• Macron: ‘progress was achieved’ during talks with Zelensky and Putin

    French President Emmanuel Macron said that during his discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, he managed to "achieve some progress to move towards the security of the region."

    "During the discussions that we held with Presidents Putin and Zelensky, we were able to achieve some progress in order to, so to speak, move towards the security of the region. We should not engage in any unilateral formats, but we should come up with exactly …

  • German businesses fleeing Russia as threat of sanctions mounts

    Large European businesses continue to reduce their presence in Russia against the backdrop of a stagnant economy, falling incomes and sanctions that cut off the country from capital markets and modern technologies.

    Over the past 10 years, the number of German companies operating in the Russian Federation has decreased by 42%, Deutsche Welle reports quoting the data of the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce (AHK).

    Of the 6.3 thousand German companies that invested in the Russian economy in 2011 …

  • Amid looming Western sanctions, Russia stress-tests its economy

    The Russian authorities seem to be seriously considering the possibility of tough Western sanctions, which are being prepared in an even of an invasion of Ukraine.

    According to the news outlet The Bell, Russian state-owned companies and large banks carried out a series of exercises to assess the consequences of the sanctions, including the shutdown of SWIFT and foreign software, a ban on the supply of chips and other high-tech equipment to Russia.

    Top managers of the main sectors of Russian …

  • Xi: China supports Russia’s demands for ‘non-expansion of NATO’

    Beijing supports Russian demands for "non-expansion of NATO, “said Russian President Vladimir Putin with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a joint, published on the Kremlin's website.

    The document says that the countries "oppose the further expansion of NATO, call on the North Atlantic Alliance to abandon the ideological approaches of the Cold War, to respect the sovereignty, security and interests of other countries, the diversity of their civilizational and cultural-historical structures, to …

  • Kremlin considers saving Lukashenko from losing main source of foreign currency income

    Russian authorities are considering ways to help the regime of Alexander Lukashenko, which has been cut off by Western sanctions from the possibility of exporting potash, a key source of foreign currency for the Belarusian economy.

    The Kremlin is now looking into the possibility of accepting Belarusian potash fertilizers in Russian ports, said Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

    "This issue is on the agenda. It is being discussed. If I am not mistaken, so far [the redirection] of …

  • Hungary blocks Ukraine’s membership in NATO’s Cyber Defense Center

    Ukraine's membership in NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) was blocked by Hungary, reports Ukrayinska Pravda.

    The Secretary of the Ukrainian National Defense and Security Council (NSDC), Oleksiy Danilov confirmed it.

    Ukraine submitted an official request to join the Center in August 2021. The procedure for approving the application began in October.

    Ukraine was expected to become a member of CCDCOE as early as January 1, 2022, but the Hungarian government announced …

  • China cuts down Putin’s delegation to Olympics

    The visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to China, which will coincide with the Olympic games in Beijing, will be held without a large "retinue".

    Due to coronavirus restrictions, China reduced Putin's delegation from 20-25 people to six, presidential aide Yuri Ushakov told RIA Novosti.

    The head of the Russian gas giant Gazprom was among those who were expected to go to China but will not be included in the delegation. Miller will not accompany Putin, despite plans to sign a "very solid", …

  • Russia’s population decline reaches unprecedented levels

    Russia continues to fall into the demographic abyss, losing population at a rate not seen since World War II.

    “At the end of 2021, the natural population decline exceeded one million people. And this is a consequence of the underfunding of the national health care system, “ said deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Health Protection Alexey Kurinny told OSN Media.

    "In terms of demographic and health indicators, the Russian Federation is somewhere at the level of African countries. …

  • Germany shuts down Russia Today TV channel

    The German Commission on Licensing and Supervision (ZAK), has banned Russia Today’s german language channel RT DE from broadcasting in the country. On Wednesday, February 2, the German Federal Media Regulator explained this decision by the fact that RT DE does not have a license to broadcast in Germany, which is necessary in accordance with the law" The Interstate Treaty on Media (Medienstaatsvertrag – MStV) ".

    From February 1, the broadcast and further distribution of any programs of the …

  • Putin: U.S. and NATO ignore Russia’s demands for security guarantees

    The U.S. and NATO, in their written responses to Russia on long-term security guarantees, ignored Russia's basic demands, said Russian President Vladimir Putin during a press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

    Putin noted that the Russia is analyzing the written replies received on January 26 from the United States and NATO.

    "But it is already clear that Russia’s fundamental concerns have been ignored. We did not see an adequate consideration of our three key requirements …