Russian-Chinese Coal Project Hits Financing Hurdle Due to Secondary Sanctions

A joint Russian-Chinese coal project in Siberia is facing difficulties with financing due to Western secondary sanctions on cross-border payments to Russia, the CEO of Russian metals and renewables giant En+ said Thursday. The United States expanded its secondary sanctions against Russia in June, giving the Treasury Department the authority to penalize foreign banks that…

Ex-Deputy Emergency Situations Minister Accused of ‘Stealing’ Moscow Apartment

A former deputy minister of Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry was charged over the alleged theft of an apartment, federal investigators said Thursday. Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said Pavel Baryshev used fraudulent documents between 2017 and 2019 to acquire a three-bedroom apartment in the Moscow area valued at 20 million rubles ($223,700). Law enforcement authorities…

Russian Firms Bought Dutch Microchip-Making Machine Parts via China – Trouw

Russian companies have been able to purchase spare parts for outdated microchip-making machines produced by Dutch tech giant ASML through Chinese intermediaries since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Dutch daily Trouw reported Wednesday, citing Russian customs data. Small Russian importers reportedly obtained these parts at least 170 times between February 2022 and December 2023. Trouw…

Russian YouTubers See Drop in Views Amid Government Slowdown Efforts – Vedomosti

Popular Russian YouTubers have experienced noticeable drops in view counts over the past month, with some losing as much as 80% of their audience on the platform amid what appears to be government attempts to throttle YouTube, the Vedomosti business newspaper reported Wednesday, citing an industry analytics report. According to the report, published by the social…

Belarusian Military Says Destroyed Drones After Airspace Violation

Belarus’ Defense Ministry said early Thursday that it destroyed several drones after they violated the country’s airspace overnight. “Late last night, on September 5, a violation of Belarusian airspace was detected, reportedly involving unmanned aerial vehicles,” the ministry said in a statement posted on Telegram. “A decision was made to neutralize the threat. Prompt actions…

U.S. Accuses Russia’s RT News Outlet of Election Interference

The United States indicted two employees of Russia’s RT and imposed sanctions on top editors of the state-funded news outlet on Wednesday, accusing them of seeking to influence the 2024 U.S. presidential election. The 10 individuals and two entities sanctioned by the Treasury Department include RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonovna Simonyan and deputy Elizaveta Yuryevna Brodskaia.…

Ukrainian Attack on Donetsk Region Market Kills 3, Moscow-Backed Official Says

A Ukrainian attack on an open-air market in the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk killed three people and injured five others, Moscow-backed authorities said Wednesday. “Two men and one woman were killed in the Sokol market in Donetsk’s Kirovsky district, and five others were injured,” said Denis Pushilin, the Kremlin-appointed governor of the Donetsk region. Pushilin…

‘Finally, a Boy!’: What We Learned From New Investigation Into Putin’s Secret Sons

The Dossier Center investigative outlet released an investigation that sheds light on the life of the two alleged young sons of President Vladimir Putin and Alina Kabaeva, a decorated Russian gymnast turned longtime presidential partner.  The Moscow Times has gathered the key findings of the investigation into the life of Ivan Putin and Vladimir Putin Jr.:…

Serbian Deputy PM Meets With Putin in Russia

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Russia on Wednesday, just days after Belgrade signed a multi-billion-dollar fighter jet deal with France. The meeting took place on the sidelines of an economic forum in Vladivostok, where Putin arrived on Tuesday after a state visit to Mongolia, according to Serbian…

Russia Secretly Buying Sensitive Electronics From India – FT

Russia has set up a covert trade route to obtain critical electronics from India for its war in Ukraine, the Financial Times reported Thursday, citing leaked government documents and anonymous sources. The Moscow-based Consortium for Foreign Economic Activity and International Interstate Cooperation in Industry (Ved MMKP) reported to Russia’s Industry and Trade Ministry in October 2022 that…

Ukraine’s Government Reshuffle Will Not Impact Ceasefire Talks, Kremlin Says

Ukraine’s government reshuffle will not affect potential peace talks with Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists Wednesday. At least six top Ukrainian officials including cabinet ministers have submitted their resignations since Tuesday, while a presidential aide was dismissed. David Arakhamia, who heads the ruling party’s parliamentary faction, declared Wednesday a “day of dismissals.”  “This reshuffle…

ROSATOM presented Russian nuclear technologies to the expert community of Indonesia

The corporation took part in several nuclear energy events. ROSATOM’s experts took part in the International Conference on Advances in Nuclear Science and Technology ICANSE-2024 organized by the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB, Indonesia). The experts presented advanced technologies and Russian experience in nuclear energy, including SMR projects. The visit of the ROSATOM delegation to…

The reactor vessel has been installed in its design position at the Tianwan NPP Unit 8 (China)

The Rosatom Engineering Division has provided technical support for the operation. The reactor vessel manufactured by Russian specialists has been installed in its design position at the Tianwan NPP Unit 8 which is being built by the Rosatom Engineering Division in China. The division’s representatives have provided technical support for the technological operation supervised by…

Builders of Akkuyu NPP (Türkiye) completed concreting of foundation of turbine set of Unit 3

The high-tech turbine set system is designed to convert steam energy into mechanical energy that turns the turbine and generator rotor to generate power. September 3, 2024 – Büyükeceli, Mersin Province, Türkiye – Russian and Turkish builders of Akkuyu NPP (being constructed by Rosatom in Türkiye) have completed concreting the foundation of the turbine set…

Ukrainian Drone Smashes Into Church in Russia’s Belgorod Region

Ukrainian drone strikes targeted three towns in Russia’s Belgorod region, seriously damaging a church and hitting public and commercial buildings, local authorities said early Tuesday. “An FPV drone struck St. Nicholas Church in the village of Gruzskoye in the Borisov district,” Belgorod region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram. Gladkov shared photos showing the church’s…

Researchers Locate Possible Launch Site for Russia’s New Nuclear-Powered Missile – Reuters

Two U.S. researchers claim to have identified a new potential deployment site of Russia’s nuclear-armed cruise missile Burevestnik, Reuters reported Monday. Decker Eveleth, an analyst with the CNA research and analysis organization, and Jeffery Lewis of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey said they identified a construction project near a nuclear warhead storage facility 475…

Mongolia’s Reluctance to Arrest Putin a ‘Major Setback’ for International Law, Experts Say

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s arrival in Mongolia marks his first trip to an International Criminal Court (ICC) member state since the body issued a warrant for his arrest over the illegal deportations of Ukrainian children to Russia in March 2023.  While bolstering Putin’s defiance of the West, the visit carries wider implications for international law…

Russia Imports $30M in U.S. Dollar, Euro Banknotes From Rwanda Despite Sanctions – Vyorstka

Russia imported more than $29 million in U.S. dollar and euro banknotes from Rwanda this year, despite Western sanctions on cash imports, the investigative outlet Vyorstka reported on Monday, citing confidential customs data. The United States and the European Union banned the export of their banknotes to Russia in March 2022 following the full-scale invasion…

In the ‘Urals Switzerland,’ a Village Boycotts Vote for Pro-Kremlin Governor Over Neglected Road

A small village in a national park in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region is boycotting the upcoming regional elections where the pro-Kremlin incumbent governor seeks to secure his mandate because they have been cut off from the outside world by authorities’ negligence. The village of Tyulyuk, some 1,700 kilometers from Moscow, is located in a region nicknamed…