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As the only remaining independent, English-language news source reporting from Russia, The Moscow Times plays a critical role in connecting Russia to the world. Editorial decisions are made entirely by journalists in our newsroom, who adhere to the highest ethical standards. We fearlessly cover issues that are often considered off-limits or taboo in Russia, from…

Italian Assets Linked to Putin Ally Frozen in U.S. Investor Feud

An Italian court froze assets belonging to a Kremlin adviser’s sister as part of his ownership dispute over a Russian bank with Michael Calvey, a prominent American investor who’s awaiting trial in Moscow on embezzlement charges. A judge in the Tuscan city of Lucca ruled last month that Artem Avetisyan’s sale of real estate holding…

Anti-LGBT Hate Crimes Up in Russia, Watchdog Says

The number of hate crimes against members of Russia’s LGBT community increased in 2019, according to an annual report by the prominent SOVA Center nonprofit, which tracks xenophobia and racism in the country. At the same time, the SOVA Center noted Tuesday that the number of crimes against ethnic and religious minorities, as well as…

Virus Fallout Hits Lake Baikal as Chinese Tourists Stay Away

Winter is high season for tourism around Lake Baikal in Siberia, but the coronavirus outbreak has curtailed its main source of income: Chinese holidaymakers. They account for more than two-thirds of foreign tourists to the world’s largest freshwater lake, a significant part of the around two million Chinese who visited Russia last year, spending more…

Moscow Outlines $231Bln Plan for Arctic Oil Development

A new $231 billion tax regime for the Russian Arctic is to provide for an unprecedented wave of investments in icy drilling. The new legislation was hammered through the government on Jan. 30. It will give national oil companies incentives for major investments in Arctic oil, the country’s new Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin says. “These…

Russians Start 2-Week Coronavirus Quarantine After Return From Wuhan

Scores of Russians began two weeks of quarantine and coronavirus tests in a camp in Siberia on Wednesday after being flown home from China’s Wuhan, the city at the epicenter of an outbreak of the fast-spreading disease. Russia, which has restricted crossings along its 4,300 km (2,670-mile) land border with China, last week reported its first…

Siberian Shaman Files Complaint With European Rights Court

Russia Ordered to Pay $1M to Police Brutality Victims

Fifty Russian citizens have been awarded compensation totaling more than 1 million euros ($1.1 million) for police brutality and illegal searches, according to four European human rights court rulings issued Tuesday. Russia paid more than 600 million rubles ($9.5 million) to its citizens in compliance with European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rulings in 2019,…

Climate Change Is Moving Russia’s Taiga North, Scientists Warn

The Taiga forests of Siberia have expanded north toward the Arctic as a result of warming temperatures over the past four decades, a team of Russian and Finnish scientists has said. Climate change is heating Russia at a rate more than twice the global average, thawing what was once permanently frozen ground in the Arctic…

Russia Sentences 2 ‘Extremist’ Jehovah’s Witnesses

Two Jehovah’s Witnesses have been convicted of extremism in Russia’s Far East, the group said Tuesday amid what activists say is an escalating crackdown on the religious group. The ruling to hand the two worshippers in the Khabarovsk region a two-year suspended sentence comes after Russia’s Supreme Court declared the Jehovah’s Witnesses an “extremist” organization…

‘Crimea Is Lost,’ Pompeo Reportedly Tells Ukraine

Update: According to a journalist who spoke to prominent Ukrainian anti-corruption worker Yelena Tregub, the NV news website misquoted Pompeo. “When the international community sees Crimea as lost, it’s important to keep the issue and fate of Crimean Tatars in public eye and the U.S. plays a role in this,” BuzzFeed journalist Christopher Miller quoted Tregub as…

Russia Plans S-400 Deliveries to India in 2021

Russia plans to start deliveries of its S-400 air defense system to India late next year, a Russian official said Wednesday of the arms deal that risks landing Delhi under U.S. sanctions. India, the largest purchaser of Russian military hardware, agreed on the roughly $5 billion deal in 2018. The U.S. has said countries trading…

Russian Priests Should Stop Blessing Nukes, Church Proposal Says

Russian priests should refrain from the practice of blessing nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction that can inflict indiscriminate loss of life, according to new guidelines being discussed by the Russian Orthodox Church. During two decades in power, President Vladimir Putin has aligned himself with the Orthodox Church, which has also developed closer ties…

Russia Accuses Norway of Restricting Its Activities on Arctic Islands

Russia on Tuesday accused Norway of restricting its activities on a remote chain of islands in the Arctic and said it wanted talks with Oslo to have the issue resolved. The archipelago of Svalbard, about 850 kilometers (500 miles) north of mainland Norway, is seen as a potential flashpoint between Moscow and the West as climate…

Chechen Dissident Killed in France Amid Series of High-Profile Murders Abroad

A Chechen emigre and vocal critic of the southern Russian region’s ruler has been stabbed to death in the northern French city of Lille, Agence France-Presse reported Monday. Local media initially reported that the body of an as-yet-unidentified man with multiple stab wounds was discovered in a hotel room last Thursday. An unnamed source close…

Russia to Quarantine Citizens Evacuated From China’s Wuhan

Turkey Says Russia Must Restrain Syrian Forces in Idlib

Turkey urged Russia on Tuesday to rein in Syrian government forces in the northwestern province of Idlib, a day after eight Turkish personnel were killed in an attack Ankara blamed on Russian-backed Syrian troops. The two countries back opposing sides in the war, with Russia supporting President Bashar al-Assad and Turkey backing rebels who once…

Russian Warships to Hold Missile Drills Near Norway’s Gas Pipeline to Europe

Two Russian warships will conduct missile drills near Norway’s northernmost gas pipeline to Europe, the VG news website reported, citing the Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS). A notice to airmen (NOTAM) is set for an area in the Norwegian Sea west of Helgeland, the Norwegian Joint Headquarters at Reitan near Bodø confirmed. The area with warnings to…

Russia and Saudi Arabia to Discuss Oil Cuts as Coronavirus Rocks Market

Russia, Saudi Arabia and other members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), are considering a new round of oil production cuts, as they scramble to respond to falling oil prices amid the coronavirus outbreak. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with the King of Saudi Arabia on Monday evening to discuss the market situation,…

Russia Sends Lavrov to Venezuela to ‘Counteract’ U.S. Sanctions

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will visit Venezuela on Friday in a show of support for President Nicolas Maduro, a socialist who Washington wants out of power. Russia has helped Maduro weather a political crisis as the United States has targeted Caracas with sanctions and, like dozens of other countries, recognizes opposition politician Juan Guaido…

Israel’s Holocaust Memorial Apologizes for ‘Pro-Russian’ Commemoration

Israel’s Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial museum has apologized for hosting an “unbalanced” forum after the event drew criticism for showing what observers said were pro-Russian videos, Israeli media reported Monday. The clips shown at the Jan. 23 event in Jerusalem portrayed the Soviet Union as nearly the only victor over Nazi Germany, the Haaretz daily…

Russian World Champion Delivers Food to Raise Money for Tokyo Paralympics

A world paratriathlon champion from Russia has started working as a food delivery courier to raise money to compete in the 2020 Paralympics after regional sports officials allegedly failed to provide financial assistance, Russian media reported Monday. Mikhail Astashov, 31, won the 2019 Paratriathlon World Cup. In November, Astashov told fellow athlete and newly minted…

Russia Strong-Arms UN to Bolster Assad and Putin’s Mideast Clout

It was after midnight in a windowless basement room at the United Nations headquarters in New York, and Russian diplomats were holding the organization’s $3 billion budget hostage. Just days from the start of the new year, disheveled envoys from several countries were struggling to broker a deal that covers everything from the number of…

An obscure Russian company is suing the French far-right leader’s political party to recover an $11 million loan, the investigative website Open Media reported Monday, citing court documents. Marine Le Pen’s party took out 9.4 million euros ($10.8 million at the time) from the Moscow-based First Czech-Russian Bank in 2014. Two years later, the bank…

Lawyers Push to Reopen Probe Into U.S. Student’s Death in Siberian Mountains

Lawyers for the mother of an American student who died under mysterious circumstances in the Siberian mountains have filed a petition to reopen the investigation into his death, Interfax reported Monday. Colin Madsen’s body was recovered in Russia’s republic of Buryatia eight days after he vanished from a local resort village guest house in the…

Rosneft Joins Leading Oil and Gas Companies in the Global CDP Climate Change Rating

Rosneft Oil Company joined the leading global oil and gas companies – participants of the global CDP (formerly, Carbon Disclosure Project) Climate Change Rating.

Rosneft Becomes a Constituent of FTSE4Good Stock Index Leading on Core Sustainability Metrics

another, NewsBy Павел Федоров February 3, 2020

FTSE Russell, the analytic branch of the London Stock Exchange, has included Rosneft Oil Company in the international FTSE4Good Emerging Index.

Number of confirmed cases of infection with the virus 2019-nCoV. Data for February 3

Distribution of a new coronavirus from China National Health Commission of the People’s Republic China World Health Organization Ministry of Health of Republic of Korea Ministry of Health Singapore

4 Russian Special Forces Officers Killed in Syria – Reports

At least four members of Russia’s special forces have been killed in Syria on Saturday, the investigative website Conflict Intelligence Team (CIT), which monitors Russian military activity, has reported. Makeshift memorials said that the four FSB Special Operations Center officers were killed on the same day “while performing special tasks in the Syrian Arab Republic,”…

Russia Combats the Coronavirus, in Photos

Russia Experiences Hottest January in Recorded History

Scores of cities across Russia including Moscow and St. Petersburg have experienced the hottest January in their recorded histories, an official at Russia’s meteorological center said Monday. The latest record comes after 2019 was declared the hottest year on record in Russia. Moscow and some parts of Russia have been reeling from an unusually warm…

Russian Cities See Hottest January in Recorded History

Update: January temperatures across all of Russia were the second-hottest in the country’s recorded history, the Federal Meteorological Service said Wednesday. Scores of cities across Russia including Moscow and St. Petersburg have experienced the hottest January in their recorded histories, an official at Russia’s meteorological center said Monday. The latest record comes after 2019 was declared…

Congratulations, You’re an Elected Russian Opposition Official! Now What?

With her elbow propped on her desk, Darya Besedina rests her head on her hand, losing herself in thought. “It’s all very sad,” she says. On the last Thursday in January in Moscow, when the sun rarely sneaks through the grey sky and spring is still a long way off, anyone could get depressed. But…

U.S. Blocks Russian Convoy in Syria, Reports Say

U.S. troops have again blocked Russian military convoys in northeastern Syria, the latest in a series of standoffs as the powers vie for control of the oil-rich region, the Voice of America (VOA) broadcaster reported Friday. Russian and U.S. forces have faced off in Syria’s Hasakah region, an area rich in oil fields, several times…

Coronavirus Update: Russia Acts to Curb Spread

Russia reported its first two cases of coronavirus on Friday and said the infected people were Chinese citizens who had been isolated. As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 360 people in China continues to spread around the world, Russia has stepped up measures to tackle the health risk, including closing most entry…

Russia to Start Evacuating Citizens from Wuhan, Stops Passenger Trains to China

anotherBy admin February 1, 2020 Leave a comment

Russia said on Monday it may deport foreigners who test positive for coronavirus as Russian military planes flew in to evacuate its citizens from the Chinese province at the epicentre of the outbreak which has killed 361 people. Russia, which has a 4,300 kilometer (2,670-mile) land border with China, reported its first two cases of the virus…

Russian Armed Forces Aircraft to Evacuate Citizens From China – Agencies

Russia Threatens Facebook, Twitter With $100K Fines

Russia’s communications watchdog said Friday it has launched fresh proceedings against Facebook and Twitter over their failure to comply with local data laws. The social media giants “have not provided information on the localization of Russian users’ database inside Russian servers on time,” the watchdog, Roskomnadzor, said. Roskomnadzor had issued a Jan. 31 deadline for…

Judges Disobey Putin in ‘Repeat Protest’ Conviction

Russia’s Supreme Court will not review Moscow protester Konstantin Kotov’s guilty verdict, his lawyer said Friday days after President Vladimir Putin promised to investigate whether his conviction was lawful. Kotov, a 34-year-old programmer, was sentenced to four years in prison in September for “repeated” participation in unauthorized rallies. In the past week, Putin has ordered…

Stadium Roof Collapses in St. Petersburg, Killing Worker – Reports

Video credit: Fontanka.ru The roof of the SKK ice hockey stadium in St. Petersburg collapsed during dismantling work on Friday, killing one worker who was dragged down into the rubble. Dramatic footage of the collapse, in which a worker is seen running and failing to grab onto a man cage suspended by a crane as…

Polish Miners Block Coal Trains in Protest Against Russian Imports

Polish miners blocked trains carrying coal to a power plant in the southern town of Laziska Gorne on Friday in protest against coal imports from Russia. Poland generates most of its electricity from coal, but domestic coal production has been falling in recent years due to cost savings and geological problems, which prompted higher imports,…

Russia Reports First Coronavirus Cases

Russia reported its first two cases of coronavirus on Friday and said the infected people were Chinese citizens who had been quarantined. The two cases were discovered in different parts of the country, one in Tyumen region in west Siberia, the other in Russia‘s Far East, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said. “They are under strict supervision,…

2 Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses Charged With ‘Extremism’

Two Jehovah’s Witnesses in northern Russia have been charged with extremism, law enforcement authorities said Thursday amid the crackdown on the Christian denomination that Russia banned in 2017. At least 14 people were detained in the town of Pechora during Tuesday’s raids across 10 addresses, the severrealii.org news website reported. It named Gennady Skutelts, 43,…

Russia Steps into Oil-Free Future With New Arctic Research Station

Russia is looking beyond oil as it builds the “Snowflake station,” a state-of-the-art climate research station in the Yamal-Nenets region of Siberia. The Snowflake IAS will be a fully autonomous year-round diesel-free facility powered by renewable energy sources and hydrogen fuel, a project presentation says. “It is envisioned as a unique new platform for international…

30 Years of Big Mac Prices Shine Light on Russia’s Economy

When McDonald’s came to Russia 30 years ago Friday, its first restaurant on Pushkin Square in central Moscow was one of the most expensive fast food joints in the world. At 3 rubles and 75 kopecks, the average Soviet worker would have had to part with half a day’s wages for a Big Mac meal…

Coronavirus Update: Russia Reacts to First Cases

Russia reported its first two cases of coronavirus on Friday and said the infected people were Chinese citizens who had been isolated As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 200 people in China continues to spread around the world, Russia has stepped up measures to tackle the health risk, including closing most entry…

Russia’s Happiness Index Drops to Post-Crimea Low

Russians’ level of happiness has fallen to its lowest point in six years, according to a Gallup International poll cited by the ROMIR research agency Friday. Jordan was the world’s unhappiest place late last year, followed by Lebanon and Syria, according to Gallup. Hong Kong and Iraq shared the fourth-lowest spot in the “happiness index,”…

1 in 4 Russians Want Putin Presidency Beyond 2024 – Poll

More than one-quarter of Russians want to see President Vladimir Putin stay in power after his term ends in 2024, according to a survey by the independent Levada Center pollster published Thursday. Putin, 67, was elected to his fourth overall presidential term in 2018 and is constitutionally required to step down in 2024. Observers said…

Russia to Drop Murder Charges Against Sisters Who Killed Abusive Father, Lawyers Say

Russian prosecutors have ordered investigators to drop murder charges against three teenage sisters accused of killing their abusive father, the sisters’ lawyers told Russian news agencies Thursday. Investigators said last month they planned to charge Krestina, Angelina and Maria Khachaturyan with premeditated murder, which carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years. The Khachaturyan…

New U.S. Envoy Tells Russia to ‘End Nightmare’ for Jailed Ex-Marine

The United States’ new ambassador to Russia urged Moscow on Thursday to release a former U.S. Marine accused of spying, and said Russian investigators had failed to present credible evidence to back up their case. Days after starting as U.S. ambassador, John Sullivan accused Russian authorities of “shameful treatment” of Paul Whelan, who was detained by security agents in…

Coronavirus Forces McDonald’s to Cancel Moscow Birthday Plans

McDonald’s has been forced to cancel plans for a bargain Big Mac promotion celebrating 30 years since the opening of its first restaurant in Russia due to coronavirus fears. The U.S. fast food chain had been planning to sell Big Macs for the symbolic price of 3 rubles ($0.05) all day Friday at its first…

Russia Seeks Fugitive Billionaire Boris Mints’ Arrest

Russian authorities have issued an arrest warrant on embezzlement charges for Boris Mints, the billionaire businessman who now lives in London, the state-run TASS news agency reported Thursday. Mints and his three sons left Russia for Britain in 2018 amid court disputes over bank dealings. In 2019, the High Court in London blocked $572 million…

Russian LGBT Activist Receives Dutch Asylum After Police Threats

An LGBT activist fled southern Russia for the Netherlands after facing threats of prosecution from law enforcement and retribution from conservative vigilantes, she said in an interview Tuesday. Anna Dvornichenko has said that authorities in the city of Rostov-on-Don refused to investigate two attacks — one with pepper spray and another with a smoke bomb…

Russia Is Testing Air Passengers in Coronavirus Scare

Russia’s Share of European Human Rights Cases Hits 7-Year High