Russian Journalist Safronov Loses Final Appeal of 22-Year Treason Sentence

Russia’s Supreme Court has upheld journalist Ivan Safronov’s 22-year prison sentence for treason, a group of his supporters said Wednesday. Safronov, 33, was found guilty in September 2022 of collecting secret information about the Russian military and handing it to Czech spies as a defense reporter for the Russian newspapers Kommersant and Vedomosti.  Safronov lost his final…

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TVEL and Necsa Sign MoU to collaborate on nuclear technology for peaceful means

The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom on 27 July 2023 providing for cooperation in the field of nuclear fuel production and related components. Both companies aim to share existing expertise in this field and further collaborate to develop the necessary capabilities.…

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After 1.5 Years of War, Ukrainian Refugees in Russia Grapple With Assimilation Question

MOSCOW — Tatiana moved to Russia from Sloviansk, a town located in a Kyiv-held part of eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, in March 2022 as shelling attacks intensified near her home. After arriving, she was able to receive Russian citizenship fairly quickly, she told The Moscow Times, under a simplified process for Ukrainians. Although Tatiana, who declined…

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Kazakhstan Rebuffs U.S. Extradition Request for Russian Cybersecurity Expert

Authorities in Kazakhstan have approved Moscow’s request to extradite a Russian cybersecurity expert wanted by the FBI, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Tuesday, citing Artyom Oganov, an official at the Russian consulate in Almaty. Nikita Kislitsin, a department head at Russian cybersecurity firm F.A.C.C.T., was detained by Kazakh law enforcement on June 22…

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Russia Rejects Appeal from Putin Critic Kara-Murza, Jailed for 25 Years

A Russian court on Monday dismissed dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza’s appeal against the 25-year prison sentence he received for criticizing the offensive in Ukraine.  Kara-Murza received the longest sentence against a Russian opposition figure in recent years, drawing immediate condemnation from Western countries.  “The verdict of the Moscow City Court from April 17 shall be left…

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Russian Billionaires Supply Kremlin’s Army, Military-Industrial Complex – Proekt

At least 81 Russian billionaires have business links to Russia’s military or to annexed Ukrainian territories amid the war in Ukraine, the independent investigative outlet Proekt reported Monday. Most of these individuals have stayed silent on the war, with some reportedly criticizing it in private conversations. Despite their links to Russia’s war machine, 34 of these…

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Russia Imports $500M in Foreign-Made Microchips So Far in 2023 – Vyorstka

Russia imported more than $502 million worth of foreign-made microchips in the first six months of 2023 despite U.S. and EU sanctions, the independent news website Vyorstka reported Monday, citing classified customs data. Since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has been slapped with Western export restrictions on advanced semiconductors and other goods that…

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700K Ukrainian Children Transferred to Russia Since Invasion – Official

Russia has “received” more than 700,000 Ukrainian children after launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, Russia’s presidential commissioner for children’s rights said in a report published Sunday. “Since February 2022, the Russian Federation has received about 4.8 million residents of Ukraine and the Donbas republics [of Donetsk and Luhansk], more than 700,000 of…

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ROSATOM Director General Alexey Likhachev discussed the course of construction of Rooppur NPP with Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina

On July 31, 2023, Director General of ROSATOM Alexey Likhachev visited Bangladesh.  During the visit, Mr. Likhachev met with Prime Minister of the Republic of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina. At the meeting, the Parties discussed the current issues of Rooppur NPP construction and the readiness of the site for the most important milestone of the year…

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Russian Police Station in Western Bryansk Region Targeted in Drone Strike

A Ukrainian drone attacked a police station overnight in Russia’s western Bryansk region, local authorities said early Monday. “Ukrainian forces attacked the district of Trubchevsky at night,” Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz said on the Telegram messaging app.  “A drone hit the police station in this district. There are no victims,” but the windows and roof…

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Russian Military Convinced Putin to Expand Draft Age Range — Reports

The Kremlin was purportedly against amendments recently passed in the Russian parliament that, once signed into law, would expand the pool of eligible army recruits by raising the upper age limit for military conscription, the independent news website Vyorstka reported Thursday, citing multiple anonymous sources familiar with the matter.  Under current Russian law, all men aged…

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Russia ‘Carefully’ Examining African Proposals to End Ukraine Conflict – Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday said Moscow is “carefully” examining proposals made by some African leaders to end the conflict in Ukraine. “We respect your initiatives and we are examining them carefully,” Putin said on the second day of a Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg. “Previous mediation initiatives were monopolized by so-called advanced democracies. Now…

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Russia Edges Closer to Abortion Ban in Quest to Preserve ‘Traditional Values’

The Russian government could be moving closer toward outlawing abortion, experts and activists have told The Moscow Times, as its wartime stifling of freedoms spreads to sexual and reproductive health rights.  While Russia has historically had a liberal abortion policy — with the exception of the Stalin-era ban — the conservative turn among the country’s…

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Plenary session “Nuclear Technologies for the Development of Africa” was held at the Second Summit Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum

On July 27, 2023, the plenary session “Nuclear Technologies for the Development of Africa” powered by ROSATOM was held in Saint Petersburg at the Second Summit Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum. The event was held in a hybrid format.  The event was attended by: Tanzanian Minister of Minerals Doto Mashaka Biteko, Zimbabwean Minister of Energy…

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Russia and Zimbabwe signed an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the field of peaceful use of atomic energy

On July 27, 2023, on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum in St. Petersburg, an agreement was signed between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe on cooperation in the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes. The document was signed by the Director General…

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ROSATOM and WATER AND ENERGY SOLUTIONS to Cooperate in the Sphere of Desalination and Water Conditioning

WATER AND ENERGY SOLUTIONS and Rusatom Smart Utilities, within the framework of Second Summit Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum, signed the memorandum of understanding. Based on the document, the parties plan to cooperate for the implementation of desalination, water conditioning and water purification projects. “According to the UN, today more than two billion people suffer…

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4 Killed in Siberian Helicopter Crash

Updated with revised death toll. Four people have been killed and 12 injured in a Russian helicopter crash in southern Siberia’s republic of Altai, the region’s emergencies ministry said Thursday. The Mi-8 transport helicopter was approaching landing near the village of Tyungur not far from the border with Kazakhstan when it struck electric wires, the Altai…

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Russian Lawmakers Banned From Unauthorized Visits to Ukraine Frontline – RBC

Russian lawmakers will be banned from visiting the war zone in Ukraine without direct approval from the country’s military leadership, the RBC business outlet reported Thursday, citing three anonymous sources in Russia’s parliament. Since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, politicians in Russia have frequently made trips to the frontline in order…

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