Russia had to tread a fine foreign policy line in 2020. The country’s near abroad was rocked by unprecedented unrest as uprisings in Kremlin-friendly Kyrgyzstan and Belarus and war in the Caucasus challenged its influence in the region. In the U.S., the election of Joe Biden is set to fundamentally change the course of American…
The Moscow metro said Sunday it had hired female drivers for the first time in its recent history, following recent changes in controversial Russian legislation prohibiting women from many professions. The Russian capital’s transport system, which oversees the sprawling metro system, said in a statement that “the first female electric train drivers in modern history…
Hungary is unlikely to use Russia’s coronavirus vaccine due to its limited production capacity, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Sunday while criticising the EU’s vaccine acquisition approach. Often at loggerheads with Brussels over democratic standards, Orban has sent experts to monitor vaccine development in Russia and China, and received samples of Moscow’s controversial Sputnik V…
The Moscow Times has compiled a list of the most impressive Russian women in 2020. It includes movers and shakers across different parts of Russia, generations, and occupations. However, all of these women have one thing in common — they were able to use their platforms to tackle the new and old challenges of 2020 and…
Russia has confirmed 3,236,787 cases of coronavirus and 58,506 deaths. Jan. 3: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 24,150 new coronavirus cases and 504 deaths. Hungary will not purchase the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine for large-scale inoculation due to Russia’s lack of production capacity, Reuters quoted Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff as saying.…
A Tale of Two Photographers Photography, since its inception, has provided an invaluable window into Russia’s turbulent past. The revolutions of 1917 irrevocably altered the course of Russia’s history with seismic political change, but also rendered an entire way of life not only obsolete but also taboo. Historians were left to pour over sepia-toned photos…
A Tale of Two Photographers Photography, since its inception, has provided an invaluable window into Russia’s turbulent past. The revolutions of 1917 irrevocably altered the course of Russia’s history with seismic political change, but also rendered an entire way of life not only obsolete but also taboo. Historians were left to pore over sepia-toned photos…
A car bomb detonated near a Russian military base in northeastern Syria Friday in the first such jihadist attack in the area against the ally of Damascus, a war monitor said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group reported several wounded in the attack after midnight in the Tal Saman area in Raqa province,…
January 1, 2021, 10:55 Gazprom today began supplying gas to Serbia, as well as to Bosnia and Herzegovina, via a new route across Turkey and Bulgaria. Gas from Russia is transmitted by the TurkStream offshore gas pipeline and further across Turkey. It is then brought via Bulgaria’s national gas transmission system to Serbia, where it is distributed among consumers in Serbia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Deliveries along this route were…
Russia came under siege from climate change in 2020, and experts warn that Arctic heatwaves, fires and melting permafrost could be worse this year. The year began with the warmest winter in 140 years of recorded meteorological data, leaving Moscow — a city usually covered in snow for four months of the year — entirely…
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President Vladimir Putin in his New Year’s speech on Thursday urged Russians to unite in the face of the country’s battle with the coronavirus pandemic. Appearing in front of the Kremlin for an address to be broadcast just before midnight in each of Russia’s 11 time zones, Putin acknowledged that a second wave of infections…
Russia has confirmed 3,159,297 cases of coronavirus and 57,019 deaths. Dec. 31: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 27,747 new coronavirus cases and 593 deaths. Hungary will not purchase the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine for large-scale inoculation due to Russia’s lack of production capacity, Reuters quoted Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff as saying.…
One of the first complaints students and lovers of literature have about Russian novels: “They’re so long!” That might be because they were written over long, long winters, or maybe just because the authors have a lot to say. In any case, that makes them perfect for long, multi-episode series that are great for holiday…
In 2020 the number of deaths in Russia of prominent and beloved public figures was devastatingly high, many from the coronavirus, but some from other causes as well. The performing arts were particularly hard hit by Covid-19, since by the nature of the professions, people at work cannot be masked or socially distant. We honor…
Russia has confirmed 3,131,550 cases of coronavirus and 56,426 deaths. Dec. 31: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 26,513 new coronavirus cases and 599 deaths. Algeria will begin rolling out the contentious Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine developed by Russia in January, the government said late Wednesday. Authorities will receive an initial shipment of 500,000 doses. Russians who…
A company run by Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, purportedly close to President Vladimir Putin, on Wednesday said he was pursuing a libel settlement against opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Prigozhin’s Concord catering company said in a statement it was seeking 840,000 euros ($900,000) in damages as it looks to “defend its honor, dignity and commercial reputation.…
December 31, 2020, 09:30 A meeting was held under the leadership of Vitaly Markelov, Deputy Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Yury Urlichich, First Deputy Director General of the Roscosmos State Space Corporation. The parties discussed the ongoing construction of a spacecraft assembly facility (SPKA) in the Moscow Region by Gazprom, as well as the acquisition by Roscosmos of a stake in the authorized capital of the project operator…
December 30, 2020 The construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline ushered in a new stage in the development of the entire Amur Region. Here, a new industry – a gas industry – is being built essentially from scratch. The Amur Gas Processing Plant (GPP) is one of the key facilities that are under construction near the town of Svobodny. Just like a magnet, this ambitious project has drawn enormous resources to the region,…
On December 29, 2020 the marine vessel COMBI DOCK I with equipment for Kudankulam NPP (the twenty-second and twenty-third batches of equipment) sailed to India. This shipment of unprecedented volume – 9503 m3 – includes the equipment indented for Kudankulam NPP Units 3 and 4. Long manufacture cycle equipment for Unit 3 includes load and…
AKKUYU NUСLEAR JSC, a subsidiary of ROSATOM, has received a loan of up to $300 million for a period of 7 years from Sovcombank PJSC to finance the Akkuyu NPP construction project in Turkey. The loan opens a new chapter in the relationship between the parties. Ilia Rebrov, Deputy Director General for Economy and Finance…
30 December 2020 – Framatome GmbH and Rusatom Automated Control Systems JSC (RASU JSC), a subsidiary of ROSATOM, signed a contract to provide technical support in design and integration of instrumentation and control (I&C) system for the Hanhikivi-1 Nuclear Power Plant in Finland. Under the terms of the contract, Framatome will provide consulting support…
President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday has signed a number of bills into law ahead of the New Year holiday, ranging from new restrictions on protests and online information to the return of Soviet-era “sobering-up stations.” Here’s an overview of all the latest legislation: Restrictions on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook Russia’s federal media watchdog now has the…
Engineering Division specialists have applied the Russian Sheet-Pile Walls (abbreviated as RShS in Russian) technology in constructing foundation pit retaining structures for water intake structures and for the feed pump station at the Rooppur NPP construction site (Bangadesh). Russian Sheet-Pile Walls are a construction kit featuring a ready-made range of standard solutions based on sheet…
Nizhnevartovsk has opened a modern school for 1,725 pupils built as part of the National Education Project with the support of Rosneft Oil Company.
Up to 750,000 cubic metres of associated petroleum gas per year will be brought into the production cycle from the Metelinskoye oil field in Duvansky District of the Republic of Bashkortostan.
Saratov Refinery, an enterprise of Rosneft Oil Company’s refining complex, started producing Euro-5 diesel with the new additive manufactured in Russia.
The Russian Orthodox Church has defrocked one of the country’s most prominent theologians after he was found to have slandered a fellow priest who died from Covid-19. Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev, a well-known radio and television personality whose views on homosexuality, blasphemy and Russia’s Orthodox hierarchy have made him one of the country’s best-known religious figures,…
The Russian Orthodox Church has defrocked one of the country’s most prominent priests after he was found to have slandered a fellow priest who died from Covid-19. Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev, a well-known radio and television personality whose views on homosexuality, blasphemy and Russia’s Orthodox hierarchy have made him one of the country’s best-known priests, had…
Moscow on Wednesday expanded a list of UK officials banned from entering Russia in a tit-for-tat response to British sanctions imposed over the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that in response to “unconstructive and unfriendly” UK penalties it had “decided to expand the number of British citizens who…
President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill allowing any politically active, foreign-funded individual or organization to be labeled a “foreign agent.” The new law significantly widens the scope of who can be recognized as a foreign agent in Russia and has been criticized as an effort to stamp out critical voices. The foreign…
Since this year most museums, fairs, and theaters are closed and few families can travel, it’s the perfect chance to go back in time and celebrate the holidays the way Russian families did before electricity, and then before radio, television, the internet and modern gadgets. When you and your family get bored with online movies…
Russian investigators Tuesday opened a criminal probe into Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, alleging he used more than 356 million rubles ($4.8 million) of donations to his organizations for personal purposes including holidays abroad. The Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said in a statement that the money was part of more than 588 million rubles…
Argentina on Tuesday launched a Covid-19 vaccination campaign with the controversial Sputnik V shots developed by Russia, the government said. It is the first country in the Americas to use this vaccine against the pandemic. The vaccination drive began simultaneously around the country with frontline healthcare workers given priority, Health Minister Gines Gonzalez Garcia said.…
Russia has labeled prominent women’s rights organization Nasiliyu.net (“No to Violence”) as a “foreign agent,” the Justice Ministry announced Tuesday. The Justice Ministry’s addition of the NGO, which provides legal and psychological help to domestic violence victims, to the “foreign agent” registry comes amid fears of a renewed crackdown on critical voices ahead of Russia’s 2021…
Moscow on Tuesday expanded a list of German officials who are banned from entering Russia in response to EU sanctions that the bloc imposed over Russian cyber attacks on the German parliament. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that in response to “destructive” EU sanctions in October, “Moscow made a decision to expand the reciprocal list of German…
Russia and the United States have cut off an international cocaine smuggling chain and seized over 330 kilograms of the drug, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced Tuesday, marking a rare joint law enforcement effort between the two countries. A multi-stage investigation by the FSB and the U.S. Justice Department disrupted “a transnational criminal community…
A Russian court on Tuesday handed a 15-year prison sentence to a former manager of an energy company for spying for Moldova, the latest in a string of high-profile espionage trials. Karina Tsurkan, a former board member of the Inter RAO energy group, was detained in 2018 on suspicion of handing classified information to Moldovan…
Russia experienced a multitude of environmental disasters in 2020 — both sudden, manmade catastrophes as well as those stemming from the mounting long-term effects of climate change. From forest fires larger than some European countries to historic oil spills, these disasters have brought renewed attention and concern toward the ecosystems of the world’s largest country. …
A medical clinic in Moscow plans to be the first to bring two leading western-developed coronavirus vaccines to Russia, the clinic’s head told Forbes Russia on Tuesday. The Hadassah Clinic is working to bring the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines to Russia as soon as it becomes possible, its head Evgeny Tugolukov said. The clinic belongs…
Belarus on Tuesday began a vaccination drive against coronavirus using the Sputnik V jab, becoming the first country outside Russia to use the vaccine developed by Moscow. Belarus, with a population of around 9.5 million people, has registered more than 188,000 cases of coronavirus infections and nearly 1,400 deaths. “Today the first vaccine shipment has arrived in…
Russian law enforcement officers have detained an excommunicated priest at the women’s monastery he seized near the city of Yekaterinburg on suspicion of encouraging minors to “die for Russia,” the Kommersant business daily reported Tuesday. Father Sergei Romanov has been charged with persuading minors to commit suicide, criminal charges that carry a maximum prison sentence…
The year 2020 began as usual for the music world in Russia, but came to screeching halt in March. Music lovers had to be content with live-streamed performances, musicians languished and the fate of large orchestras and their future contracts with soloists became uncertain. The Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, led by Valery Gergiev, was…
Hungary said it received 6,000 doses of Russia’s controversial coronavirus vaccine on Monday, in a new display of Budapest’s maverick vaccine policy. “6,000 doses of Russian vaccine crossed Hungary’s border with Slovakia,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said in a Facebook video message. The consignment was taken to Budapest for a decision by Hungarian experts on…
Russia has labeled a prominent human rights activist, three journalists and an artist-activist as “foreign agents” on Monday, the first time that individuals, not organizations, have been given the designation amid worries of a renewed clampdown on dissent. Veteran human rights activist Lev Ponomaryov; Radio Svoboda and MBKh Media journalist Lyudmila Savitskaya; Pskovskaya Guberniya newspaper…
Russia has confirmed 3,078,035 cases of coronavirus and 55,265 deaths. Dec. 29: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 27,787 new coronavirus cases and 487 deaths Monday. Russia has extended its suspension of flights with Britain through Jan. 12, 2021. More than half of Russians say they are not ready to receive the coronavirus vaccine, according to…
Russia recorded more than 2,500 excess deaths a day during November in what was by far the deadliest month since the start of the pandemic, official figures released Monday have shown. Deaths from all causes — regarded as the most accurate indicator in assessing the impact of the coronavirus — came in 78,541 higher than…
Russia on Monday said that it had expelled a Bulgarian diplomat in a tit-for-tat response after the EU and NATO member state declared a Russian military attache persona non-grata earlier this month. The Foreign Ministry said in response to the “unjustified” removal of its diplomat from Bulgaria, it had declared the assistant to Bulgaria’s military…
Rosneft Oil Company has published atlases “Barents Sea” and “Species: Biological Indicators for the State of Arctic Marine Ecosystems” as part of its Environmental Atlases of the Russian Seas series, jointly with the Innopraktika non-governmental development institute.
At least three people have been killed following a knife attack in the Chechen capital of Grozny on Monday. Two armed militants attacked law enforcement officers on Putin Avenue in central Grozny, TASS and Interfax cited anonymous sources as saying Monday afternoon, with conflicting reports of the number of people killed. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov…
Seventeen fishermen were missing and feared dead on Monday after a Russian trawler capsized during a storm and sank in the freezing waters of the Barents Sea. Officials said that two people had been rescued by a passing vessel, but hopes were quickly fading that more survivors could be found during a snowstorm over the…
For much of the world, 2020 was a historic, unprecedented year. This is especially true for Russia, which saw unprecedented environmental, social and political changes in addition to the pandemic. The Moscow Times is taking a look back at the images that defined 2020 in Russia — from snapshots of everyday life to historic moments…
ROSATOM Engineering Division handed over to the Customer – Jangsu Nuclear Power Corporation Company – Tianwan NPP facilities of Unit 4 Nuclear Island after two-year warranty operation. The corresponding Minutes of the Meeting on the final acceptance of the Unit was signed on December 25. “Tianwan NPS Units 3-4 is an outstanding successful project,…
Face masks, sofas and televisions were the most in-demand consumer goods in Russia this year, according to online sales data. Demand for masks was seven times higher than in 2019, data from online classified ads site Avito cited by the Vedomosti business daily showed. Russians preferred single-use masks to reusable ones, Avito found, with disposable…
Russia has sent additional military police units to the Raqqa province of northern Syria amid a flare-up in fighting between rebel groups there, the Kommersant business daily reported Monday, citing a top Russian official in Syria. Russia, a close ally of the Syrian government in Damascus, maintains a military presence in northeastern Syria, one of…
Azerbaijan said Monday that one of its soldiers was killed during a skirmish with Armenian separatists, in an apparent escalation of hostilities undermining a recent Russian-brokered ceasefire. The defense ministry said in a statement that an illegal group of Armenian fighters in territory adjacent to the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region carried out the ambush on Sunday.…
Seventeen people were missing Monday and two were rescued after a Russian fishing boat sank in the Barents Sea, apparently due to icing, the emergencies ministry said. “The crew consisted of 19 people. Two people were rescued,” the emergencies ministry said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies. The privately owned boat, called Onega,…
Russia has confirmed 3,021,964 cases of coronavirus and 54,226 deaths. Dec. 27: What you need to know today Russia confirmed 29,258 new coronavirus cases and 567 deaths. Moscow residents working in law enforcement, urban planning, sports and the catering industry will be eligible to receive Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine starting Dec. 28, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced Thursday. Social…
Russia on Saturday passed 3 million confirmed coronavirus infections, as authorities hold out against reimposing a national lockdown while the country is battered by a second wave. Official figures showed that a total of 3,021,964 cases have been detected, with 54,226 deaths. In the past 24 hours, 29,258 new infections and 567 deaths were registered…
George Blake, a famous “mole” in British intelligence who spied for the Soviet KGB during the 1950s before fleeing across the Iron Curtain, has died aged 98, Russian news agencies reported Saturday. “The legendary intelligence officer George Blake has passed away today,” the spokesman for Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service Sergei Ivanov told the TASS…