Ivan the Terrible had the feared Oprichniki to keep the silence. Men in black; their insignia was a severed dog’s head (to sniff out treachery) and a broom (to sweep the traitors away). In today’s Russia, the state has other, more or less, fearsome means to keep the people from talking.

How far has culture become a frontline in Russian politics, and how does it compare to earlier periods in the country's history? Introducing a new week-long CEELBAS debate on oDRussia, Artemy Troitsky, Peter Pomerantsev and Oliver Carroll discuss the nature of art, protest and the absurd. 

What factors drive foreign policy in Russia? Who drives it? And in whose interests - the elites or ordinary people? Marie Mendras and Fyodor Lukyanov join oDRussia editor Oliver Carroll for a debate in Paris.

The disputed region of Abkhazia holds its presidential elections tomorrow. Earlier in the election campaign, Oliver Carroll travelled to Sukhum to speak to the two leading candidates, Alyksandr Ankvab and Sergei Shamba.

After a decade in the wilderness, Russian civil society is finding a powerful voice online. Alexey Sidorenko and Oliver Carroll profile seven citizen bloggers who are leading this charge. A co-publication with Global Voices

When Sergei Magnitsky died in police custody last November, few believed it would lead to anything more than a domestic ripple. Eleven months on, however, his case is being discussed by UK foreign secretary William Hague, and his name adorns a Congress bill banning US travel for Russian officials implicated in the death. Here we republish an interview with Magnitsky's former employer and key witness, Jamison Firestone.