Contents tagged with Russia

  • Four countries asked to exclude Russia from the Biathlon World Cup

    During a meeting of the International Biathlon Union or IBU leadership in Hochfilzen, Austria, the Biathlon Federations of the Czech Republic, Canada, the USA and Sweden started talks on the possible temporary suspension of the Russian biathlon team, stated Russian Channel Match TV commentator Dmitry Guberniev. The talks came after a case initiated by the Austrian police on violation of anti-doping rules.

    However, the Executive Committee of IBU decided not to exclude Russian biathletes from …

  • Kremlin: creation of Kosovo army is a threat to stability in the region

    The decision of the Kosovo’s Parliament to transform Security Forces of the partially recognized Republic into a fully-fledged army is a violation of the Resolution of the UN Security Council and can lead to armed conflict, stated the Russian Foreign Ministry.

     “This step has become a blatant violation of Resolution 1224 of the UN Security Council aimed at a serious escalation of the situation in the Balkans, fraught with armed conflict in the region,”  said the Russian Foreign Ministry. …

  • Captain of ship captured by Russia tells investigators he is a prisoner of war

    Bohdan Nebylytsya, captain of the Ukrainian armored boat the Nikopol, which was captured several weeks ago near the Kerch Strait, told Russia’s FSB that he considers himself a prisoner of war, reported attorney Mykola Polozov.

    “As with the other sailors, Nebylytsya was investigated, we have been informed of several orders to set up expert assessments. They have also interrogated him. During the interrogation, he said that he is a prisoner of war,” Polozov noted.

    “Emil Kurbedinov, the defense …

  • Ukraine establishes autocephalous orthodox church

    On Saturday, December 15, the Unifying Assembly of Ukrainian Orthodox Confessions, under the auspices of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, ruled to establish an autocephalous (independent) local Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU). The assembly also confirmed the church charter, and elected Metropolitan Epiphany, patriarchal vicar of the former Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC KP), as primate of the new church. Ukrainian religious scholars and political experts believe that this …

  • Russia prepares to disconnect from the internet

    Russian TASS news agency reports that the State Duma of the Russian Federation introduced a bill that, according to the authors of the document, will ensure proper operation of the Russian internet segment in case it is disconnected from the World Wide Web.

    The group of deputies proposes in part to create a specialized infrastructure capable of replacing foreign root web servers with the further rerouting of the internet traffic.

    The deputies claim that this bill will also reduce the amount …

  • European Commission invites Russia and Ukraine to gas negotiations

    Moscow and Kyiv have been invited to Brussels for trilateral negotiations on gas transit, Vice President of the European Commission Maroš Šefčovič stated on Twitter. “I expect that commercial entities will also attend. It is important to build on the positive momentum created in July,” he added.

    Earlier, Russian Minister of Energy Alexander Novak stated that the meeting of experts from Russia, the European Commission and Ukraine for trilateral negotiations on gas would take place by the end of …

  • Lavrov claims that Russian agent Butina was tortured in the US

    Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the Russian spy Maria Butina, who was arrested in the US and later agreed to cooperate with the investigation, was subjected to “special methods of torture,” TASS reports.

    “As far as I understand, the whole point of this deal with justice, which is a common practice in the US, is to bargain for an opportunity for freedom and to return home as soon as possible,” he said.

    Lavrov said he “understands this woman,” because she “is in the most …

  • Ukrainian Security Service accuses Russia of attempts to interfere in elections

    Russian special services are trying to use social networks, in particular, Facebook and Twitter to interfere in the election processes in Ukraine, according to a statement published on the website of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU),

     “Russia uses the Internet-Research Agency (closed in 2016) for the above purpose. In the run-up to the parliamentary and presidential elections, Ukrainians began to receive offers for a temporary access to the so-called advertising office intended for …

  • President Poroshenko expects EU sanctions after Russia’s attack on Ukrainian ships

    The President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, wrote on Facebook that the decision of the EU summit to continue sanctions against the Russian Federation is an important result for Ukraine and creates the basis to develop new measures.

    “The next step should be the introduction of an “Azov packet of sanctions.” This decision and the discussion between EU leaders provides a good basis for the development process, so Russia’s aggressive act is justly and strictly punished,” stressed the president.

    In …

  • Kyiv raises the issue at OSCE Council about Russian military buildup near Ukrainian border

    During the meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council on Thursday, December 13 in Vienna, Ihor Prokopchuk, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to International Organizations in Vienna drew attention to hundreds of Russian tanks which are amassed at the border with Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.

    "While Russia, as the aggressor-state, continues to push Ukraine, bring groundless allegations and carry out unsuccessful falsifications, recent satellite images show hundreds of battle tanks deployed by Russia …