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American businessman Paul Whelan's continued imprisonment is one of several major irritants in tattered relations between Washington and Moscow

As many celebrated the news of Brittney Griner’s release Thursday, others addressed the conditions of Russian penal colonies, raising questions about the lingering impact that could have on the WNBA star.

As Moscow’s war on Ukraine lurches into a new, uncertain phase, Russian authorities are increasingly turning to the country’s prisons to replenish depleted units. The Vagner Group is leading the effort, and the result, in some cases, is inmates being coerced into signing up -- or even threatened. 

Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has reportedly recruited almost 1,000 inmates from two penal colonies in the southwestern Rostov region, promising them early release if they fight in Moscow's war against Ukraine.

Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny, as it appears, will be either convoyed to a remote Russian colony or kept in the detention center. Navalny is expecting a transfer to a remote colony, although it is possible that he will remain in the pre-trial detention center pending the consideration of a new criminal case, Ivan Mironov, lawyer and deputy chairman of the Russian All-People's Union said. According to him, Navalny may face new criminal charges under article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (fraud with donations to the Anti-Corruption Foundation (Anti-Corruption...