Naftogaz of Ukraine has managed to have the accounts of GazAsia Capital S.A., the company that placed Gazprom’s yen-denominated eurobonds, frozen, Interfax reports, citing a memorandum on the Russian company’s new eurobond placements.

GazAsia Capital S.A. is an SPV company, created for a specific purpose. Through it, Gazprom placed 10-year bonds for 65 billion yen (approximately $595 million) in December last year. Now, GazAsia does not have the right to make payments to Gazprom, Lenta.ru …

More than 10% of the funds allocated to the construction of the Vostochny Cosmodrome were stolen, said Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Monday, November 11. “A total of 11 billion rubles (around $172 million) was stolen, 3.5 billion rubles ($55 million) has been recovered,” Peskov said, noting that, overall, the equivalent of $1.4 billion was allocated to the construction of the spaceport.

Putin’s press secretary noted that, at first, 128 court cases were initiated, although these were …

Nord Stream 2 AG, the Swiss subsidiary of the Russian company Gazprom, has taken the EU government to court regarding the gas legislation amendments that prohibit the Russian company from using more than 50% of the capacity of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

As reported by Interfax, Gazprom informed potential investors about the start of the litigation through a memorandum on the placement of Swiss franc-denominated eurobonds that is scheduled to take place in mid November.

Gazprom believes …

The Russian Foreign Ministry stated in a post on its Facebook page that allegations of British media about Russia's involvement in the death of one of the White Helmets organization founders, James Le Mesurier, are groundless.

On November 11, The Independent published an article stating that "James Le Mesurier, British co-founder of the White Helmets, has been found dead, just days after the Russian Foreign Ministry menaced him, accusing him of being a spy."

"His death comes just three days …

Staff from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) in Kyiv have arrested seven people in connection with the refinancing of VAB Bank, the NABU’s press service reported on Facebook.

“These are former and current officials from the National Bank of Ukraine, PJSC VAB Bank and private companies linked to the ultimate beneficiaries of VAB Bank,” the report states.

The bureau noted that the suspects are believed to have …

US Chargé d’Affaires in Ukraine William Taylor said that he has warned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on multiple occasions that the harmful influence of the oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky could lead to his downfall. Taylor spoke about this on October 22 during closed hearings related to the impeachment of US President Donald Trump.

“The influence of one particular oligarch over Mr. Zelensky is of particular concern. This person is Kolomoisky, and Kolomoisky has growing influence,” said …

The US has been alarmed to learn that an antimissile from the Israeli David’s Sling defense system has ended up in the possession of the Russian military.

According to Ian Williams, deputy director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Moscow gaining access to the secret Israeli weapon is not as distressing as the possibility that the technology could leak to Israel’s enemies, especially Iran.

“If Iran gets this thing, we will see an identical …

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a weekly televised statement, which is published on German Government's website, that the situation in Eastern Ukraine forces NATO member countries to reconsider the Alliance's defense strategy.

"Because of the conflict in Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea, the topic of national defense and Alliance defense came into focus," said German Chancellor. According to her, the German Armed Forces need financial resources to perform the defense functions.

" …