Siberian Ambulance Crews Vow Hunger Strike Over Putin’s Unpaid Virus Bonuses

Ambulance workers in western Siberia have threatened to go on hunger strike if they don’t receive President Vladimir Putin’s promised payouts for working with coronavirus patients. Thursday marked Putin’s deadline to hand out April bonuses of up to 80,000 rubles ($1,100) to all medics treating Covid-19 patients. Russia’s prime minister acknowledged this week that regional…

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Moscow Says No Proof Russian Hackers Spied on Merkel

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday rejected allegations by German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Russian hackers had spied on her. “Five years have passed. Not a single concrete fact has been provided,” Lavrov said in a live interview with Russia’s RBC news website. Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, Merkel voiced frustration that Russia was targeting…

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Russia-Raised Austrian Princess Dies at 31

Austrian princess Maria Galitzine, who spent her school years in Russia, has died of a sudden heart aneurysm in the United States at age 31, her family said in an obituary published Friday. Maria Singh, née Princess Maria Galitzine, was the great-granddaughter of the last emperor and empress of Austria and a descendant of the…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | May 15

As the deadly coronavirus pandemic continues to spread, Russia has gradually become the world’s second most-infected country. There have been 262,843 cases of coronavirus infections reported in Russia so far and 2,418 deaths. May 15: 3 things you need to know today 1. Russia confirmed 10,598 new coronavirus infections Friday, bringing the country’s official number of cases to 262,843. Russia now has…

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Moscow’s Golden-Pink Sunset Lifts the City’s Spirits

Moscow residents were treated to a magnificent sunset after Thursday evening’s springtime rain that could still be enjoyed from one’s window.  The golden-pink sky and rainbow brought a much-needed burst of color into our lives — no filter required. And while Muscovites are technically restricted from non-essential trips outside, some people just couldn’t resist the urge…

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Atomenergomash has shipped a set of equipment to the UK

PJSC “ZiO-Podolsk” (owned by machine-building division of ROSATOM – JSC Atomenergomash) has manufactured and shipped the second lot of the equipment for Riverside Waste-to-Energy Plant in the UK. The delivery set includes one module of the third stage superheater and two modules of the fourth stage superheater. The total weight of equipment shipped is 100…

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Russia’s Trash-Burning Plants Could Fuel Unrest, Greenpeace Warns

Russia’s ambitious plans to build 25 waste-burning power plants risk provoking social unrest over their environmental and financial costs, Greenpeace Russia warned Thursday. State industrial conglomerate Rostec, state nuclear agency Rosatom and the VEB state development corporation on Thursday announced a 600 billion ruble ($7.6 billion) project to build the 25 waste-to-energy plants in “Russia’s…

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Project for natural gas processing and liquefaction complex near Ust-Luga moving forward

May 14, 2020, 17:45 Basic design solutions are agreed upon, and design documentation is being drawn up. Engineering surveys are completed at construction site; site clearing is in progress. Project financing is being arranged. The Gazprom Management Committee took note of the information about the status of the project for the creation of an integrated complex for natural gas processing and liquefaction in the Leningrad Region (the…

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Key MH17 Suspect Detained in East Ukraine: BBC Russia

A key suspect in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was detained on unrelated charges in eastern Ukraine around the time the murder trial against the MH17 suspects started in the Netherlands this spring, BBC Russia reported Thursday. Former field commander Leonid Kharchenko, 47, is the only Ukrainian passport-holder among four suspects named by…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | May 14

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 298,000 people worldwide continues to spread, Russia has stepped up its measures to slow the pandemic’s spread within its borders. There have been 252,245 cases of coronavirus infections reported in Russia so far and 2,305 deaths. May 14: 3 things you need to know today 1. Russia confirmed 9,974 new coronavirus infections…

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Tamara Eidelman on Zuleikha

Are you are still puzzled by the continuing war of words about the novel “Zuleikha Opens Her Eyes” by Guzel Yakhina (translated into English as “Zuleikha” by Lisa C.Hayden) and the series based on the novel that aired a few weeks ago? Here is someone to help you understand both the historical facts and the…

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Russia’s Coronavirus Cases Surpass 250K

The Kremlin this week eased a national lockdown to slow the spread of the virus, despite a steady rise in numbers that has brought Russia to second place in a global tally of infections, behind the United States. A majority of Russia’s new cases were registered in the capital, a government virus tally said, where…

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Attend Online Talks on Architecture in Film

The architecture historian Airat Bagautdinov, one of the founders of the fascinating project Moscow From the Eyes of an Engineer, has joined forces with Moskino to produce a seeries of online lectures about architecture in film — specifically, what role architecture has playing in Western and Russian/Soviet films from the very begining to this day. …

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Russia’s Oldest Coronavirus Patient Recovers

Russia’s oldest coronavirus patient, 100-year-old Pelageya Poyarkova, has fully recovered from the illness, the Federal Biomedical Agency (FMBA) said Wednesday. Poyarkova had been hospitalized for a routine procedure when the other patient in her room tested positive for coronavirus. She was transferred to the FMBA’s Center for Brain and Neurotechnology, a facility repurposed for coronavirus…

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Russian Investigators Refuse to Drop Khachaturyan Sisters’ Murder Charges

Russian investigators have rejected prosecutors’ orders to drop murder charges against three teenage sisters accused of killing their abusive father, Interfax reported Wednesday. Prosecutors in January ordered investigators to drop the charges against Krestina, Angelina and Maria Khachaturyan, who admitted to killing their father in July 2018 after he subjected them to years of physical,…

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Have a Middle Eastern Feast

Who ordered the Korean set menu from Hyatt Regency Petrovsky Park last week? Raise your hands! Ours are up — we thought it was delicious, and it was also a party — a terrific break from cooking morning, noon and night or the usual delivery meals. So, this weekend — May 15-17 — we are…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | May 13

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 292,000 people worldwide continues to spread, Russia has stepped up its measures to slow the pandemic’s spread within its borders. There have been 242,271 cases of coronavirus infections reported in Russia so far and 2,212 deaths. May 13: 3 things you need to know today 1. Russia confirmed 10,028 new coronavirus infections…

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Moscow Commuters Brave Epidemic to Return to Work

On an electric trolleybus ride into central Moscow, all the passengers and the driver are wearing masks and gloves under new rules as the city begins a gradual return to work. “It’s positive, because it’s a necessary measure,” says 25-year-old Tatiana Khan, who wears a surgical mask and a T-shirt bearing a “love” motif. The…

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Telegram Ditches $1.7Bln Blockchain Launch

Russian entrepreneur Pavel Durov dropped plans to launch Telegram’s TON blockchain project Tuesday, attacking the U.S. justice system for killing off the initiative. The Telegram and Vkontakte founder had been developing the TON blockchain platform and Grams cryptocurrency for more than two years, successfully raising $1.7 billion from investors in an initial coin offering (ICO)…

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Russian Rape Victims Charged With Violating Virus Lockdown

Update: Authorities declined to fine the victims “because they turned to police due to threats to their lives and health,” the regional coronavirus task force said Wednesday. Police in Siberia have cited two teenagers for breaking coronavirus stay-at-home orders after they reported that they were raped on the street, the regional Tayga.info news website reported Tuesday.…

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Putin’s Spokesman Hospitalized With Coronavirus

President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov has been hospitalized with coronavirus, he told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency Tuesday. “Yes, I got sick, I’m being treated,” Peskov told Interfax. The Kremlin spokesman is at least the second person in Putin’s administration and the fifth senior government official to test positive for Covid-19. In addition to Culture…

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Tune into the Eurovision Request Hour

For all you Eurovision fans, heartbroken that it’s not going to happen this year, we have the next best thing. In fact, maybe it’s even better. At 5 p.m. Moscow time you can tune into “Eurovision request hour.” Ask for your favorite winning song from any year and you’ll hear it live, played by Steve…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | May 12

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 283,000 people worldwide continues to spread, Russia has stepped up its measures to slow the pandemic’s spread within its borders. There have been 232,243 cases of coronavirus infections reported in Russia so far and 2,116 deaths. May 12: 3 things you need to know today 1. Russia confirmed 10,899 new coronavirus infections…

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Rosneft ‘Controls’ Russia’s Leading Business Paper Vedomosti Through Debt: Investigation

Russian state-controlled oil giant Rosneft exercises leverage over the country’s leading business newspaper Vedomosti through multibillion-dollar debt held by its bank, a multi-outlet investigation said Tuesday. The findings follow widespread suspicion of Rosneft’s involvement in high-profile censorship scandals at Vedomosti, including its new chief editor changing a headline on the Russian government’s majority stake in…

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Putin Eases Nationwide Virus Lockdown as Russia Becomes 3rd Most-Infected Country

President Vladimir Putin has eased Russia’s “non-working” period imposed to slow the spread of coronavirus even as Russia emerges as Europe’s new coronavirus hotspot.  During the nationwide “non-working” period, all non-essential businesses are required to close and employers ordered to continue paying staff. Apart from this, Putin has largely handed decision-making power on lockdown measures…

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Springtime Blossoms Arrive in Moscow

After a historically warm, damp and grey winter, spring has finally arrived in Moscow, bringing a much-needed dose of sunshine and color back into our lives. The only problem? Most of the city’s residents are unable to enjoy the beautiful season due to the coronavirus lockdown. If you’re also stuck at home while the world…

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Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | May 11

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 283,000 people worldwide continues to spread, Russia has stepped up its measures to slow the pandemic’s spread within its borders. There have been 221,344 cases of coronavirus infections reported in Russia so far and 2,009 deaths. May 11: 3 things you need to know today 1. Russia confirmed 11,656 new coronavirus infections…

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9 Die in Care Home Fire Outside Moscow

A fire broke out in a retirement home in the Moscow region, killing at least nine people, local authorities said Monday. The blaze in the privately-owned care home in the town of Krasnogorsk started at around midnight Sunday and was extinguished within an hour, emergencies services said. “Nine people died on site and nine more…

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