Contents tagged with Russia

  • Russian businesses struggle with payment processing through Turkish banks amidst Western sanctions

    The Russian news outlet Vedomosti reports that Russian importers and intermediaries are facing challenges with payments via Turkey, whose banks Russian businesses use for transiting transactions to other countries, including Europe. According to the report, European banks have intermittently been refusing payments for goods from Turkish banks sent to Russian business suppliers. Specifically, one businessman ran into this issue in Bulgaria. Additionally, a Vedomosti source claims that Turkish …

  • India repatriates 45 nationals conscripted into Russian army amid continued efforts to rescue 50 more

    45 Indian citizens were discharged from the Russian army after being unlawfully coerced to sign defense contracts and sent to fight in Ukraine, reports NDTV, citing the Ministry of External Affairs of India. Meanwhile, an additional 50 Indian citizens remain in the conflict zone, with concentrated efforts underway to repatriate them safely.

    In early July, NDTV reported, based on unnamed sources, that efforts were being made to discharge these Indian nationals who had been enticed into signing …

  • Ukrainian Forces repel Russian advances near Selydove, inflict heavy casualties

    Russian Armed Forces continue to occupy the dacha complex beyond the railway, but conditions remain harsh for them as they are actively targeted by Ukrainian drone operators.

    In the area near the town of Selydove in the Donetsk region, Russians managed to advance closer to the city. They crossed the railway, but their stay beyond the tracks was short-lived, reported on the Telegram channel "Officer+" by a lieutenant of the Ukrainian Armed Forces with the call sign "Alex".

    "Yes, they crossed …

  • Russia and China begin extensive military drills spanning two oceans and three seas

    Russia's Ministry of Defense has announced the commencement of the strategic military exercises dubbed "Ocean-2024." The drills span the Arctic and Pacific Oceans as well as the Mediterranean, Caspian, and Baltic Seas, as detailed in a statement released Tuesday, September 10.

    These extensive exercises involve over 90,000 personnel and feature more than 400 combat ships, submarines, and support vessels. In addition, more than 120 aircraft and helicopters from the Naval Fleet and Aerospace …

  • Russia's military recruitment skyrockets in 2024 amid new financial incentives

    The rate of recruitment for contracted soldiers in Russia to fight in Ukraine has surged six fold, Russian media reports. Between April and June, lump-sum payments were made to 92.8 thousand individuals under these contracts. The recruitment rate for 2024 has increased by at least six times compared to last year, according to data on the Russian federal budget expenditures for these lump-sum signing bonuses, as reported by the news outlet Important Stories.

    The recruitment pace has notably …

  • Former Deputy Head of Russian Tank Academy found murdered on Tank Crew Day

    Valery Khaanin, the former deputy head of the Kazan Tank Academy, has been found murdered. His body was discovered on Tank Crew Day, a national observance in Russia, celebrated annually in July. The grim discovery was reported by the Russian media outlet Baza.

    Khaanin, 69, was celebrating Tank Crew Day with friends before tragedy struck. His wife discovered his body upon returning from their dacha. After being unable to enter their apartment, she called emergency services. Khaanin's body, …

  • Russian producers warn of economic threat: Chinese steel inundates domestic markets

    Major Russian metallurgical firms, including Severstal, NLMK, and MMK, have expressed growing concern over the influx of Chinese steel imports into the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and are pushing for the extension of anti-dumping duties on Chinese products, reports the Russuan newspaper Kommersant. Already hampered by Western sanctions, Russian metallurgists now see China aggressively targeting their internal market. This expansion poses a significant threat to the positions of Russian …

  • China and Russia to conduct North-Joint 2024 military exercises amid heightened strategic cooperation

    In a significant display of military collaboration, China and Russia are set to conduct joint military exercises later this month named North-Joint 2024. The exercises will take place in the skies and in the waters of the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk, the Chinese Ministry of Defense announced Monday.

    Naval and air forces from both countries will participate in these drills. According to the announcement, the objective of these exercises is "to deepen the level of strategic cooperation …

  • Ukraine revokes phone call privileges for Russian POWs, allows only written communication

    Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine are no longer allowed to make phone calls home, though they can still write letters, said Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets during a national news broadcast.

    Lubinets pointed out that Ukraine currently hosts four special camps for captured Russian soldiers, ensuring conditions compliant with the Geneva Conventions.

    Lubinets stated, “We understand that, fortunately or unfortunately, we cannot behave like the Russians. To be frank, we have …

  • Iran expresses outrage over Russia's support for controversial 'Zangezur Corridor' project

    In a scathing commentary, the Tasnim News Agency, closely affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), lambasted recent statements made by Russian Foreign Ministry officials advocating for the creation of the so-called "Zangezur Corridor."

    The report emphasized Iran's staunch opposition to the project, indicating that Tehran has taken diplomatic steps to communicate its concerns to Russia. The Russian ambassador to Tehran, Alexei Dedov, was summoned to Iran's Foreign …