Russia’s Defense Ministry said Monday it had killed “up to 200 fighters” in Syria during airstrikes on a “terrorist” base northeast of Palmyra, where fighters were planning attacks ahead of presidential polls next month. “After confirming data through multiple channels on the location of terrorist facilities, Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft carried out airstrikes,” the ministry…
Russia has launched a probe against YouTube for “abusing” its dominant position in the market by making “biased” decisions about comment moderation, a government regulator said on Monday. The move comes as Russia ramps up pressure on foreign tech platforms, with Moscow stepping up its efforts to control the Russian segment of the internet. The…
Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska on Monday softened his criticism of federal poverty statistics to instead praise President Vladimir Putin’s government for supporting workers and small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. In his initial Telegram post, Deripaska accused state statistics service Rosstat of under-reporting the number of Russians living in poverty. “They are trying to convince us…
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Monday that Russia has massed over 150,000 troops along the Ukrainian border and in the annexed Crimea peninsula. “It is the highest Russian military deployment at Ukrainian borders ever,” Borrell told journalists after talks involving Ukraine’s foreign minister, refusing to disclose the source of the figure. “The risk of further…
Russian President Vladimir Putin will on April 22 address an international climate summit hosted by the United States, the Kremlin said Monday, despite a sharp deterioration in ties between Moscow and Western capitals. “Vladimir Putin will outline Russia’s approaches within the context of establishing broad-ranging international cooperation aimed at overcoming the negative consequences of global climate…
It is nearly three weeks since jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny went on hunger strike to demand his own doctors be allowed to visit him in prison. Navalny’s health has deteriorated rapidly since he went on hunger strike, his doctors say, and an international chorus of protest is growing amid rising tensions between Moscow and…
The United States’ aviation authority has warned airlines to exercise “extreme caution” when flying over areas near the Russia-Ukraine border as tensions surge over Russia’s military buildup and renewed clashes in eastern Ukraine. Tensions between Moscow and Kiev have escalated in recent weeks following an uptick in fighting between Ukraine’s army and pro-Russia separatists in…
Parents of victims of the deadly Beslan school siege have started a hunger strike in solidarity with jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny amid increasing concern among supporters that his life is in danger, the independent Novaya Gazeta newspaper reported Monday. Ella Kesaeyva, who co-chairs Russia’s Voice of Beslan grassroots organization, likened Navalny’s plight to the…
The Kremlin on Monday denounced the “provocative and unfriendly” expulsion of 18 Russian diplomats from the Czech Republic who were accused by authorities in Prague of spying. “We categorically do not agree with these conclusions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, describing the Czech move as “provocative and unfriendly.” Czech authorities on Saturday said they…
The Kremlin on Monday rejected Western concerns over hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s health as supporters warn that he is at risk of dying in prison. World leaders, celebrities and media organizations have called on President Vladimir Putin to allow Navalny see his doctors after the medics warned that he could suffer cardiac arrest at “any…
Russian epidemiologists have detected two mutated strains of the coronavirus within the country but said they aren’t necessarily deadlier or more contagious, the head of state consumer protection watchdog Rospotrebnadzor announced Monday. “We are seeing the formation of a Siberian version and the formation of a northwestern version” of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes coronavirus…
Thanks to Rosneft in 2020 about 800 ancestral lands residents of the indigenous small-numbered North peoples on the territory of the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug – Ugra gained access to the Internet.
Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria on Sunday handed over 34 orphaned children, whose parents were suspected of belonging to the Islamic State group, to a Russian delegation to be repatriated. An AFP correspondent in the city of Qamishli said the children aged between three and 14 were handed over to a delegation headed by the…
Russia on Sunday said it would retaliate against the Czech government’s “unprecedented” decision to expel 18 Russian diplomats identified as secret agents and summoned the Czech ambassador. “We will take retaliatory measures that will force the authors of this provocation to understand their full responsibility for destroying the basis of normal relations between our countries,”…
France, Germany and the European Union on Sunday joined a growing international chorus of protest at Navalny’s plight, and EU foreign ministers will discuss the situation on Monday. Concerns over Navalny’s health have mounted against the background of a new spike in tensions between Moscow and the West over a litany of issues, including Russia’s…
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan warned Sunday that Russia will face “consequences” if hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny dies. Jailed opposition leader Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent opponent, was arrested in January upon returning to Russia after recovering from a near-fatal poisoning attack he says was orchestrated by Moscow. “In terms of the…
The Czech government said Saturday it will expel 18 Russian diplomats identified by local intelligence as secret agents of the Russian SVR and GRU services that are suspected of involvement in a 2014 explosion. “Eighteen employees of the Russian embassy must leave our republic within 48 hours,” Foreign Minister Jan Hamacek told reporters. Prime Minister…
Russia on Saturday said it would expel a Ukrainian diplomat, prompting an immediate pledge of retaliation from Kiev, further escalating tensions over Moscow’s troop build-up on Ukraine’s eastern flank. The detention of a Ukrainian consul in the second city St. Petersburg comes at a time of global concern of a repeat of Moscow’s 2014 aggression, when Russia annexed…
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Jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny risks cardiac arrest at “any minute” as his health has rapidly deteriorated, doctors warned Saturday, urging immediate access to Russia’s most famous prisoner. On March 31, President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent opponent went on hunger strike to demand proper medical treatment for back pain and numbness in his legs and…
Two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut touched down Saturday on the steppe of Kazakhstan following a half-year mission on the International Space Station, footage broadcast by the Russian space agency showed. Russia’s Sergei Ryzhikov and Sergei Kud-Sverchkov as well as NASA’s Kate Rubins landed on barren land at 0455 GMT around 150 kilometres (90 miles)…
Two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut touched down Saturday on the steppe of Kazakhstan following a half-year mission on the International Space Station, footage broadcast by the Russian space agency showed. Russia’s Sergei Ryzhikov and Sergei Kud-Sverchkov as well as NASA’s Kate Rubins landed on barren land at 04:55 GMT around 150 kilometers (90 miles)…
Russia’s FSB security service said on Saturday it had detained a Ukrainian diplomat, accusing him of receiving sensitive information from a Russian national. In recent years Russia has detained a number of Ukrainian nationals on suspicion of spying but the detention of a diplomat is rare and seen as a sign of sharply rising tensions. “A Ukrainian…
Russian prosecutors on Friday asked a Moscow court to designate the network of regional offices of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and his Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) as “extremist organizations.” “Under the disguise of liberal slogans, these organizations are engaged in creating conditions for the destabilization of the social and socio-political situation,” the Moscow prosecutor’s office…
German prosecutors said Friday they are investigating a Russian man on suspicion that he helped to plan the murder of a Chechen dissident living in Germany on orders of the Chechen regime. Named as Valid D., the suspect is accused of “making a declaration of readiness to commit murder, preparing a serious act of violence…
A Moscow court has sentenced one of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s allies to two years in prison for two tweets critical of the Russian government, the Mediazona news website reported Thursday. Pavel Zelensky, a camera operator for Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), was detained in January on charges of inciting extremism online. The accusations stem…
Russian financial markets have shrugged off the latest round of sanctions announced by the U.S. on Thursday, with the Russian ruble and stock markets bouncing back strongly in Friday trading. The ruble — which saw trading volumes five times higher than usual ahead of the sanctions announcement — recovered two days of losses to stand…
Russia has asked migrants from post-Soviet states living there illegally to leave the country by June 15, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Friday. In mid-December, President Vladimir Putin extended the residence status of foreign citizens living in Russia until June 15, 2021, due to the coronavirus pandemic. This covered migrants from Commonwealth of…
Russia will restrict the navigation of foreign military and official ships in parts of the Black Sea until October, a Russian news agency reported Friday, a move that was swiftly condemned by Ukraine and the EU. Tensions between Moscow and Kiev have escalated in recent weeks following an uptick in fighting between Ukraine’s army and…
Jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny said Thursday that prison administrators have threatened to start force-feeding him immediately due to his deteriorating health. The 44-year-old poisoning survivor went on hunger strike over two weeks ago to demand a civilian doctor treat his severe back pain and leg numbness. He is serving two and a half years…
The super final of the Educational program for gifted children studying at Rosneft classes has started at the Sirius Lyceum.
Three years after the mass expulsion of Russian diplomats from the West over the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, Moscow’s representatives in Europe are coming under scrutiny again following a raft of new spy scandals. From Austria to Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, Russian diplomats have been expelled from several European countries…
The Slavneft-YANOS refinery begins construction of a delayed coking complex.
The U.S. intelligence community cannot conclusively say that Russian spies offered Taliban militants bounties to kill American soldiers in Afghanistan, the White House said Thursday. Spokesperson Jen Psaki spoke of “low to moderate confidence” in the 2020 reports of the cash incentives based on anonymous sources as Washington widened sanctions on Russia for election interference…
The United States on Thursday announced its toughest set of sanctions against Russia since 2018 in retaliation to a host of infringements. The sanctions ban U.S. financial institutions from taking part in new Russian government bond auctions and apply travel bans and asset freezes to 32 Russian individuals and legal entities. Washington will also expel…
The Kremlin said Friday it was “good” that U.S. President Joe Biden was seeking dialogue with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin but criticized the United States for a fresh bout of sanctions on Moscow. Biden’s offer earlier this week of a summit between the leaders amounted to a peace offering as tensions between Russia and…
Nearly 300 international academics and a popular Russian YouTuber have expressed solidarity with Russian journalists recently subjected to police raids amid widening pressure on independent media. The letters of support and calls for donations came after four editors of independent student news site DOXA were charged with criminal incitement of youth and investigative journalist Roman Anin…
The U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty news website in Moscow said Friday it was urgently appealing to Europe’s highest rights court to stop Russia from heavily fining the media outlet for hundreds of alleged infractions. RFE/FL, which Moscow designated a “foreign agent” several years ago, said it was facing fines of up to $33 million by the…
Russia has shut off access to the Black Sea and is harassing Ukrainian warships amid Moscow’s wider military buildup in the area, Ukraine said Thursday. Ukraine’s foreign ministry said in a statement that Russia will close from next week until October parts of the Black Sea toward the narrow Kerch Strait, which connects southern Russia…
Poland on Thursday said it had expelled three Russian diplomats, following a similar move by the United States, over what Warsaw called “hostile actions” by Moscow. Earlier Thursday the U.S. announced sanctions and the expulsion of 10 Russian diplomats in retaliation for what Washington said was the Kremlin’s U.S. election interference, a massive cyber attack…
Russian tech giant Yandex said Thursday it plans to launch its rapid grocery delivery service in France later this year and is also gearing up to start operations in London. Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic demand for online grocery deliveries has spiked, buttressing 15-minute grocery delivery services such as Yandex.Lavka. Yandex.Lavka currently operates…
Britain on Thursday said it had summoned the Russian ambassador in the UK to express its deep concern at what it called Moscow’s “pattern of malign activity.” The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said that included “cyber intrusions, interference in democratic processes, and the build-up of military forces near the Ukrainian border and in…
Russia’s foreign intelligence service, the SVR, on Thursday dismissed U.S. claims that it was involved in cyber attacks on U.S. infrastructure as “nonsense” after Washington imposed sanctions on Moscow. “We will only say that reading this nonsense is an occupation of little interest,” the SVR said in a statement, referring to a U.S. executive order…
Kiev on Thursday accused Russia of flagrantly threatening Ukraine with destruction ahead of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s meeting with the leaders of Germany and France. The concern is mounting that the long-simmering conflict in east Ukraine could spiral back into wider fighting after reports of major Russian troop movements and intensification of clashes with Moscow-backed separatists.…
Long lines of would-be tourists have formed outside Turkish Airlines’ Moscow office on Thursday as people seek refunds for canceled bookings, local media reported. Russia suspended most flights with Turkey from April 15-June 1 earlier this week, shutting over 500,000 Russian tourists out of the popular holiday destination. Videos posted to social media showed dozens…
Russia has summoned U.S. Ambassador to Moscow John Sullivan for “harsh talks” after Washington widened economic sanctions and ordered diplomatic expulsions in retaliation to what it calls Moscow’s malign behavior, Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced Thursday. Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the ministry would like to speak with Sullivan less than an hour after President Joe Biden…
The U.S. on Thursday hit Russia with its toughest set of sanctions since 2018 to punish the Russian government for a host of infringements. This is the first sanctions action against Russia taken by new president Joe Biden and comes days after he suggested a face-to-face summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, as a…
In 2021, Rosneft will continue to implement the program for the conservation of the Arctic ecosystems biological diversity.
The United States announced sanctions against Russia on Thursday and the expulsion of 10 diplomats in retaliation for what Washington says is the Kremlin’s U.S. election interference, a massive cyber attack and other hostile activity. President Joe Biden ordered a widening of restrictions on US banks trading in Russian government debt, expelled 10 diplomats who…
Syzran Refinery, which is part of the oil refining unit of Rosneft, has put into operation a mobile ecological post for monitoring water and soil.
Argentina’s health ministry has said Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine is more effective at preventing coronavirus infections than its Chinese and Indian competitors, the South American country’s media reported Wednesday. Argentina has so far distributed the first doses of Sputnik V among 2.6 million recipients, China’s Sinopharm among 1.2 million and India’s Covishield among more than…
Around 820,000 Muscovites have received both doses of a coronavirus vaccine, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said yesterday, with the number who have received at least one dose of Russia’s three homemade jabs having surpassed 1 million in the capital. In a city of at least 12 million, the figures mean under 10% of the capital’s residents…
Russian Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov has disputed reports of his impending retirement and changes in the party’s leadership, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Thursday. A day earlier, far-right LDPR party leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky had said that Zyuganov, 76, would recuse himself at the next Communist Party congress. Zhirinovsky added that Yuri Afonin,…
Jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s close associate Lyubov Sobol was sentenced to a year of community service Thursday for visiting the apartment of an alleged security agent implicated in his poisoning. Sobol was detained in December when she appeared outside the home of alleged Federal Security Service (FSB) chemical weapons expert Konstantin Kudryavtsev. Navalny and the…
The U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) news outlet has offered some of its staff the opportunity to leave Russia as it faces crippling “foreign agent” fines, BBC Russia reported Wednesday. The move comes after Russia fined RFE/RL nearly $1 million for violating tagging requirements related to its “foreign agent” designation. Russia’s newly tightened “foreign…
The United States has canceled this week’s planned deployment of two warships to the Black Sea, Turkish officials and media said Wednesday, amid high tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Turkish diplomatic sources said the passage of the first ship through the Bosphorus due on Wednesday did not take place. Anadolu state news agency said both deployments, scheduled…
The developer of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine said Wednesday its jab did not cause blood clots, a potential side effect that has disrupted rollouts in several Western countries. The United States has recommended pausing its rollout of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after one person out of nearly 7 million Americans died from a…
Russia said Wednesday that Washington’s plan to pull out troops from Afghanistan by September could lead to an escalation of the long-running conflict and derail peace talks. U.S. President Joe Biden announced earlier this week that all American forces would withdraw from Afghanistan by this year’s 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. The Russian Foreign…
Armenia said Wednesday it will seek to expand the presence of Russian troops on its soil in a move that would further strengthen Moscow’s role as the tiny Caucasus country’s security guarantor. Russia helped broker a peace deal between Armenia and its arch-foe Azerbaijan in November which ended six weeks of fighting over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh…
The Russian Navy has launched drills in the Black Sea ahead of two U.S. warships’ reported arrival in the area amid tensions over Russia’s massive troop buildup near Ukraine, state media reported Wednesday. Russia’s Black Sea Fleet deployed a frigate, minesweeper, three corvettes and an unspecified number of landing ships to navigate simulated minefields, according…