Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak said on Vesti Nedeli program on Russia-1 TV channel that Gazprom's $2.9 billion payment to Naftogaz of Ukraine was a difficult decision for the Russian side.

"There was a choice between bad and worse. But all of us together, we can lose much more, unprecedented amounts," said Kozak as quoted by TASS.

In mid-December, Gazprom and Naftogaz agreed on the terms and volumes of Russian gas transit to Europe. The parties also agreed to give up mutual claims. …

The Russian Energy Ministry has dramatically lowered its prediction of the country’s future liquefied natural gas (LNG) production, according to the Energy Strategy 2035, extracts of which were cited by Interfax.

In autumn, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Novatek co-owner Leonid Mikhelson said that in the next 16 years Russia could be producing up to 140 million tons of LNG per year. In October, the Energy Ministry set a target of 100 million tons by 2035 in its energy strategy. …

William Taylor, Chargé d’Affaires of the US Embassy in Kyiv, said that “serious American” companies are investigating the possibility of buying the Ukrainian aerospace company Motor Sich, KyivPost reports.

“There are several serious American and other companies interested in Motor Sich. They’re doing legal due diligence, looking at financial reports, visiting the plant, and talking to the owners. They’re doing a serious analysis,” Taylor told a number of Ukrainian media outlets.

Taylor did …

In 2020, Russia will consider the possibility of withdrawing from its agreement with the OPEC countries, according to which the largest oil producing countries must reduce their production in order to support oil prices by preventing excess supply.

The OPEC+ deal, first signed at the end of 2016 and extended five times since then, becoming the first coordinated step between Russia and Saudi Arabia in more than 20 years, will not be permanent, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak told the TV …

The German news agency RND has cited Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko as saying that Germany refused to provide Ukraine with military assistance “needed for opposing Russian aggression”.

The Ukrainian Foreign Minister said that Kyiv is gratef l to Berlin for financial aid and for support on the international level, but must nevertheless note that the German government declined Ukraine’s request for military aid.

“I am still expecting official Berlin to revise its stance on this …

German government deputy spokesperson Martina Fitz wrote on her Twitter that Berlin and Paris welcome the exchange of prisoners between the parties involved in the military conflict in the Donbas.

As Fitz noted, the exchange should help restore trust between the parties and establish a ceasefire. "Amid the celebration of the New Year and Orthodox Christmas, today's exchange has become a humanitarian gesture that everyone was expecting for a long time," said Fitz.

The exchange is the proof of …

The mutual exchange of prisoners by Ukraine and the separatists in the Donbas, agreed on within the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), took place on Sunday, December 29, near the Mayorsk checkpoint on the demarcation line in the Donetsk region. The Office of the President of Ukraine announced that the swap had been completed successfully. According to the report, 76 people were given back to Kyiv, and 124 people were returned to the self-proclaimed separatist republics of the Donbas.

The press …

Turkey will send eight thousand soldiers from the Syrian opposition to Libya to support the forces of the Libyan Government of National Accord. The first group of 120 people has already been deployed to the Libyan territory, reports Al-Hadath TV channel, citing its sources.

Conscription centers have been established in Northern Syria, in the cities of Afrin, Al-Rai, and Akhtarin, as well as in the Syrian territories controlled by Turkey. It is noted that the Sultan Murad Division, which …