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The Kremlin is planning to annex the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine and combine them into a single federal district within Russia, three sources close to the Putin administration told Meduza.

A lot has changed for Sergey Kiriyenko since Russia began its all-out war against Ukraine. Already the Kremlin's domestic policy czar, Kiriyenko has now managed to get closer to President Vladimir Putin and expand the scope of his powers. In addition to acting as the Kremlin's point man in the Donbas and other Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, sources tell Meduza that Kiriyenko's subordinates have also been tasked with developing a "post-war image" for Russia. One idea in the mix is to present Russia as a "continent of freedom" for right-wing conservatives -- one that preserves the spirit of "old Europe." As it happens, Kiriyenko wouldn't be averse to leading this "continent" himself.

Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine provoked a wave of backlash among members of the Communist Party (KPRF). Communist legislators from regional parliaments and members of the party's youth organization have publicly spoken out against the war, condemning it as "imperialist" and contrary to Marxist-Leninist principles. While some have quit the KPRF in protest, others have been expelled for breaching "party discipline." Meduza looked into what's happening inside the KPRF's regional branches and learned why some of Russia's Communists oppose the war against Ukraine.

Rights and freedoms in Russia have been restricted to the point that the country is de facto under martial law. This is the conclusion of a new report authored by prominent human rights experts Pavel Chikov, head of the rights group Agora, and Damir Gainutdinov, head of the Net Freedoms Project. Indeed, against the backdrop of Moscow's month-long invasion of Ukraine, the Russian authorities have moved to impose serious restrictions on basic constitutional rights and freedoms at home. As Chikov and Gainutdinov write, these restrictions have primarily affected freedoms of assembly, speech, and movement, as well as private property rights. Meduza summarizes the report's main findings here.

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Five weeks ago, 25-year-old contract soldier Albert Sakhibgareyev was in Russia's Belgorod region, several miles from the Ukrainian border, where his brigade was "conducting training exercises." Sakhibgareyev says he and his fellow soldiers would fire "wherever they were ordered to," though what exactly they were firing at was unclear. According to him, he didn't understand he was in a real war until the Ukrainian side started firing back; soon after that, he deserted. Meduza reports on how a soldier from Bashkortostan decided enough was enough.

In the first weeks after Vladimir Putin announced his "special military operation" and invaded Ukraine, tens of thousands of Russians flew to Georgia, despite there being no direct flights there from Russia. Many continued on to other countries, but about 12 thousand have stayed. One of those 12 thousand Russians, reports on what problems these Russians have faced -- and how Georgians have responded to the Russian influx.

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the United States and European countries have imposed harsh sanctions against Russia in an attempt to force the country to halt its attacks and withdraw its troops. Russian citizens are already experiencing economic difficulties, including losing their jobs and businesses. Supporters of the sanctions contend that President Vladimir Putin is to blame for this. Could economic losses impact Russian politics and compel the government to reconsider its course? Research Fellow Maxim Ananyev from the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research explains.

Today, March 24, 2022, marks one month since Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops to undertake a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. These four weeks have changed the country beyond recognition: Ukrainian cities -- from Kharkiv to Volnovakha, and Mariupol to Kherson -- have suffered widespread damage and destruction from bombardments; more than 3.6 million people have been forced to flee abroad as refugees. The United Nations has recorded at least 2,685 civilian casualties, including 1,035 killed and 1,650 injured. The real toll is much higher -- thousands have reportedly died in besieged Mariupol alone. The actual number of military casualties, both Russian and Ukrainian, also remains unknown as yet. To bear witness to this catastrophic month, Meduza shares one photo from each day of Russia's war against Ukraine.

Before the war came to Kharkiv, Pavel Dorogoy specialized in documentary and archival photography, and captured his hometown's architecture. Today, Pavel mainly works as a volunteer, but he continues to document life in the city during the war. In early March, he started taking photos and videos in the subway stations in one of Kharkiv's outlying neighborhoods, where thousands of local residents hide during air raids. According to Pavel, a single station can shelter up to 500 people in the evenings -- volunteers prepare food (serving children and women first) and, when not taking turns sleeping under piles of blankets, people try to catch a few moments to themselves. Pavel has been living in the subway throughout the war, along with his wife (a station worker) and their two children. With his permission, Meduza shares Pavel Dorogoy's photos and videos of life in Kharkiv's underground.