, Columnist
An Arrested Reporter Is Suddenly Important for Putin
The case of Ivan Golunov has brought together some unlikely allies.
Ivan Golunov attends an arrest warrant hearing at Moscow's Nikulinsky District Court.
Photographer: Vladimir Gerdo/TASS via Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
The arrest of investigative journalist Ivan Golunov in Moscow marks an important inflection point in relations between President Vladimir Putin’s regime and Russia’s various elites.
The Kremlin, initially blindsided by the outcry at the reporter’s detention, could end up benefiting from it all, and the more liberal part of the pro-regime establishment may gain an advantage over its overeager security apparatus.