Russia

Moscow extends coronavirus restrictions until June 29

Russia's capital will extend COVID-19 restrictions imposed this week until June 29, mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Friday, after a fresh spike in daily cases. The measures include bans on…

Read More Here

Reaction to Biden-Putin summit ranges from ‘positive’ to ‘disturbing’

U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed at their first summit on Wednesday to hold talks on arms control and cybersecurity. Here is some reaction to their…

Read More Here

Kremlin says NATO membership for Ukraine would be ‘red line’

The Kremlin said on Thursday that Ukrainian membership of NATO would be a "red line" for Moscow and that it was worried by talk that Kyiv may one day be…

Read More Here

UPDATE – Biden calls for “basic rules of the road” at summit with Putin

U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin decided at a "pragmatic" first summit on Wednesday to hold arms control and cyber-security talks and return their respective ambassadors, while…

Read More Here

Russia back on track after 1-0 win over Finland

A goal in first-half stoppage time by Aleksei Miranchuk got Russia's Euro 2020 campaign back on track as they beat Finland 1-0 in Group B on Wednesday. Joel Pohjanpalo thought…

Read More Here

U.S.-Russia summit: The American presidents Putin has confronted

Russia's Vladimir Putin has been in power as president or prime minister since 1999 and has held talks with and seen four U.S. presidents leave office. Joe Biden, whom the…

Read More Here

Better relations with Russia a distant prospect, EU chief diplomat says

There is not much hope for better relations between the European Union and Russia any time soon, the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Wednesday, roughly a week…

Read More Here

Moscow authorities make COVID-19 vaccination compulsory for some workers

Authorities in Moscow will make vaccination against COVID-19 compulsory for 60% of employees in the services sector, a decree published on Wednesday showed, as coronavirus cases continued to tick up…

Read More Here

Biden and Putin summit: Where they disagree and where they might compromise

Don’t expect a major breakthrough at a summit on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, a U.S. official said on Tuesday, given relations between…

Read More Here

Biden, Putin won’t cut a deal behind Ukraine’s back, Ukrainian foreign minister says

Ukraine does not see the risk of U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin cutting a deal on Ukraine behind Ukraine's back, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told a briefing in…

Read More Here

Russia removes Belarus opposition politician Tsikhanouskaya from wanted list – RIA

Russian police have removed Belarusian opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya from their wanted list at the initative of the Belarusian authorities, the RIA news agency reported on Tuesday. Tsikhanouskaya fled into exile last…

Read More Here

Russia reports 13,721 daily COVID-19 cases, 371 deaths

Russia reported 13,721 new coronavirus cases, including 6,590 in the capital, on Monday, after the number of daily infections rose sharply last week and Moscow declared a four-day public holiday…

Read More Here

French retailer Auchan outlines online expansion in Russia

French retailer Auchan plans to spend more than 20 billion roubles ($277 million) on developing digital services in Russia by 2024 to boost online sales, the company's country head said.…

Read More Here

Russia’s new COVID-19 cases rise to highest since February

Russia on Sunday reported 14,723 new COVID-19 cases, including 7,704 in Moscow, the largest one-day national caseload since Feb. 13. The number of new infections in Moscow was the most…

Read More Here

Russia tests COVID-19 vaccine as nasal spray for children

Russia has tested a nasal spray form of its COVID-19 vaccine that is suitable for children aged 8-12, and plans to launch the new product in September, the scientist who…

Read More Here

Lukaku at the double as Belgium roll over Russia in 3-0 win

Belgium were not at their fluent best when they opened their Euro 2020 campaign but nonetheless sent a warning to rivals with a comfortable 3-0 win over Russia in St Petersburg…

Read More Here

Moscow residents told to stay off work to combat COVID-19

Moscow's mayor has effectively declared a public holiday for all of next week to combat a surge in COVID-19 cases. Sergei Sobyanin announced the decision on Saturday, saying it would…

Read More Here

Denmark says Russian aircraft violated its airspace twice

Denmark's defense ministry said there had been two Russian violations of Danish airspace on Friday near the Baltic Sea island of Bornholm. "(It is) completely unacceptable that Russian planes violate…

Read More Here

Russia’s new COVID-19 cases at fresh three-month high

Russia on Friday reported 12,505 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, its highest number of daily infections since late February, taking the national tally to 5,180,454 since the…

Read More Here

Putin to arrive in Geneva on June 16 for Biden summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin will arrive in Geneva on June 16, the same day he is set to meet U.S. President Joe Biden there, Russia's TASS news agency quoted his…

Read More Here

Condemnation after groups linked to Navalny declared ‘extremist’ by Russian court

A Russian court on Wednesday outlawed groups linked to jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny after declaring them “extremist”, a move that bans his allies from elections and will further strain…

Read More Here

Russia’s new COVID-19 cases reach three-month high

Russia on Wednesday reported 10,407 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, its highest number of daily infections since early March, taking the national tally to 5,156,250 since the…

Read More Here

Aeroflot restores Soviet-era routes at home amid closed borders -CEO

Russia's top airline Aeroflot is restoring Soviet-era routes hoping that direct flights which bypass traditional hubs help increase traffic amid closed borders, CEO Mikhail Poluboyarinov told Reuters. Like many other…

Read More Here

Kremlin critic Navalny is returned to prison facility after hunger strike – TASS

Jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has been returned to the original correctional facility where he had been serving out a sentence after he recovered from a hunger strike at a hospital in a different prison, the TASS news agency reported on Monday. The 45-year-old opposition politician had…

Read More Here

UPDATE – U.S. seizes $2.3 mln in bitcoin paid to Colonial Pipeline hackers

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - The Justice Department on Monday recovered some $2.3 million in cryptocurrency ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline Co, cracking down on hackers who launched the most disruptive U.S.…

Read More Here

EU’s Michel says Russia must stop ‘disruptive behaviour’ to improve ties

Russia must change its behaviour if it seeks better relations with the European Union, the EU said on Monday. "The downwards trend in EU-Russia relations can only change if Russia stops disruptive behavior," Charles Michel, the…

Read More Here

Putin signs law taking Russia out of Open Skies arms control treaty

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Monday that formalises Russia’s exit from the Open Skies arms control treaty, a pact that allows unarmed surveillance flights over member countries.…

Read More Here

Russia reports 9,145 new COVID-19 cases, 399 deaths

Russia reported 9,145 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, including 2,897 in Moscow, taking the official national tally since the pandemic began to 5,117,274. The government coronavirus task force said 399…

Read More Here

Sobolev penalty gives Russia 1-0 win over Bulgaria in Euro build-up

Substitute Aleksandr Sobolev's late penalty earned Russia a 1-0 win over Bulgaria in their final warm-up friendly before the European Championship kicks off next Friday. Sobolev coolly directed his penalty…

Read More Here

Putin plans to offer vaccinations to visiting foreigners for a fee

Russia may provide coronavirus vaccinations for a fee to foreigners who travel to the country, President Vladimir Putin told an economic forum, as Moscow seeks to enhance its global reputation…

Read More Here

FBI says it is investigating about 100 types of ransomware

FBI Director Christopher Wray told the Wall Street Journal that the agency is investigating about 100 different types of ransomware, many of which trace back to perpetrators Russia. In the…

Read More Here

Russian charter flights to Egypt to resume in coming days

Russian charter flights to Egyptian resorts are expected to resume in the coming days after a years-long hiatus, the Interfax news agency cited the boss of Aeroflot as saying on…

Read More Here

Russia’s RDIF says no bad side-effects found in trials on combined AstraZeneca/Sputnik V vaccine

No negative side-effects were detected during trials of a combined COVID-19 vaccine using AstraZeneca and Oxford University’s shots and Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine, the Interfax news agency reported. Russia may…

Read More Here

Russia to quit accord that eased Cold War travel curbs for U.S. diplomats

Russia plans to announce its withdrawal soon from a post-Cold War agreement with the United States that eased restrictions on diplomats travelling around each other’s countries, Russia’s deputy foreign minister…

Read More Here

Russia to remove dollar assets from National Wealth Fund

Russia will completely remove U.S. dollar assets from its National Wealth Fund (NWF), while increasing the share of the euro, Chinese yuan and gold, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on…

Read More Here

Russia says Nord Stream 2 pipeline almost complete, 100 km left

The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea is almost complete with just 100 kilometres (62 miles) left to build, TASS news agency quoted Russian deputy prime minister…

Read More Here

‘Together Again’: ‘Russian Davos’ to go ahead in person with Putin, despite pandemic

Thousands of officials and executives will gather in person in St Petersburg this week - and President Vladimir Putin will give a speech - as the annual economic forum Moscow…

Read More Here

Russia reports 8,475 COVID-19 cases, 339 deaths

Russia on Monday reported 8,475 COVID-19 cases, including 2,614 in Moscow, pushing the national infection tally to 5,071,917 since the pandemic began. The government coronavirus task force said that 339…

Read More Here

UPDATED: Russia to deploy military units near border, tells U.S. to expect ‘uncomfortable’ signals

Russia said on Monday it would send what it described as 'uncomfortable' signals to the United States ahead of a summit between the two countries' leaders next month and announced…

Read More Here

Russia vows to defend Belarus if EU sanctions Minsk

Russia will defend Belarus and help it if the European Union imposes economic sanctions on Minsk over the grounding of a plane and arrest of a dissident blogger, the RIA…

Read More Here

Hollywood actor Seagal joins pro-Kremlin party

Hollywood actor Steven Seagal, a long-time admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has joined a pro-Kremlin party, the the party said on Sunday. Seagal received a party membership card of…

Read More Here

Russia reports highest number of daily COVID-19 cases since March

Russia reported 9,694 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, the highest number since the end of March, which took the national tally to 5,063,442 infections. The Russian coronavirus task force said…

Read More Here

UPDATE – Russia approves Air France, Lufthansa routes avoiding Belarus

Air France and Lufthansa have received approval from Russia for flight routes to the country that avoid Belarusian airspace, the airlines said on Saturday. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency…

Read More Here

Putin offers Belarus leader support against West in Ryanair plane standoff

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday offered his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko support in his standoff with the West over his handling of the grounding of a passenger jet and the arrest of a dissident blogger. The West has accused Belarus of piracy…

Read More Here

Russia to supply UNICEF with Sputnik V doses for 110 million people

Russia has signed an agreement to supply the U.N. children’s fund UNICEF with enough doses of its Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine for 110 million people, the Russian Direct Investment Fund…

Read More Here

UPDATED: Russia to allow European flights to bypass Belarus, Ukraine to ban Belarus airlines from its airspace

Russia will allow European flights to arrive and depart via routes that bypass Belarusian airspace, the RBC news outlet reported late on Thursday, despite Moscow previously denying access to two…

Read More Here

Russia refuses granting European planes to land in Moscow

Russia has retaliated against a ban on carriers entering Belarus’s airspace by refusing to grant permission to European planes flying to Moscow. The Guardian reports what is "an apparent escalation…

Read More Here

UPDATED: Biden, Putin to meet on June 16

U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet in Geneva on June 16, the White House and the Kremlin said amid sharp disputes over election interference, cyberattacks,…

Read More Here

Russia reports 8,406 new COVID-19 cases, 319 deaths

Russia on Monday reported 8,406 new COVID-19 cases in the previous 24 hours, including 2,487 in Moscow, pushing the national infection tally to 5,009,911 since the pandemic began. The government…

Read More Here

Russia’s Fortuna vessel moves to German waters for Nord Stream 2 construction

Russian vessel Fortuna has started laying pipes for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in German waters, the gas project said, citing Germany’s Waterway and Shipping Authority. Nord Stream 2,…

Read More Here

UPDATED: Russia calls West’s reaction to Belarus plane incident ‘shocking’, France discussing suspension of Belarus transport links

Russia on Monday accused the West of hypocrisy in its outraged response to the diversion of an airliner to the Belarusian capital Minsk. Belarusian authorities scrambled a fighter jet and…

Read More Here