Contents tagged with Russia

  • Yanukovych’s final statement could be delayed by several months

    On Tuesday, October 23, during a regular meeting on the case of high treason against former President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych, his lawyer made a request on his behalf that could lead to a delay of the trial for several months.

    The lawyers are currently debating the case. Oleksandr Horoshynsky, one of Yanukovych’s attorneys read a speech for an hour during which he gave the court a written statement that he received from the defendant in Moscow. In the statement, the ex-President asked the …

  • Swiss court allows disclosure of reasons for the refusal of Abramovich's residence permit

    The Swiss Supreme Court lifted restrictions on the disclosure of for the reasons why Russian businessman Roman Abramovich failed to obtain a residency permit in the country.

    The court rejected Abramovich's arguments that the disclosure of such information could damage his reputation.

    In September, the Swiss authorities refused to allow Abramovich to obtain a residence permit fearing that his stay in the country could pose a "threat to public safety" and cause "reputational damage". According …

  • Polish President calls for halt of Nord Stream 2 pipeline construction

    During his visit to London, Polish President Andrzej Duda urged Germany to abandon the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, Deutsche Welle reported.

    The second gas pipeline running under the Baltic Sea will lead to the disruption of the ‘energy balance’, he said during a joint press conference with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Tuesday, October 23, in Berlin.

    According to Duda, the new gas pipeline will lead to the dominant position of a single supplier and will …

  • Israel: Russian air defense systems will not protect Iranian forces in Syria

    Israel is convinced that it will be able to attack the Iranian forces in Syria even now that Iran’s partner, Russia, has transferred S-300 anti-air defense systems to Syria.

    In an interview with Voice of America’s Persian service in Jerusalem, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Michael Oren said that the Russian S-300 systems “will pose a problem, but one which can be overcome”.

    “Israel has been overcoming such problems since the day of its creation in 1948,” Oren observed, “We will overcome this, …

  • Russia promises Saudi Arabia tens of billions in investments

    Russia is prepared to increase its investment in the Saudi Arabian economy, said Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), during the Future Investment Initiative forum in Riyadh.

    Dmitriev says that “many companies from the petrochemical sector and other sectors” have expressed interest in investing in Saudi Arabia.

    “We believe that, alongside our partners, we will bring in billions and tens of billions of dollars of investment into Saudi Arabia,” he stated.

    He …

  • Mogherini: European Union will never recognize annexation of Crimea

    While speaking before the deputies of the European Parliament during the hearings on the situation in the Azov Sea , High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, assured that the European Union would never recognize the annexation of Crimea by Russia.

     “I am grateful to the European Parliament for focusing their attention on the situation in the Black Sea after Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula. We do not recognize [now] and …

  • EU may impose sanctions on Russia because of its actions in Sea of Azov

    European Parliament says that Russia’s aggressive actions in the Sea of Azov are unacceptable and could lead to the escalation of a new conflict in Europe. The European legislative body is thus calling for additional sanctions to be imposed on Russia, Ukrinform reports.

    The overwhelming majority of participants in debates in European Parliament on the topic consider Russia’s actions unacceptable.

    “Russia’s violations of international law are not something new. But the attempt to annex the Sea …

  • Kremlin considers blocking news aggregators in Russia

    News websites in Russia that collect, display and link to related content may be blocked for not fulfilling the requirements regarding restriction of foreign ownership.

    “Sanctions for failure to comply with the requirements will include restricted access of the Russian service providers to the news aggregator until the owner of the aggregator fulfils the requirements,” said an explanatory note published in the State Duma’s electronic database.

    At the request of the authorized federal …

  • Lawyer: Yanukovych will personally appear in Ukrainian court for the final statement

    The former President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych will appear in court in person in order to make the final statement in the case of high treason, stated his lawyer, Oleksandr Goroshynsky, UNIAN reports. “We will see if I will be present at the session. But yes, [Yanukovych] will appear in person. Maybe a bit later,” his lawyer said.

    The Obolon District Court in Kyiv is considering the case on high treason initiated against Yanukovych. The court invited the ex-President to make a final …

  • Russia and Pakistan conduct joint military exercises

    Pakistan and Russia began annual joint military exercises to strengthen cooperation in the war against terrorism and the growing threat from the Islamic State group in neighboring Afghanistan.

    According to officials, the Friendship III exercise began on Monday at the National Center for Counterterrorism in the mountain city of Pabbi. A Pakistani Special Forces headquarters is also located there.

    The official representative of the Pakistan army, Major General Asif Ghafoor, said that this was …