Russia begins military exercises on the Kuril Islands
On the Kuril Islands, Russian units from the Eastern Military District were put on alert and into a state of high-combat readiness as part of this year's final exercise in the region, RIA Novosti news agency reports.
During the exercise, military personnel will practice firing at sea targets with Grad multiple rocket launchers and unmanned aerial vehicles, a representative from the district command said.
On October 18, the large-scale military exercises of the Central Military District in …
Russian Embassy in London reduces staff because UK has delayed granting visas to personnel
The ambassador of Russia to the United Kingdom, Alexander Yakovenko, stated that Russia has been forced to cut the size of its embassy in London after Britain delayed granting visas to dozens of its staff, including career diplomats, for months, Reuters reported.
According to the Russian diplomat, Britain has been delaying visas to Russian diplomatic staff for over a year.
“The embassy is shrinking, and if it continues the embassy will be reduced further. People cannot be replaced, because …
Lavrov: Turkish aircraft will be shot down if they violate Syrian airspace
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded to the statement by the Syrian Defense Ministry that they intend to bring down Turkish Air Force aircraft if they invade the country’s airspace, reaffirming Damascus' position.
Lavrov said that Syria is a sovereign state, a member of the United Nations and has full sovereignty over its territory and over its airspace.
“Any attempt to repeatedly violate Syrian airspace by Turkish military aircraft will be rebuffed, and they will be shot down by …
Ukrainian diplomat Lubkivskiy said Ukraine should have a clear strategy to return the temporarily occupied territories
The Ukrainian leadership has no clear plan or strategy on what to do with the occupied territories, said the coordinator of the "Spravedlyvist" movement, the diplomat Markiyan Lubkivskiy on ZIK TV.
He stressed that the public should be given a clear answer on how the Donbas will be returned and in which way: political, economic, military, and humanitarian or whichever combination of all of these factors.
"A process of conflict settlement in the Donbass should be carried out more dynamically …
The Presidents of Finland and Estonia don’t exclude imposing new sanctions against Russia
During a press conference in Helsinki, the Presidents of Finland and Estonia, Sauli Niinistö and Kersti Kaljulaid, stated they have not excluded imposing additional sanctions against Russia due to its actions in Syria, reported Postimees news agency. According to the President of Estonia, Kersti Kaljulaid, who is in Finland on a State visit, what is happening in Syria is the largest humanitarian disaster of our time.
Kaljulaid noted that, according to the international community, if sanctions …