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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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…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 16

Russia has confirmed 752,797 cases of coronavirus and 11,937 deaths. July 16: 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…

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Arctic Mayor Claims Coronavirus Cases 200% Higher Than Official Count

The mayor of Russia’s Arctic city of Norilsk has accused regional authorities of dramatically underreporting coronavirus cases and ignoring the scale of its outbreak, the Tayga.info news website reported Thursday. Mayor Rinat Akhmetchin painted the dire picture in a letter to the governor of the Krasnoyarsk region where Norilsk is located and the chairman of the regional…

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UK, U.S. and Canada Accuse Russia of Vaccine Research Hacking

Britain, the United States and Canada on Thursday risked worsening fraught diplomatic ties with Russia by accusing Moscow-linked hackers of targeting labs in their countries conducting coronavirus vaccine research. The three governments pointed the finger at the Kremlin, saying that a hacking group called APT29 was “almost certainly” linked to Russian intelligence. In a separate claim, London…

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Russia Violates Women’s Rights During Childbirth Amid Coronavirus – Report

Russia is among dozens of countries that have violated women’s rights during childbirth amid restrictions imposed because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Open Democracy advocacy group said Thursday. Women in at least 45 countries faced treatment that defied World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines this spring and summer, Open Democracy’s investigation said. These include forcibly separating…

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U.S. Targets Russia Group Over Libya Mines, Sudan Suppression

The United States on Wednesday accused a Russian mercenary group of laying landmines in and around Tripoli and imposed sanctions over its alleged cooperation with Sudan’s ousted dictator. The Pentagon’s Africa Command said it had “verified photographic evidence” that the Wagner Group, a private security operation allegedly sponsored by the Russian government, planted mines “indiscriminately”…

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Russian Public Figures to Join Online Talk on ‘War of Monuments’

Protests against racial and other discrimination have engulfed half of the globe. In their quest for justice, demonstrators have targetted monuments of people associated with slavery, racial and other forms of discrimination. Authorities across the world have put demonstrators on a par with ordinary vandals, imposing enormous fines and even criminal penalties for destroying or…

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Russia Moves to Ban Gay Marriage

Russian lawmakers have swiftly moved to ban same-sex marriage in line with President Vladimir Putin’s recent changes to the Constitution. Seven senators submitted a draft bill late Tuesday to amend Russia’s Family Code and legally ban gay marriage and adoptions, including, according to its authors, by transgender people. The move comes two weeks after voters…

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Spotify Expands to Russia and Eastern Europe

Music streaming giant Spotify announced Tuesday it was launching its service in Russia and 12 other countries around Eastern Europe. Spotify would become available to users immediately, according to a statement, which added that the Swedish streaming service was now accessible in 92 markets. In addition to Russia, Spotify was rolling out in Albania, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kazakhstan,…

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A Long Weekend In Lipetsk

Sometimes the most interesting places in Russia are a bit off the beaten path. Case in point: Lipetsk region. Lipetsk is 465 km from Moscow — almost six hours by car. Although the region is associated with Peter the Great, the writer Ivan Bunin, and other famous historical figures, it is not on the standard…

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Sakhalin Energy helps Sakhalin Regional Clinical Hospital

News from projects and regions July 14, 2020, 14:10 Today, Sakhalin Energy provided forty oxygen concentrators to the Sakhalin Regional Clinical Hospital. The apparatuses were purchased in the framework of cooperation with the Sakhalin Region Ministry of Health. Oxygen concentrators are now needed most for treating severe respiratory diseases, including pneumonia caused by COVID-19, a new type of coronavirus. These apparatuses use…

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Russian Opposition Media Editor Quits Amid Wave of Harassment Claims

The editor-in-chief of the MBKh Media news website announced his resignation Monday amid the latest spate of sexual harassment allegations to hit Russia’s independent media sector.  Sergei Prostakov was among several high-ranking media and banking executives to face claims of sexual assault, harassment and rape posted on Twitter by former employees and interns this week. …

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Gazprom Transgaz Ukhta reviews outcomes of its participation in all-Russian campaign #WeAreTogether

News from projects and regions July 14, 2020, 13:30 In the beginning of July, the Administration and the Council of Young Professionals of Gazprom Transgaz Ukhta assessed the outcome of the company’s participation in the #WeAreTogether campaign, where 85 volunteers from the company took part in the nationwide charity event aimed at supporting persons with limited mobility, people staying in mandatory quarantine under instructions from…

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Disappearing Ink Sparks Corruption Allegations Against Moscow Officials

A Moscow municipal lawmaker has accused officials of corruption after discovering a contract price written in disappearing ink.  Cheryomushki District councillor Yelena Selkova posted a video of herself holding a lighter next to the contract. Within seconds, the 2.6 million ruble ($37,500) figure can be seen vanishing from the paper. “Let’s check the price,” Communist…

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Gazprom’s financial information under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for the three months ended March 31, 2020

July 14, 2020, 10:00 1Q2020 IFRS Results Comment by Famil Sadygov, Deputy Chairman of Gazprom Management Committee, on financial statements under IFRS for three months of 2020 Today PJSC Gazprom issued its unaudited consolidated interim condensed financial information prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 Interim Financial Reporting (IAS 34) for the three months ended March 31, 2020. The table…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | July 13

Russia has confirmed 733,699 cases of coronavirus and 11,439 deaths. July 13: 3 things you need to know today Turkish Airlines will resume flights between Turkey and six Russian cities starting Aug. 1, the airline said on its website Wednesday. According to its website, Turkish Airlines will fly to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Krasnodar, Sochi and Rostov-on-Don. Russian authorities…

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Atommash has successfully performed the hydraulic tests of the reactor pressure vessel for Unit 1 of the “Akkuyu” NPP (Turkey)

The Volgodonsk Branch of JSC “AEM-technology” “Atommash” (part of the ROSATOM Engineering Division – Atomenergomash) successfully completed the hydraulic tests of the first reactor for the first power unit of the “Akkuyu” NPP under construction in Turkey. To carry out the final stage in the manufacturing process of the reactor pressure vessel, a special underground…

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