Russia is "hedging its risks" in the event of a disconnection from international payment systems, including Visa and Mastercard, said Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

According to him, such a scenario "cannot be ruled out" given the "unfriendly and sometimes even hostile behavior" of Western countries.

"Restrictions on Russia are used by a number of countries that as such an illegal from the international law point of view deterrent for Russia," Peskov said.

He added that the …

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned Turkey, as well as other countries, against selling weapons to Ukraine.

Lavrov said that some countries, in particular Turkey, "feed the militaristic sentiments" of Ukraine.

The Russian Foreign Minister recommended that countries that cooperate with Ukraine "analyze the situation" and called Kyiv's statements "utterly belligerent."

At the same time, Lavrov did not specify what "belligerent" statements of Ukraine he specifically had in mind. In …

Moscow views the U.S. sending its warships to the Black Sea amid the escalation in the Donbas as a "provocation" and warns that they should "stay away" from Russian shores, said the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov.

According to him, Russia will continue to "protect the Russian-speaking population" in the Donbas, despite U.S. warnings that the resumption of hostilities in southeastern Ukraine will entail a "payback."

"Any threat only strengthens our conviction that we are on …

Russia is suspending flights to Turkey due to a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases in that country, said Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova.

According to RIA Novosti, the suspension will be in effect for a month and a half, from April 15 to June 1. During this period, according to Golikova, Russian tour operators are recommended to stop the sale of tours to Turkey.

Only two flights a week will remain, Moscow - Istanbul and Istanbul - Moscow, as well as flights ringing back Russian tourists. …

The head of the leading European Parliament’s faction, the European People's Party, Manfred Weber called for tougher sanctions against Russia in case of escalation in eastern Ukraine or deterioration of the health of Alexei Navalny, who is on a hunger strike in the penal colony.

Russia is "continuing the course of dangerous provocations" and "strengthening the military presence around eastern Ukraine is a test for the West," Weber said in an interview with the Funke media group.

The answer, …

Russia has deployed more than 40,000 troops on the border with Ukraine and the same number in Crimea, said the representative of the Ukrainian President, Iuliia Mendel, in an interview with Reuters. She noted that the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, sent a request for talks with his Russian President Vladimir Putin but has not yet received a response. "We very much hope that this does not mean abandoning the dialogue," Mendel continued.

In an interview with Interfax-Ukraine, she …

Regulations "On the organization of urgent burial of bodies in wartime" began appearing on websites in several Russian cities, underscoring the possibility that Russia is preparing for a large-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russian city councils were instructed to prepare burial sites for those killed during the military campaign. 

Among these cities is Cherepovets, where the authorities have begun preparing a local cemetery.  

The municipality's statement explains which local agency, in case of …

The head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), Denis Pushilin, intends to address Russian President Vladimir Putin in the near future. Pushilin is currently preparing a letter to Putin, reports Dzerkalo Tyzhnia.

According to the publication, there are three versions of Pushilin's letter. Ukrainain Special Services managed to get a hold of the three draft letters prepared by the so-called "Ministry of Foreign Affairs" of the Donetsk People’s Republic.

In the first version of …