The first power unit of the Belarus NPP has been connected to the unified power grid of the Republic of Belarus

On November 3, at 12:03 pm, the first Belarus NPP GenIII+ power unit (its General Designer and General Contractor being the ROSATOM’s Engineering Division) equipped with a VVER-1200 reactor was synchronized with the grid for the first time and delivered the first kilowatt-hours of electricity to the unified power grid of the Republic of Belarus.…

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Scores of Nationalists Detained at Moscow National Unity Day Protests

Police in Moscow detained at least 60 nationalists who attempted to stage street rallies known as the “Russian March,” the police-monitoring website OVD Info reported. Unlike previous years, the Moscow authorities did not grant permission for the nationalists to hold their traditional march in the southeast of the city because of the coronavirus pandemic.  According…

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Muscovites Send a Message of Peace and Tolerance on National Unity Day

On Wednesday, Russians celebrated the country’s newest holiday, National Unity Day. Originally established to commemorate Moscow’s liberation from the Polish-Lithuanian occupation in 1612, it now also aims to promote ethnic and religious tolerance among the country’s diverse population. Though 15 years have passed since Nov. 4 was first marked as a public holiday, the date…

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Belarus Briefing | Nov. 4

Belarus has seen weekly mass protests against the disputed presidential re-election of Alexander Lukashenko for nearly three months. On Monday, exiled Belarusian opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya called for a national strike after the deadline she set for Lukashenko to resign and free all political prisoners expired the previous day. Here’s more of the latest news…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | Nov. 5

Russia has confirmed 1,693,454 cases of coronavirus and 29,217 deaths. Nov. 4: What you need to know today Russia has confirmed the record-breaking number of 19,768 new coronavirus cases and 389 deaths.  Russia is set to miss the self-imposed coronavirus vaccination timeline, information obtained by the business news website The Bell suggests. While the authorities have vowed to vaccinate…

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Russia Not on Track for Mass Coronavirus Vaccination by Year-End – The Bell

Russia will likely miss its self-imposed timeline for mass vaccination against the coronavirus because of insufficient production capacity, the business news website The Bell reported Tuesday. Authorities have vowed to vaccinate a sizable part of Russia’s population by the end of 2020, but developers are reportedly facing issues with scalability and quality control. As a…

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Russia Breaks Coronavirus Cases and Deaths Records, Surges Past 19K Infections

The number of new coronavirus cases in Russia hit another record Wednesday, surpassing 19,000 for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The 19,768 new coronavirus cases smash Sunday’s record by more than 1,000 and push the total caseload to 1,693,454, the world’s fourth-highest number.  The national coronavirus information center said that…

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IAEA experts studying the preliminary safety report of the Paks II project (Hungary)

The Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority has sent the preliminary safety report of the Paks II project to independent international experts for consideration, through the International Atomic Energy Agency. The implementation license application of the Paks II project is based on the preliminary safety report. Paks II. Zrt, the Hungarian client in the Paks II Nuclear…

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Belarus Launches Nuclear Plant Despite Baltic Outcry

Belarus on Tuesday launched its controversial Russia-built nuclear power station despite safety concerns from neighboring Baltic states three decades after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. The launch comes as Belarus strongman president Alexander Lukashenko faces historic protests against his claim to victory in August presidential polls that Western leaders and his critics say were fraudulent. Ahead of…

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Gazprom obtains record-high gas inflow on Kara Sea shelf

Background The Leningradskoye gas and condensate field is located in the Kara Sea within the Leningradsky licensed block. The field’s current recoverable gas reserves are estimated to total 1.9 trillion cubic meters and are classified as unique. In October, a new gas deposit was discovered at the field as a result of drilling and testing of an exploratory well. Commercial gas inflow was obtained with a flow rate…

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Nagorno-Karabakh Briefing | Nov. 3

The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan — now in its sixth week — shows little sign of easing after both sides accused the other of breaking an agreement not to target residential and civilian areas with missile strikes. The United Nations warned Monday evening those attacks “may amount to war crimes.” Nagorno-Karabakh and areas under…

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Harrowing Coronavirus Stories Emerge From Russia’s Battered Regions

The second record-breaking wave of coronavirus infections battering Russian regions has been accompanied by distressing stories and images of patients struggling in a strained health system. Cities including St. Petersburg and the western enclave of Kaliningrad have seen their highest caseloads since the spring outbreak, while the Moscow region has doubled Covid-19 hospitalizations over the…

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Moldova’s Pro-EU Presidential Hopeful Wins First Round Vote

Moldova’s pro-European presidential hopeful Maia Sandu won a surprise first-round victory, a major setback for Moscow-backed incumbant Igor Dodon that suggests a tight second round later this month. The small former Soviet country voted under the watchful eye of Russia, which wants polarized Moldova to remain in its sphere of influence as several nearby Kremlin-aligned governments…

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Nagorno-Karabakh Briefing | Nov. 2

Armenia and Azerbaijan failed to strike another ceasefire in talks brokered by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), as Baku pledged to “fight to the end” to recapture territory which has been controlled by Armenia-backed separatists since 1994. Meanwhile, Yerevan formally opened consultations with Moscow over when Russia would come to the…

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Belarus Rights Abuses Under Fire at UN

Belarus faced harsh criticism at the UN on Monday, with diplomats slamming arbitrary detentions and torture allegations in the response to months of protests against President Alexander Lukashenko. During a review of Belarus’s rights record at the United Nations in Geneva, many diplomats urged Belarus authorities to halt the crackdown on demonstrators, who since August have…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | Nov. 2

Russia has confirmed 1,655,038 cases of coronavirus and 28,473 deaths. Nov. 2: What you need to know today Russia has confirmed 18,257 new coronavirus cases and 238 additional deaths.  Only 36% of Russians are ready to vaccinate against Covid-19, according to the results of an independent Levada Center poll published by Russia’s Open Media news Monday. The share of Russians unwilling to…

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Russia Battles Four-Year Doping Ban

Russia’s attempt to overturn its four-year ban from international sport got underway in Lausanne Monday, the latest chapter of a long-running and controversial saga over state-sanctioned doping. Global anti-doping body WADA in December last year declared the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) to be non-compliant after being accused of manipulating testing data. The ban meant the…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | Nov. 1

Russia has confirmed 1,636,781 cases of coronavirus and 28,235 deaths. Nov. 1: What you need to know today Russia has confirmed 18,665 new cases and 245 new deaths. Over 150 patients were evacuated from a coronavirus hospital on Saturday in the Ural city of Chelyabinsk following an oxygen explosion and fire.  All of Russia’s regions are currently experiencing shortages of doctors to…

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Russia Pledges Help to Yerevan if Fighting Reaches Armenia

Russia said Saturday it would provide “necessary” assistance to Yerevan in its conflict with Azerbaijan if fighting reached Armenian territory after its ally requested help. Earlier Saturday Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan formally asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to begin “urgent” consultations on security assistance in its conflict with Azerbaijan over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.…

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Launch Squash Boats Under the Blue Moon

Halloween as we think of it — jack-o’-lanterns, children dressed up trick-or-treating, scary decor —  is a relatively recent import to Russia. Apart from the expatriate enclaves where they take trick-or-treating very seriously indeed, the holiday has found its most fertile soil in the grown-up playgrounds of nightclubs and bars. And this makes sense, since…

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Russians Stock Up on Food, Essentials Amid Fears of Second Virus Lockdown – Survey

At least one-third of Russians are actively preparing for a second coronavirus lockdown despite officials’ continued assurances that there are no plans to enact stricter measures, the RBC news website cited a survey as saying Friday. Russia has seen record-breaking surges in new coronavirus infections over the past two months as the outbreak gradually shifts from…

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Lukashenko Warns Belarus Protesters He Will ‘Take No Prisoners’

Belarus strongman Alexander Lukashenko ordered his security chiefs Friday to crack down on protesters and “take no prisoners” in his grimmest warning yet after months of demonstrations. The ex-Soviet nation has witnessed mass protests since the 66-year-old authoritarian leader claimed a landslide victory in August presidential elections that critics and Western leaders say was rigged.…

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Belarus Briefing | Oct. 30

Belarus has seen weekly mass protests against the disputed presidential re-election of Alexander Lukashenko for nearly three months. On Monday, exiled Belarusian opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya called for a national strike after the deadline she set for Lukashenko to resign and free all political prisoners expired the previous day. Here’s more of the latest news…

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‘May God Disfigure the Face of This Creature’: Russian MMA Star Nurmagomedov Joins Anti-Macron Chorus

Russian MMA fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov has joined a growing chorus of protests by prominent Muslims against French President Emmanuel Macron’s defense of secular values in the wake of two deadly terrorist attacks with a withering Instagram post. Macron became the target of widespread anger in the Islamic world for defending the display of cartoons of…

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