The number of representatives of the Russian Federation and countries friendly to it that are part of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) has increased significantly over the past year, notes Iryna Herashchenko, the First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada and Ukraine's representative in the humanitarian subgroup of the Tripartite Contact Group.

"Very often in the mission there are representatives of those countries that have special sentiments towards Moscow, and sometimes they do not …

Russia is currently studying possible projects for the construction of water treatment facilities in two Syrian provinces. SANA news agency reported that this was stated by the Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation, Kirill Molodtsov, during a meeting with Syrian Minister of Water Resources Nabil Al-Hasan.

According to SANA, al-Hasan discussed with the Russian delegation the prospects for cooperation and development of bilateral relations. He acquainted the delegation with the …

Since October 1, the Crimean authorities are launching an autumn conscription campaign in Sevastopol, following which 400 residents of Sevastopol will be sent for service in the Russian army, as reported by the Crimean Human Rights Group (HRG) on Facebook.

On September 27, the website of the government of Sevastopol reported that this was announced at the   meeting of the conscription commission chaired by the Deputy Governor of Sevastopol, Yuri Krivov. Out of 400 drafted, more than 100 people …

At a press conference in Kyiv, U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis said that there is no need to fear an escalation in the Donbas in the event that America provides weapons to Ukraine, as reported by Voice of America.

“Defense weapons do not provoke anyone unless you are the aggressor. And Ukraine is clearly not an aggressor, since military operations are taking place in its territory,” he said.

Luke Coffey, director of the conservative research group Allison Center for Foreign Policy …

In the near future, President Vladimir Putin is going to dismiss between eight and eleven regional heads, as reported by RIA Novosti news agency, citing a source in the Presidential administration.

It is anticipated that the replacements will be completed by October 10.

"This will be completed by October 10th. As a result, 8 to 11 governors will be replaced by newly proposed candidates, including those already announced. The number of discharges depends entirely on the President’s decision," …

During a broadcast of Polish TV on Saturday, Polish Defense Minister, Antoni Macierewicz, stated that the Ukrainians are very well informed about the joint Russian-Belarusian exercises Zapad 2017, and suggested that   Ukraine’s information about that Russian troops staying in Belarus after these exercise should be taken seriously.

"We are carefully studying the information from Ukraine. Ukraine is very well-versed in the affairs of Russians. I would treat their information very seriously," …

At the moment, nine Ukrainian battalions are already compatible with NATO troops, said the chief of the General Staff, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Victor Muzhenko.

"Preparation of battalions is going on with the help of foreign specialists, which began in 2015. There are instructors and military personnel from the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland in Ukraine today. We have reached the appropriate compatibility at least in nine …

The United States has no current plans to conduct military activities in Syria in conjunction with Russia. An exception is the prevention of dangerous incidents between the militaries of the two countries, said Pentagon spokesperson Michelle Baldanza, reports RBC news agency.

According to Baldanza, the forces of the US and the International Coalition are not conducting work that envisages military cooperation or coordination with Russian forces. Baldanza explained that the coalition does not …