Corey Flintoff

The system was considered a triumph by the Soviets, but was built by the same ruthless means that helped cause a famine, which killed millions in the 1930s.

While Ukrainians fear another offensive, Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a measure saying that Russian military casualties during peacetime will now be considered a state secret.

Ramzan Kadyrov says he will soon star in a Hollywood-style action movie. At the same time, an opposition group released a movie detailing his alleged human rights violations.

As relations between the world's two biggest nuclear powers deteriorate, the treaties and dialogue that kept Russia and the U.S. from nuclear war are fraying.

A report begun by Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov before his murder in February has been published in Moscow. It makes detailed allegations about direct Russian military involvement in the war in Ukraine, which is something the Kremlin has always denied.

Russia celebrated the 70th anniversary of Nazi Germany's defeat with massive displays of power and accusations that the West is distorting the Soviet Union's rightful role in history.

A decade ago, President George W. Bush was among those who visited Moscow for the occasion. Today, the event highlights the friction between Russia and the West.

Kharkiv has largely escaped the ravages of the war until recently. It has been hit by several terrorist bombings, including a blast at a Ukrainian national unity rally last month that killed 4 people.

People fleeing the fighting in the separatist cities of Donetsk and Luhansk are big burden for Ukraine's financially strained government, but Kharkiv residents are stepping up to help.

Protestants from the separatist regions of eastern Ukraine say they are being persecuted by the Russian Orthodox Church. Many evangelicals have left because of a crackdown on religious freedom.