Day: March 21, 2023

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Moscow would be “forced to react” if Britain gives Ukraine military supplies, including armour piercing ammunition which contains depleted uranium. “The United Kingdom… announced not only the supply of tanks to Ukraine, but also shells with depleted uranium. If this happens, Russia will be forced to react,” Putin…

An Italian court has approved the extradition to the United States of a Russian entrepreneur accused of smuggling U.S. technologies to Russian arms manufacturers, the Italian newspaper La Repubblica reported Tuesday. Artyom Uss, 40, the son of a Siberian governor, was arrested at Milan’s Malpensa Airport on Oct. 17, 2022.  He was one of five…

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s closely watched visit to Moscow this week has been filled with statements trumpeting a new era of relations between the two allies as they increasingly align themselves against the West. But while it dominated headlines, Xi’s reunion with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, who he has called a “dear friend,” is unlikely…

Xi Jinping promised to strengthen coordination with Russia at a Kremlin summit with President Vladimir Putin on the Chinese leader’s first visit to Moscow since the beginning of Russia’s assault on Ukraine. Both nations seek allies to counteract Western power and the two are expected to sign a raft of economic cooperation agreements. Putin called…

Russia announced Tuesday that it was extending until the end of June oil production cuts of 500,000 barrels per day, a response to Western sanctions that were due to expire at the end of March. “In accordance with the current market situation, the decision to voluntarily reduce production by 500,000 barrels per day will be…

More than 60 environmental groups in Russia have called on President Vladimir Putin and the Justice Ministry to remove the “foreign agents” label from the Russian chapter of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). “We consider the listing of the WWF as a foreign agent to be extremely erroneous, unfair and unreasonable,” the activists said in…

Russian energy giant Gazprom announced it had reached a record level of daily gas volume supplied to China through the Power of Siberia pipeline on Tuesday. The announcement came as Russian President Vladimir Putin hosts Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the second day of a state visit with the leaders expected to sign agreements in areas…

Recast to add Orlov’s criminal charges. Russian authorities have opened a criminal case against the co-chair of Russia’s Nobel Peace Prize-winning civil rights group Memorial on Tuesday following sweeping raids against the group’s members. Oleg Orlov has been charged with repeatedly violating Russia’s law against “discrediting” the army, Memorial said on its Telegram channel. The law, passed…

A military drone has attacked an oil pumping station for the Druzhba pipeline near the Ukrainian border, the regional governor said Tuesday, blaming Kyiv for the strike. The Druzhba pipeline, one of the largest oil pipelines in the world, runs through Russia’s Bryansk region several dozen kilometers from the border with Ukraine. “The armed forces of Ukraine, using…

Xi Jinping said Tuesday that China would prioritize ties with Russia, calling the two “great neighboring powers” as he prepared for a second day of talks with Vladimir Putin expected to focus on Ukraine. The Chinese president also said he invited the internationally isolated Putin to visit China later this year as both leaders seek…

A local state of emergency has been declared in the town of Dzhankoi in the north of Russian-annexed Crimea following a drone attack late Monday, Interfax quoted the head of the city administration Igor Ivin as saying on Tuesday. Ukraine said the attack had destroyed Russian cruise missiles, though it denied responsibility for the “mysterious”…