Day: June 14, 2019
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Russian Runner Suspended for Working With Banned Coach – Reports
Russian runner Artyom Denmukhametov has been provisionally suspended for working with banned coach Vladimir Kazarin, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Friday. Athletes are not allowed to receive training, strategy, nutritional or medical advice from coaches or medical staff serving doping bans, according to World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules — and they face sanctions if…
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The State of Russian Stadiums, a Year After the World Cup
Exactly one year ago, hundreds of thousands of football fans descended on Russia to attend one of the most long-awaited competitions in the country’s history – the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Russia proudly hosted the event, reviving its global image and spending over $14 billion on construction, infrastructure and planning, making it the most expensive…
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Kazakhstan’s Mass Election Protests, Explained
Kazakhstan has been roiled with mass protests following a presidential election seen by critics as undemocratic and an extension of their longtime authoritarian leader’s rule. Swathes of citizens have taken to the streets in the capital Nur-Sultan and largest city Almaty to condemn a vote they say was rigged, a rare sight in a country…
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Russian Plane That Crashed in Flames Was Hit by Lightning, Investigation Says
A Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft that crashed in May killing 41 people lost autopilot after a lightning strike and came in to land at excessive speed, according to a report from crash investigators, Russian news agencies reported on Friday. But the preliminary report, from the Interstate Aviation Committee which investigates plane crashes in Russia,…
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Rosneft Awarded for Participation in Green Spring Environmental Campaign
Rosneft has been awarded for its active involvement in the Green Spring—the Russia-wide environmental volunteer clean-up—and badged “For Initiative and Significant Contribution to Protection of the Environment.” Over 15,000 employees from over 80 subsidiaries of Rosneft Oil Company took part in the environmental campaign. Throughout the month, the Company’s employees were cleaning the area of…
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Iran Says Situation in Middle East Calls for Closer Ties With Russia
The Middle East situation requires closer ties between Iran and Russia, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said at a China-led security bloc summit on Friday, according to the Russian state-run RIA news agency. Rouhani earlier said U.S. actions pose a serious threat to stability in the Middle East after Washington accused Iran of attacks on oil…
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The flagship project of the Russian VVER-TOI NPP was found to comply with the EUR requirements
European power generation companies agreed that the most advanced Russian project of the VVER-TOI NPP complies with the European Utility Requirement (EUR). The ceremony of handing of the corresponding certificate was held in St. Petersburg on June 13. Atomenergoproekt JSC (a company of Rosatom engineering division) is the general designer of VVER-TOI, Hydropress Design Bureau…
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Russian ‘Whale Jail’ Company Slapped With $900K Fine Over Orca Captures
A court in Russia’s Far East has fined a company nearly $900,000 for its role in the so-called “whale prison” that has garnered international outrage in recent months. Nearly 100 whales reportedly bound for export to China have been held for months in cramped pens near the Sea of Japan port of Nakhodka, triggering a…
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A Change in Russia’s Draconian Drug Laws Could Be on the Horizon
Living in a country where so-called gay propaganda is banned, Denis, 19, was happy to finally meet someone he felt a connection with on the dating app Tinder. A few weeks after they had started chatting, the guy on the other side of the screen invited him over and asked him to bring “some weed”…
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How Russian Oil Giant Rosneft Uses Its Corporate Jets for Business and Pleasure
Jets used for corporate travel by Russian state-owned oil major Rosneft flew at least 13 times to Mallorca, Ibiza, Sardinia and the Maldives when CEO Igor Sechin or people from his social circle were in the same vacation spots. Using publicly available data, Reuters tracked 290 Rosneft flights between January 2015 and May 2019. Of…
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Russians Grow Friendlier Toward U.S. and Ukraine, Poll Says
Russians’ perception of the United States and Ukraine as hostile foreign powers has dropped significantly over the past year, according to a new poll by the independent Levada Center pollster. The U.S., Ukraine and Britain have ranked as the top three countries Russians view as enemies since 2017. Russia has experienced fraught relations with the…
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Europol Points to Russian Money as Biggest Laundering Threat
Europe’s Baltic states are at risk from further Russian money laundering, a top European police official said after several big banks were hit by scandals centered on the region. Pedro Felicio, who is responsible for fighting money laundering at European police agency Europol, told Reuters that “huge inflows of criminal money” are mainly coming into…