“NTV (Cyrillic: НТВ) is a Russian television channel. As a subsidiary of Vladimir Gusinsky's company Media-Most, it was a pioneer in the post-Soviet independent television media, but was later taken over by state-owned Gazprom”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A woman with “I love NTV” painted on here face cheers in support of the independent Russian NTV television station April 7, 2001 during a rally in Moscow. Thousands of people gathered in the rain to show their support for Russia's only national independent television station in its fight against new owners. (Photo by Oleg Nikishin/Newsmakers)

“Belarus riot police detained scores of demonstrators at a protest rally against President Alexander Lukashenko. Rallies against Lukashenko's rule are rare in the tightly-policed ex-Soviet republic, but protest calls on social networking sites have multiplied in recent weeks as a severe currency crisis has brought economic hardship. Demonstrators gathered peacefully, simply applauding in a coordinated act of protest”. – Af.Reuters.com (Photo by Anton Motolko; Belarus, Minsk; June 22, 2011)

A man looks at members of the flash mob group calling themselves the «Brides of March» (“Grab a wedding dress and join the brides as we parade through the heart of San Francisco, strolling through Union Square, shopping at fancy stores and drinking at local bars!”) as they stand outside a bar March 18, 2006 in San Francisco. The flash mob group made their way through the streets stopping at bars, cafes, and several stores. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

US President George W. Bush (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin wave as the two presidents go for a ride in Putin's 1956 Volga before dinner 08 May 2005 at the his residence outside of Moscow. Bush hailed Russia's “bravery and sacrifice” in defeating Nazism, as he met Putin ahead of ceremonies marking the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. Bush, who the previous day criticized the decades-long Soviet occupation of central Europe, said he was looking forward to the 09 May ceremony on Moscow's Red Square, to be attended by over 50 national leaders. (Photo by Tim Sloan/AFP Photo)

Tatyana Abramova, 33, plays with her home fox Plombir at her countryside house outside Siberian city of Novosibirsk on September 12, 2020. The official start of the Soviet experiment to better understand the domestication of animals by humans began in 1959, and was initiated by geneticists Dmitri Beliaiev and Lioudmila Trout on a farm in Akademgorodok, the scientific center of excellence in Siberia. Their primary objective was to domesticate foxes, to understand how the ancestor of wolves, another canine, evolved into a loyal and loving dog. And understand what this domestication tells us about the genetic evolution of species. (Photo by Alexander Nemenov/AFP Photo)

“Yunarmiya” (Young Army) All-Russia National Military Patriotic Social Movement Association members compete during the 7th military-patriotic game “Yunarmiya, forward!” dedicated to Victory Day at the Museum-reserve “Gorki Leninskie” in Gorki Leninskie, Russia, 29 April 2025. A total of 160 teams of Yunarmiya and military-patriotic detachments attended the games, each team consisting of seven people aged between 12 and 17 years old. The games are a continuation of the Soviet military-sports competitions for children and teenagers, “Zarnitsa” (since 1967) and “Orlyonok (Eaglet)” (since 1972). (Photo by Sergei Ilnitsky/EPA/EFE)

Emilia Pechinkova, a 24-years-old Bulgarian Pomak (Bulgarian speaking Muslims) bride poses for a photograph following the “gelina” or face painting ceremony carried out by female guests and relatives in preparation for her three-day wedding ceremony in the village of Draginovo, 100 kms southeast of Sofia on April 22, 2016. Bulgaria's Muslim population is one of the highest in the European Union. During the Communist regime religious rituals were not tolerated, and Muslims were forced to abandon wearing their traditional wedding outfits. Recently, more young Pomak women want to include traditional wedding customs that were forbidden during the regime, regardless of their secular lifestyles and the high cost of such a wedding. (Photo by Nikolay Doychinov/AFP Photo)