• Russian police detained dozens of opposition supporters in several cities

    In several Russian cities on April 16, 2017, police detained dozens of people who took part in peaceful protests, Deutsche Welle reported.

    In St. Petersburg, participants of the "walks" on Palace Square were detained for not getting authorization from authorities. According to the organizer of the rally, Aleksandr Rastorguev, the police detained dozens of participants.

    "My friends and I have been taking walks every week since October of last year. Usually several policemen accompany us. Today …

  • Media: A terrorist act near the Russian Embassy in Berlin was prevented at the last moment

    The German Sunday newspaper, Bild am Sonntag, reports that a terrorist act near the Russian Embassy in Berlin on April 10th was prevented at the last moment.

    The newspaper notes that a Moroccan citizen called Mohammed H., who is suspected of planning the terrorist act, discussed the attack on social networks. Last Saturday, he was going to walk among demonstrators in front of the Russian embassy and commit an act of terrorism. Thus, the supposed attack was prevented just one day before its …

  • Media: Russia-US memorandum to prevent air incidents in Syria is not in effect

    The memorandum between Russia and the US to prevent air incidents in Syria is still suspended; the US is using other channels for its communications with Russia, a Russian military diplomatic source told Interfax on Saturday.

    “The memorandum is suspended,” he said.

    “By aviation measurements, the Syrian sky is very small. This is why America, through other already available channels, often asks us for authorization to enter this or that zone of Syrian airspace. We understand the importance of …

  • NATO begins large-scale exercises in Latvia

    NATO Summer Shield exercises will start in Latvia on April 17th. More than 1,200 soldiers, including 200 from Estonian military, will take part in them, reported the Headquarters of the Estonian Defense Forces.

    More than 200 Estonian soldiers will take part in the NATO Summer Shield exercises, which will be held in Latvia at the training camp in Adazi from April 17th to 30th, the report said.

    The Summer Shield international military exercises will be held at the Adazi training ground and …

  • Trump’s advisor: 'decisive discussions' with Russia on Syria are imperative

    Herbert McMaster, national security adviser to the US president, believes the time has come for “tough discussions” with Moscow on the topic of its support of the Syrian government, and also Russia’s “subversive activity” in Europe. Moscow’s support of the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has led to a civil war and a crisis which has spread not only to Iraq and other neighboring countries, but also to Europe, the security adviser said in a broadcast of ABC News on Sunday, April 16.

    He added …

  • Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine: Russia has isolated itself from Eurovision-2017

    Russia has isolated itself from the Eurovision-2017 singing competition that will be held in Kyiv, as stated by the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine, Vyacheslav Kyrylenko, on Ukrainske radio.

    "Russia has isolated itself from Eurovision-2017. Moreover, as a result of this decision, the Kremlin has deprived all Russian people of the opportunity to see this fantastic and wonderful show, in which 42 countries not only from Europe but the whole world will take part," Kyrylenko said. "But we also know …

  • Russia’s foreign debt has grown by $ 16.2 billion since the beginning of the year

    Since early 2017, Russia's foreign debt has increased by 3.1%, or $16.173 billion, based on data published on the Bank of Russia's website. Thus, as of April 1, 2017, Russia's foreign debt amounted to $529.6 billion.

    "The growth of accumulated foreign debt was observed in all sectors of the economy, and was largely due to a reassessment of debt obligations denominated in national currency in response to the strengthening of the Russian ruble,” says Russia's TASS news agency, citing a report …

  • Media: Ukraine could miss out on $3.65 billion loan from China due to squabbles between officials

    Ukraine may lose 3.65 billion USD, which the China Development Bank would allocate for the development of the energy sector, as reported by Reuters, referring to interviews with officials.

    The reason for the loss of Chinese funds, the agency argues, is the squabbles between the ministries and the state company Naftogaz of Ukraine, as well as the expiring term for the provision of a specific program for such financing.

    In June this year, Ukraine must submit proposals for investment projects in …

  • Four of the Maidan dispersers from Berkut special force decided to seek refuge in Russia

    Four former members of the Kharkiv battalion of the “Berkut” special division crossed the border and moved into Russia, their lawyer Valentin Rybin told RIA Novosti.

    On April 13, they sat on a bus and went to Russia. “They crossed the Ukraine-Russia border without incident after completing the necessary border crossing measures and after the end of the pretrial investigation. Taking into consideration the pressure put on them by the Prosecutor General’s Office, and the fact that several …

  • Russia may be suspended from Eurovision next year

    The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) does not exclude the possibility of Russia's suspension from participation in Eurovision next year. This was reported by Russia’s TASS new agency, citing the official representative of the EBU, Dave Goodman. According to him, such a decision can be made only after the song contest in Kyiv.

    According to the current rules of the contest, Russia may be deprived of the right to send its representative to the competition next year because of its refusal to …