📄 On 7 November 2024, the Government of the Russian Federation adopted Resolution No. 1510 "On conducting an experiment on testing the rules and conditions for entry into and exit from the Russian Federation of foreign citizens and stateless persons" (hereinafter referred to as "the experiment").

The purpose the experiment is to create a public "Digital Profile of a Foreign Citizen" information resource, a set of information submitted to public information systems by foreign citizens, authorized bodies and organizations participating in the experiment, in the volume and order stipulated by the Experiment Rules.

The experiment will be conducted in two stages.

1️⃣ 1 December 2024 to 30 June 2025

The first one, provides for collecting biometric personal data of foreign citizens (a photographic image of the person's face and finger papillary patterns) at air checkpoints on the state border of the Russian Federation – Moscow air zone at international airports (Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo), as well as Zhukovsky (Moscow region) and at the Mashtakovo automobile checkpoint (Orenburg region).

2️⃣ 30 June 2025 to 30 June 2026

The second stage will be held from 30 June 2025 to 30 June 2026. During this stage, in addition to fulfilling the above-mentioned requirements, foreign citizens planning to enter the Russian Federation visa-free, must register in the integrated identification and authentication system and submit an application to enter into and stay (reside) in the Russian Federation using the mobile application of the Integrated Portal of Public and Municipal Services (Functions) federal state information system.

The experiment will involve all foreign citizens and stateless persons crossing the state border of the Russian Federation at the resolution-specified checkpoints throughout its implementation period, with the exception of:

- citizens of the Republic of Belarus;

- children under 6 years of age;

- heads and staff of diplomatic missions and consular offices of foreign states in the Russian Federation, as well as their family members;

- officials of international organizations (missions of international organizations) and their family members;

- holders of diplomatic and service passports entering or leaving the Russian Federation due to performing official duties or as part of official delegations, as well as their family members.

Meanwhile, the procedure for processing and issuing Russian visas to foreign citizens, including single electronic visa, remains the same.

👉 The full text of the Resolution

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🇷🇺 Fundamentals of State Policy of the Russian Federation on Nuclear Deterrence

I. General Provisions

1. These Fundamentals are a strategic planning document in the area of ensuring defence that reflects official views on the essence of nuclear deterrence, identifies military risks and threats intended to be neutralized by the implementation of nuclear deterrence, as well as defines the principles of nuclear deterrence and the conditions for the transition of the Russian Federation to the employment of nuclear weapons.

2. Assured deterrence of a potential adversary from aggression against the Russian Federation and (or) its allies is one of the highest state priorities. Deterrence of aggression is ensured by the totality of the military might of the Russian Federation, including nuclear weapons.

<...>

II. The Essence of Nuclear Deterrence

9. The Russian Federation exercises nuclear deterrence toward a potential adversary, defined as individual states and military coalitions (blocs, alliances), that consider the Russian Federation as a potential adversary and possess nuclear and (or) other types of weapons of mass destruction or significant combat capabilities of general purpose forces.

Nuclear deterrence is also exercised toward states that provide territory, air and (or) sea space under their control, as well as resources for preparing and committing aggression against the Russian Federation.

10. Aggression by any state from a military coalition (bloc, alliance) against the Russian Federation and (or) its allies is considered as the aggression by this coalition (bloc, alliance) as a whole.

11. Aggression against the Russian Federation and (or) its allies by any non-nuclear state with the participation or support of a nuclear state is considered as their joint attack.

III. Conditions for the Transition of the Russian Federation to the Employment of Nuclear Weapons

18. The Russian Federation reserves the right to employ nuclear weapons in response to the employment of nuclear and (or) other types of weapons of mass destruction against itself and (or) its allies, as well as in the event of aggression against the Russian Federation and (or) the Republic of Belarus as participants in the Union State with the employment of conventional weapons, which creates a critical threat to their sovereignty and (or) territorial integrity.

19. The conditions that enable the possibility of nuclear weapons employment by the Russian Federation are as follows:
a) receipt of reliable data on the launch of ballistic missiles attacking the territories of the Russian Federation and (or) its allies;
b) employment of nuclear or other types of weapons of mass destruction by an adversary against the territories of the Russian Federation and (or) its allies, against facilities and (or) military formations of the Russian Federation located outside its territory;
c) actions by an adversary affecting elements of critically important state or military infrastructure of the Russian Federation, the disablement of which would disrupt response actions by nuclear forces;
d) aggression against the Russian Federation and (or) the Republic of Belarus as participants in the Union State with the employment of conventional weapons, which creates a critical threat to their sovereignty and (or) territorial integrity;
e) receipt of reliable data on the massive launch (take-off) of air and space attack means (strategic and tactical aircraft, cruise missiles, unmanned, hypersonic and other aerial vehicles) and their crossing of the state border of the Russian Federation.

20. The decision to employ nuclear weapons is made by the President of the Russian Federation.

21. The President of the Russian Federation may, if necessary, inform the military-political leadership of other states and (or) international organizations about the readiness of the Russian Federation to employ nuclear weapons or of the decision taken to employ nuclear weapons, as well as of the fact of their employment. <...>

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🇷🇺🇮🇷 📞 President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin spoke over the phone with President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian.

The Presidents focused on the escalating situation in the Syrian Arab Republic, highlighting the large-scale aggression by terrorist groups and militant units aimed at undermining the political and socioeconomic stability of the Syrian state.

They expressed unconditional support for the efforts of Syria’s legitimate authorities to restore constitutional order and maintain the country’s territorial integrity, while also emphasising the importance of coordinated efforts within the framework of the Astana Format with the involvement of Türkiye.

The Leaders also discussed key issues related to the expansion of Russia-Iran cooperation in various fields, particularly in light of the agreements reached by Vladimir Putin and Masoud Pezeshkian during their talks in Kazan on October 23, 2024.

The Presidents outlined a plan for future bilateral contacts and engagements at other levels.

#RussiaIran

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🇷🇺С 3 по 12 декабря 2024 года пройдёт VIII Всероссийский правовой (юридический) диктант, организатором которого традиционно выступает Ассоциация юристов России при поддержке ряда государственных и общественных организаций.

В 2024 году диктант впервые разделён на три блока: «Базовый», «Профессиональный» и «Бизнес», в каждом из которых участникам предлагается ответить на 33 тестовых вопроса, в том числе видеовопросы от известных юристов, государственных и общественных деятелей. На ответы выделяется 60 минут.

👉Принять участие в тестировании может любой желающий старше 14 лет на сайте юрдиктант.рф.

По завершении теста каждый участник получает сертификат о прохождении диктанта с персональным результатом, а также доступ к информационным материалам по допущенным ошибкам. 13 декабря 2024 года на официальной платформе будут размещены информационные материалы с правильными ответами.

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❗️The treatment of Julian Assange is a strong message to dissenters who stand up to the West — Sergey Lavrov

The foreign minister noted that Russia was one of the few countries that voiced support for the WikiLeaks co-founder despite some disagreements.

#RussianMFA

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🎙 President of Russia Vladimir Putin's answers to media questions following his state visit to Kazakhstan and the CSTO summit

📍 Astana, November 28, 2024

#Ukraine

• We will certainly respond to acts of aggression against the Russian Federation. The timing, methods, and weapons employed will be determined by the General Staff of the Ministry of Defence, as each target necessitates a specific approach and appropriate weaponry.

• We do not rule out the combat employment of Oreshnik on military-industrial facilities or command centres, including those in Kiev. We remain cognisant that the Kiev authorities continue their attempts to target our critical assets, including those in St. Petersburg and Moscow.

#Armenia #CSTO

• I think today’s situation between Armenia and the CSTO is most likely caused by internal political processes in Armenia. It is also linked with the aftermath of the Karabakh crisis, without doubt. But I would like to stress that the CSTO has nothing to do with it, you see? I repeatedly said about that. Everything that was happening in this respect had nothing to do with the CSTO because Armenia did not suffer from any external aggression.

• Any country, a member of the organisation, should independently identify its national interests. And we will treat it with respect. That’s my first point. And secondly, Armenia has not announced it has withdrawn. At least not yet. It has said that it is taking a pause, but at the same time it supports all the documents that are endorsed during our today’s meeting, during today’s session of negotiations, and draws our attention exactly to that. If this is true, it means that there is a possibility that Armenia will reinstall its full-fledged format within this organisation. We will see.

#RussiaKazakhstan

• Kazakhstan is more than our ally and reliable partner. Importantly, Kazakhstan is making great strides under the leadership of President Tokayev, and demonstrating stable and robust growth. The sociopolitical situation in the country is stable, which is crucial for planning work in the economic sphere and investing.

• We have billions invested in the economy of Kazakhstan. I mentioned earlier that mutual trade amounts to nearly 30 billion and keeps growing. Our traditional areas of cooperation include space exploration, energy, and, now, advanced technologies. Energy projects may see expanded cooperation in nuclear energy, since we are already working on it as a team.

📄 Read in full

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Russia and Ukraine agree to return children to families after Qatar mediation

Russia and Ukraine, with Qatar's mediation, agreed to reunite nine children with their families in a new humanitarian exchange.

Russia's children's commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova said six boys and one girl, aged 6 to 16, are being returned to Ukraine, while two young Russian boys, aged 7 and 9, will be returned from Ukraine.

#Russia #Ukraine

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Vladimir Putin's statement to the media following Russia-Kazakhstan talks

Key points:

🔹Russia-Kazakhstan cooperation in energy is developing at a steady pace. Thanks to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, the bulk of Kazakhstani oil exports pass through Russia and its port infrastructure on the Black Sea coast. In turn, Russian oil exports are delivered to China through Kazakhstan. Additionally, Russia imports Kazakhstani coal, and the two countries trade electricity with each other.

🔹The construction of three new thermal power plants in Kazakhstan is on the agenda. Russia's Gazprom remains a reliable natural gas supplier for Kazakhstani consumers and processes natural gas extracted at the Karachaganak Field at its Orenburg Gas Chemical Complex.

🔹Russia-Kazakhstan cooperation in nuclear energy is advancing as well. Six joint ventures involved in uranium extraction and enrichment are in operation at the moment. Companies from the two countries are also successfully implementing several major projects in machine engineering, chemical industry, and production of mineral fertilizers.

🔹Russia continues to operate the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The Baiterek project, involving the construction of a new rocket and space complex intended for Russia's future Soyuz-5 launch vehicle, is now underway.

🔹Russia endorses the construction of new Russian-language school in Kazakhstan and, more broadly, the improvement of the quality of Russian-language education in the country. Three more Russian-language schools are to open in Kazakhstan shortly.

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President Putin Reveals Details Of Draft Treaty On Ukraine’s Neutrality

Moscow and Kiev agreed on the general terms of Ukraine’s neutrality and security guarantees during peace negotiations in March 2022. Still, Kiev abruptly discarded the documents its delegation had already signed, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday.

During a meeting with a group of African leaders in St. Petersburg, Putin showed for the first time the draft documents being discussed by the Russian and Ukrainian emissaries in Türkiye more than a year ago. 

According to Putin, the Ukrainian delegation signed a document titled the Treaty on the Permanent Neutrality and Security Guarantees for Ukraine. 

The draft stipulates that Ukraine must enshrine “permanent neutrality” in its Constitution. Russia, the US, Britain, China, and France are listed as guarantors. 

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Vladimir Putin is meeting with the heads of African states' delegations in the Constantine Palace

The heads of delegations arrived in St Petersburg in accordance with an earlier agreement to hold talks on possible ways to resolve the situation around Ukraine.

"Friends, we appreciate your interest in seeking ways to resolve the conflict. <...> Let me stress once again that we are open to constructive dialogue with everyone who wants peace to be achieved based on the principles of justice and consideration of the legitimate interests of the parties," Vladimir Putin said in his opening remarks.

See more on the Kremlin’s official website.

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🇷🇺🇦🇪 President of Russia Vladimir Putin met with President of the UAE Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on the sidelines of the 26th St Petersburg International Economic Forum.

💬 President Putin: #RussiaUAE relations are expanding very successfully. I will not cite specific figures now, but they are impressive. But most importantly, they benefit both Russia and the United Arab Emirates – to a large extent, of course, thanks to your support.

I would like to thank you for your efforts to resolve humanitarian issues during the events in Ukraine – I am referring to the exchange of detainees and other humanitarian issues. This concerns specific people, and this is certainly what matters most, so thank you very much for that as well.

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Russia Reveals Plans For ‘Suez Canal Substitute’

The volume of goods shipped annually via the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC), touted as an alternative to the Suez Canal, could almost triple to 41 million tons of cargo over the next seven years, Russian Transport Minister Vitaly Saveliev said.

The INSTC is a planned 7,200km multi-mode transit system that will connect ship, rail, and road routes for moving cargo between Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, India, and Central Asia.

Currently, only some sections of the route are operational, with Russia and Iran agreeing last month to build a railway line to incorporate into it. Moscow plans to invest more than $3 billion in the expansion of the project by 2030.

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❗️💬 Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov:

«To our regret, Australia diligently continues to move in the main stream of the authors of the Russophobic hysteria that is now taking place in the Western countries. Australia is trying to be an excellent student there».

🔗 https://tass.com/politics/1632779

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🇷🇺🇨🇺 President Vladimir Putin met with Prime Minister of the Republic of Cuba Manuel Marrero Cruz at the Kremlin.

💬 Vladimir Putin: There is no need to emphasise the special, allied and long-standing nature of our relations that took shape many decades ago. You are aware of the fact that we, in Russia, have special feelings for the Island of Freedom. It has always been so.

Our relations are expanding despite difficulties.

Our bilateral cooperation is even more interesting. It should cover all areas that we agreed upon, and I am sure this will be the case. It includes energy, tourism and other priority areas.

☝️ We are aware of the fact that Cuba has been living under illegal sanctions for decades, yet the Cuban people are coping with them. For our part, we will do our best to ensure that our economic cooperation helps overcome the difficulties imposed on you from outside.

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🇷🇺 О праздновании Дня России

1️⃣4️⃣ июня в Канберре состоялся государственный прием, посвященный Дню России.

В мероприятии приняли участие главы порядка 30 дипломатических миссий, общественные деятели, представители культурных, научных и бизнес кругов, многочисленные российские соотечественники.

💬 В своем выступлении Посол А.В.Павловский отметил, что Россия стремится к построению такой системы международных отношений, которая гарантировала бы безопасность, сохранение культурно-цивилизационной идентичности и равные возможности развития для всех без исключения государств, независимо от их географического положения, размеров территории, политического, экономического или социального устройства. Это отражено в принятой недавно Концепции внешней политики Российской Федерации.

☝️Он подчеркнул, что наша страна всегда была и остается надежным партнером для всех, кто готов к равноправному и взаимоуважительному сотрудничеству.

🤝 За вклад в развитие российской общины Австралии, сохранение ее традиций, языка и культуры А.В.Павловский наградил благодарственными письмами руководителя Русского дома в Сиднее Л.Д.Коганов и председателя комитета Ассоциации татарского наследия Нового Южного Уэльса Л.А.Самигуллину.

🎶 В ходе приема гостям была представлена подготовленная Российским национальным музеем музыки выставка «Рахманинов известный и неизвестный», посвященная 150-летию со дня рождения великого композитора. По завершении мероприятия состоялся организованный при поддержке Посольства концерт русской классической музыки.

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🇷🇺🇹🇷📞 President of Russia Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with President of the Republic of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The Presidents had an in-depth discussion of the quickly escalating tensions in Syria.

Vladimir Putin stressed the urgent need to stop radical groups’ terrorist aggression against the Syrian state and provide comprehensive assistance to the legitimate authorities’ efforts to restore stability and constitutional order across the country, including using Ankara’s capabilities in the region.

In this context, the two Leaders spoke in favour of strengthening cooperation both bilaterally and within the framework of the Astana process. The key importance of further close coordination between Russia, Turkiye and Iran to normalise the situation in Syria was highlighted.

🤝 The two countries’ Presidents will stay in touch to continue searching steps to de-escalate the crisis.

A number of topical issues related to further development of mutually beneficial Russian-Turkish cooperation with an emphasis on trade, economic and energy components were also discussed.

#RussiaTurkiye

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📄 Joint Ministerial Statement of the 35th APEC Ministerial Meeting 2024 (Lima, Peru)

• In reaffirming our commitment to the APEC Putrajaya Vision 2040 of an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia-Pacific community by 2040 for the prosperity of all our people and future generations, including by implementing the Aotearoa Plan of Action (APA), and under the APEC 2024 theme “Empower. Include. Grow.,” we have advanced APEC’s cooperation agenda through three thematic priorities:

✅ trade and investment for inclusive and interconnected growth;

✅ innovation and digitalization to promote transition to the formal and global economy;

✅ sustainable growth for resilient development. <...>

👉 Empower

• We commend APEC’s work this year in encouraging innovation and digitalization to promote the transition from the informal to the formal economy, including through focused discussions and policy dialogues. <...>

• We recognize the essential role of an enabling, open, fair, non-discriminatory, safer and more inclusive digital ecosystem that facilitates trade, and the importance of enhancing trust and security in the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) <...>

👉 Include

• We emphasize the importance of realizing the economic potential of all. We acknowledge the valuable contributions of persons with disabilities to economic growth in the region, while recognizing the need to provide them with more opportunities. <...>

• We acknowledge the contributions to inclusive economic growth of Indigenous Peoples as appropriate and welcome further dialogues and collaborative efforts focused on capacity-building to increase their participation in regional and global markets. <...>

• We emphasize the importance of assisting the region’s small and medium enterprises, including by embracing digital tools and fostering innovation, expanding financial inclusion initiatives, enhancing supply chain networks <...>.

👉 Grow

• We reiterate our commitment to working together to deliver a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive, and predictable trade and investment environment. <...>

• As we mark the 30th anniversary of the World Trade Organization (WTO), we reiterate our support for the rules-based multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its core. We commit to work towards necessary reform of the WTO, in order to improve all its functions <...>

• We commit to safeguarding secure, resilient, inclusive, effective, sustainable, open and interconnected supply chains. <...>

👉 Strengthening APEC

• We reaffirm our commitment to strengthening APEC as an important and effective economic cooperation forum in the Asia-Pacific region, and reaffirm its voluntary, non-binding and consensus-building principles. <...>

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🇷🇺🇭🇺 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s opening remarks at the meeting with Foreign Minister of Hungary Peter Szijjarto (Moscow, December 2, 2024)

💬 It is a pleasure to welcome you to Moscow. We maintain regular contact, as does President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban. They determine the strategic direction of our cooperation in all areas. As a result, we have a steady, long-term growth of trade and investment cooperation in the economy. This benefits the countries and the peoples of both Russia and Hungary.

The effectiveness of our agreements and the decisions made by our leadership is evident. Despite serious, artificially created challenges in the global economy, we are successfully implementing all the flagship projects of our partnership, including in the energy sector.

Following the recent meeting of our intergovernmental commission, which took place in Budapest in September, President Vladimir Putin issued instructions on all the issues raised by our Hungarian friends.

Today we have a good opportunity to discuss our interaction in European, Euro-Atlantic and international affairs in addition to the bilateral agenda.

🤝 We appreciate this sector of our partnership and the independent policy pursued by Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his government, which is based primarily on national interests. We are convinced that this approach represents the future of world politics.

***

💬 I will add a few words. Primarily, on the situation around Ukraine. We absolutely agree that those who stand for peace take the right stance and those who believe that the war should go on until Russia is strategically defeated on the battlefield do not even reflect the interests of their peoples.

There are numerous initiatives put forward by countries on different continents. We can see that they are motivated by a sincere desire to make peace. For example, the recent “peace mission” by Prime Minister Viktor Orban is one of the examples of such initiatives like a number of others, including the Chino-Brazilian, South African and Arab initiatives. We are ready to consider them all.

We have our own position. It is based on the will of people who found themselves in the war zone after the Kiev regime declared them terrorists. The rights of people to their native language, education, access to information in their native language, the canonical religion – all of these have been legislatively destroyed. I do not see how this crisis can be resolved without addressing the root cause.

<...>

We are worried by what we hear more and more often in the West: in Brussels, London, Paris and Washington. They have begun to speak of a ceasefire as a means for giving Ukraine a respite and for themselves as a new opportunity to supply Ukraine with modern long-range weapons. This not a way to peace.

Western leaders by all appearances seem to be following Zelensky's wishes, indulging his every whim. This was their position – “not a word about Ukraine without Ukraine,” and the fact that they have been discussing Russia without Russia within the framework of the Zelensky formula for two years now does not occur to anyone.

We are ready for honest negotiations, as President Vladimir Putin said. True, he advised Zelensky's masters to first make him cancel the decree forbidding negotiations with the Putin government. But we are ready for negotiations on the understanding that they will be conducted based on the comprehensive consideration of our country's legitimate interests.

#RussiaHungary

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🗓 On December 1, 1959, the indefinite Antarctic Treaty was signed. This historic document preserved the status quo, froze territorial claims, and established principles regulating the activities of all states in this vital coldest region on the planet.

🧊 The Antarctic region includes the continent of Antarctica, discovered in 1820 by Russian explorers Fabian Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev, and the adjacent southern waters of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans.

🌐 Today, 54 states are parties to the Antarctic Treaty, with 29 of them, including Russia, holding consultative status, allowing them to participate in decision-making processes. Over time, an international system of agreements has been developed around the Treaty, regulating environmental protection, fisheries, tourism, and mineral resource exploration in the region.

📖 Key provisions of the treaty:

• The signatory countries renounced attempts to assert sovereignty over their zones of influence and refrained from disputing the rights of other countries.
• Antarctica was declared a demilitarized zone: military activity, the construction of military bases, and weapons testing are strictly prohibited.
• The region is open to international scientific research, information exchange, and cooperation.

🇷🇺 Russia is an active party to the Treaty. The Russia's Foreign Policy Concept emphasizes the country's commitment to preserving and further developing the Antarctic Treaty System.

🐧 Russia carries out scientific research in Antarctica. The Russian Antarctic Expedition, managed by the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI), operates five year-round research stations on the continent: Novolazarevskaya, Bellingshausen, Mirny, Progress, and Vostok. During the summer, additional research is conducted at seasonal field bases, including Molodyozhnaya, Druzhnaya-4, Bunger Oasis, Russkaya, and Leningradskaya.

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❗️Moscow's repeated requests for the names of those found dead in Bucha, as reported by the BBC, were ignored — Sergey Lavrov

#RussianMFA

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🎙 From Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the roundtable discussion held by the Foreign Ministry’s Diplomatic Academy "Ukraine Crisis: Global Information Space" (Moscow, November 29, 2024)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: <...> When Zelensky's regime openly states that it is literally on the hunt for Russian mass media... the West either keeps mum or condones it.

It was proven that the Ukrainian security services were directly involved in targeting assassinations of Russian journalists, Daria Dugina, Oleg Klokov, Maxim Fomin, Rostislav Zhuravlyov, Boris Maksudov, and many, many others.

We haven't heard a word of condemnation, not a single one of these heinous terrorist attacks from the enlightened Western countries. And the same happened when the Russian journalists were killed in the Donbass long before the special military operation was launched.

And the scandal with the report of the UNESCO Secretariat on the safety of journalists that were killed in carrying out their professional duties is well known.

❌ The well-known facts about the deaths of Russian journalists are not even mentioned in that document.

👉 That's why Madam Azoulay, Director General of UNESCO, is a direct accomplice in the information warfare against Russia and against truth in general.

The media landscape remains the key battleground continues to be the main battleground of the aggressive campaign launched by the West against Russia and other countries of the global majority that adhere to independent domestic and foreign policy. Ukraine has turned into another testing ground for the use and for the test of sophisticated methods to manipulate public opinion, <...> for the promotion of fakes, but it is also a testing ground for Western weapons, and they don't hide it.

<...>

They do everything they can to polarize the operations of multilateral human rights structures. The Russian journalists I mentioned, who were killed by the Ukrainian Nazis, are not even talked about in the Western countries.

👉 <...> Such structures as UNESCO, OSCE, Council of Europe are obliged, in line with the charter documents, to observe human rights, the rights of journalists. And these structures over the past years have demonstrated their total unscrupulousness and incompetence, their silence, their inaction.

<...> Pandering to the criminal Kiev regime leads to human casualties.

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⚡️⚡️Russian Embassy’s Comment on recent ABC RN Breakfast interviews

During his interview with the Russian Ambassador on 25 November, the RN Breakfast host Steve Cannane repeatedly challenged Dr Alexey Pavlovsky to state that Russian forces had been committing torture in Ukraine, specifically stressing the “evidence“ provided by the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment Alice Jill Edwards. The Ambassador, in response, expressed a lack of confidence in the credibility of this kind of documents due to well-known bias.
 
Alice Edwards’ report in reference was prepared as a result of her trip to Ukraine in September 2023 at the invitation of the Ukrainian government, which clearly orchestrated the entire “official visit“. Accordingly, during her six-day stay, the Special Rapporteur first of all “had the honour to meet“ an extensive range of Ukrainian government officials. Then, she saw vetted “representatives of civil society, non-governmental organizations“ and, lastly, “victims and survivors“. Ms Edwards was also taken to “two places of deprivation of liberty“ where she asked several Russian prisoners “whether they had been tortured or ill-treated while at the camp“. The Special Rapporteur then duly noted: “None of them said they were“.
 
Even within a large body of similar documents, Alice Edwards’ report stands out for its manifest complementarity to the Ukrainian government and blatant indifference to crimes being committed by the Zelensky regime.
 
One particularly expressive passage reads:

The Special Rapporteur appreciates the commitment of the Government of Ukraine to the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment. She welcomes the openness of the national authorities to external and independent scrutiny and expresses the wish to continue the constructive dialogue that characterised her visit.

 
Quite embarrassingly for Ms Edwards, a few months after she wrote the above lines, a UN Monitoring Mission in Ukraine report was published, stating i.a.
 

[…] of the 205 Russian POWs interviewed since March 2023, 104 provided consistent and detailed accounts of torture or other forms of ill-treatment [by Ukrainian authorities], indicating a persistent pattern. 

 

The main methods of torture and ill-treatment involved severe beatings, including targeting knees and joints, threats of death or physical violence, and to a lesser extent electric shocks. Perpetrators used a variety of objects, including rubber batons, aluminium or wooden bats/mallets, tactical gloves, tasers, military phones or other electric devices, such as car batteries. In addition, ten interviewees reported being subjected to sexual violence, including inflicting violence to genitals and threats of rape. OHCHR assessed these acts of violence as deliberately inflicting severe pain and suffering upon victims.

 
While interviewed by Steve Cannane on 26 November, Ms Edwards tried to address the apparent discrepancy:
 

[…] regrettably, that report doesn’t distinguish between the two types, and quite often it is difficult to do so, but it is important that torture fulfils the definition under international law, and then there is the whole body of other forms of ill-treatment, and they actually found that about fifty per cent of Russian prisoners of war were complaining in that early phase of capture or on the battlefield.

 
Oddly, Steve Cannane did not take the opportunity to clarify his guest’s rather obscure statement. He prudently refrained from asking the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment a “simple yes or no question“ whether Ukrainian forces have been committing torture.
 
Now that would truly be ugly gotcha journalism (unbecoming, they say, of the ABC). But Steve Cannane seems to have dispensed the best of his talents while interviewing the Russian Ambassador.

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❗️We have taken note of the ruling by an Australian court in the defamation case brought by retired Corporal of 🇦🇺Australia’s Special Air Service (SAS) Benjamin Roberts-Smith against Fairfax Media. He filed the suit following the publication of a journalistic inquiry which concluded that the SAS corporal committed war crimes during his deployment with the 🇦🇺Australian forces in Afghanistan. Having scrutinised the journalists’ story, the court ruled that they reliably proved their information about the crimes committed by Benjamin Roberts-Smith, including the murder of three unarmed Afghans. It is notable that before the compromising information was made public, the former corporal was hailed as a national hero for his mission in Afghanistan and was awarded the Victoria Cross, Australia’s highest military decoration, in 2011.

It is obvious that the ruling establishment of the «green continent» is doing its best to sweep the damaging issue of Australian war crimes in Afghanistan under the rug. At least, this is how we see the actions, or rather the inaction, of the previous liberal cabinet led by heavily criticised Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his obnoxious defence minister, Peter Dutton. Members of the veterans’ organisations, media and several political groups that do not associate themselves with the current government have angrily protested the attempts to close the Afghan file by blaming all the crimes on soldiers and sergeants of the Australian special forces.

The new facts that have come to light about the war crimes committed by the Australian military show that it is a deep institutional problem of the country’s elite forces. The attempts by the establishment to dampen public outcry exclusively with palliative measures is evidence of the double standards and hypocrisy of the Australian political class, which refuses to recognise its own mistakes when accusing others of «non-compliance with Western standards».

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🤝 President Vladimir Putin received heads of delegations of African states in the Constantine Palace in St. Petersburg

💬 Vladimir Putin: Comprehensive development of ties with African countries is a priority of Russian foreign policy.

We have consistently stood for further consolidating the traditionally friendly relations with African countries and the primary regional association – the African Union – based on principles of equality, mutual respect and non-interference in internal affairs.

Comprehensive preparations are underway for a milestone event – the second #RussiaAfrica summit to be held soon here, in St Petersburg.

🌍 Russia has the utmost respect for the principled position of African states in favour of maintaining global and regional stability and security, peaceful settlement of conflicts, and establishing a more just model of international relations

We welcome the balanced approach of our African friends towards the Ukrainian crisis.

☝️ Friends, we appreciate your interest in seeking ways to resolve the conflict. We immediately accepted your proposal to hold talks regarding the situation around Ukraine.

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🎙 Excerpts from President Vladimir Putin's remarks in the plenary session of the 26th St Petersburg International Economic Forum.

• This proves yet again that common sense, business initiative and objective market forces outweigh politics. This also demonstrates that this ugly and de-facto neo-colonial international system no longer works, while the multipolar world order is, on the contrary, becoming stronger. This is an inevitable process.

•  In today’s world it is hard to make other countries mindlessly tow to somebody’s interests; it is practically impossible sometimes. Those who do it should finally realise that it is counterproductive not only for the global economy, which is hard to perceive at one glance; it is unacceptable for millions of people. Unacceptable.

• And the current situation, the current crisis in Ukraine is beneficial for them. It is a pretext to conceal their economic mistakes both in energy and finance. They have driven the situation to an inflation spike. Why? Because they were flooding their economy with trillions of dollars

• Now they are considering supplies of aircraft [NATO's to Ukraine]. But if they are located at air bases outside Ukraine and are used in hostilities, we will have to think about how and where we can hit the resources that are used against us in the hostilities. There is a serious danger of NATO’s further involvement in this armed conflict.

• Nuclear weapons are created to ensure our security, in the broadest sense of the word, and the existence of the Russian state. First, we see no need to use it; and second, considering this, even as a possibility, factors into lowering the threshold for the use of such weapons. This is my first point. The second point is that we have more such nuclear weapons than NATO countries. They know about it and never stop trying to persuade us to start nuclear reduction talks.

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⚡️ Russia Foils Ukrainian Attempt On Druzhba Pipeline

Drones attempted an attack on a pumping station of the Druzhba pipeline Saturday morning near Bryansk, the region's governor said.

The pipeline which supplies crude oil to Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic was also attacked last month.

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Nations Lining Up To Join BRICS – Russian Deputy FM

An increasing number of nations are moving towards joining the BRICS bloc, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has said, with nearly 20 candidates, including Türkiye, Mexico, Indonesia, the UAE, and Egypt, currently in the pipeline.

BRICS, which began as an informal club of non-Western developing nations, plays “an increasing and already significant role in the international arena,” the diplomat told TASS on Thursday.

The group currently comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa as full-fledged members. The organization rejects the idea that some nations should lead others and instead determines its agenda based on consensus, Ryabkov added.

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🎙 President Vladimir Putin’s statement for the media following talks with President of Algeria Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

Key talking points:

🇷🇺🇩🇿 Russian-Algerian relations are truly constructive and mutually beneficial. They rest on respect and consideration for each other’s interests, and we continue developing them in the spirit of friendship and mutual support.

🔹 Joint work is underway to expand the practice of carrying out transactions in national currencies, which will help shield bilateral trade from the influence of third countries and the negative developments in the global currency markets.

🔹 Russia and Algeria are successfully expanding energy cooperation. Large Russian energy companies have been operating in the Algerian market for a long time. Algeria is interested in the development of national nuclear energy.

🔹 There are good opportunities for Russian-Algerian business cooperation. Russia is ready not only to supply equipment and organise its after-sales maintenance but also to localise production in Algeria and to educate Algerian professionals.

🔹 Russia and Algeria are striving to coordinate their positions within multilateral associations. Considering that next year Algeria will receive non-permanent UN Security Council member status, we are motivated to intensify our interaction on all urgent issues on the UN agenda.

🔹 We maintain a regular dialogue with our Algerian partners on a wide range of issues related to current security challenges and threats in the African region and the world at large.

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#RussiaAfrica #RussiaAlgeria

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On this day in 1783, under the leadership of Rear Admiral Mekenzi (MacKenzie), Sevastopol’s first four stone buildings were laid, including a house for the commander of the Sevastopol squadron, a chapel, a smith shop in the Admiralty and a pier, later called Grafskaya Pier.

ℹ️ However, the history of this glorious city began much earlier. It came into being in the very area where the ancient city-fortress of Chersonesos once stood. Following numerous wars between Russia and Türkiye, a new fortress was built on the site of the former Chersonesos in 1783 by a decree of Empress Catherine II. The fortress was given the name Sevastopol, which in Greek means “holy city,” “city of glory,” or “city worthy of worship.”

The great Russian commander Alexander Suvorov was at the origins of the city. His victory over the Turkish fleet on the shores of Akhtiar Bay in 1778 helped Russia in many ways to take root in Crimea. He also gave orders to build the first earthen fortifications on the shores of what is now Sevastopol Bay and to deploy Russian troops there.

☝️ In the Soviet period, despite the fallout of the Civil War, the city expanded dynamically, and its population doubled in 20 years, with as many as 112,000 people living in it by early 1941.

Among other things, this made Sevastopol a strong naval base. The 1941-1945 Great Patriotic War became a grueling test for the Black Sea Fleet sailors and ordinary Sevastopol residents. The heroic defence of Sevastopol lasted 250 days. The Soviet troops left the city after they had exhausted every defence resource. On May 9, 1944, the city which had been almost completely destroyed by the Nazis, was liberated.

🗳 The Crimean status referendum of March 16, 2014 was, without a doubt, the most important milestone in the modern history of Sevastopol. The voting results showed that 95.6 percent of the participants in the referendum in Sevastopol voted in favour of the city joining the Russian Federation.

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❗️🇦🇺Australian mainstream media are known for uncritically embracing and translating whatever 🇺🇦Ukrainian propaganda feeds them. But this time the Zelensky regime came up with allegations so blatantly absurd that any half-decent outlet would be embarrassed to support them. The idea that 🇷🇺Russians blew up the Kahovka dam thus effectively eliminating their own thoroughly built defence lines on the lower left bank of the Dnieper and also depriving Crimea of water supplies is an insult to the mental faculties of the audience. Not unlike, though, a recent allegation that a drone attack on Kremlin was a false flag operation.

Therefore many outlets chose to delicately dissociate themselves from the Ukrainian version of events. The audience heard that “Moscow and Kiev traded blame” but “neither claim could be verified”. Even this timid departure from the Kiev propaganda talking points infuriated Ukrainian diplomats.

Meanwhile, the culprit of the terrible humanitarian and ecological disaster is more than obvious. Consider just these facts.

The Ukrainian army has been systematically shelling the dam. In total, in the summer and autumn of 2022, more than three hundred missiles were fired at the Kakhovka HPP from HIMARS alone.

On 29 December 2022, The Washington Post published the following statement made by Major General of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Andrey Kovalchuk, commander of the Ukrainian troops in the Kherson Region: “The Ukrainians conducted a test strike with a HIMARS launcher on one of the floodgates at the Nova Kakhovka dam, making three holes in the metal to see if the Dnieper’s water could be raised enough to stymie Russian crossings but not flood nearby villages. The test was a success.”

Exactly as President Zelensky was seen on TV screens appealing to the world community to condemn Russia for “ecocide”, the gates of the Ukrainian-controlled dams upstream were kept wide open to exacerbate the calamity.

But this is the truth the Australian media can’t afford to tell.

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