Rosneft Hosts Corporate Environmental Race in Moscow
Rosneft organised an environmental event in Moscow’s Fili Park – a plogging race where employees cleaned up litter
Russia Says Journalists Stripped of Olympic Accreditation
Russia’s TASS state news agency said Sunday the Paris Olympics organizing committee had stripped four of its journalists of accreditation to cover the Games after they attended initial events. TASS said that the removal of the reporters’ accreditation, essential to cover the Games, was “completely unexpected” after the journalists had entered France, received passes and…
Tamizdat: The New World of Russian Publishing
“An infected mouse escapes from the Institute of Functional Immortality, where the development of a means to prolong Putin’s life is underway. An apocalypse occurs in Moscow: most of the city’s inhabitants die, some survive, and the rest turn into zombies.” …
Putin Threatens To Restart Production of Mid-Range Nuclear Weapons
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday threatened to relaunch production of intermediate-range nuclear weapons if the United States confirmed its intention to deploy missiles to Germany or elsewhere in Europe. “If the United States carries out such plans, we will consider ourselves liberated from the unilateral moratorium previously adopted on the deployment of medium- and…
Mali Army, Russian Allies Suffer Heavy Losses in North – Local Sources
Mali’s army and its Russian allies suffered a major setback and significant losses Saturday while fighting separatists in the country’s north, a spokesman for the rebels told AFP. The West African nation’s military leaders that took power in a 2020 coup have made it a priority to retake all of the country from separatist and…
Russian Navy Ship Arrives in Cuba for Three-Day Visit
A Russian navy ship arrived in Cuba on Saturday for a three-day stay, six weeks after Moscow sent a submarine and other naval vessels to visit the communist state off Florida’s coast. The Smolny training ship was greeted with salvos from Cuban artillery before it anchored in Havana’s harbor, where residents and tourists gathered to…
Russia Slams Olympic Opening as ‘Massive Failure’
Russia on Saturday slammed the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games as a “massive failure”. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova gave a long list of shortcomings at Friday’s ceremony, which was not broadcast live on Russian television. “I wasn’t planning to watch the opening. But after seeing the photos, I couldn’t believe it wasn’t…
Russia Claims Capture of Another Village in East Ukraine
Russia on Saturday claimed the capture of another village in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region where there is heavy fighting as Moscow’s forces advance towards the city of Pokrovsk. The Defense ministry said Russian troops “liberated” the village of Lozuvatske, about 24 kilometers (15 miles) east of Pokrovsk and near the Russian-occupied small town of Ocheretnye.…
Russia Says Kyiv’s Statements on Peace Talks Contradictory
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Saturday he “does not listen” to what he called Ukraine’s contradictory statements on peace talks. Lavrov spoke after Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba visited China for talks this week. President Volodymyr Zelensky then said Beijing sent a “clear signal” it supported Ukraine’s territorial integrity. Answering questions from Russian journalists…
Feeding Olympic Athletes the Soviet Way
The opening of the Olympic Games not only makes us cheer for the athletes, it also makes us reminisce a bit. Looking back on the few weeks in July-August 1980 when the Soviet Union hosted the Olympics, we can see that Moscow finally had the ideal public catering that “the Bolsheviks had been talking about…
Dam Collapses in Russia’s Chelyabinsk Region, Forcing Hundreds to Flee
Heavy rainfall led to the collapse of a reservoir dam in the Ural Mountains region of Chelyabinsk on Friday night, Russian authorities said, forcing residents of nearby villages to evacuate their homes. A dam at the Kialimskoye reservoir, measuring around 500 meters long, was unable to hold back rising waters and broke, unleashing a flood torrent toward…
Man Sets Himself Ablaze on Red Square – Reports
The head of a research institute that supplies communication systems to the Russian military set himself ablaze on Red Square Friday, media outlets reported, citing anonymous sources. Mash, a Telegram news channel with purported links to Russian law enforcement, said eyewitnesses saw a man douse himself with a flammable liquid and then ignite in flames.…
Fashion Police: Russia Cracks Down on Pop Stars’ Revealing Costumes
Russian politicians fighting to defend so-called “traditional” values are turning their attention to the country’s vibrant music scene, lambasting pop stars for performances and outfits deemed to be too revealing or sexual. Pop singer Natalya Chistyakova-Ionova, who is best known by her stage name Glukoza, became embroiled in scandal after pro-Kremlin censorship activist Yekaterina Mizulina…
Determined to Stay: The Lives of Ukrainian Civilians on the Kharkiv Front
KHARKIV REGION, Ukraine — An old green Soviet Lada speeds along a dirt road, skidding as it races forward. Behind the car, thick black smoke billows into the July sky. A Grad missile has just struck a small village in the Kharkiv region, less than 6 miles from the front lines. Oleksiy, 65, is cultivating…
Who Are the Russian Athletes Competing in the Paris Olympics?
Only 15 Russian athletes will take part in the Paris Olympics after the International Olympic Committee banned athletes from Russia and Belarus from competing under their own flag. These athletes will be allowed to compete as “individual neutral athletes.” The IOC says there are strict conditions for Russian or Belarusian athletes to be eligible to…
Volcanic Ash Creates ‘Alien’ Landscape at Nature Preserve in Kamchatka
A recent volcanic eruption in Far East Russia has blanketed the remote landscape of a major nature preserve with ash, the Kamchatka peninsula’s park service said Friday. Bezymyanny volcano, one of Kamchatka’s most active, erupted on Wednesday, with ash spewing up to 12 kilometers into the Earth’s atmosphere and plumes extending around 2,500 kilometers southeast of the…
Anti-War Store Owner Released From St. Petersburg Prison
A store owner in St. Petersburg who was jailed last year for publicly opposing the war in Ukraine was released from prison on Friday, local media reported. In August 2023, Dmitry Skurikhin was ordered to spend one year and six months in prison for “discrediting” the Russian military after he painted his store in pacifist slogans. He was arrested after…
EU Transfers $1.6 Billion Raised From Russian Assets for Ukraine
The EU on Friday said 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) had been made available to support Ukraine, the first chunk of money earned from profits on frozen Russian assets. EU member states had agreed in May to use billions of euros in profits from frozen Russian Central Bank assets to help arm Ukraine and fund…
Kremlin Says Not Informed of Russian’s Arrest Over Suspected Olympics Plot
The Kremlin’s spokesman on Friday said Moscow had not been informed of the arrest in France of a Russian man over a suspected “destabilization” plot targeting the Paris Olympics. The man was detained Tuesday in Paris but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that France had not informed Russian officials. “We have no information. We…
Former Russian Deputy Defense Minister Arrested on Corruption Charges
Former Deputy Defense Minister Dmitry Bulgakov has been arrested on corruption charges, Russian law enforcement authorities announced on Friday, adding that the army general was moved to a detention center in Moscow. Bulgakov, 69, is the seventh high-ranking Defense Ministry official to have been arrested since April in an apparent purge of the military’s top ranks as…
How a Novel About a Zombie Apocalypse in Moscow Spooked the Russian Government
Writer Ivan Filippov’s novel “Mouse” (“Miysh’”), about a zombie apocalypse in Moscow, was pulled from Russian bookstore shelves this month on the Prosecutor General’s Office’s orders. The news came from Georgy Urushadze, founder of the book’s publisher Freedom Letters. Luckily for the publisher, sales of the book only increased after the announcement. Freedom Letters is one of…
The I International Student Games Were Held in Vladivostok with Rosneft’s Support
Vladivostok, the capital of Primorsky Krai, hosted the closing ceremony of the First International Youth Student Games “Primorye Youth” sponsored by Rosneft. More than 500 athletes from Russia, Belarus, China, India, DPRK, and Uzbekistan took part in the Games
Russia’s Central Bank Raises Rates to 18% Amid Inflation Woes
Russia’s Central Bank on Friday raised its key interest rate from 16% to 18%, a widely anticipated move as the country struggles to fight inflation amid surging spending on the war in Ukraine and widespread labor shortages across the economy, which are driving up wages. “Inflation has accelerated and is developing significantly above the Bank…
Moscow Labels Dozens of Indigenous Groups, Free Russia Foundation as ‘Extremist’
Authorities in Moscow have added an unprecedented 54 Indigenous groups and the U.S.-based Free Russia Foundation to the country’s growing list of “extremist” organizations. Russia’s Justice Ministry labeled the 55 seemingly unrelated organizations as “structural divisions” of the vaguely defined “Anti-Russian Separatist Movement,” which Russia’s Supreme Court banned as an “extremist” organization last month. Rights groups…
Composer Philip Glass Accuses Theatre in Annexed Crimea of ‘Piracy’
American composer Philip Glass has accused a theatre in Russian-annexed Crimea of planning to stage a ballet premiere that uses his music without permission. Glass, an 87-year-old composer famed for his minimalist works, took to X (formerly Twitter) to complain about what he said was an act of “piracy” by a theatre in the Black…
Russian Defense Minister Inspects Troops’ Combat Readiness
Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov oversaw combat readiness exercises at a military training facility in northwestern Russia, the defense ministry said on Friday. “Belousov reviewed the organization of combat training of military personnel at one of the training grounds of the Leningrad Military District,” the army said in a statement. The statement added that the training…
Rosneft and Smolensk Region Tourism Development Centre Present a New Tourism Project
Rosneft and the Smolensk Region Tourism Development Centre presented a joint project to develop car tourism, aimed at unlocking the region’s tourism potential
Moscow Car Bomb Suspect Extradited From Turkey, Says Planned to Flee to Ukraine
A Russian man suspected of detonating a car bomb in Moscow earlier this week has been extradited from Turkey, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Friday. “Internationally wanted Russian citizen Yevgeny N. Serebryakov, born in 1995, was detained in Bodrum (Turkey) jointly by the FSB and Russia’s Interior Ministry, and with the assistance of Turkish…
Summer Project School for Rosneft Classes Students Launched at the MSU University Gymnasium
The Third summer project school for students of Rosneft classes launched at the University Gymnasium of Lomonosov Moscow State University
Novosibirsk Mayor Says China ‘Ready’ to Help Develop Public Transport Network
A major state-owned Chinese construction company is prepared to help expand the public rail and road networks in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, the mayor’s office announced Thursday. Novosibirsk Mayor Maxim Kudryavtsev said in a statement that his administration met with representatives from the China Railway Tunnel Group, a subsidiary of the government-owned China Railway…
A Timeline of Russia’s Defense Ministry Purge
Since at least April, the Russian military has been in upheaval, punctuated by arrests of senior Defense Ministry officials on charges including bribery and abuse of power. This turmoil appears to have peaked in May with the dismissal of longtime Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who faced accusations of mishandling the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. While…
Kremlin Says Open to Peace Talks With Zelensky, But Needs More Clarity
The Kremlin said Thursday that it was still open to negotiations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky despite Moscow’s questions about his legitimacy as leader. “Russia is generally open to the negotiation process, but we first need to understand if the Ukrainian side is ready,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “From a practical point of…
Belarusian President Lukashenko Meets With Putin at Russian Monastery
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko traveled to Russia on Thursday for talks with close ally Vladimir Putin, state media reported. Lukashenko’s trip follows moves he has made over the past month that some observers interpret as an effort to ease tensions with the West after being hit with sanctions for allowing Russian troops to use Belarusian…
Russia, China Conduct Strategic Bomber Patrol Near Alaska
Russian and Chinese strategic bombers carried out a joint patrol of Far East Russia and the Bering Sea near Alaska, Russia’s Defense Ministry said Thursday. “An aviation group of Russian Aerospace Forces Tu-95MS strategic missile carriers and the Chinese air force’s Xian H-6 strategic bombers performed an aerial patrol over the Chukchi and Bering Seas…
Ukrainian Shelling of Russia’s Belgorod Region Kills Man
One man was killed and two others were injured in a Ukrainian attack on the town of Shebekino in southwestern Russia’s Belgorod region, officials said Thursday. “A tragedy happened,” Belgorod region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said. “A man died from his injuries before an ambulance could arrive.” Gladkov said regional defense fighters transported the two wounded…
Russian Drones Attack Ukrainian Port City for Second Night in a Row
Russian drones attacked the southwestern Ukrainian port city of Izmail for a second night, authorities in Kyiv said on Thursday, claiming several Russian aircraft entered Romanian airspace. Moscow has regularly targeted ports in the southern Odesa region since it backed out of an agreement last year that allowed Ukraine to export grain via the Black…
Ex-Russian Military Construction Head Arrested for Abuse of Power – Kommersant
The former head of the Russian military’s construction company has been arrested on abuse of power charges, the Kommersant business daily reported late Wednesday, citing anonymous government sources familiar with the matter. Andrei Belkov headed the Defense Ministry’s chief military construction authority for special facilities until 2021, when he was picked to head the newly…
Russian Attack Helicopter Crashes Southwest of Moscow, Killing Crew
A military attack helicopter crashed in an uninhabited area of central Russia, killing the entire crew, authorities said early Thursday. “A Mi–28 helicopter crashed in the Zhizdrinsky district,” Kaluga region Governor Vladislav Shapsha said. “A task force and rescuers are working at the crash site.” The Zhizdrinsky district, located in the central Kaluga region, is around…
Putin Meets With Syrian President Assad in Moscow
President Vladimir Putin met with his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad in Moscow to discuss what the Russian leader described as continued “escalation” in the Middle East, state media reported on Thursday. The meeting, held late Wednesday, comes at a time when Russia — which saved Assad’s government through its military intervention in 2015 during a…
Rosneft Develops Green Technology for Recycling Drill Cuttings
The Company’s production assets Samaraneftegaz, Orenburgneft and RN-Krasnodarneftegaz have successfully implemented a waste-free and environmentally friendly technology for recycling drill cuttings
Russian Fighter Jet Intercept British Warplanes Over Black Sea
Russia’s military said Wednesday that it scrambled a Su-27 fighter jet to prevent three British warplanes from entering Russian airspace over the Black Sea. A Su-27 identified the “three air targets” as a U.K. Royal Air Force RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft and two Typhoon fighter planes, Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement. “As the Russian…
Russian Fighter Jet Intercepts British Warplanes Over Black Sea
Russia’s military said Wednesday that it scrambled a Su-27 fighter jet to prevent three British warplanes from entering Russian airspace over the Black Sea. A Su-27 identified the “three air targets” as a U.K. Royal Air Force RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft and two Typhoon fighter planes, Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement. “As the Russian…
Moscow’s ‘Square of Europe’ Renamed to ‘Square of Eurasia’
Authorities in Moscow on Wednesday renamed the capital city’s Square of Europe as the Square of Eurasia amid Russia’s worsening relations with the West over the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Square of Europe, located in front of the bustling Kievsky Railway Station, was unveiled in 2002 as part of a joint Russian-Belgian project symbolizing European…
Russian Chef Behind Alleged Olympics Games Plot – Le Monde
A Russian man arrested this week for allegedly planning to “destabilize” the Paris Olympics is an intelligence officer for Moscow who worked undercover as a chef in France for over a decade, Le Monde reported late Tuesday, citing anonymous European security and intelligence officials. French prosecutors said the 40-year-old Russian national was arrested Tuesday for…
Russian Chef Behind Alleged Olympic Games Plot – Le Monde
A Russian man arrested this week for allegedly planning to “destabilize” the Paris Olympics is an intelligence officer for Moscow who worked undercover as a chef in France for over a decade, Le Monde reported late Tuesday, citing anonymous European security and intelligence officials. French prosecutors said the 40-year-old Russian national was arrested Tuesday for…
Russia, Kyrgyzstan Sign Radioactive Decontamination Deal
Kyrgyzstan ratified an agreement with Russia on Wednesday for the mass decontamination of radioactive areas that pose a threat to the local population. The mountainous central Asian country, a former Soviet republic, is still suffering the environmental consequences of uranium and other heavy metals mining during the Soviet era. Ninety-two sites contain more than 300…
3 Russians Killed After Fishing Boat Sinks in South Atlantic
At least three Russian citizens were killed after a fishing boat carrying 27 people sank around 320 kilometers off the Falkland Islands, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday. The 54-meter Argos Georgia sank on Monday afternoon after being suddenly flooded with water in the South Atlantic, authorities in the Falkland Islands said in a statement. Rescuers…
Wildberries Founder Announces Divorce as Husband Enlists Kadyrov to Fight ‘Hostile Takeover’
Russia’s wealthiest woman Tatiana Bakalchuk has announced that she is divorcing her husband and business partner Vladislav Bakalchuk, who is seeking the help of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov to fight what he characterized as a “hostile takeover” of the leading online retailer Wildberries. “I confirm the start of divorce proceedings,” Tatiana Bakalchuk, who founded Wildberries in…
‘No One Needs Your English Single’: Anti-War Russian Performers Grapple With Staying Relevant in Exile
“Stop sinking and think of your income, my star. Overseas you’re going to rot in a stinking backyard. No one needs your English single in the Anglophone world.” These are the lyrics of “Kalinka,” the first English-language track by popular rapper-in-exile Noize MC. The song captures the struggles of the many Russian artists, musicians and…
Romania Scrambles Fighter Jets Amid Russian Attacks on Southern Ukraine
Romania’s Defense Ministry said early on Wednesday that it scrambled fighter jets overnight as the Russian military carried out a series of drone attacks near its shared border with southern Ukraine. The defense ministry said in a statement that two F-16 aircraft took off at 2:19 a.m. local time from the 86th Borcea Air Base,…
Rosneft Supports the Creation of Ecotrails in the Tyumen Region
Tyumenneftegaz (a subsidiary of Rosneft Oil Company) started development of an ecological tourist route around Solenoye and Dolgoye lakes
Turkish Police Arrest Man Suspected of Organizing Bomb Attack in Moscow
Updated throughout. Law enforcement authorities in Turkey have arrested a Russian man suspected of detonating a car bomb in Moscow on Wednesday morning, Turkey’s Interior Ministry said, as Russian media reported that among the victims in the attack was a senior defense ministry official. “The terrorist who organized a bomb attack in Russia was caught…
Russia Bans Entry of Top Japanese Business Execs
Russia has banned the head of Toyota and 12 other senior Japanese business figures from entering the country, prompting a protest from authorities in Tokyo on Wednesday. The list, published by Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday, includes Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda, Rakuten chief Hiroshi Mikitani and Akihiko Tanaka, president of the government-backed Japan International Cooperation…
Russian Arrested Over ‘Destabilization’ Plot for Paris Olympics – Prosecutors
French police on Tuesday arrested a Russian man suspected of plotting acts of “destabilization” during the Paris Olympics, prosecutors said. The man, born in 1984, was held in custody and placed under judicial investigation on suspicion of “organizing events likely to lead to destabilization during the Olympic Games,” a source in the state prosecution service,…
Sixth Russian-Chinese Energy Business Forum Hosted in Moscow
The 6th Russian-Chinese Energy Business Forum (RCEBF) was held in Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping sent welcoming addresses to the participants
Russian-German Citizen Held in Moscow on Treason Charges
A Moscow court on Tuesday extended the pre-trial detention of a dual Russian-German citizen accused of treason in an ultra-secret criminal case. Russia has arrested a spate of Western citizens amid its offensive on Ukraine, drawing accusations that it is taking “hostages” to use as bargaining chips for prisoner exchanges. According to state-run news agency…
Igor Sechin presents an updated Investment Atlas of Russian-Chinese energy cooperation at RCEBF
Igor Sechin, Executive Secretary of the Presidential Commission for the Strategy of Development of the Fuel and Energy Complex and CEO of Rosneft, presented an updated Atlas of Investments in Russian-Chinese Energy Cooperation at the 6th Russia-China Energy Business Forum (RCEBF)
Igor Sechin urges to create infrastructure to increase trade in national currencies
Igor Sechin, Executive Secretary of the Presidential Commission for the Strategy of Development of the Fuel and Energy Complex and CEO of Rosneft, has called for the creation of the necessary infrastructure to further expand the use of national currencies in trade between countries
Russian Lawmakers Pass Bill Expanding ‘Undesirable’ Label to Include State-Affiliated Orgs
Lawmakers in Russia’s lower-house State Duma voted Tuesday to expand the criteria for blacklisting organizations as “undesirable” to include any entity affiliated with a foreign government. The 2015 law, initially aimed at foreign-funded NGOs, has gradually been extended to target independent news outlets, human rights groups, environmental organizations and educational institutions. The recent amendments would empower Russia’s…
Russian energy projects are attractive for Chinese investments and strengthen the energy security of countries – Sechin
Executive Secretary of the Presidential Commission on the Strategy for the Development of the Fuel and Energy Complex, Chief Executive Officer of Rosneft PJSC Igor Sechin noted the safety and reliability of supplies of Russian oil and other energy resources to the PRC