that a firefighter was wounded when extinguishing the fire.Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries aim to deprive Moscow of the oil export revenue it needs to pursue its full-scale invasion. Russia wants to cripple Ukraine’s power grid, seeking to deny civilians access to heat, light and running water in what Ukrainian officials say is an attempt to “weaponize winter.”

    KYIV, Ukraine —

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida over the weekend.

    Related video above: Ukraine and U.S. discuss peace proposals on Christmas Day amid Russian attacks

    Zelenskyy told journalists that the two leaders will discuss security guarantees for Ukraine during Sunday’s talks and that the 20-point plan under discussion “is about 90% ready.”

    An “economic agreement” also will be discussed, Zelenskyy said, but added that he was unable to confirm “whether anything will be finalized by the end.”

    The Ukrainian side will also raise “territorial issues,” he said. Moscow has insisted that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory it still holds in the Donbas — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70% of Donetsk — the two areas that make up the Donbas.

    Zelenskyy said that Ukraine “would like the Europeans to be involved,” but doubted whether it would be possible at short notice.

    “We must, without doubt, find some format in the near future in which not only Ukraine and the U.S. are present, but Europe is represented as well,” he said.

    The announced meeting is the latest development in an extensive U.S.-led diplomatic push to end the nearly four-year Russia-Ukraine war, but efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv.

    Zelenskyy’s comments came after he said Thursday that he had a “good conversation” with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that the Kremlin had already been in contact with U.S. representatives since Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev recently met with U.S. envoys in Florida.

    “It was agreed upon to continue the dialogue,” he said.

    Trump is engaged in a diplomatic push to end Russia’s all-out war, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, but his efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv.

    Zelenskyy said Tuesday that he would be willing to withdraw troops from Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland as part of a plan to end the war if Russia also pulls back and the area becomes a demilitarized zone monitored by international forces.

    Though Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday that there had been “slow but steady progress” in the peace talks, Russia has given no indication that it will agree to any kind of withdrawal from land it has seized.

    On the ground, two people were killed and six more wounded Friday when a guided aerial bomb hit a busy road and set cars aflame in Ukraine’s second biggest city, Kharkiv, mayor Ihor Terekhov wrote on Telegram.

    One person was killed and three others were wounded when a guided aerial bomb hit a house in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, while six people were wounded in a missile strike on the city of Uman, local officials said Friday.

    Russian drone attacks on the city of Mykolaiv and its suburbs overnight into Friday left part of the city without power. Energy and port infrastructure were damaged by drones in the city of Odesa on the Black Sea.

    Meanwhile, Ukraine said that it struck a major Russian oil refinery on Thursday using U.K.-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.

    Ukraine’s General Staff said that its forces hit the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Russia’s Rostov region.

    “Multiple explosions were recorded. The target was hit,” it wrote on Telegram.

    Rostov regional Gov. Yuri Slyusar said that a firefighter was wounded when extinguishing the fire.

    Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries aim to deprive Moscow of the oil export revenue it needs to pursue its full-scale invasion. Russia wants to cripple Ukraine’s power grid, seeking to deny civilians access to heat, light and running water in what Ukrainian officials say is an attempt to “weaponize winter.”

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  • Frustrations grow in Russia over cellphone internet outages that disrupt daily life

    TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — When Russians look back at 2025, they might remember it as the year when the government took even tighter control of the internet.

    Credit cards that won’t buy a ticket on public transport. ATMs that don’t connect to a network. Messaging apps that are down. Cellphones that don’t receive texts or data after a trip abroad. Mothers of diabetic children even complain with alarm that they can’t monitor their kids’ blood glucose levels during outages.

    The cellphone internet shutdowns, ostensibly to thwart Ukrainian drone attacks, have hit dozens of Russian regions for months. Popular messaging apps also are restricted, with the government promoting a state-controlled app seen by critics as a possible surveillance tool.

    Although broadband and Wi-Fi internet access remain unaffected, Russians contacted by The Associated Press described digital disruptions to their daily lives. All spoke on condition of not being fully identified for their own safety.

    Blackouts and ‘white lists’ are part of Russian strategy

    Widespread cellphone internet shutdowns began in May and persisted through summer and into the fall. In November, 57 Russian regions on average reported daily disruptions to cellphone links, according to Na Svyazi, an activist group monitoring shutdowns.

    Authorities say these outages are designed to prevent Ukrainian drones from tapping mobile networks for navigation.

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said they are “absolutely justified and necessary,” but analyst Kateryna Stepanenko of the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said they haven’t been effective in curbing the intensity of Ukraine’s drone attacks, “given the amount of strikes we’ve seen in recent months on Russian oil refineries.”

    In many regions, only a handful of government-approved Russian websites and online services — designated as being on “white lists” — are available during connectivity blackouts.

    What’s available on the “white lists” varies by provider and includes official websites, email and social media platforms, two online markets, and the Russian search engine Yandex and its services. One provider offers access to a banking app, but others don’t. Authorities have promised to expand the lists.

    Marina, who lives in the Pacific coast city of Vladivostok, described her anxiety when she discovered only one app for a government-controlled bank was working during a mobile internet outage and she wondered what this meant for the future.

    “For me, this is the scariest thing,” she said. “The loss of information, the loss of freedom, essentially, is the most depressing thing for me.”

    In the Volga River city of Ulyanovsk, about 700 kilometers (435 miles) east of Moscow, one resident described how his credit card didn’t work when he tapped it on the payment terminal on a tram during an outage. He wasn’t carrying enough cash.

    Families with diabetic children say they can’t monitor their children’s glucose levels via special apps when they are at school and cellphone internet is down. Mothers in social media posts explain that children often can miss the moment when their blood sugar levels change, requiring an intervention, and special apps allowed parents to see that remotely and warn them. Connection outages disrupt that.

    Authorities have tried touting the joys of reconnecting with a technology-free lifestyle.

    Internet regulatory agency Roskomnadzor posted a cartoon on social media showing two views of a young man: one in a dark apartment staring at his phone and another strolling happily in a park, carrying a cup of coffee and a book.

    Going offline “doesn’t mean losing touch. Sometimes it means getting in touch with yourself,” the cartoon advised.

    But the post mostly drew angry and sarcastic comments.

    Restrictions set on SIM cards

    One recent anti-drone restriction sets 24-hour “cooling periods” during which data and texts are blocked from SIM cards that were carried abroad or have been inactive for 72 hours. The owner can unblock it via a link received by text message.

    Unblocking becomes impossible, however, if a SIM card is used in internet-connected appliances or equipment without interfaces for receiving text messages, like portable Wi-Fi routers, cars or meter boxes.

    Lawmaker Andrei Svintsov noted that Russia has many electricity meters with SIM cards that transmit readings once a month.

    “Does this mean they’ll all die? All the heating boilers will shut down, and all the Chinese cars will stop working? This is a massive problem, and I don’t know if the government is even aware of it,” he said.

    Messaging apps are targeted

    Other restrictions targeted two popular messaging apps: WhatsApp, with about 96 million monthly users in October, and Telegram, with 91 million, according to media monitoring group Mediascope.

    Authorities began restricting calls on these apps in August, supposedly to stop phone scams, and are throttling them in some parts of Russia. Yelena, in the southern city of Krasnodar, recalled a time in October when Telegram wasn’t available at all, affecting the work of her and her colleagues.

    Neither app is on the government “white list.”

    On the list is Russian messaging service MAX. Authorities actively promote it and since September the service is required to be preinstalled on all smartphones in Russia. Critics see it as a surveillance tool as MAX openly declares it will share user data with authorities upon request. Experts also say it doesn’t use end-to-end encryption.

    State institutions, officials and businesses are being encouraged to move communications and blogs to MAX. Marina, the Vladivostok resident, said her employers are insisting on people using MAX, to little enthusiasm. She said she doesn’t plan to install it, and neither do others contacted by the AP.

    MAX developers boast of about 50 million users registering on the platform that it says provides messaging and other services.

    Mediascope said MAX had about 48 million monthly users in October, but only 18.9 million average daily users, which is far less than the average daily totals of 81 million for WhatsApp and 68 million for Telegram.

    Russians shrug at restrictions

    Denis Volkov, director of the Levada Center, Russia’s top independent pollster, said many Russians regard the restrictions the same way they feel about the weather: Ultimately, you can do nothing about it.

    The authorities’ strategy appears to be to make it difficult for average users to access “alternative content” so that they eventually stop seeking it, Volkov said. Those “who are not that interested will pick simpler channels and ways” to navigate the internet, he said.

    That sentiment was echoed by the Ulyanovsk resident who said he uses a virtual private network to access some of the blocked websites and platforms, but VPNs also are routinely blocked, so he must install a new one every few months.

    His tight circle of friends trade recommendations on VPNs, but he believes most people won’t make that much effort.

    Mikhail Klimarev, executive director of the Internet Protection Society activist group, says the internet is tied to too many economic activities to shut it totally.

    “Groceries are being shipped to stores — this is being done via internet, the ordering, the processing, and so on,” he said. “A truck is on the road, it is connected to an information system, maps, navigation, all of it.”

    But he forecasts more stifling of websites, VPNs and platforms including totally blocking messenger apps Telegram and WhatsApp and possibly other, unexpected measures.

    “Honestly, I’m watching it all with raised eyebrows. They seem to have come up with everything already, and they’re still coming up with something more,” he said.

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  • Kremlin says NATO troops in Ukraine pose a threat to Moscow

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    Moscow on Friday rejected the presence of NATO troops in Ukraine, even after a potential peace deal with Kiev.

    “We would recognize it as a threat to ourselves – the presence of international forces, or any foreign forces, or NATO forces on Ukrainian soil, near our border,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in Vladivostok on the sidelines of the economic forum, according to Russian news agency Interfax.

    Peskov said NATO sees Russia as an enemy and this is explicitly stated in its documents. “That is dangerous for our country,” he stressed.

    Regarding discussions on security guarantees, it cannot only be about Ukraine, the spokesman said, adding that Russia also needs guarantees for its own security.

    Peskov noted that the war against Ukraine, which has lasted more than three and a half years, also has its roots in NATO’s expansion up to Russia’s borders.

    Kremlin: Ukraine’s security cannot come at Russia’s expense

    The security of Ukraine, which aspires to join NATO, must not be ensured at Russia’s expense, Peskov said, referring to Thursday’s meeting of the so-called Coalition of the Willing in Paris.

    At the talks, numerous NATO member states had expressed readiness to station troops in Ukraine to protect the country from renewed aggression by its neighbour after a possible ceasefire or peace deal with Russia.

    “You cannot guarantee the security of one country at the expense of destroying the security of another. That will not help us move closer to a solution to the Ukraine conflict,” Peskov said.

    According to the Kremlin, one of Russia’s war aims is to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO.

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  • Russia warns Western banks of ‘catastrophic consequences’ over asset confiscation

    Russia warns Western banks of ‘catastrophic consequences’ over asset confiscation

    MOSCOW (Reuters) -The Kremlin on Friday warned of “catastrophic consequences” should the EU proceed with plans to confiscate Russian assets held in Western banks.

    Some Western banks are lobbying against EU proposals to redistribute billions of euros in interest earned on frozen Russian assets, senior industry sources said, fearing it could lead to costly litigation.

    European Union leaders on Thursday agreed to move ahead with work on a plan to use up to 3 billion euros ($3.24 billion) a year to supply arms to Ukraine as they try to bolster Kyiv’s fight against Russia, which would still own the underlying frozen assets. EU leaders said the proceeds could be used within a few months.

    “We have heard statements from Brussels that the proceeds of our assets don’t belong to anyone,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “This is not so. They belong to the holders of the assets, the owners of the assets.”

    Responding to Reuters’ report that some banks fear that they might later be held liable by Russia if they are involved in any transfer of money to Ukraine, Peskov issued a thinly veiled warning.

    “The legal department of any bank understands the catastrophic consequences of such actions to expropriate assets, both for the bank, for the country as a whole and for the European economy,” Peskov said.

    “If such decisions were realised, this would have very serious consequences for those who took and implemented them.”

    Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina on Friday weighed in on the issue as well, after the bank had held interest rates at 16%.

    “Regarding EU action on frozen assets, decisions will be made and we will take corresponding measures to defend our interests,” Nabiullina said.

    ($1 = 0.9247 euros)

    (Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Mark Trevelyan and Angus MacSwan)

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  • Many Russians disapprove of Putin method for filling military ranks

    Many Russians disapprove of Putin method for filling military ranks

    A poll released on Friday found that more than half of Russians do not support pardoning prisoners who have previously committed serious crimes if they take part in the war in Ukraine upon release.

    Russian Field, a nonpartisan Moscow-based research company, released its findings on Telegram. According to the poll, 55 percent of respondents said they do not support the idea of pardoning participants in the Ukraine war who were convicted of serious crimes prior to joining Russian troops. Thirty-two percent of respondents said they do support pardoning prisoners who fight for Russia.

    The independent Russian media outlet Meduza reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed decrees in June that pardons prisoners who agree to fight in Ukraine. Putin reportedly said the recidivism rate among prisoners who become soldiers is low. However, there have been multiple media reports of former prisoners accused of committing serious crimes—including murder—after they returned home from the front lines of Ukraine.

    Russian President Vladimir Putin is pictured Thursday during a combined call-in show and press conference in Moscow. A new poll found over half of Russian respondents said they do not support Putin’s plan to pardon convicts of their crimes if they fight in the Ukraine war.
    Photo by Getty Images

    Ivan Rossomakhin, a former inmate who had been convicted of murder three years ago, returned home from the war in Ukraine this summer. Less than 10 days after his military release, he reportedly confessed to stabbing an elderly lady to death.

    When Dmitry Peskov—Putin’s press secretary—was asked in November about convicted felons being granted pardons for their war service, he answered: “They atone with blood for crimes on the battlefield, in assault brigades, under bullets, under shells.”

    Newsweek reached out to the Kremlin via email on Friday night for comment.

    Women were more likely to oppose the idea of pardoning prisoners who serve in the military, with 60 percent stating they are against it, compared to 27 percent in favor of pardons. Forty-eight percent of men oppose the pardon plan, and 39 percent said they support it.

    Younger respondents and people with higher incomes and/or higher education levels were more likely to oppose pardoning prisoners, according to Russian Field.

    The survey involved 1,600 respondents and was conducted from December 4 to December 12. Russian Field did not provide a margin of error.

    The recruitment of inmates from Russian penal colonies first became a practice publicized by the Wagner Group of Russian mercenaries before reports alleged the Russian Ministry of Defense was also taking in convicts.

    The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense said in May that Russia had ramped up” its recruitment of prison inmates this year due to its military not satisfying personnel staffing goals, but the effort reportedly was not keeping pace with Russia’s casualty rate in Ukraine.

    Reports in recent weeks also indicate the Kremlin has been hesitant to turn to another wave of mobilization out of fear that such a move could harm Putin’s campaign for reelection in 2024.