The attack on Moscow may suggest that Russia is “not as unified as Putin wants it to be,” reports Vincent McAviney. The daughter of a Russian nationalist often referred to as “Putin’s mastermind” has been killed after her car exploded on the outskirts of Moscow. An explosion occurred on Saturday night when a bomb exploded in the car driven by Daria Dugina, according to the Investigative Committee department for the Moscow region. The 29-year-old was the daughter of Alexander Dugin, a prominent supporter of the ideology of the “Russian world” and a staunch supporter of sending Russian troops to Ukraine. Ms. Dugina expressed similar views and had appeared as a commentator on the nationalist Tsargrad TV channel, where her father had served as editor-in-chief. Want a quick and special update on the biggest news? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out what you need to know… “Dasa, like her father, has always been at the forefront of the confrontation with the West,” Chargrad said on Sunday, using the familiar form of her name. ITV News was told by a Ukrainian military source that the country was not behind the attack. The blast occurred as Ms. Dugina was returning from a cultural festival she had attended with her father. Some Russian media reported witnesses that the vehicle belonged to her father and that she decided at the last minute to travel in another car. Alexander Dugin is often referred to as “Putin’s brain”. Credit: AP No suspects were immediately located. Denis Pushilin, president of the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic – which is the epicenter of Russia’s fighting in Ukraine – blamed it on “terrorists of the Ukrainian regime, who are trying to kill Alexander Dugin”. However, the Ukrainian military source said the country was “worried about its territories, including Crimea,” adding that “Dugin is not so important to destroy.” Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, also denied Ukrainian involvement. “We are not a criminal state, unlike Russia, and we are certainly not a terrorist state,” he said. While Mr. Dugin’s exact ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin are unclear, the Kremlin often echoes rhetoric from his writings and appearances on Russian state television. He helped popularize the concept of “Novorossiya” or “New Russia” used by Moscow to justify its annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and its support for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine. Ms. Dugina herself was sanctioned by the U.S. in March for her work as editor-in-chief of United World International, a website that U.S. authorities described as a source of disinformation. The sanctions announcement cited a United Nations article this year that claimed Ukraine would “disappear” if it were admitted to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
