Russian Military Jet Crash Kills 2 Pilots

A Russian military jet crashed during a training flight in the North Caucasus region of North Ossetia, killing two people on board, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday. A statement said the Su-34 jet crashed “in a mountainous zone” and added that there was “no damage on the ground.” It did not specify when the accident…

Bulgarian Nuclear Plant Starts to Replace Russian Fuel

Bulgaria’s sole nuclear power plant on Monday began using atomic fuel produced by the U.S.-based Westinghouse Electric Corporation, a key step as the country shifts away from its reliance on Russian energy. The state-owned Kozloduy plant on the Danube River supplies more than a third of the country’s electricity and has so far relied on…

Russian State TV Cameraman Wounded in Mine Explosion

A Russian state television cameraman was injured in a mine explosion in the western Belgorod region, local authorities said Monday. “In the city of Shebekino, four people were blown up by a mine, three of them regional defense fighters and one employee of the Rossiya 24 TV channel,” Belgorod region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on…

Moscow Says Captured Village in Southeastern Ukraine

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Monday its forces seized control of a village in the southern part of eastern Ukraine’s partially occupied Donetsk region. Russian troops “continued to advance into the depths of the enemy’s defense and liberated the settlement of Staromaiorske,” located southwest of the Russian-held city of Donetsk. Ukrainian troops had retaken the village…

Putin to Visit North Korea, Vietnam – Report

President Vladimir Putin will travel to North Korea and Vietnam in the coming weeks, the business newspaper Vedomosti reported Monday, citing Russian diplomats familiar with the matter. Russia’s Ambassador to North Korea Alexander Matsegora told the newspaper that he is “actively preparing” for the Kremlin leader’s visit to Pyongyang but otherwise did not specify an…

Zelensky Denies Russian Foothold in Ukraine’s Sumy Region

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday denied Russian troops had captured a village in the northeastern Sumy region, where the Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov previously claimed Moscow’s forces had advanced. Kadyrov said on Sunday that Russian forces had seized the border village of Ryzhivka. There was no immediate comment from Russia’s Defense Ministry and a…

U.S. Says Russian Offensive Against Kharkiv ‘Stalled’

U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security advisor said on Sunday that Russia’s advance on northeastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv region “has stalled.” “The momentum of that operation in Kharkiv has stalled out,” Jake Sullivan told CBS. “Kharkiv is still under threat but Russians have not been able to make material progress on the ground in recent days…

Ukraine Says Hit Su-57 Fighter Jet Inside Russia

Ukraine said Sunday it had hit an Su-57 fighter jet parked at an airfield in southern Russia, its first ever attack on Moscow’s latest generation stealth aircraft. The flagship Su-57 entered into service with Russia’s aerospace forces in December 2020 and was designed to replace ageing Soviet-designed fighter aircraft such as the Su-27 and MiG-29.…

Laur Vallikivi’s “Words and Silences” is Shortlisted for the Pushkin House Book Prize

“Words and Silences – Nenets Reindeer Herders and Evangelical Missionaries in the Post-Soviet Arctic” is the first book by Estonian ethnologist Laur Vallikivi, and draws on twenty years of fieldwork amongst indigenous communities in the Russian Far East. Vallikivi acknowledges that the Soviets and their predecessors committed many atrocities against such communities – conscripting them,…

Russian Attacks Kill 2 in South, Northeast Ukraine

Russian shelling and aerial attacks killed two people in southern and northeastern Ukraine Saturday, authorities said, a day after the United Nations warned monthly civilian casualties had reached near-year highs. At least 174 civilians were killed in Ukraine in May, the deadliest month since June 2023 as Russian forces pushed into the northeastern Kharkiv region,…

Biden Says Putin ‘Not Going to Stop at Ukraine’

U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday pledged Washington’s support for Kyiv in its battle against the Russian invasion, warning that Vladimir Putin would “not stop” at Ukraine. “Putin is not going to stop at Ukraine,” Biden said alongside French President Emmanuel Macron after talks in Paris. “All of Europe will be threatened, we are not…

Eat Like an Ancient Boyar – Healthfully

The cuisine of the Middle Ages is not a cuisine of pleasure or enjoyment. It is primarily a cuisine of satiation — simply getting enough to eat. That’s why the efforts of modern nutritionists to find a role model in our ancient cuisine seem a bit strange. Of course, a long time ago people realized…

Strikes on Russian-Held Ukraine Kill 26, Occupation Authorities Say

Updates throughout. Ukrainian strikes on parts of the Russian-held Luhansk and Kherson regions killed 26 people and injured dozens more on Friday, occupation authorities said. Both Ukrainian regions were among four Russia claimed to have annexed in September 2022 despite not fully controlling any of them following the full-scale military campaign launched that February. A…

Russia Remands French NGO Worker in ‘Foreign Agent’ Case

Updates throughout. A Moscow court on Friday ordered a French citizen accused of gathering Russian military information to be held in pre-trial detention, in the latest case of a Western citizen being detained in Russia. Laurent Vinatier, a 47-year-old who works for a Swiss conflict mediation NGO, was arrested on Thursday and officially charged with…

Russia Says Its Forests Can Absorb Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Climate Change and Poor Forestry Standards Make This Unlikely.

As the climate crisis intensifies, Russia is pinning its hopes on its vast forests to make up for its carbon emissions — the world’s fourth-highest — and even help the country become a global leader in carbon absorption. But the country’s substandard conservation and ineffective forestry practices, combined with the impacts of climate change itself,…

Russia Bans Nonexistent ‘Anti-Russian Separatist Movement’

Russia’s Supreme Court has banned the vaguely defined “Anti-Russian Separatist Movement” as an “extremist” organization, the independent news website Mediazona reported Friday. Rights groups say they have not been able to find a formal organization called the “Anti-Russian Separatist Movement,” leading to speculation that the authorities could use the designation as a pretext for wider…

Putin Touts BRICS, Rebukes ‘Hegemon’ West in Economic Forum Speech

Countries across the globe are racing to “strengthen their sovereignty” amid Western nations’ efforts to “maintain their elusive role as hegemons,” President Vladimir Putin said in his plenary address at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) Friday.  Moscow has sought to broaden its support from countries in Africa, South America and Asia and cast itself as…

ROSATOM participates in SPIEF-2024 Plenary Session “Technological Ecosystem of the Future: For the Benefit of Humanity and the Planet”

Alexey Likhachev, Director General of ROSATOM, outlined three key components of the technological landscape for the next hundred years. On June 7, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2024) featured a plenary session titled “Technological Ecosystem of the Future: For the Benefit of Humanity and the Planet.” Participants included Alexey Likhachev, Director General of ROSATOM,…

Four Killed by Strike on Russian-Held Ukrainian City

Updates with new death toll. A missile attack on the Russian-controlled city of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine on Friday killed four people and injured over 40, Russian officials said. The eastern Luhansk region is almost entirely under Russian control. Moscow claimed to have annexed it in 2022. The main city, also called Luhansk, came under…

Russian Prosecutors Seek French NGO Worker’s Jailing Pending Trial

Russian prosecutors on Friday requested that a French man accused of collecting information about the military be placed in pre-trial detention pending a court hearing on charges of breaking Russia’s “foreign agents” law, his lawyer told AFP. Laurent Vinatier, a French national who works with the Geneva-based Center for Humanitarian Dialogue, was arrested Thursday in…

Kremlin Says France Seeks ‘Direct’ Role in Ukraine War

French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent statements are “inflaming” tensions in Europe and show he is readying France for a direct role in the Ukraine war, the Kremlin said on Friday. The French leader has taken an increasingly hawkish line in his support for Kyiv, promising on Thursday to transfer Mirage fighter jets to the embattled…

Indian Medical Students Drown in Russian River

Four Indian medical students have drowned while swimming in a river in northwestern Russia, local law enforcement officials said Friday. The incident happened on Tuesday in the Volkhov River in the city of Veliky Novgorod, the regional branch of Russia’s Investigative Committee said. “The students were swimming… in an area where swimming is banned,” the…

ROSATOM, together with partners from the Republic of Guinea, study the possibility of deploying floating power units in the country

The document was signed during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. On June 7, 2024, during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the Mechanical Engineering Division of ROSATOM signed a memorandum of understanding with partners from the Republic of Guinea. This Memorandum of Understanding envisages cooperation on developing floating power units (FPUs) to supply electricity…

Ukraine Orders Evacuations From Parts of Donetsk Region

Ukraine on Thursday ordered the evacuation of children and their guardians from several towns and villages in the eastern Donetsk region, where fighting with Russian troops has intensified since Moscow launched a new ground offensive early last month. President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Russian firepower is now concentrated in Donetsk, which the Kremlin claimed to…

U.S. Says Russia Planning Naval Drills in Caribbean Sea

Washington is tracking Russian warships headed to the Caribbean Sea for military exercises this summer, Reuters and the Associated Press reported, citing unnamed U.S. officials. According to the reports, officials said they believe the anticipated drills were “certainly” part of Russia’s broader response to U.S. support for Ukraine. AP said Moscow has not notified Washington…

Russia Detains French Citizen for Gathering Military Information

Russian law enforcement authorities on Thursday detained a French citizen on suspicion of gathering information about the military and accused him of violating the country’s law on “foreign agents.” “The suspect carried out a targeted collection of Russian defense and military-technical information for several years,” Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said in a…

Russian Court Remands Pro-Putin Witch After She Collapses in Court

A Moscow court on Thursday remanded the self-proclaimed witch Alyona Polyn, known for casting spells in support of President Vladimir Putin, shortly after she collapsed in court, state media reported. Polyn, whose real name is Yelena Sulikova, was detained in the Moscow region earlier this week on charges of disseminating “extremist” literature and “insulting believers’…

Russian Central Bank Chief Calls for ‘Open Economy’

Russia’s Central Bank chief on Thursday called for Russia to be an “open economy” despite the barrage of Western sanctions and trading restrictions it has faced over the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina was speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia’s premier business and investment event that used to…

Russia Says Captured Colombian Who Fought for Ukraine

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Thursday that its forces captured a Columbian man who purportedly fought as a mercenary on the side of Ukraine. “Angel Cardenas Montilla came to Ukraine following an advertisement on TikTok inviting mercenaries to fight against Russia,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement. It did not say where the man was…