Putin Rides to Xi’s Rescue on Battered Silk Road as the West Stews

At the first Belt and Road summit in Beijing two years ago, Vladimir Putin offered little more than platitudes for Xi Jinping’s global infrastructure initiative, essentially calling China’s “project of the century” a welcome new plank in Russia’s own strategy for ending American hegemony. Since then, deep-pocketed Chinese companies have intensified their march across Asia, Africa…

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Head of FSB’s Secretive Unit Detained for Bribery – Reports

The head of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) highly secretive branch has been detained on suspicion of large-scale bribery, the Kommersant business daily reported on Friday. Colonel Kirill Cherkalin headed the FSB economic security department’s financial counterintelligence support unit. The department played key roles in investigations surrounding former economy minister Alexei Ulyukayev, deputy prime minister…

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Rosatom supplied a large batch of germanium-76 isotope to Germany for the LEGEND international research project

A large consignment of germanium-76 isotope has been shipped to Germany under the contract between Isotope JSC and the Technical University of Munich. The batch was produced by PA Electrochemical Plant JSC (ECP, Zelenogorsk, Krasnoyarsk region; an enterprise of TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom). Germanium-76 has been supplied for the joint international research collaboration LEGEND…

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Two Dead in Moscow Metro Shooting — Reports

Two people are reportedly dead following a shooting at a Moscow metro station, the state-run TASS news agency reported on Thursday. A man opened fire and killed one person at the entrance of Noviye Cheryomushki station before committing suicide, TASS cited a law enforcement source as saying. Russian media, citing the Baza Telegram channel, have…

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Siberia Wildfires Claim First Casualty as Losses Mount

The wildfires tearing through southeastern Siberia claimed their first human victim on Thursday as damages almost doubled to nearly 1 billion rubles ($15.4 million), authorities said. At least 36 people were injured and nearly 650 left homeless in Zabaikalsky region, while almost 12,000 pets and livestock animals were killed in the flames. The Emergency Situations…

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Pushkin House Book Prize Short List

In Moscow on Thursday, the short list for the 2019 Pushkin House Book Prize was announced by Alexander Drozdov, executive director of the Yeltsin Presidential Center and a member of this year’s jury. The Prize has been awarded annually since 2013 to the best book of non-fiction about Russia or the Russian-speaking world written for…

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Gazprom and CNPC discuss pipeline gas supplies to China

Release April 25, 2019, 15:35 A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Wang Yilin, Chairman of the Board of Directors of CNPC, took place today in Beijing, China. The meeting participants reviewed the development prospects of the Chinese gas market and the strategic aspects of cooperation between Gazprom and CNPC, paying particular attention to gas supplies. It was noted that…

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Russian Ministry Moves to Ban Personal Imports of Parmesan and Jamon – Reports

Russia is considering banning certain meat and dairy products, including parmesan and jamon, over health concerns tied to infectious diseases, the Vedomosti business daily reported. Wholesale imports of fresh EU food products were banned in 2014 in retaliation to Western states imposing sanctions over Russia’s annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.…

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Delegation from Japan visited Novovoronezh NPP

Takuya Hattori, senior advisor of Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, and also member of the International Expert Council of Rosatom visited Novovoronezh NPP. He was accompanied by representatives of Japanese companies related to nuclear power.  Guests visited the Education and Training Center (ETC), the Main Control Room (MCR), the Turbine Hall of Unit №6. According to…

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Germany, Poland Halt Oil Imports From Russia Over Quality Concerns

Poland and Germany have suspended imports of Russian oil via a major pipeline, citing poor quality and triggering a rare crisis over supply from the world’s second-largest crude exporter. Halting imports from the Druzhba pipeline could trigger legal claims by Western buyers against Russian suppliers, who would in turn seek compensation from Russian pipeline monopoly Transneft, three traders…

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Russia’s Passport Offer to East Ukrainians Slammed in Kiev, Washington

President Vladimir Putin’s order simplifying the procedure for residents of separatist-controlled eastern Ukraine to obtain a Russian passport prompted condemnations from Kiev and the United States. Putin’s decree on Wednesday eases the path to Russian citizenship for an estimated 3.7 million people living in the self-proclaimed Donetsk  and Luhansk republics after five years of war…

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Russia Says U.S. Able to Carry Out ‘Space Strikes’

The United States is capable of attacking Russia from space, a senior Russian general said Wednesday. U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a plan in January calling for the development of space-based sensors to shoot down missiles before they can threaten U.S. soil, among other capabilities. Moscow warned the new U.S. missile defense strategy would unleash…

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Gazprom to start building inter-settlement gas pipeline to Vostochny Cosmodrome in near future

Release April 24, 2019, 16:25 A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Vasily Orlov, Governor of the Amur Region, took place today in Moscow. It was noted that the Amur Region is an area of strategic interest for Gazprom, as the Power of Siberia gas pipeline passes through its territory. The pipeline will start delivering gas supplies from Russia to China on December 1,…

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Gazprom and VNG discuss development of Katharina UGS facility and sci-tech cooperation

Release April 24, 2019, 16:20 A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Ulf Heitmueller, Chairman of the Executive Board of Verbundnetz Gas (VNG), took place today in Moscow. The parties discussed their ongoing and future cooperation, in particular the interaction in the field of underground gas storage (UGS) in Germany. It was noted that the joint project for the development of the…

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Alexey Miller and German Ambassador Ruediger von Fritsch review progress of Nord Stream 2 project

Release April 24, 2019, 15:30 A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Ruediger von Fritsch, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Russian Federation, took place today in Moscow. The parties discussed issues related to cooperation in the gas sector. It was noted that Germany is the largest importer of Russian gas in the world. In 2018, Gazprom’s…

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Joint Russia IAEA-NEM School for Managers in Nuclear Organizations concluded in Sochi

The joint Russia-IAEA Nuclear Energy Management School for Managers in Nuclear Organizations concluded in Sochi on  April 19. The objective of the NEM School was to support middle-level managers and decision-makers in the nuclear sector in enhancing managerial and technical competencies that are essential for establishing or expanding national nuclear energy programmes. This year hit…

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Siberia Rushes to Extinguish Fast-Spreading Wildfires

Wildfires tore through nearly 20 towns in the grasslands of southeastern Siberia between April 19-22. The fires injured at least 34 people, four of them critically, and left at least 645 people homeless in Zabaikalsky region. Some 11,800 pets and livestock animals were also killed, The Siberian Times reported. Regional authorities estimate the blaze, which…

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The Last Address of Alexander Drevin

On Sunday, April 21, a small memorial plaque was installed in Moscow on the wall of an apartment house on Ultisa Myasnitskaya, where in 1938 the artist Aleksander Drevin was arrested and taken away to be eventually shot by the N.K.V.D. – the Soviet secret police. Drevin was the most prominent artist killed in Stalin’s…

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First Russian Found Guilty Under ‘Disrespect’ of Authorities Law – Reports

Russian authorities have issued the first guilty verdict under a new law criminalizing “blatant disrespect” toward the authorities for online posts calling President Vladimir Putin an expletive. A Novgorod region court 570 kilometers northwest of Moscow found a local resident guilty and fined him 30,000 rubles ($470) Monday for posts calling Putin “a fantastic f——”…

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Putin Unveils World’s Longest Nuclear Submarine at Shipyard Ceremony

President Vladimir Putin has unveiled a submarine capable of carrying six thermonuclear warheads on Tuesday ahead of its deployment in 2020-2021. Russia’s naval submarine called “Belgorod” will be the world’s longest submarine ever built, measuring 184 meters, The Barents Observer has estimated. The Belgorod will be able to carry six underwater “Poseidon” drones, the state-run…

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FSB Raids Jehovah’s Witnesses Meeting Spots in Siberia

Russian authorities raided the meeting spaces of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Siberia and the country’s Far East late last week, detaining five worshippers and holding two in pre-trial detention. Russia added the group to its registry of extremist organizations in 2017, exposing Russia’s estimated 175,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses to mass raids and forcing at least 5,000 to…

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Belarus Halts Exports Due to Low-Quality Russian Oil

Belarus has suspended exports of light oil products, gasoline and diesel fuel to Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic countries due to the low quality of Russian oil, the country’s exporter announced Tuesday. Russia’s pipeline monopoly Transneft and its Energy Ministry said last week there were problems with the quality of Russian oil going through the…

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On This Day: April 22, 1899

On this day in 1899, the writer Vladimir Nabokov was born in St. Petersburg. His father was a liberal politician; his mother a well-educated and cultured member of a prominent business family. He was the oldest of five children. He received his early education at home with governesses and tutors and then at a liberal…

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Putin Won’t Congratulate Zelenskiy On Ukraine Presidential Win, Kremlin Says

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not officially congratulate Ukrainian president-elect Volodymyr Zelenskiy on his landslide victory, the Kremlin said on Monday. Ukraine has entered uncharted political waters after near final results show Zelenskiy, a comedian, winning Sunday’s presidential election by a landslide, dramatically upending the political status quo in the ex-Soviet republic. It’s “too early”…

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Figure skating competition backed by Gazprom Dobycha Shelf Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk held in Sakhalin Region

Background Gazprom Dobycha Shelf Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gazprom focused on developing fields within the Kirinsky block, including the Kirinskoye and Yuzhno-Kirinskoye fields, as part of the Eastern Gas Program. By developing these reserves, the company will make a substantial contribution to meeting the energy demand of Russia’s Far East and creating opportunities for natural gas exports to Asia-Pacific. A subsea production system is used for the…

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Kovyktinskoye field right on track for commercial production

Release April 22, 2019, 15:00 A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Sergey Levchenko, Governor of the Irkutsk Region, took place today in St. Petersburg. The parties highlighted the strategic nature of the ongoing cooperation. Gazprom continues to make extensive efforts in the region to shape the Irkutsk gas production center on the basis of the Kovyktinskoye field. Work is proceeding on schedule…

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Vintage Tram Cars Parade Down Moscow’s Streets

Vintage tram cars paraded down Moscow’s streets on Saturday to mark the 120-year anniversary of the tram service’s opening. The event, which takes place each spring, reached record attendance with more than 250,000 spectators, the local mos.ru news website reported. Here’s a look at the parade’s display of historic, Soviet-era models and the innovative trams…

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