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Topics: Russia, Ukraine, World News
Aisha Nozari
A Russan energy executive who worked under President Vladimir Putin has died after falling off a boat at full speed.
Ivan Pechorin, 39, was the managing director of the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic and died on Saturday (10 September) near Russky Island, around 5,800 miles east of Moscow.
Pechorin is the latest high-powered businessmen to mysteriously die since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February.
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According to Newsweek, Pechorin worked on ‘modernising aviation in eastern Russia’ and also ‘developed resources in the Arctic in light of heavy sanctions’.
His last public appearance is thought to have occurred at the Eastern Economic Forum, an event which encourages investment in Russia and was held between 5 and 8 September.
Pechorin reportedly spoke at a session titled ‘Everyone has their Own Route: The Logistics of a Changed World’.
In February, 43-year-old Igor Nosov, the corporation's former CEO, reportedly died suddenly from a stroke.
Meanwhile, on 1 September, 67-year-old Ravil Maganov, previously the head of Lukoil - Russia’s second-largest oil company - fell to his death from a Moscow hospital and at the time it was alleged he’d also been beaten.
Prior to his death, Maganov said he was opposed to the invasion of Ukraine.
On the same day as Pechorin’s death, the speed and effectiveness of Ukraine's counterattack against Russia left people stunned as the country continued to push back invaders.
In the early days of the Russian invasion there were fears that troops would quickly make their way into Ukraine's cities and topple Volodymyr Zelenskyy's government.
However, the invading force failed to take the capital city of Kyiv and while Russia has been able to take some territory, this certainly isn’t how Putin would have envisioned his country’s 'special military operation' going.
Ukrainian officials said on 10 September that their armed forces had retaken the city of Kupiansk, which had been an important supply hub for Russian troops.
In response, Russia's defence ministry announced they were pulling back forces from parts of Ukraine's eastern Kharkiv region.
The UK's Ministry of Defence said on 10 September that Ukrainian forces appeared to have 'advanced up to 50km' (30 miles) into territory held by the Russians.
The MoD also suggested that Putin's troops were taken by surprise with Ukraine's counterattack, claiming the areas taken were only lightly defended and noting that this latest move posed problems for the Russian positions in both the north and south of the country.