Contents tagged with USA
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Kremlin claims United States has become one of Russia’s top three trade partners
The Russian Ambassador in Washington, Anatoly Antonov stated that trade turnover between Russia and the United States during the last 10 months of 2018 increased by 16% compared to last year, reaching $23.3 billion, Russian news outlet EDaily reports.
Antonov said that the United States ranked third among countries investing in the Russian economy and that businessmen working in the Russian market are greatly worried about anti-Moscow sanctions. However, they have no intention to leave a …
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European Commission: construction of Nord Stream 2 pipeline is hard to stop
US President Donald Trump’s criticism of the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is not a reason to stop the project, stated European Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources Günther Oettinger on December 28. He said that any attempts to prevent the construction will encounter serious opposition as the construction is already underway.
Trump criticized Berlin for supporting the $11 billion gas pipeline. In July, he accused Germany of being Moscow's “hostage” because of the …
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Poroshenko signs law expanding Ukraine’s zone of control in Black Sea
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed the law “On Ukraine’s surrounding zone,” which doubles the country’s zone of control in the Black Sea, the presidential press service reported.
The law harmonizes Ukraine’s maritime legislation with that of other states on the Black Sea and other signatories of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982. It is intended to prevent smuggling operations and illegal visitation of the closed ports in the temporarily occupied territories of …
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Russian ambassador to the US: there are no regular contacts between Lavrov and Pompeo
During a press briefing, speaking about the relationship between Moscow and Washington, the Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov stated that there are no regular contacts between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo.
“Regular contact between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo is not working out, admitted the diplomat. Our proposal for the resumption of the practice of joint meetings between the …
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Ukraine to receive patrol boats from the US in 2019
On Friday, December 28th, the commander of the Naval Armed Forces of Ukraine, Igor Voronchenko, stated that Ukraine would receive Island-class patrol boats from the US in 2019.
“In July, they [the ships] should be in Ukraine. The crews are preparing. The steps for equipping these ships and joint training at the base in Baltimore [in the US] have been decided. The final procedures for fast delivery of these ships to Ukraine have also been finalized,” said the Navy Admiral.
Earlier, the …
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Russia warns US not to interfere in Saudi royal succession
Russia has warned the US not to attempt to interfere in the order of succession in Saudi Arabia, and has expressed its support for crown prince Mohammad bin Salman despite the accusations that he had the government critic Khashoggi killed.
President Putin’s special representative for the Near East said that Prince Mohammed has the full right to the throne after 82 year-old King Salman dies.
“Of course we are opposed to interference. The Saudi nation and leaders must deal with such issues …
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Nord Stream 2 construction begins in Sweden’s exclusive economic zone
The Solitaire, a ship working on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, has begun laying pipes in Sweden’s exclusive economic zone, Aftonbladet reports. The pipes needed for construction will be stored at the Swedish Karshamn Port.
Sveriges Radio reported that the pipe-laying operation in this region will last until summer 2019, and that the Karshamn Port administration has hired 110 extra staff for this period.
Nord Stream AG, the pipeline’s operator company, announced on December 23 that the …
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Russian military industry cut off from US dollar
US sanctions have led to the Russian military-industrial complex being cut off from dollar transactions, reports finanz.ru.
Although the portfolio of orders of the Russian state-owned arms exporter Rosoboronexport is estimated at $50 billion, the sale of weapons abroad does not bring in hard currency – the deals are made in rupees, yuans and rubles, which are harder to use to pay for imports.
Major defense contracts to supply S-400 systems have to be maintained outside the global dollar …
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Netanyahu: Israel prepared to act in Syria after US withdrawal
If needed, Israel is prepared to expand the scope of its military operations in Syria following the withdrawal of US troops, said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as reported by the Jerusalem Post.
According to Netanyahu, Israel’s policy is intended to weaken Iran’s influence on its neighbor, Syria. “The decision to remove the 2,000 American soldiers from Syria will not change our consistent policy: we will continue to oppose Iran’s attempts to establish military bases in Syria, and …
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Russia warns of a global conflict if US withdraws from Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
On December 21, the UN General Assembly did not approve the Russian resolution aimed at preserving the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF). 43 states voted for the adoption of the document, 46 were against, and 78 countries did not take part in the voting.
On Saturday, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that the withdrawal of the United States from the INF treaty can lead to a new arms race and direct confrontation in different parts of the world.
“The results of voting in …