Pjotr Sauer
@pjotrsauer.bsky.social
Reporter covering Russia, Ukraine and Central Asia for The Guardian. Write to me: pjotr.sauer@theguardian.com
Armenië: verkiezingen van zondag zijn een test voor pro-Europese koers van premier Pasjinian. Rusland voert de druk op. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j... door @pjotrsauer.bsky.social in @theguardian.com
Armenia heads to polls amid Russian pressure and threat of ‘Ukrainian scenario’
Relationship between Vladimir Putin and traditional ally has slowly unravelled under current PM Nikol Pashinyan
theguardian.com
"Ripples of dissent" Low approval ratings Putin deluded on Ukraine But a coup unlikely - @pjotrsauer.bsky.social and @shaunwalker7.bsky.social
‘There is profound disappointment in him’: mood in Russia turns against Putin
Increasingly isolated president is determined to press on with Ukraine war, say well-placed sources, despite ailing economy
theguardian.com
“If the sarcophagus collapses, over a hundred tonnes of nuclear fuel would be released into the air,” said the plant’s director general, Serhii Tarakanov. Excellent piece by @pjotrsauer.bsky.social on the mess at Chernobyl after a Russian drone strike last year www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...
Inside Chornobyl: 40 years after disaster, nuclear site still at risk in Russia’s war
In February 2025, a cheap Russian drone tore through Chornobyl’s confinement shelter. Workers warn the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident is not safe yet
theguardian.com
Shifting goals, unclear timelines and a flimsy pretext: at times, the US-Israel campaign against Iran carries curious parallels of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. | @pjotrsauer.bsky.social
‘Sounds familiar’: how the US-Israeli war in Iran parallels Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Both campaigns have been framed differently at different times, with dubious claims of defensive action and a curious reluctance to label it war
theguardian.com
Assad family live in Russian luxury as Bashar ‘brushes up on ophthalmology’
Assad family live in Russian luxury as Bashar ‘brushes up on ophthalmology’
Family friend, sources in Russia and Syria, and leaked data help give rare insight into life of dictator’s reclusive household
theguardian.com
Otter pelts, Orthodox priests and a $7.2m bargain: how Russia sold Alaska to the US
Otter pelts, Orthodox priests and a $7.2m bargain: how Russia sold Alaska to the US
Tsar Alexander II sold oil-rich territory to the US in 1867. Will Friday’s high-stakes summit between Putin and Trump result in a warming of historic ties?
theguardian.com
Wat een prachtige column van @pjotrsauer.bsky.social over zijn vader, Derk Sauer. Heel veel sterkte voor je moeder, je broers en jou en iedereen die Derk in diens hart draagt ✨ www.parool.nl/columns-opin...
Pjotr Sauer schrijft een afscheidscolumn voor zijn overleden vader Derk: ‘Ik ga ontelbaar veel dingen aan hem missen’
parool.nl
Och Derk! Zo’n begeesterd mens, zo’n lieve man. Ik maakte hem mee in het bestuur van IDFA, en vooral toen hij na de inval in Oekraine gedwongen werd hier weer een bestaan op te bouwen. Hij verloor zijn liefde voor Rusland nooit. Maar meer nog hield hij van het vrije woord en van rechtvaardigheid.
Outstanding reporting by @pjotrsauer.bsky.social and @shaunwalker7.bsky.social on the Russian plot to blow up European airliners etc using bombs in parcels and sex toys. The executors of the scheme were common criminals, exactly what MI5 head Ken McCallum warned of last year. Greyzone aggression.
Pjotr Sauer@pjotrsauer.bsky.social · last yr.NEW: Our exclusive deep dive into a suspected Russian-led cell behind the parcel bomb plots with the first interviews with those directly involved, revealing how the sabotage campaign unfolded on the ground With @shaunwalker7.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/world/2025/m...
NEW: Our exclusive deep dive into a suspected Russian-led cell behind the parcel bomb plots with the first interviews with those directly involved, revealing how the sabotage campaign unfolded on the ground With @shaunwalker7.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/world/2025/m...
Explosive sex toys and cosmetics: the story behind the DHL parcels plot
Exclusive account reveals previously unreported details and insights into how Kremlin’s sabotage campaign played out on the ground – and the multinational effort to track down the network behind it
theguardian.com
In a sign of deepening ties, North Korea is now treating Russia’s wounded soldiers. I spoke to one who expected a Black Sea sanatorium but ended up on North Korea's east coast www.theguardian.com/world/2025/f...
‘Not what I expected’: Russian soldiers sent to North Korea for medical care
Wonsan resorts offer troops time off to recover, but some wonder if move is a pretence for military training
theguardian.com
“Putin remained patient and didn’t bend. Instead, he waited for the world to change around him.” My piece on the Trump-Putin phone call, which has sparked unmistakable glee in Moscow www.theguardian.com/world/2025/f...
‘What Putin had been waiting for’: Moscow buoyant after call with Trump
Russian president will feel momentum has shifted in his favour and that US may help him fulfil Ukraine objectives
theguardian.com
‘Many teachers don’t want to do this, but they’re trapped’: film shows extent of Putin indoctrination in Russian schools by @pjotrsauer.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/world/2025/f...
‘Many teachers don’t want to do this, but they’re trapped’: film shows extent of Putin indoctrination in Russian schools
Two years after he started documenting the effect of the Ukraine war on his pupils, Pavel Talankin reveals how it led to accolade – and exile from home
theguardian.com
“If they [Russia] can secure their bases and reach an agreement with Turkey, they could be reasonably satisfied [...]It all depends on whether Erdogan can really control” the rebels, notes RUSI's Antonio Giustozzi to @nytimes.com.
Bogged Down in Ukraine, Russia Pays a Price in Syria
With the fall of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, Vladimir V. Putin has suffered one of the biggest geopolitical setbacks of his quarter-century in power.
nytimes.com
A vibe shift in Moscow. As key Russian military bases in Syria come under threat, the Kremlin is changing its tune. Russian officials are now actively pursuing a flurry of diplomatic efforts with rebels they had branded as terrorists just days earlier. www.theguardian.com/world/2024/d...
Moscow reaches out to new Syrian leadership in move to secure bases
Having labelled Syrian rebels ‘terrorists’, Moscow is now making diplomatic efforts to protect its military assets in the country
theguardian.com
First Bluesky post... Spent some time, with @pjotrsauer.bsky.social speaking to people in Kyiv, Moscow and Washington about Trump's plans for peace and how "negotiations" might look: www.theguardian.com/world/2024/d...
Russia and Ukraine wait warily for Trump transition … and subsequent peace talks
President-elect’s strategy on ending war is yet to emerge but interviews with Ukrainian officials and Russians suggest a compromise may be hard to find
theguardian.com
New: Seizure of Aleppo threatens Moscow’s foothold in Syria – and the wider region www.theguardian.com/world/2024/d...
Seizure of Aleppo threatens Moscow’s foothold in Syria – and the wider region
Assault on Syria’s second-largest city by Islamist militants may tarnish Russia’s reputation as a global player
theguardian.com
We always eschewed op-eds, thinking that our reporting speaks for itself, and Mediazona’s very existence, opposed to all forms of power abuse—from local violations to war—is statement enough. If you value real journalism from and about Russia, keep reading: en.zona.media 3/3
