surveillance

Putin shifts power to FSB as Russian elites fear agency’s growing control

Russian President Vladimir Putin has concentrated authority in the Federal Security Service (FSB), sidelining technocrats and expanding digital surveillance. A new law allows the state to freeze assets and deny consular services to expatriates. Reports describe elites as fearful of the FSB’s unchecked influence, with some blaming setbacks in Armenia, Moldova and Hungary on former official Sergei Kiriyenko.