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Russia pays off $1 billion of oligarch Vekselberg’s debt
The Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg, who has recently been placed under sanctions, has paid off his loans to western banks using financial assistance from the government.
Vekselberg’s Renova Group repaid $1 billion to a consortium of European, Swiss and American banks, including JPMorgan, Credit Suisse, and UBS.
The loans needed to be repaid in a hurry. The US Treasury Department, which recently blacklisted Vekselberg and all of his companies, demanded that all deals be broken off by June 5 …
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Britain hasn’t renewed visa for Russian billionaire Abramovich
According to British and Russian media, Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea football club, Roman Abramovich, was unable to attend the FA Cup final to watch his team beat Manchester United, due to the expiry of his British visa.
The Bell Media cited an acquaintance of Abramovich and two sources from his inner circle, reporting that the visa expired three weeks ago and now he is waiting for a new one.
The billionaire’s spokesman told TASS agency that he cannot comment on this information, …
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Poroshenko: Ukraine to withdraw from treaties that do not comply with its national interests
Kyiv will conduct an audit of all international treaties concluded with the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and will withdraw from those that do not correspond to Ukraine’s national interests, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko said, as reported by his press service. Poroshenko spoke during the ceremony commemorating the victims of political repression on the territory of the National Historic Memorial "Bykivnia Graves" near Kyiv on Sunday, May 20.
"Currently we are carefully …
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Media: France deploys six artillery batteries in Syrian Deir ez-Zor province
The French military has established six artillery batteries near the Syrian-Iraqi border in order to support Kurds, the Baghdad Post reports, citing its sources.
The newspaper states that the six artillery batteries were established in the north of Deir Ezzor province's Baguz village.
The French military have increased their presence in Kurdish-held areas of Syria. They are currently deployed in Manbij, al-Hasakah, Ayn Issa and Raqqa.
Earlier, the newspaper Le Parisien, citing as its source …
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Estonia announces its first joint exercises with the Swedish Air Forces
The Swedish Air Force, together with the Estonian Air Force will hold AFX18 exercises. Swedish fighters will be deployed to the Ämari Air Base near Tallinn, the website of the Estonian Defense Forces reports.
"These are the first joint exercises between the Estonian and Swedish Air Force after the restoration of independence," Estonian Air Force Colonel Riivo Valge said. His words are quoted on the Ministry’s website. He noted that the exercises provide an excellent opportunity to practice …