Russian military has built a pontoon bridge across the Pripyat River in the Chernobyl exclusion zone near the abandoned Belarusian village of Vepry, reports the news outlet the Insider. Satellite images show that the construction began on February 10, 2022. There was nothing at that site before. The distance from the Pripyat to Kyiv is about 150 km.

The work of the military in this zone was also confirmed by the Ministry of Defense of Belarus. According to the official version, the joint …

No one knows how Russia will continue to act on the border with Ukraine, said Russian President Vladimir Putin after talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in the Kremlin.

"How Russia will act further? According to the plan. And what will it consist of? It will be based on the real situation on the ground. Who can answer how this situation is going to develop? So far, no one," Putin said at a joint press conference with Scholz.

"It depends not only on us," he said, answering the question …

Russian banks are importing dozens of tons foreign cash into the country, building up reserves in case of tough Western sanctions with the possible shutdown of SWIFT and foreign correspondent accounts.

In December 2021, the import of foreign cash to Russia amounted to $ 4.97 billion, RIA Novosti reports, citing Russia’s Central Bank statistics.

This is the fourth largest number in Russia’s history. Russian banks imported more dollars and euros only amid panic of March 2020 ($6 billion) and …

Western countries do not see signs of withdrawal of Russian troops from the borders of Ukraine, which was announced by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Statements from Moscow that the troops of the Southern and Western Military Districts, after completing their exercises, are being sent to places of their permanent deployment need to be verified, said US Permanent Representative to NATO Julian Smith.

Russia "made similar claims" about the de-escalation in December, but they turned out to be …

Deputies of the Russian parliament, the State Duma, adopted a resolution calling on the Russian President to recognize the independence of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's republics. During a vote on Tuesday, February 15, the Russian MPs approved the declaration prepared by the Russian Communist Party, which is expected to be sent directly to Vladimir Putin. 351 deputies voted in favor for the declaration, 16 were against and one abstained.

The deputies also considered a …

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz refused to take the PCR test offered by the Russian side before a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, reports Deutsche Welle.

Scholz decided to do the PCR test necessary for admission to the Kremlin with a German doctor at the German Embassy in Moscow. The Chancellor's spokesperson reported that representatives of the Russian medical authorities were invited to attend Scholz's testing.

The PCR kit needed for the test was brought from Germany. Even …

The Russian military is ready to strike at foreign ships that violate the state border of the Russian Federation, said the deputy head of the main operational directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Federation, Stanislav Gadzhimagomedov, commenting on the incident with the American submarine near the Kuril Island

On Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry said the Russian warships had to use “appropriate means" against an American Virginia-class submarine in the Pacific Ocean, which, …

Ukraine may abandon its goal of joining NATO if it helps to avoid war with Russia, said Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK, Vadym Prystaiko, in an interview with BBC radio.

"Especially under threat, we can be pushed to do this. We are flexible in finding the best way out. If we have to make any serious concessions, this is what we could do," Prystaiko said.

The diplomat stressed that Kyiv has been pushed towards making such a decision for a long time, including by "voices from NATO." "The …