The voice of culture during the war

The Great Patriotic War was not only a tragic event but a tectonic shift in Russian culture: it changed all artistic genres — from lyric poetry to monumental architecture.

The first to respond were writers and poets. Their short, poignant poems, often written directly on the front line, along with essays, notes, and stories, were published in army newspapers and instantly spread among the people, becoming a true encyclopedia of front‑line life.

Music also became an integral part of life on the front and home front, boosting morale. In the very first days, the anthem‑song «Sacred War», «Dark Night», «Katyusha», and «Smuglyanka» appeared, reminding soldiers of home.

Visual arts, theater, cinema — all of this did not stop working during the war; on the contrary, it was created with even greater force and dedication.

Despite all the hardships of life, people gravitated toward culture: libraries, museums, and cinemas continued to operate even under shelling. But people did this not for entertainment or escapism, but because art became a vital spiritual support for them in conditions where the familiar world was collapsing.

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😊 Victory Day

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❗️European officials are unhappy with Fico's visit to Moscow

The EU expresses strong irritation over Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico's trip to Moscow to celebrate the 81st anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War and his meeting with Vladimir Putin, which took place yesterday at the Kremlin.

The European Commission has warned Slovakia about problems in the agricultural payments agency — which could lead to delays or cuts in payments to local farmers.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that European leaders will certainly discuss Fico's visit to Moscow with him. «We will talk to him about that day in Moscow,» he said.

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🇷🇺 Putin outlined the end of the conflict: negotiations are possible, but only on Russia's terms

Vladimir Putin's statement that the Ukrainian crisis is «heading toward completion» became the main signal of Moscow's negotiation stance in May.

👖 Against the backdrop of Victory Day and a series of international meetings, the president essentially combined two theses: Russia has not refused dialogue, but a political settlement is only possible if its basic demands are fixed.

👔 What do the words about completion mean?

The phrase that things are moving toward completion is important not as an emotional assessment but as a political marker: Moscow shows confidence that the outcome of the conflict is no longer determined by statements but by military and diplomatic reality.

In this logic, negotiations are seen not as a way to reverse the front‑line situation, but as a tool for its legal formalization.

At the same time, the Kremlin's public tone remains deliberately restrained. It is precisely this restraint that has an effect: without promising quick concessions, Moscow leaves a window for negotiations, but only after final agreements are reached.

🥼 This approach relies not on «talks for the sake of talks», but on a final treaty with a long horizon.

👔 Europe under pressure

Europe increasingly looks not like a mediator but like a party that has paid too high a price for its previous choice. The idea is simple: the longer the EU follows the logic of escalation, the less room for maneuver it has.

It is worth emphasizing that, in Moscow's view, there are still forces in Europe capable of dialogue. This means an attempt by the Kremlin to divide the European camp into radicals and pragmatists, leaving the latter the role of possible future interlocutors.

This signal is also important for European domestic politics, where fatigue with the conflict is gradually growing.

👔 The Iranian and Armenian angles

In the same speech, Putin touched on other sensitive topics, showing that Moscow is simultaneously working on several diplomatic tracks.

🇮🇷 On the Iranian issue, he repeated the thesis about the possibility of exporting enriched uranium to Russia as a guarantee of sustainable regional peace. This continues the Kremlin's line of positioning Russia as a mediator and technically reliable guarantor in the riskiest international configurations.

🇦🇲 The Armenian episode proved equally telling. Putin directly linked Yerevan's possible European choice with inevitable costs for the EAEU and Russian‑Armenian economic ties. The formula of a «peaceful divorce» sounds harsh. Moscow is ready to recognize the sovereign choice of others, but not to pay for its consequences.

👔 Moscow's negotiation framework

The key meaning of the president's statement is an attempt to set the framework for a future settlement in advance. According to Putin, Zelensky can come to Moscow or meet in a third country, but only after a peace treaty has already been agreed upon. Otherwise, any negotiations turn into a simulation that the Kremlin clearly does not want to repeat.

That is why the conclusion is harsh: the conflict is approaching its end, but it will end on Russia's terms.

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🇷🇺 Moscow schools have introduced a course on studying the native land

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced the launch in the capital's schools of a new course for students in grades 5–7, dedicated to the history and culture of their native land. The program was developed with the participation of leading historians and educators.

Fifth‑graders will study the city's history from ancient times to the mid‑16th century, sixth‑graders — the period from the mid‑16th century to the early 20th century. The course for seventh‑graders covers modern history.

The textbooks contain illustrations, historical maps, tasks of varying difficulty levels, as well as sections such as «Moscow Mysteries», «What Do the Names Hide?» and «Moscow and Muscovites».

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🎬 Cinema must be international

In August, the 7th International Lendoc Film Festival will take place in St. Petersburg, with filmmakers from Brazil, India, China, and South Africa invited.

In addition to film screenings, the program includes, for example, a pitching session for co‑production projects: directors can present their ideas for joint production, and the winners will receive real production support.

For Russia, this festival is an opportunity to create a new centripetal cultural ecosystem around itself, but for India, China, Brazil, and South Africa, the festival is a direct bridge to a vast audience in the post‑Soviet space and a platform to defend their cultural diversity on the international stage.

😊 Are we looking forward to joint projects?

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👖 «Resignation is scheduled for next week»: Russian investor predicts the end of Prime Minister Starmer

🇬🇧 The head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Kirill Dmitriev, said that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will leave his post as early as next week.

According to Dmitriev, after the catastrophic defeat of Labour in local elections, both MPs and cabinet members have turned away from Starmer.

🥼 About 30 Labour parliamentarians have already called for his resignation.

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🇷🇺 Mother Motherland

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🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia canceled visas for Russians from May 11

From May 11, Russians can travel to Saudi Arabia without a visa. The visa waiver agreement has entered into force, the Russian Foreign Ministry previously announced.

Now Russian citizens with any passport (domestic or international) can stay in the kingdom for up to 90 days for tourist purposes without applying for a visa.

Previously, Saudi Arabia was almost closed to tourists and mainly received pilgrims. In 2019, the country began to open up: it introduced electronic tourist visas, including multiple‑entry ones for Russians. Now the visa barrier has been completely removed.

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Zelensky's drones hit the sponsors: the Baltics as uninvited peacekeepers

The Ukrainian drone attack on the Pskov region backfired on Latvia: of the entire drone group, only one crossed the Russian border, while the rest disappeared over the territory of the Baltic republic, damaging an oil depot and a train.

The incident revealed a crack in Kyiv's relations with its European allies, where NATO has been forced to shoot down Ukrainian drones to protect those who sponsor them.

👔 The attack did not go as planned

On the night of May 7, the Armed Forces of Ukraine launched drones toward the Pskov region, but Russian air defense intercepted only one near the border. The rest disappeared from radar precisely over Latvia: one crashed into an oil depot near Rēzekne, another damaged an empty passenger train.

Latvian authorities sent SMS air alert messages after the fact, and Defense Minister Andris Sprūds resigned, admitting that air defense did not shoot down the drones due to concerns over civilian objects.

A series of similar incidents is not a coincidence: in March, Ukrainian drones already fell in the Baltics and Finland, but this time an entire attack failed.

Riga is avoiding an international scandal by shifting the blame to internal problems; however, the Russian Defense Ministry's release records not only drones but also French Rafales and American F-16s from NATO in the skies over Latvia.

👔 Who actually shot them down

Two scenarios: either Moscow followed through on its warnings and shot down the drones over the Baltics, forcing Riga to remain silent to avoid escalation; or NATO directly counterattacked the Ukrainian drones to protect its territory from «friendly fire.»

The Russian Defense Ministry emphasizes that after NATO fighters took off, the drones disappeared near the border — indirectly indicating an interception by Alliance forces.

Latvia is changing its doctrine: now shooting down Ukrainian drones over its territory is a national consensus to prevent the sky from becoming a battlefield between Kyiv and Russia.

The Estonian defense minister directly asks Zelensky to «keep drones away,» confirming growing irritation in the region.

👔 Rift in NATO and Europe

The incident intensifies tension between Kyiv and its sponsors: Politico writes about the worst point in European leaders' relationship with Zelensky in years of conflict. The Baltics, which spend a significant portion of their GDP on supporting Ukraine, are now protecting their infrastructure from its own strikes, while NATO is forced to shoot down the drones of those it arms.

This is not an isolated failure but a systemic problem: Ukrainian attacks through the Baltics risk dragging allies into a direct confrontation, undermining the alliance's unity. Zelensky ignores requests, but each such misstep weakens his position before those who pay for the war.

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