This was Russia today Wednesday, November 12, 2025
Howdy, folks. In the newsletter below, we review an online spat between a former Estonian president and Russia’s exiled opposition about the risks of free speech back home. Let us know if you’re enjoying the newsletter’s new format, why don’t you.
Russian exiles push back after Estonia’s former president questions the prison terms for posts about the Bucha massacre
Over the weekend, former Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves drew outrage from Russia’s exiled opposition when he expressed doubt that Russian courts sentence anyone to “eight years” for social media posts about the Russian military’s atrocities in Bucha. “But we’re used to lies,” he told an X user who claimed to know two people who have received “8+ years” for posting online about the massacre. While some Russian exiles have said they’re reluctant to center their own plight in the context of their homeland’s brutal war on Ukraine, a chorus of dissidents and opposition media outlets has nevertheless reminded Ilves about the dozens of prison sentences that should dispel his doubts.
Novaya Gazeta Europe compiled a non-exhaustive list of people sentenced to years in prison for online speech about Russian atrocities in Ukraine. The six sentenced to eight years or longer include bloggers, journalists, activists, and ordinary citizens — such as YouTuber Igor Yakunichev (12 years), journalist Sergey Mikhailov (eight years), and several others punished for online posts about the atrocities in Bucha. Konstantin Seleznev, a senior citizen, got eight years for merely demanding accountability for the mass killings.
More than a dozen people have received slightly shorter prison terms — between three and seven and a half years — for comments, reposts, Twitch streams, and interviews that mentioned Bucha or other Russian war crimes. Among them are IT specialists, regional activists, school staff, journalists, and even a fitness trainer, Sergey Nevorotin, who was later released due to illness and died a few months later.
A handful of people were sentenced but later freed, most notably politician Ilya Yashin, who was released in 2024 as part of a major prisoner swap between Russia, Belarus, and the West. Yashin had been sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for addressing the Bucha massacre during a livestream.
Meanwhile, many prominent critics living abroad — including blogger Veronika Belotserkovskaya, economist Konstantin Sonin, writer Mikhail Zygar, activist Pyotr Verzilov, journalist and former State Duma deputy Alexander Nevzorov, politician Maxim Katz, politician and former State Duma deputy Dmitry Gudkov, journalist Ilya Krasilshchik, cartoonist Pavel Muntian, and others — have been convicted in absentia, typically receiving eight- to nine-year sentences for posts, videos, and comments about Bucha.
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We have a new tradition here at Meduza: every year on our birthday, we update the merch in our online store, Magaz. In 2025, we turned 11 — and despite the considerable challenges we’ve faced this year, we’ve found a pretty original way to bring you a new collection. Here’s a look at the latest clothing and accessories you can buy to rep Meduza and support our work.
Today’s reporting from Meduza
🗞️ Newly released Epstein emails resurrect Russiagate: ‘Lavrov can get insight on talking to me’ | Meduza breaks down today’s biggest Russia-related news stories, November 12, 2025
Newly released Epstein emails detail his efforts to ingratiate himself with Russian officials and offer insight on Donald Trump, while Kyiv is rocked by a $100-million energy-sector kickback scandal that’s prompted President Zelensky to push for ministerial dismissals. Additional stories cover Russia’s record wartime budget deficit, Lukoil’s mounting sanctions troubles, the deeper aims behind Putin’s war, and Europe’s rush to strengthen drone defenses.
🪖 To force deserters back to war, Russia’s military is torturing their families
Russia’s military is abducting and torturing relatives of missing soldiers in the Transbaikal region to force deserters back to the front.
👮 ‘It’s not called the Wheel. It’s called the Carousel.’ How Russia re-arrests dissidents to keep them behind bars indefinitely without criminal charges.
Russian police are keeping dissidents in jail indefinitely by repeatedly issuing back-to-back misdemeanor charges — a tactic known as the “arrest carousel” — to avoid filing criminal cases while still wearing people down.
🇻🇪 Meduza asks NYT reporter Anatoly Kurmanaev about the limits of Russia’s alliance with Venezuela amid rising U.S. pressure
Russia’s overextended, Ukraine-focused Kremlin can no longer meaningfully back Nicolás Maduro, leaving the once-robust Russia–Venezuela alliance mostly symbolic as U.S. pressure intensifies.
🤖 Russia’s AI robot stumbles and falls on its face in debut appearance
Russia unveiled a new humanoid robot in Moscow, but its debut turned into an embarrassment when the machine wobbled onto the stage and promptly fell over, forcing organizers to cut the presentation short.
✈️ Russia accuses journalist Christo Grozev of involvement in alleged Ukrainian-British plot to hijack fighter jet
Russia’s FSB has accused Ukraine’s intelligence service and supposed British collaborators of trying to recruit a Russian pilot to hijack a MiG-31 — implicating journalist Christo Grozev in what he calls an obviously fabricated scheme.
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