Author: admin
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ROSATOM manufactures the first full refueling batch of MOX fuel for BN-800 fast reactor
The Mining and Chemical Combine in Zheleznogorsk, Krasnoyarsk region (East Siberia) has manufactured the first full reload batch of fresh uranium-plutonium MOX fuel for BN-800 fast reactor, operated at Beloyarsk NPP. The 169 fuel assemblies have been accepted by Rosenergoatom, the operator of Russian NPPs, and its authorized representative VPO ZAES, which has confirmed the…
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Relatives of Murdered Chechen Dissident in Austria Claim Responsibility, ‘Repent’ to Kadyrov
The extended family of a Chechen dissident murdered in Austria earlier this month has claimed responsibility for his killing and attempted to absolve the Russian region’s Kremlin-backed leader. Two ethnic Chechens were arrested after the body of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s reported “personal foe” Mamikhan Umarov, 43, was found in Vienna on July 4. Suspicions…
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A Wave of Sexual Harassment Claims Is Rocking Russia’s Independent Media
Читайте русскую версию здесь. As her shift at Russia’s investigative Novaya Gazeta newspaper was coming to an end on a late Monday afternoon last January, Elizaveta Kirpanova stopped by a senior reporter’s office to catch up. Kirpanova, a 23-year-old reporter who had just completed her first year at the respected paper, was working on a…
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Rosneft Discovers New Oilfield With More Than 20 Million Tonnes Of Oil Reserves
RN-Vankor, an enterprise of the Rosneft Oil Company production complex, has discovered a new field on the border of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District
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Russia’s Coronavirus Cases Approach 800K Amid Lifted Lockdown
The last time Russia reported fewer than 6,000 cases was on April 29. The highest number of new cases were in Moscow, the western Siberian region of Khanty-Mansiysk and Sverdlovsk in the Urals. Russia’s fatality rate has remained low compared to other badly-hit countries, raising speculation that Moscow could be underreporting figures. Russian authorities began…
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Severstal reports Q2 & H1 2020 fiacial results
July 23, 2020 PAO Severstal (MICEX-RTS: CHMF; LSE: SVST), one of the world’s leading steel and steel-related mining companies, today announces its Q2 & H1 2020 financial results for the period ended 30 June 2020. CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR Q2 AND H1 2020 Notes: EBITDA represents profit from operations plus depreciation and amortisation of productive…
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Russia Seeks 10-Year Jail Terms for Calls to Cede Territory Under New Constitution
Russian lawmakers have approved legislation in line with President Vladimir Putin’s new Constitution which will give lengthy prison terms for calling to cede territory in what is believed to be a warning to those who question Russia’s annexation of Crimea. The current law, adopted after Moscow seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, jails Russians for…
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Russian News Crew Attacked Amid U.S. Govt Crackdown on Portland Protests
Camouflaged men attacked a Russian news crew during a crackdown on anti-racism protesters in the western U.S. city of Portland, Russian state-run television said Wednesday. Russia’s Channel One broadcaster said it believes federal agents ripped off its journalist’s helmet and knocked down its cameraman with a baton, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Wednesday. …
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‘Costakis’ Choice’ at Moscow’s AZ Museum
The AZ Museum of non-conformist art is celebrating its fifth anniversary with an exhibition dedicated to George Costakis, who was, without exaggeration, the savior of the early Russian avant-garde and post-war non-conformist art and artists. Called “Costakis’ Choice,” the show leads visitors through the life of this great collector, which is to say through the…
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Gulag Historian Convicted for Sexual Assault Despite Outcry
A Russian court has sentenced respected Gulag historian Yury Dmitriyev to three and a half years in prison on charges of sexual assault in a case his allies say was trumped up to silence him. Dmitriyev will be released in November as his time already served in pre-trial detention will count toward his sentence, his…
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Trump Nominee to Russia: Abandon ‘Flying Chernobyl’ Nuclear Missile
U.S. President Donald Trump’s nominee for a top arms control post in the State Department has said Russia should stop developing what he believes is a dangerous nuclear-powered cruise missile. The Burevestnik, which NATO designates as SSC-X-9 Skyfall, is believed to have exploded during secret rocket engine tests at sea in northern Russia last August,…
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Russia to Subsidize Tourists on Domestic Vacations – PM
Moscow will subsidize holidays taken by Russian tourists who vacation at home instead of the Mediterranean, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said Wednesday. The push to boost domestic tourism comes after officials lifted most coronavirus restrictions in June. Yet Russians are still barred from holidaying abroad due to international travel controls imposed to slow the pandemic.…
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Russia’s Crackdown on Free Expression in 5 Cases
Russia under President Vladimir Putin has grown increasingly intolerant of voices that challenge the conservative values championed by the Kremlin. Putin has also empowered the security forces to crack down on anyone perceived to be a threat, leading to a spike in treason and espionage cases. news What a Growing List of ‘Instructional’ Court Cases…
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Putin-Appointed Governor Defies Calls to Leave Protest-Hit Russian Region
The new head of Russia’s Far Eastern Khabarovsk region has refused calls by protesters to step down less than 48 hours after he replaced a popular governor who was arrested on murder charges. President Vladimir Putin on Monday named Mikhail Degtyaryov, 39, the Khabarovsk region’s acting governor after the sudden arrest of Sergei Furgal, 50,…
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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 22
Russia has confirmed 789,190 cases of coronavirus and 12,745 deaths. July 22: 3 things you need to know today Russia has come through the coronavirus pandemic with far fewer infections and deaths than many other European countries, President Vladimir Putin said Monday while visiting Moscow-annexed Crimea. The Russian military has said its experimental coronavirus vaccine which has not yet…
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Russia’s Coronavirus Cases Approach 790K
The last time Russia reported fewer than 6,000 cases was on April 29. The highest number of new cases were in Moscow, the western Siberian region of Khanty-Mansiysk and Sverdlovsk in the Urals. Russia’s fatality rate has remained low compared to other badly-hit countries, raising speculation that Moscow could be underreporting figures. Russian authorities began…
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Moscow Metro to Equip 1,500 Train Cars With Facial Recognition By 2021
The Moscow metro plans to equip around 1,500 subway cars with facial recognition technology by the end of 2020, BBC Russia reported Tuesday. A public contract posted earlier in July states that the metro system will spend 1.4 billion rubles ($20 million) on the controversial cameras and software. The Moscow metro announced trials of facial…
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Rosneft Contributes in Research and Conservation of Cetaceans
On July 23, Rosneft celebrates World Whale and Dolphin Day aimed to attract the public’s attention to the problems of marine mammals’ conservation
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Gunman Arrested, Hostages Freed After Ukraine President’s Call
Ukrainian police freed 13 hostages and arrested an armed man who held them on a bus for more than 12 hours on Tuesday, after the country’s president agreed to his demand to post a movie recommendation on social media. The SBU security service said a joint operation had resulted in all the hostages being released…
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Madonna Says Russia Fined Her $1M for Gay Rights Speech
Pop icon Madonna said Monday that Russia had fined her for speaking in support of LGBT rights during her last concert there. Russian courts, however, said there was no such ruling. At her Aug. 8, 2012, show in St. Petersburg, Madonna told the cheering crowd that “gay people here and all around the world have…
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Russian Priest Compares IVF to Nazi Experiments
A senior Russian Orthodox Church official known for making controversial sexist remarks has compared in vitro fertilization (IVF) to notorious medical experiments that Nazi doctors conducted during World War II. Archpriest Dmitry Smirnov was granted the dubious title of “Sexist of the Year” by feminist bloggers this spring for comparing common-law wives to prostitutes, urging…
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Armed Man Holds 20 Bus Passengers Hostage in Ukraine
Ukrainian police were holding tense negotiations on Tuesday with a man armed with explosives who took 20 people hostage in a bus and claimed to have planted a remote-controlled device in the western city of Lutsk. Police cordoned off the center of the city of over 200,000, some 400 kilometers (250 miles) from the capital Kiev, and…
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UK Govt Criticized for ‘Lack of Curiosity’ About Russian ‘Meddling’
British lawmakers on Tuesday slammed the government for failing to look into any Russian meddling into UK politics, despite evidence of the country posing a credible threat. Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee’s (ISC’s) long-awaited report had been expected to shed light on whether the Kremlin interfered in the landmark 2016 Brexit referendum. But MPs said…
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Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine ‘Ready,’ Military Says
The Russian military has said its experimental coronavirus vaccine which has not yet completed Phase II trials and is yet to begin Phase III is “ready.” The Defense Ministry, which says it has worked with government researchers to develop the vector vaccine, on Monday released the last group of volunteer soldiers testing the experimental shot…
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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 21
Russia has confirmed 777,486 cases of coronavirus and 12,427 deaths. July 21: 3 things you need to know today Russia has come through the coronavirus pandemic with far fewer infections and deaths than many other European countries, President Vladimir Putin said Monday while visiting Moscow-annexed Crimea. The Russian military has said its experimental coronavirus vaccine which has not yet…
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Russia’s Coronavirus Cases Pass 780K as New Infections Lowest Since Late April
The last time Russia reported fewer than 6,000 cases was on April 29. The highest number of new cases were in Moscow, the western Siberian region of Khanty-Mansiysk and Sverdlovsk in the Urals. Russia’s fatality rate has remained low compared to other badly-hit countries, raising speculation that Moscow could be underreporting figures. Russian authorities began…
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Russian Tech Exec Sues Steele Dossier Author in UK Court
A Russian tech entrepreneur on Monday began a defamation claim against the British author of a controversial report at the heart of 2016 U.S. election meddling allegations first leaked to BuzzFeed. Alexej Gubarev said in documents released in London’s High Court that former UK intelligence officer Christopher Steele was responsible for the U.S. news site’s…
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Moscow’s Museums Welcome Back Visitors With New Exhibitions
As Moscow’s museums have slowly begun to reopen in the past month, the Russian capital’s cultural life has also reawakened with a series of new exhibitions. In addition to requiring masks, most museums require visitors to reserve tickets online for a specific time slot in an effort to keep crowding down and curb the potential…
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Moscow Transgender Activist ‘Faces Rape’ in Men’s Prison
A Russian transgender activist jailed for protesting new anti-LGBT legislation faces humiliation and possible rape in the men’s cell she’s been placed in, activists said Monday. A Moscow court found Polina Simonenko guilty of repeatedly violating protest rules and sentenced her to 14 days in jail. Simonenko and around 30 activists had been detained over…
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Creator of 1980 Moscow Olympic Bear Mascot Dies at 84
Viktor Chizhikov, the Russian illustrator behind the memorable Mishka bear mascot of the 1980 Moscow Olympics, died on Monday aged 84, his publisher said. The children’s book illustrator came up with the cuddly bear to represent the controversial Games, boycotted by countries including the United States. The publisher AST Deti announced his death on Facebook,…
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U.S. Blacklists Chechen Leader for Rights Abuses
The U.S. State Department placed Chechen Republic leader Ramzan Kadyrov on its blacklist of human rights violators Monday for alleged torture, extrajudicial killings and other violations it said go back more than a decade. The department said Kadyrov, his spouse Medni Kadyrova, and his daughters Aishat Kadyrova and Karina Kadyrova, were designated under its Section…
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Russian Arctic Mayor Resigns After Virus ‘Cover-Up’ Claim
The mayor of the Russian Arctic city of Norilsk on Monday announced his resignation after accusing regional officials of massively underreporting coronavirus figures. Rinat Akhmetchin, mayor of the Siberian city located 300 kilometers (186 miles) north of the Arctic Circle, announced his departure during a briefing. His resignation came as President Vladimir Putin on Monday…
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Putin Inaugurates New Warships, Hails Russia’s Virus Response in Crimea Visit
President Vladimir Putin on Monday boasted of Russia’s naval capabilities and hailed the country’s response to the coronavirus during a keel-laying ceremony for new warships in Moscow-annexed Crimea. Putin in recent years has called improving the Russian Navy’s combat capabilities a priority. Speaking at the Zaliv shipyard in the city of Kerch, Putin said Russia…
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Putin Names New Governor to Far East Region Hit by Protests
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday named a new leader of the Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk from the nationalist LDPR party after the arrest of its popular governor brought thousands to the streets. Putin officially sacked Sergei Furgal, who was detained this month on murder charges, and named LDPR lawmaker Mikhail Degtyarev to replace…
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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 20
Russia has confirmed 777,486 cases of coronavirus and 12,427 deaths. July 20: 3 things you need to know today Russia has come through the coronavirus pandemic with far fewer infections and deaths than many other European countries, President Vladimir Putin said Monday while visiting Moscow-annexed Crimea. Members of Russia’s ruling elite have been given access to an experimental coronavirus…
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Kremlin Critic Navalny Dissolves Anti-Corruption Foundation After ‘Putin’s Chef’ Lawsuit
Prominent Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny is closing his foundation that has produced several high-profile investigations into alleged corruption among top government officials, he announced Monday. The Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) has faced a number of lawsuits over its video investigations targeting figures ranging from former Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Oleg Deripaska. The Russian…
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Siberian Wildfires Cover Area Larger Than Greece – Greenpeace
Wildfires in Russia have burned across an area larger than the size of Greece so far in 2020, Greenpeace Russia said Monday as it criticized the authorities of inaction. Using satellite data, Greenpeace Russia estimated that 19 million hectares (47 million acres) burned across Russia’s forests, steppes and fields from January to mid-July. The country…
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KFC Tests 3D-Printed Chicken Nuggets in Russia
KFC has partnered with a Russian biotech research firm to create the world’s first laboratory-produced chicken nuggets this fall. The fast-food chain and Russia’s 3D Bioprinting Solutions, founded by the private medical firm Invitro, announced the partnership Thursday amid a growing global race to find safe and authentic-tasting meat alternatives. 3D Bioprinting Solutions will use chicken…
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The Coronavirus Is Crippling Baikonur, the City That Sends Humans Into Space
In blistering 40-degree-Celsius heat Gulnat Kadirbeyeva drives around the outskirts of Baikonur delivering water and basic medicine to people battling severe coronavirus symptoms at home in cramped tower blocks. Many are decorated with large murals of rockets, a constant reminder of the city’s spaceport that is Russia’s launchpad into space. An administrator at a construction…
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JSC NIIEFA has shipped off a cyclotron CC-30/15 made for the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology
On July 15-17, 2020 JSC Efremov NIIEFA (Saint-Petersburg), shipped off the equipment, which is part of an isochronous cyclotron СС-30/15. Nine containers of total weight 120 tons were sent to Nakhon Nayok Province, where JSC Rusatom Health Care and Kinetics Corporation Ltd. carry out construction of the cyclotron and radiochemistry complex ordered by the Thailand…
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‘World’s Most Wanted Man’ Under Russian Intelligence Protection – Reports
A top executive of disgraced payments company Wirecard is believed to be in hiding near Moscow under the protection of Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency, the German newspaper Handelsblatt reported Sunday. Wirecard collapsed in June after admitting that 1.9 billion euros ($2.2 billion) missing from its accounts likely did not exist, in what auditors said…
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On and Off the Trans-Siberian Train: The Ex-Cop
Victoria, 42 (Editor’s note: this co-traveller’s name has been changed on her request because she signed a non-disclosure agreement upon retirement) In my job one has to have good sense of humor, otherwise, I would go mad. I always wanted to work for the police. I can’t say my parents were happy about my choice.…
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Russia’s Elite Vaccinated for Coronavirus Since April – Bloomberg
Members of Russia’s ruling elite have been given access to an experimental coronavirus vaccine as early as April, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing unnamed sources. “Several hundred” billionaires, executives and government officials took the experimental shots developed by the state-run Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, a researcher familiar with the effort told the…
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In Belarus, 3 Women Unite to Fight Strongman Lukashenko
Three women have teamed up to fight presidential polls in Belarus, pitting “female solidarity” against strongman Alexander Lukashenko, who insists the country is not ready for a woman president. Their campaign comes as the rights group Amnesty International on Friday released a report condemning the ex-Soviet country’s discriminatory treatment of women opposition activists, citing threats…
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Investigators Re-Confirm Last Russian Royal Family’s Remains
Russian investigators have reiterated their conclusion that human remains found in central Russia belong to Tsar Nicholas II and his family, who were killed by revolutionaries over a century ago. Authorities had relaunched the probe into the July 17, 1918, execution of Nicholas II, his wife and their five children in 2015. On the 100th…
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UK ‘Confident’ Moscow Helped Hackers Target Virus Vaccine
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Sunday he was “absolutely confident” in allegations by the UK and its allies that Russia targeted labs conducting coronavirus research, branding the behavior “outrageous and reprehensible”. Britain, the United States and Canada on Thursday accused a hacking group called APT29 of spearheading the online attacks on various organizations involved in…
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Fuel Loading Starts at Power Unit 2 of Leningrad NPP-2
Sosnovy Bor, July 19, 2020 — The first of 163 nuclear fuel assemblies has been loaded into the VVER-1200 reactor of power unit 2 of Leningrad NPP-2. Fuel loading marks the beginning of the physical start-up of an NPP. The plant is operated by ROSATOM’s Electric Power Division Rosenergoatom. Rosenergoatom‘s Director General Andrei Petrov said:…
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Russia’s Coronavirus Cases Pass 770K
From July Moscow has no longer required people to wear masks outdoors as the number of new coronavirus cases has dwindled in the Russian capital in recent weeks. Moscow lifted restrictions including compulsory travel passes on June 8, a move welcomed by residents who rushed out to enjoy the streets and parks. Many other regions lifted…
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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 19
Russia has confirmed 771,546 cases of coronavirus and 12,342 deaths. July 19: 3 things you need to know today Britain’s cybersecurity agency on Thursday accused a hacking group it said “almost certainly” operates as part of Russian intelligence services of trying to steal information on coronavirus vaccines. Russia plans to conduct Phase III trials of its experimental coronavirus vaccine…
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Russian Envoy Denies Moscow Helped Hackers Target Virus Vaccine
Russia’s ambassador to London has denied accusations by Britain and its allies of helping hackers target labs conducting coronavirus vaccine research, in a UK television interview to be broadcast on Sunday. Andrei Kelin said the allegations Thursday by Britain, the United States and Canada that a hacking group called APT29 was behind the online attacks,…
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Tens of Thousands Stage Anti-Kremlin Protests in Russia’s Far East
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Russia’s Far East Saturday in a rare show of defiance against the Kremlin as they protested the arrest of a popular governor. The huge rallies in the city of Khabarovsk on the border with China present a growing headache for the Kremlin, observers say, and…
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Cool Down with Slavic Ceviche
Somewhere in the early 2000s, it became okay to play with our food. Not in the sense of rolling it up into balls and hurling it at one another, but to pair traditional ingredients with non-traditional methods of preparation or vice versa. Until then, everyone had dutifully stayed in his lane: sushi was sushi, but…
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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 18
Russia has confirmed 765,437 cases of coronavirus and 12,247 deaths. July 18: 3 things you need to know today Britain’s cybersecurity agency on Thursday accused a hacking group it said “almost certainly” operates as part of Russian intelligence services of trying to steal information on coronavirus vaccines. Russia plans to conduct Phase III trials of its experimental…
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Russia’s Coronavirus Cases Pass 760K
From July Moscow has no longer required people to wear masks outdoors as the number of new coronavirus cases has dwindled in the Russian capital in recent weeks. Moscow lifted restrictions including compulsory travel passes on June 8, a move welcomed by residents who rushed out to enjoy the streets and parks. Many other regions lifted…
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Russia Ready to Mediate Talks Between Armenia, Azerbaijan
Russia said Friday it is prepared to mediate peace talks between ex-Soviet rivals Armenia and Azerbaijan after fighting escalated along their shared border. President Vladimir Putin and members of Russia’s Security Council expressed “extreme concern” over the flare-up in fighting between the South Caucasus countries that erupted last week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Putin…
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Russia Issues Travel Ban to Kremlin Critic Navalny in Slander Probe
Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was barred Friday from leaving Moscow as police carried out a new raid on his offices. Russia’s opposition has accused the authorities of cracking down on opponents to President Vladimir Putin after he oversaw a vote this month allowing him to potentially remain in power until 2036. Navalny said he had…
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Russian Couple Tried for ‘Treasonous’ Wedding Photos Face Charges of Sharing State Secrets
A couple from Russia’s western exclave of Kaliningrad who face 20 years in jail for blowing the cover of a secret agent in their wedding photos face new charges of passing state secrets to foreign intelligence, news outlets have reported. Baltic affairs expert Antonina Zimina and her husband Konstantin Antonets were charged with treason after Zimina’s…
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Russia to Keep Mass Surveillance After Coronavirus, Activists Say
Russian authorities’ massive surveillance campaign rolled out during the coronavirus pandemic could easily be used to monitor civilians in the future, research by the Agora human rights group said Thursday. During the pandemic, the authorities have collected arriving citizens’ personal data; introduced pass systems that limited movement and violated citizens’ rights; and conducted video surveillance…
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Putin Orders Massive Snap Military Drills
President Vladimir Putin has ordered snap military drills involving 150,000 personnel and hundreds of aircraft and naval vessels to ensure “security in Russia’s southwest,” the Defense Ministry said Friday. “In accordance with the decision of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces snap exercises are being conducted by troops of the Southern and Western military districts,”…
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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 17
Russia has confirmed 759,203 cases of coronavirus and 12,123 deaths. July 17: 3 things you need to know today Britain’s cybersecurity agency on Thursday accused a hacking group it said “almost certainly” operates as part of Russian intelligence services of trying to steal information on coronavirus vaccines. Russia plans to conduct Phase III trials of its experimental coronavirus vaccine…