Podcast: The Politics Of The Pussy Riot Verdict

A sticker reading "Free Pussy Riot" on a police vehicle in Moscow.

Six months after their controversial performance at Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral, three members of the feminist punk-rock collective Pussy Riot -- Maria Alyokhina, Yekaterina Samutsevich, and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova -- received two-year prison sentences.

The verdict and sentence came just after the 100-day mark of President Vladimir Putin's third term in the Kremlin and highlights the fact that the Kremlin leader is in no mood to tolerate dissent, despite mounting discontent in society. A new poll, meanwhile, shows Putin's approval rating falling to the lowest level of his presidency.

In this edition of the Power Vertical Podcast, I discussed the Pussy Riot verdict and its political implications with my regular co-host, Kirill Kobrin, managing editor of RFE/RL's Russian Service.

Enjoy...

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Power Vertical Podcast: The Politics Of The Pussy Riot Verdict