It was the last free newspaper in Russia. Now Putin is coming for her. The Times. For more than 30 years, Novaya Gazeta has fearlessly defended human rights in Russia and spoken openly about the Kremlin's wars, even as President Putin dragged the country back into totalitarianism. The voice of the opposition newspaper will be silenced on Monday, when a court orders it vacated from its editorial premises in Moscow, a move generally seen as retaliation for criticism of the war in Ukraine. For Dmitry Muratov, co-founder of Novaya Gazeta, this is the culmination of a long and often violent journey. It began in 1993, when the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, donated money from his Nobel Peace Prize to found the paper. "We were an anti-war newspaper in a country where it was forbidden. We were defending the constitution in a country where many provisions of the constitution were abolished by the current authorities. We remained faithful to the belief that the people themselves should choose their government," says Muratov in an interview with The Times from his office in the Novaya Gazeta system. He sharply criticizes the Kremlin's insistence that a ceasefire in Ukraine is impossible until Russia's territorial demands are met. "Enough talk about long-term agreements. Stop this agony. stop killing people Then negotiate until the second coming, if you want. Do like Baulshki," he said. "I get stopped every day - on the street, in trams, in the subway, in coffee shops - to say that they think like us, and to thank me for what our newspaper does. Only this morning I ordered two coffees in a cafe. When they brought me the bill, it said: "Paid in full - many thanks to Novaya Gazeta for everything it does." That means a lot," Muratov said. It is unclear whether the closure of Novaya Gazeta will be enough to placate the Kremlin's watchdogs.