Head of the US Department of Defense James Mattis' visit to Ukraine will certainly not be limited to participation in the Independence Day parade, stated Nathan Hazin, a former adviser to the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in an interview with InfoResist.

"Now the structures that were under previous President Barack Obama are completely changing. This is felt in all actions - in joint exercises scheduled for September, in the possibility of providing weapons, etc. …

The Latvian military has purchased American Stinger man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS), as announced by Latvian Defense Minister Raimonds Bergmanis in an LTV broadcast, as reported by LETA.

The head of the defense ministry did not specify the numbers that the deal would involve, saying only that “the amount paid was not too large, but for it we are receiving a solid number of weapons”.

The MANPADS were bought from the Danish Defense and will be transferred by the end of this year or …

The Russian strike forces in annexed Crimea are carrying out tactical exercises, the Russian Defense Ministry press service announced. As reported, a test exercise is being done with a group of mixed strike forces in the Black Sea Fleet.

“Today, according to the military training plan of the Black Sea Fleet ships, the armed forces have begun tactical exercises,” the report states. The report notes that during the exercises, there are plans to rehearse air bombardment and the launching of …

Since August 23, the US has suspended the issuance of nonimmigrant visas across Russia, the US Embassy in Russia reported.

Representatives of the diplomatic mission explained that the issuance of visas will be resumed, but in a reduced amount.

The Embassy explained that this was due to a decrease in the number of employees at the US Embassy in Russia.

In addition, starting from September 1, 2017, interviews for US nonimmigrant visas will only be held at the US Embassy in Moscow. Interviews …

The current situation in the Donbas does not suit either party to the conflict, nor the external forces that are facilitating the settlement, said Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov after a meeting with US State Department Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker, reports Russian media.

"We agreed that the current situation in the southeast of Ukraine cannot satisfy neither the conflicting parties, nor the external forces that are contributing to the resolution.

The discussion …

Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Deputy Foreign Minister Anatoly Antonov, who has been on the EU sanction list since 2015, as the Russian ambassador to the US.

Between 2011 and 2016, Antonov worked as the Russian Deputy Defense Minister, and since 2015 he has been on the EU sanction list because of aggression against Ukraine. Antonov has been appointed instead of Sergey Kislyak, who was one of the central figures in the scandal surrounding a possible conspiracy between US President …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that protecting the agreement on the Iranian nuclear program reached in 2015 should be the main foreign policy priority of the new government, as reported by Radio Liberty.

It was reported that the Iranian Parliament approved 16 of the 17 candidates proposed by the President for his second term in the office, to which Rouhani was re-elected in May 2017 and officially began on August 5th.

Among those approved were Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who …

The creative community must itself filter TV and Internet content, and the state's influence should be minimized in this sphere, declared Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 20 at the Tavidra forum that took place in the annexed Crimea.

"It would be right if the community itself developed a system of moral and ethical filters, to minimize if not to exclude, but it would be better, of course, to exclude the state’s influence on this process [the media]," Russian News Agency TASS quoted …