China Restricts Russian Seafood Imports After Coronavirus Found on Packaging

Chinese authorities have restricted seafood imports from Russia after finding traces of the coronavirus on the seafood’s outer packaging, the Vedomosti business daily reported Thursday.  China, the destination for 60% of Russia’s seafood exports, has so far placed restrictions on four Russian companies, Russian Fishery Industries Association president German Zverev told Vedomosti.  China previously sent…

Russia Says Ready for ‘Close Coordination’ With Turkey on Karabakh

Russia said on Thursday its foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu had confirmed in a phone call they were ready for “close coordination” to stabilize the situation in Nagorny Karabakh. Fighting over the breakaway region between majority-Muslim Azerbaijan and Christian Armenia has raised fears of a wider conflict involving regional powers Turkey and Russia.…

Gazprom and LUKOIL continuing preparations for developing two fields in Nenets Autonomous Area

October 1, 2020, 21:00 A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Vagit Alekperov, President of LUKOIL, took place today in St. Petersburg. The parties discussed current issues related to cooperation, including further steps in the preparations for the development of the Vaneyvisskoye and Layavozhskoye fields. Background Gazprom and LUKOIL are bound by the 2014–2024 General Agreement on Strategic Partnership, pursuant to which,…

The Moscow International Film Festival Begins Quietly But Packs a Cinematic Punch

Staggered seating, social distancing, masks and gloves – so begins the 42nd Moscow International Film Festival (MIFF). The organizers couldn’t invite Hollywood and international celebrities to the opening ceremony, but this didn’t stop MIFF from coming up with a new and extremely rich movie program. Many of the films presented at the festival, unfortunately, will…

Belarus Opposition Leader Takes Risky Diplomatic Path

Once a political novice, Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is joining Europe’s diplomatic big leagues but risks undermining her own cause in the process, experts said. After meeting French President Emmanuel Macron this week, the self-proclaimed victor of Belarus’s presidential election in August is set to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The high-profile meetings are…

Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | Oct. 1

Russia has confirmed 1,185,231 cases of coronavirus and 20,891 deaths. Oct. 1: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 8,945 new Covid-19 cases Thursday, bringing the country’s official number of cases to 1,185,231 as the number of new infections across the country continues to rise.  Moscow employers will be required to transfer 30% of their employees to remote work…

Russia Finds Wiretaps in Foreign-Made Clothing Irons – Trade Official

Russian authorities have discovered pre-installed wiretap devices inside imported clothing irons, the Industry and Trade Ministry’s top radioelectronics industry official said Wednesday.  Vasily Shpak warned that bugged appliances and electronic devices are a commonplace reality but did not specify the countries in which the irons were allegedly manufactured nor the potential motives for wiretapping. “They…

Far East Russian Region Fights the Blues With ‘Happiness Ministry’

Russia’s easternmost territory of Kamchatka will establish a so-called “ministry of happiness” to improve its residents’ well-being, the region’s recently elected governor Vladimir Solodov announced Thursday. The Kremlin-backed governor said the new agency, officially called the “ministry of social welfare and family policy,” is part of ongoing administrative reforms. “In short, it’s about happiness,” Solodov…

Gazprom’s projects for preserving cultural heritage and developing St. Petersburg receive high praise from Russian Government

September 30, 2020, 20:00 A delegation of the Government of the Russian Federation led by Dmitry Chernyshenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, today paid a visit to the Tsarskoe Selo State Museum Preserve. Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, took part in the event. Alexey Miller acquainted the delegation with the main charity projects implemented by Gazprom in St. Petersburg. Particular attention was…

Moscow Film Fest Pulls Nagorno-Karabakh Drama Over Violence Worries

The Moscow International Film Festival will not screen an Armenian drama set in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh in order to avoid provoking violence between ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijanis in the Russian capital, Interfax reported Wednesday. Organizers made the decision as clashes between arch-foes Armenia and Azerbaijan over Karabakh entered their fourth day and the number…

Kremlin Orders 2-Week Virus Quarantine for All Putin Visitors – Reports

The Kremlin has imposed a mandatory two-week quarantine for anyone scheduled to meet President Vladimir Putin in person, the Proekt investigative website reported Wednesday. Putin, 67, has held most of his meetings via videoconference since the start of the pandemic, which has affected several high-ranking government officials including his spokesman and prime minister. As restrictions…

‘Silovichok’ Children’s Military Playground Rekindles Debate in Russia

A military-patriotic children’s playground in northern Russia has rekindled debate over the militarization of young Russians amid President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to cement patriotism as a unifying national idea.  Social media users were divided after images of the “Silovichok” playground, which opened this summer in the city of Arkhangelsk, circulated online this week. They depicted tank-shaped…

U.S., European Oil Majors Could Create Supply Crisis With Renewables Push – Russia’s Rosneft

U.S. and European oil majors’ commitment to moving away from fossil fuels toward renewable energy threatens oil supplies and prices, Russia’s state-run oil giant Rosneft has said, according to the Financial Times. BP, Chevron, Eni, Equinor, ExxonMobil, Repsol, Shell and Total have to varying degrees laid out strategies they say are compatible with the Paris…

Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | Sept. 29

Russia has confirmed 1,167,805 cases of coronavirus and 20,545 deaths. Sept. 29: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 8,232 new Covid-19 cases Tuesday, bringing the country’s official number of cases to 1,167,805 as the number of new infections across the country continues to rise.  Moscow’s schools will take a two-week vacation from Oct.5-18 in order to slow the…

Putin Says Belarus Facing ‘Unprecedented External Pressure’

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that neighboring Belarus was under unprecedented external pressure, as the Kremlin’s ex-Soviet ally faces a deep political crisis over a disputed election. Belarus is in a “difficult situation” and facing “unprecedented external pressure,” Putin said in televised remarks, after a presidential vote last month sparked ongoing protests against authoritarian…

Death Toll Rises in Armenia-Azerbaijan Fight Despite Calls for Pause

Fierce fighting raged between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces on Monday, sparking bellicose rhetoric from regional power Turkey despite international pleas for a halt in fighting between the longtime enemies. Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked in a territorial dispute over the ethnic Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh for decades, with deadly fighting flaring up earlier this…

5K Recruits Receive Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine

Around 5,000 volunteers including those who are at higher risk of severe infection have received Russia’s coronavirus vaccine as part of final clinical trials for safety and effectiveness, its developer said Monday. Moscow’s state-run Gamaleya research center, which developed the Sputnik V vaccine, has said post-registration clinical trials that began earlier this month would involve more…

Nobel Winner Alexievich Leaves Belarus for Treatment – Friend

Belarusian writer Svetlana Alexievich has left the country for treatment in Germany, her friend told AFP Monday, after the Nobel Literature Prize winner faced official pressure for supporting the opposition. The 72-year-old author, who has been summoned for questioning by investigators after joining the opposition’s Coordination Council, has gone to Germany for planned treatment, her…

Atommash has shipped the first Reactor Pressure Vessel for Akkuyu NPP (Turkey)

The Atommash plant (part of the machine-engineering division of ROSATOM – “Atomenergomash”) manufactured and shipped the Reactor Pressure Vessel for the first power unit of the “Akkuyu” nuclear power plant under construction. It took almost three years to manufacture the 330-ton Reactor pressure Vessel 12 meters long. A month earlier, four Steam Generators left the…