Contents tagged with Russia

  • NATO fighters escorted three Russian military aircraft over the Baltic last week

    NATO fighters intercepted and escorted three Russian military aircraft over the Baltic Sea last week, Delfi reported, citing the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense.

    According to the Ministry, fighters, as part of NATO’s air patrol mission over the Baltic Sea, escorted a Russian Tu-134 military cargo plane and two Su-27 fighters on July 18th.

    The Russian planes were flying with disabled transponders, which NATO believes is a threat to civil aviation.

    The presence of Russian military aircraft and  …

  • Russia has not found investors for the construction of a power plant for the Crimea

    A Russian contract proposal for the construction of a power plant in the Krasnodar region, needed to support the annexed Crimea, has not received any bids, reported Reuters.

    No companies have submitted bids for the contract, and authorities subsequently deemed the proposal invalid.

    The proposal planned to search for new investors to fund the construction of the 450 MW capacity power plant on the Taman Peninsula by 2018. The power plant is needed to supply power to the Krasnodar region of …

  • Ukrainian Intelligence: Russian troops in the Donbas are moving closer to the demarcation line

    Ukrainian Intelligence has reported that pro-Russian forces in the Donbas are actively strengthening their positions in three areas.

    According to the main intelligence directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the enemy is reinforcing divisions at the front, transporting weapons and military equipment towards Novoaidar, Donetsk and Sloviansk. The rotation of the troops is taking place near settlements which are in the immediate vicinity of the demarcation line.

    In the area of …

  • Ukrainian Border Guard Service: Russian soldiers continue video-tracking from reconnaissance balloon in Crimea

    Ukrainian border guard officers made a video of a reconnaissance balloon of Russian military in the Crimea that was launched again on the 23rd of July near the Ukrainian administrative border, Krym.Realii reported.

    “Today, at 9 a.m., border guard officers of the Henichesk department, Berdiansk detachment recorded the launch of a reconnaissance balloon by Russian troops. They use it near Arabat Spit, probably for the purpose of video surveillance,” the Ukrainian agency reported on Saturday. …

  • Belgian parliament to consider lifting sanctions on Russia

    The lower chamber of the Belgian Parliament has introduced a draft resolution on the abolition of sanctions against Russia, RBC-Ukraine reported, citing a statement posted on the website of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives.

     The sponsor of the resolution, MP Aldo Carcaci, told RIA Novosti that the vote will most likely be held in October.

    "We will open discussion on sanctions which primarily damage Belgian businesses, in particular crops producers," Carcaci explained.

    The EU and the US …

  • Three Ukrainian border guards in the Donbas suffer retina burns after being shot with laser weapons

    Three Ukrainian border guards at the Marinka checkpoint have suffered retina burns of varying severity while conducting terrain surveillance using optical equipment. The Ukrainian State Border Service suspects that prohibited special purpose laser weapons were used against them.

    "The nature of the burns and preliminary medical diagnosis leads to the conclusion that it's possible that the enemy used high-power light emitters, which could be the so called ‘dazzling lasers,’" the State Border …

  • Moscow confirms Russian strike on US garrison in Syria

    The Russians cited the cause of the incident as the "refusal of the U.S. to provide information about their actions."

    Russia admitted bombing the base used by American and British elite troops in Syria last month as reported by Interfax, citing a military-diplomatic source in Moscow. 

    "The Russians have already given an explanation for this incident. This was the topic of a video conference between the U.S. and Russia. There is no reason to repeat the discussion," the source from the agency …

  • Ukraine issues note of protest to Russia after Shoygu's visit to Crimea

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expressed their objection to the visit of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu to the Crimea as it was not officialy approved by Ukraine, according to a statement issued by the Ministry.

    The Foreign Ministry indicated that on July 22nd Shoygu was "in the sovereign territory of Ukraine and within its internationally recognized borders, which includes the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol."

    The Ministry believes that not getting appoval …

  • Ukraine to sue Russia over gas production in the Black Sea

    Gas production by the Russian Federation in the exclusive marine zone of Ukraine in the Black Sea will be the subject of lawsuits, according to the Ukrainian Minister of Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Vadym Chernysh, UNIAN informs.

    On the 20th of July, a meeting of government officials, chaired by the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine, Stepan Kubiv, was held, in which almost all Ministries that deal with "de-occupation of Crimea" presented their …

  • Russia's UN Ambassador: Ukraine is preparing an offensive in the Donbas

    In a letter to the President of the United Nations Security Council, Koro Bessho, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, addressed the UN, demanding that they “influence Kiev to prevent the disastrous development of events,” referring to the situation in Ukraine.

    Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN has traditionally accused Ukraine of violating the Minsk agreements and spoke about the alleged impending military operations by the Ukrainian Armed Forces …