2014
2014-02-21↑
Yanukovych flees Kyiv as Maidan wins; a power vacuum on Russia's border. politics
2014-02-27↑
Armed "little green men" seize Crimea's parliament and airports; Russian forces take the peninsula. military
2014-03-18↑
Putin annexes Crimea by treaty; first Western sanctions (visa bans, asset freezes). 30militarydiplomacy
2014-07-17↑
MH17 shot down over Donbas (298 dead); the West moves to sectoral sanctions. 35diplomacyfinance
2014-07-31↑
EU/US "Phase 3" sectoral sanctions on state banks, oil majors and dual-use goods. financeextractionmilitary
2014-12-16↑
2014 ruble crisis: CBR shock-hikes 10.5%->17%; the ruble loses ~50%; Brent falls below $60. 41financeextraction
2015
2015-02-12↓
Minsk II agreed; Debaltseve falls days later as the deal is breached. 34diplomacy
2015-02-27↑
Opposition leader Boris Nemtsov murdered metres from the Kremlin. politics
2015-09-30↑
Russia intervenes in Syria to prop up Assad — a new, costly front. militarydiplomacy
2015-12↑
The economy contracts ~2.5-3.7% for the year; real incomes fall. societyfinance
2016
2016-01↑
The war economy stabilises but oil sticks near $30; GDP down sharply, deficit widens. 37financeextraction
2016-10↓
Rosneft partly privatised to Glencore/QIA; a rare budget top-up. finance
2016-12-19↑
Russia's ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, assassinated in Ankara. diplomacy
2018
2018-03-04↑
Skripal poisoning in Salisbury; ~150 Russian diplomats expelled; OPCW confirms Novichok. diplomacy
2018-04-06↑
US sanctions Deripaska and Rusal; Russian markets and the ruble slide. 33financeextraction
2018-06-14↑
Unpopular pension-age increase and VAT-hike-to-20% announced; approval falls. society
2018-11-25↑
Kerch Strait incident: Russian forces seize Ukrainian ships. militarydiplomacy
2020
2020-03-06↑
Saudi-Russia oil price war erupts after OPEC+ collapses; oil crashes toward ~$20. extractionfinance
2020-04↑
COVID lockdowns; borders close; the deepest peacetime shock in years. 39societyfinance
2020-07-01↑
Constitutional amendments pass, resetting Putin's term clock to 2036. politics
2020-08-20↑
Navalny poisoned with Novichok in Siberia; Germany demands answers. politicsdiplomacy
2021
2021-01-17↑
Navalny returns and is jailed; the heaviest protest crackdown in years follows. politicssociety
2021-07-12↑
Putin publishes his essay denying Ukraine's separate identity. diplomacy
2021-09-10→
Nord Stream 2 completed as European gas prices already soar. extraction
2021-11↑
Large-scale military build-up around Ukraine; Western intelligence warns of invasion. 35military
2022
2022-02-24↑
Full-scale invasion of Ukraine begins — the largest European war since 1945. 47militarydiplomacy
2022-02-28↑
SWIFT cut-off for key banks; G7 freezes ~$300bn in CBR reserves; the ruble crashes, CBR hikes to 20%. financetrade / sanctions
2022-04-03↑
Bucha revealed after the Russian withdrawal; further sanctions and ICC interest. diplomacy
2022-05-30↑
EU agrees a partial oil embargo (6th package); Russian crude pivots to India/China. extractiontrade / sanctions
2022-07-22↓
Istanbul grain deal signed — a rare negotiated corridor. agriculturediplomacy
2022-09-11↑
Kharkiv counteroffensive routs Russian forces; Lyman falls weeks later. military
2022-09-21↑
Putin orders "partial" mobilisation (~300,000); the first mass exit of fighting-age men. 56militarysociety
2022-09-26↑
Nord Stream 1 & 2 sabotaged; Europe's energy break with Russia becomes permanent. extractiondiplomacy
2022-11-11↑
Russian forces withdraw from Kherson city — the only regional capital lost since the invasion. military
2022-12-05↑
G7/EU $60 oil price cap and an EU seaborne crude ban take effect. extractiontrade / sanctions
2023
2023-03-17↑
ICC issues an arrest warrant for Putin; he becomes a pariah in much of the world. diplomacy
2023-06-06↑
Kakhovka Dam destroyed; catastrophic flooding; blame contested. infrastructuresociety
2023-06-24↑
Prigozhin's Wagner mutiny: columns march on Moscow, then halt — the gravest internal threat to Putin in years. 63politicsmilitary
2023-07-17↑
The grain deal collapses; Russia bombs Danube ports and grain silos. agriculturetrade / sanctions
2023-08-15↑
The ruble passes 100/USD; the CBR calls an emergency meeting and hikes to 12%. 58finance
2023-08-23↑
Prigozhin's plane crashes; Wagner's leader dies and the group is dismantled. politics
2023-09-21↑
A gasoline export ban is imposed after shortages; the CBR keeps hiking. financeenergy
2024
2024-02-16↑
Alexei Navalny dies in an Arctic prison colony; organised opposition is extinguished. politicssociety
2024-02-17→
Avdiivka falls to Russia after a costly siege. military
2024-03-22↑
Crocus City Hall attack in Moscow (145 dead) — a security-state failure. societypolitics
2024-06-14↑
Putin's "peace" ultimatum demands Ukraine cede four oblasts — rejected; the war grinds on. 60diplomacymilitary
2024-08-06↑
Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast opens a Russian front and embarrasses the Kremlin. militarypolitics
2024-10-25↑
The CBR hikes the key rate to a record 21% as war spending overheats the economy. finance
2024-12-08↑
Assad's regime collapses in Syria; Russia loses its main Middle East hub. diplomacymilitary
2025
2025-01-01↑
Ukraine ends Russian gas transit; Gazprom's EU pipeline business effectively ends. extractiontrade / sanctions
2025-04↓
Oil softens near $60 but an oil-price rebound eases budget pressure; the index dips. 57financeextraction
2025-06-01↑
Operation Spiderweb: Ukrainian drones launched from inside Russia hit four strategic airbases. military
2025-08-02↑
Ukraine's refinery-drone campaign begins; on some days it cuts Russian refining by ~20%. 64extractionenergy
2025-10-22↑
US sanctions Rosneft and Lukoil (SDN) — the first direct Trump-era hit on Russia's oil majors. extractionfinance
2025-10-23↑
EU 19th sanctions package: energy, third-country banks, crypto, an LNG-import ban from Jan 2027. trade / sanctionsfinance
2025-12-19↑
The 2025 budget deficit lands near 2.6% of GDP; regional deficits hit a record ~RUB 1.5tn. financesociety
2026
2026-02↑
War funding "sows the seeds of a long-term slump"; the NWF's liquid assets fall to roughly $50bn. finance
2026-03-12↑
The CBR confirms 2025 GDP growth of ~1.0% vs 4.9% in 2024; the 2026 outlook dims. finance
2026-04-15↑
Putin scolds officials as GDP records its first quarterly contraction in three years. financepolitics
2026-05↑
The first wave of the fuel crisis begins; shortages spread through the regions by July. energysociety
2026-06-18↑
The Moscow Refinery burns after a strike; fuel insecurity reaches the capital region. extractionenergy
2026-07-02↑
Shortages hit 78 of 83 regions; 38 impose restrictions; three declare emergencies. energysociety
2026-07-07↑
Strikes halt the Omsk (Russia's largest) and Saratov refineries; ~54% of refineries reported damaged. extractionenergy
2026-08-19↑
A second, harsher fuel wave: over 70% of stations run dry; hours-long queues return to the capital. energysociety
2026-08-26↑
VTB shares hit a record low (~-45% YtD) as marketplace losses and strike damage mount. finance
2026-08-31↑
A slow-motion bank run: ~$9.4bn leaves the banking system in Q2; withdrawals reach 2022-panic levels. financesociety
2026-09-18↑
State Duma elections held over three days amid "an unprecedented crisis in the power vertical". politics
2026-09-20↑
Ukraine fires 1,000+ drones at Russia in one of the war's largest salvos; deaths reported near Moscow. militarysociety
2026-09-21↑
Index 70/100 — "High pressure": base 55.7 plus a systemic-amplification premium of +14.3. 70financeenergysociety