According to the official data, 20 Russian servicemen have been killed during the operation in Syria. The Russian media sources reported that Russian soldier Asker Bizhoev, from the Russian Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, was killed in Syria, referring to the information received from the head of the Republic, Yury Kokov.

According to him, Bizhoev was posthumously awarded the Russian Order of Courage. Kokov expressed hope that the “memory of the hero will remain in the hearts of residents of …

Moscow will not grant the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission access to the Crimea, as stated by the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation at the OSCE Alexander Lukashevich, RIA Novosti reports.

"The Crimea is a Russian territory. We had already stipulated long ago, that the mission has nothing to do with the Crimea as it is a part of the Russian Federation. But our Western colleagues interpret this to mean the whole territory of Ukraine, including the Crimea," he said.

According to …

Experts from the Ukrainian Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies stated at a press conference in Kiev that the Russian Federation has militarized the Crimea in an unprecedented fashion, and it will actively use weapons that are already based in the Crimea in the case of full-scale military actions in the territory of Ukraine.

“A very powerful group consisting of aviation and Russian Military Space Forces, cruise missile carriers, submarines and ships was gathered in the Crimea. …

South-Eastern Europe is concerned about the Russian Federation’s impending participation in military exercises that will be conducted in Serbia in September and October.

Former Ukrainian Ambassador to Croatia Markian Lubkivskyi, who is also the coordinator of Valentin Nalyvaychenko’s public movement “Justice” wrote on his blog on LB.ua that “At a time when Russia is escalating the situation with the Crimea, South-Eastern Europe is increasingly worrying. It is seriously concerned about the …

Dmitry Kalinin, a lawyer from the Russian city of Uralsk, has tried to get his taxes, which were spent by the Russian Government to support the Crimea, returned. He feels that the peninsula’s annexation is illegal. He sent an application and a demand to the Russian Ministry of Finance.

Kalinin substantiated his demands by mentioning the fact that a referendum on the possibility of the accession of a new territory has not been conducted in Russia.

The Russian Ministry of Finance responded that …

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev stated on Friday that Russia could severe diplomatic relations with Ukraine in the light of current security issues between the two countries. 

“If there is no other option to influence the situation, the president can probably make such a decision,” Dmitry Medvedev stated, as reported by state media.

This is the first time such measures have been mentioned. The possibility of severing diplomatic relations was not discussed after Russia’s annexation of …

The anti-aircraft missile defense regiment of the Russian army in the Crimea has received S-400 Triumf anti-aircraft systems, the Russian BBC service reported, citing the Russian Southern Military District press service.

“After the completion of preparations and redeployment, the newly equipped regiment will take part in the Kavkaz 2016 strategic command and staff military exercises,” the statement reads.

Before redeployment, the S-400 air defense missile system was tested on the Kaban …

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini called on Ukraine and Russia to avoid a further escalation of the conflict in Crimea, according to a statement posted on the EU’s website.

 “Any actions that could lead to a further escalation of the conflict must be avoided by all sides; a peaceful resolution of the conflict is the only possible solution. This includes eastern Ukraine, where we urge all parties to fully engage in the complete …