Contents tagged with Russia

  • Leader of German Free Democratic Party suggested ‘freezing the discussion on the annexation of Crimea’

    In an interview with Deutsche Welle on August 23, the leader of the liberal Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP), Christian Lindner proposed to "freeze" the issue of the annexation of the Crimea by Russia, but not to legitimize the occupation of the peninsula.  

    "The annexation of the Crimea is a violation of international law. We do not recognize it. The sanctions remain in effect,” he emphasized. The leader of the German Liberals also proposed a return to the "traditional German policy of …

  • Ukraine sends observers to Zapad 2017 Russian-Belarusian military exercises

    Two Ukrainian observers will go, by invitation, to Belarus to monitor the Zapad (West) 2017 military exercise, according to a statement of the Office of Public Relations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The statement was published on Wednesday on the page of the General Staff of the Armed Forces on Facebook.

    "The Ukrainian side confirms the fact that Ukrainian representatives were invited to monitor the West 2017 military exercises, which are to be held on the territory of the Republic of …

  • Russian Defense Minister says ‘civil war in Syria has effectively ended’

    In a meeting with his Lebanese colleague Ya’qub as-Sarraf, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu said that the civil war in Syria has ended, Interfax reports.

    “In Syria, having separated the ones from the others [opposition from terrorists], we have managed to create four de-escalation zones, and to effectively stop the civil war,” Shoygu noted.

    He added that the Russian military “is satisfied to watch Lebanon’s successes in the north-east of the country” in the fight against the terrorist …

  • Belarus: Representatives of 7 countries will be present at Zapad-2017 military exercise

    Belarus invited representatives of seven countries and six international organizations to the Belarusian-Russian military exercise Zapad 2017 in the fall of 2017, as reported by the Ministry of Defense of Belarus on its website.

    The report emphasizes that "monitoring of the exercise has been organized in strict accordance with national legislation and international treaties."

    "Building on the practice of good-neighborliness and reciprocity, within the framework of the OSCE Vienna Document …

  • Venezuela’s President Maduro to visit Russia

    The President of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro has planned a trip to Russia. "I am going to visit Russia soon. We will strengthen bilateral relations," Maduro said at a press conference in Caracas, RIA Novosti reports.

    According to the Venezuelan leader, his country intends to strengthen ties with Russia in the military-technical sphere.

    Earlier, Maduro said that the United States violated international law. "The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump threatens us with military …

  • Kremlin: Russia is preparing retaliatory measures in response to US sanctions

    The Russian Foreign Ministry is preparing to take countermeasures after the U.S. Department of the Treasury added four Russian citizens to the North Korea sanctions list, stated Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, as reported by the press service of the ministry.

    "The trend that had been set by the Barack Obama administration for a consistent undermining of bilateral relations has resumed. This is already the fourth such excess since the arrival of a new team into the White House. The …

  • Turchynov: During Zapad-2017 military exercises Kremlin will test its army’s readiness for war with West

    During the Zapad (“West”) 2017 exercises, the Kremlin will test how ready Russia is for a major war with the West, said NSDC (National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine) Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov.

    According to him, it has been officially declared that the exercises will involve roughly 13,000 military personnel, including roughly 3,000 from the Russian Armed Forces, and roughly 280 items of weaponry and military equipment and 25 items of aviation equipment. Aside from the armed …

  • Former Russian MP: Surkov delivered to Volker Moscow's response regarding possible supply by the US of lethal weapons for Ukraine

    At a meeting of the US Department of State's Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker and Russian Presidential Aide Vladislav Surkov, the issue of providing lethal weapons to Ukraine was discussed said Former State Duma deputy Ilya Ponomarev in an interview with InfoResist.

    The expert believes that discussion of the specific issue of granting lethal weapons to Ukraine will be a key topic during the visit of US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to the country.

    "The issue of deliveries of …

  • US Embassy in Russia: Crimeans should apply for an American visa in Kyiv

    Residents of the Crimea should apply for an American visa in Kyiv, as stated by the press service of the US Embassy in Russia, UNIAN reports.

    "The Crimea belongs to the consular district of the US Embassy in Kyiv. All applicants who permanently reside in the Crimea and are applying for immigrant visas and K (bride / groom) visas must apply for visas in Kyiv, regardless of their citizenship," the statement says.

    It is noted that consular fees paid in Ukraine can not be used for applying for a …

  • Russia to give Belarus $700 million loan ‘to strengthen friendly relations’

    This year Russia will lend Belarus $700 million. As follows from the Russian government’s directive published on the official legal information portal, Minsk will be obligated to repay this loan in 10 years.

    The funds will be allocated “towards the goal of further strengthening friendly relations” for the repayment of loans issued previously by Russia.

    Minsk must make repayments twice a year, on April 15 and October 15, over 10 years. The payment amount will grow from 2.5% of the amount …