Russia Says Its Forests Can Absorb Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Climate Change and Poor Forestry Standards Make This Unlikely.

As the climate crisis intensifies, Russia is pinning its hopes on its vast forests to make up for its carbon emissions — the world’s fourth-highest — and even help the country become a global leader in carbon absorption. But the country’s substandard conservation and ineffective forestry practices, combined with the impacts of climate change itself,…

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Russia Bans Nonexistent ‘Anti-Russian Separatist Movement’

Russia’s Supreme Court has banned the vaguely defined “Anti-Russian Separatist Movement” as an “extremist” organization, the independent news website Mediazona reported Friday. Rights groups say they have not been able to find a formal organization called the “Anti-Russian Separatist Movement,” leading to speculation that the authorities could use the designation as a pretext for wider…

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Putin Touts BRICS, Rebukes ‘Hegemon’ West in Economic Forum Speech

Countries across the globe are racing to “strengthen their sovereignty” amid Western nations’ efforts to “maintain their elusive role as hegemons,” President Vladimir Putin said in his plenary address at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) Friday.  Moscow has sought to broaden its support from countries in Africa, South America and Asia and cast itself as…

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ROSATOM participates in SPIEF-2024 Plenary Session “Technological Ecosystem of the Future: For the Benefit of Humanity and the Planet”

Alexey Likhachev, Director General of ROSATOM, outlined three key components of the technological landscape for the next hundred years. On June 7, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2024) featured a plenary session titled “Technological Ecosystem of the Future: For the Benefit of Humanity and the Planet.” Participants included Alexey Likhachev, Director General of ROSATOM,…

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Four Killed by Strike on Russian-Held Ukrainian City

Updates with new death toll. A missile attack on the Russian-controlled city of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine on Friday killed four people and injured over 40, Russian officials said. The eastern Luhansk region is almost entirely under Russian control. Moscow claimed to have annexed it in 2022. The main city, also called Luhansk, came under…

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Indian Medical Students Drown in Russian River

Four Indian medical students have drowned while swimming in a river in northwestern Russia, local law enforcement officials said Friday. The incident happened on Tuesday in the Volkhov River in the city of Veliky Novgorod, the regional branch of Russia’s Investigative Committee said. “The students were swimming… in an area where swimming is banned,” the…

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ROSATOM, together with partners from the Republic of Guinea, study the possibility of deploying floating power units in the country

The document was signed during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. On June 7, 2024, during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the Mechanical Engineering Division of ROSATOM signed a memorandum of understanding with partners from the Republic of Guinea. This Memorandum of Understanding envisages cooperation on developing floating power units (FPUs) to supply electricity…

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Ukraine Orders Evacuations From Parts of Donetsk Region

Ukraine on Thursday ordered the evacuation of children and their guardians from several towns and villages in the eastern Donetsk region, where fighting with Russian troops has intensified since Moscow launched a new ground offensive early last month. President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Russian firepower is now concentrated in Donetsk, which the Kremlin claimed to…

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U.S. Says Russia Planning Naval Drills in Caribbean Sea

Washington is tracking Russian warships headed to the Caribbean Sea for military exercises this summer, Reuters and the Associated Press reported, citing unnamed U.S. officials. According to the reports, officials said they believe the anticipated drills were “certainly” part of Russia’s broader response to U.S. support for Ukraine. AP said Moscow has not notified Washington…

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Russia Detains French Citizen for Gathering Military Information

Russian law enforcement authorities on Thursday detained a French citizen on suspicion of gathering information about the military and accused him of violating the country’s law on “foreign agents.” “The suspect carried out a targeted collection of Russian defense and military-technical information for several years,” Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said in a…

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Russian Central Bank Chief Calls for ‘Open Economy’

Russia’s Central Bank chief on Thursday called for Russia to be an “open economy” despite the barrage of Western sanctions and trading restrictions it has faced over the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina was speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia’s premier business and investment event that used to…

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Russia Says Captured Colombian Who Fought for Ukraine

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Thursday that its forces captured a Columbian man who purportedly fought as a mercenary on the side of Ukraine. “Angel Cardenas Montilla came to Ukraine following an advertisement on TikTok inviting mercenaries to fight against Russia,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement. It did not say where the man was…

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ROSATOM and Burkina Faso Begin Cooperation on Preparation to Nuclear Technology Development

The memoranda outline specific steps for building human resources for Burkina Faso’s nuclear sector. On June 5, on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2024), three memoranda of understanding were signed between ROSATOM and the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Quarries of Burkina Faso. The documents were signed by Director General of…

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Tram Collision in Siberia Kills 1, Injures 100

At least one person was killed and more than 100 others were injured after two trams collided on a bridge in the Siberian city of Kemerovo early Thursday, local officials said. Security camera footage shared on social media showed passengers being tossed onto a busy roadway from one of the careening trams as the driver…

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Taliban, BRICS and Family Values: Russia’s Isolation on Show at Economic Forum

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia’s premier business and investment event, kicked off in the country’s second-largest city on Wednesday with a focus on Russia’s place in a “multipolar” world, partnerships with the Global South and, increasingly, on domestic business deals. Once dubbed the “Russian Davos,” SPIEF had long attracted leading Western businesspeople,…

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Putin’s Daughters to Attend St. Petersburg Economic Forum

President Vladimir Putin’s daughters Katerina Tikhonova and Maria Vorontsova are scheduled to speak at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) this week, according to the annual event’s program. Tech executive Tikhonova is among the speakers of a panel discussion on “the defense industry’s role in ensuring technological sovereignty” on Thursday. Washington sanctioned her for…

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Russian Supreme Court Upholds Sentence for Jailed Sociologist Kagarlitsky

Russia’s Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a five-year prison sentence against the prominent anti-war sociologist Boris Kagarlitsky on charges of “justifying terrorism,” state media reported. Kagarlitsky, 65, was initially fined 600,000 rubles ($6,600) in December over a since-deleted YouTube video about the 2022 Crimea bridge explosion. In February, a military court of appeals reversed that…

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Serhii Plokhy’s ‘Russo-Ukrainian War’ Shortlisted for Pushkin House Book Prize

Over a year into Russia’s grotesque full-scale invasion of Ukraine, disinformation and misconceptions of the conflict — fuelled both by the Kremlin and by political actors abroad — continued to permeate public debate. “The Russo-Ukrainian War: The Return of History” by Serhii Plokhy takes aim at many of these myths, demonstrating how Russia’s centuries-long imperial obsession…

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Russian Duolingo Removes LGBTQ+ References in Censorship Compliance

The popular language learning platform Duolingo has removed references to LGBTQ+ people in its Russian version at Moscow’s request, the state-run news agency TASS reported Tuesday. Russia’s state media watchdog Roskomnadzor had this spring ordered Duolingo to comply with its “LGBT propaganda” law after conservative activists spotted phrases like “Ben and Peter love each other” and “Clara met…

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Starbucks Applies for Russian Patents After Leaving Country

Starbucks has applied for several patents in Russia almost two years after exiting the country over its war in Ukraine, the Vedomosti business daily reported Tuesday, citing the database of Russia’s intellectual property agency Rospatent. Experts speculate the move could signal either Starbucks’ potential return to the Russian market or an effort to extend patent…

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Moscow Claims West Planning Regime Change in Georgia

Russia’s deputy foreign minister claimed Tuesday that the West may be planning to overthrow the government of Georgia ahead of its parliamentary elections later this year, as tensions continue to boil over in the South Caucasus nation after the recent passing of a controversial “foreign influence” law. “We see Western attempts to escalate the situation…

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Governor of Russia’s Altai Republic Resigns

Updated with Turchak appointment. Oleg Khorokhordin announced Tuesday that he was stepping down as governor of the Siberian republic of Altai, making him the third regional head to resign within a week as the country prepares for regional elections in September. “I’m resigning from the post of head of the Altai Republic in connection with…

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3 Killed in Russian Attacks on Eastern Ukraine

Three people including a 12-year-old boy were killed in Russian attacks on eastern Ukraine, where Russian forces have claimed steady advances in recent weeks, local authorities said Monday. The head of the Donetsk region, which the Kremlin claimed to have annexed in late 2022, said two people were killed and another wounded by Russian attacks…

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