Dmitry Muratov, journalist: Putin can’t claim victory in Ukraine

"There are repressions, political repressions, against freedom of speech, against elections, against the rights of citizens to hold mass events. To such an extent that we don't know what the real public mood is.”

The BBC’s Russia editor Steve Rosenberg meets Dmitry Muratov one of Russia’s most prominent independent journalists.

For more than 30 years, he has been one of Russia’s staunchest defenders of independent journalism, and one of the Kremlin’s most outspoken critics. Dmitry Muratov co-founded Novaya Gazeta, the newspaper known for exposing corruption and human rights abuses - work that has come at a cost, with several of its journalists murdered.

In 2021, Muratov was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts “to safeguard freedom of expression.” Since then, Russia’s war in Ukraine has brought an even greater crackdown on dissent and independent media.

In this exclusive interview, he talks about journalism under Putin, the war in Ukraine and the fight to keep telling the truth.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with Russia’s nuclear envoy Mikhail Ulyanov, UNICEF chief Catherine Russell and music legend Ringo Starr. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Steve Rosenberg

Producers: Ben Tavener and Farhana Haider

Editor: Damon Rose

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(Image: Dmitry Muratov. Credit: Europa Press News via Getty Images)