This week in photos: Orthodox Christmas, Prague’s polar swimmers and Greece’s snowfall

A BMW driver ploughed his car into an outdoor Christmas market in downtown Magdeburg on Friday night

Marochko added that the operation allowed Russian troops to "expand their zone of control" in the area

In recent months, the United States has provided Ukraine with hundreds of air defense missiles, and more are on the way, the White House’s press service released

According to the head of state, the system's serial production has begun

The experiment that allowed testing the supercomputer prototype took place on December 19, the Moscow State University said

The presidents also talked about cooperation between the countries in a variety of areas, including economy

A presidential election campaign is starting in Belarus on January 1, with the election scheduled for January 26

Top stories from the Russian press on Tuesday, December 24th

Maria Zakharova emphasized that "Canberra obediently follows in the footsteps of the collective West, which pursues a Russophobic policy"

This is a record for the entire history of observations

Top stories from the Russian press on Thursday, December 26th

Previously, a curfew was imposed in another large Syrian city, Homs, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. local time

The document says that the goal of the payment is to ensure the representation of Russian staffers in the convention’s secretariat

"We are open to any negotiations, provided they essentially discuss the core causes [behind the Ukraine crisis] and the key principles put forward by Russian President Vladimir Putin in June," the top diplomat said

According to the Russian President, an option of concluding contracts for delivery through third parties - Turkish, Hungarian, Slovak, Azerbaijani companies - is possible

In addition, the European Union is strengthening protection of the bloc's undersea cables

The top diplomat stressed that it was not a demarche

The Russian emergencies minister, Alexander Kurenkov, added, that weather anomalies are becoming more and more frequent

The comprehensive strategic partnership treaty is expected to mark a significant step forward in the development of relations between Russia and Iran, which are growing rapidly

Moscow selects targets for strikes on the territory of Ukraine, proceeding solely from threats to Russia, the foreign minister stressed

According to Al Watan, the Department of military operations in Damascus sent major reinforcements to the Homs Province in order to eliminate the remaining supporters of former president Bashar Assad

The Cordelia Moon is 274 meters long and 50 meters wide

"In general, we are interested and ready for dialogue on other issues of our bilateral relations and issues on the regional agenda," the Russian foreign minister emphasized

This is another example of a harmful impact of unlawful restrictive measures, the ministry said

This is 61 bln cubic meters of gas more than in 2023, Alexey Miller said

The Belarusian leader believes that Germany should restore relations with Russia for the sake of its own economy

The EEC stressed that the adoption of the document contributes to the development of the union's transit potential, an increase in the level of security of cross-border deliveries and an increase in trade turnover between the countries of the Eurasian Five

The Russian government earlier approved the list of regions and territories where mining will be banned from January 1, 2025

By the of the trading session, the MOEX index rose by 1.23%, while the RTS index rose by 1.63%

Opening the meeting, the Russian president invited participants to discuss pressing issues and outline plans for the future

The ministry confirmed an earlier statement by the Kazakh authorities that the crash had killed 38 people

The bombs intended for killing high-placed Russian Defense Ministry officials were disguised as a power bank and a document folder, the FSB press office specified

Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk reiterated that Iran is an important partner for Russia

Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces’ press office said that Israeli Air Force fighter jets struck military targets of the Houthi regime on the west coast and in the interior regions of Yemen

The defense ministry also noted that the experience of Turkey, which has an "exemplary army" and a powerful defense industry infrastructure, will significantly contribute to strengthening Syria’s security and defense capability

Moreover, Ukraine will have to reorganize the flows of gas on the domestic market and resolve respective issues with keeping pressure in the eastern and central parts of the gas transport system, experts added

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus explained that he had arrived in the Yemeni capital to negotiate the release of UN staff and to assess the humanitarian situation in the country

According to Alexander Stepanov, strikes are systematic efforts to gradually wipe out the military capabilities of Ukraine

Russia could use Oreshnik again if need be, but the country is seeking to end the conflict in Ukraine, the Russian president said

During the meeting, the Russian leader will summarize the results of Russia's CIS chairmanship in 2024

The country’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called the Houthi rebels "the centerpiece of Iran's axis of evil"

It is up to the US to take the first step towards restoring contact with Russia because it was Washington that suspended it after the launch of Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine, the Russian foreign minister stated

The Russian leader recalled that the US President spoke about Ukraine's unreadiness to join the alliance

The project's curator Vitaly Romanov noted that the bomb was defused, and no one was injured

Salome Zourabichvili also promised to announce her further plans on Monday

The official yuan exchange rate was lowered by 13 kopecks to 13.47 rubles

The EAEU comprises Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan

According to the IDF, Hamas has been using this tunnel as a shelter for a long time

The authorities of Chechnya handed over 200 "Jihad mobile"

"The results of work over the year can already be assessed," the politician said

One of the detainees stated that he had moved to Ukraine, where he was recruited by Ukrainian special forces

Alexander Kurenkov noted that "this classification will enable the deployment of additional resources and personnel from federal executive authorities and state corporations, as well as provide necessary financial assistance to the affected entities from the Russian government’s reserve fund"

The top Russian diplomat remarked that Russian President Vladimir Putin had extensively addressed this matter during his combined year-end press conference and Q&A session on December 19, among other instances

Maria Zakharova stressed that the Russian Foreign Ministry would provide all information as soon as it received it

The source said that attempts to recruit more pilots in Poland and other Eastern European countries were not particularly successful

In 2014, the Donetsk airport was one of the hottest spots of the confrontation between Ukrainian forces and Donbass militias

29 people had been hospitalized

The 274-meter Cordelia Moon tanker, which suffered an equipment failure, was safely towed and anchored at the Ahirkapi anchorage

The foreign minister expressed confidence that "the new Syrian authorities will be able to determine in what concrete form, in what forms the Astana format can support the processes that have now begun in Syria"

The purpose of such restrictions is to maintain the balance of energy consumption taking into account the needs of industry

It is planned to launch it in general circulation in early 2025

Gennady Bezdetko noted that in order to achieve this goal, the parties must also resolve issues related to the full restoration of direct air traffic between the two countries as soon as possible

In conditions of competing China, Europeans pay significantly more for US LNG than for Russian gas, the official noted

According to the Houthi spokesman, the strike on US vessels was delivered with the use of "eight cruise missiles and 17 drones"

The top Russian diplomat pointed out that those accords should first and foremost address the root causes of the Ukraine crisis

There is always something new at certain sections of the front, the head of state emphasized

The Chinese People's Liberation Army will comprehensively strengthen military training to prevent a separatist plot by supporters of Taiwan independence and interference by outside forces, according to Spokesman Zhang Xiaogang

Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicted roughly 380 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed six enemy artillery guns in its area of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry reported

Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov said that the North Korean leader received a new Aurus luxury vehicle and a tea set, while the Russian president was gifted several pieces of art depicting his likeness

Russia assumed the presidency in BRICS since January 1, 2024

The region plans to create in 2025 another two clusters by integrating organizations of secondary professional education and enterprises working in the region

"We have never stated that the incoming administration of [US President-elect Donald] Trump will necessarily give a start to negotiations on global security, on Ukraine," Sergey Lavrov noted

Kazakh Transport Minister Marat Karabayev noted that the information was also received that "after providing data on the weather in Makhachkala and Baku, the crew decided to fly to Aktau"

Maulen Ashimbayev warned against premature conclusions concerning an external impact on the plane based on photographs, noting that certain forces were trying to derive dividends

Aleksandr Dubinsky recalled the unsuccessful financing of Ukraine in the middle of the year

Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicted roughly 245 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed six enemy howitzers in its area of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry reported

The top Russian diplomat expressed disappointment that virtually none of the Western nations have joined Russia’s condemnation of these attacks, including the leaders of international organizations like the UN, OSCE, or UNESCO

Dmitry Peskov recalled that the day before during the informal summit of the CIS, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered deep condolences to the families and friends of the victims and wished a speedy recovery to the injured

According to Alexey Miller, Gazprom is the world leader in terms of gas reserves

Gazprom Alexey Miller recalled that on December 1 Gazprom had brought the Power of Siberia pipeline to its maximum design capacity of 38 billion cubic meters of gas per year

Andrey Marochko added that Russian servicemen have advanced east of Yampolovka, bringing the distance between that village and Russia’s frontline positions to less than 1.2 miles

The foreign minister stressed that Russia was deceived "when they stated that NATO would not expand eastwards and when they emphasized their commitment to resolve [the conflict] based on the UN Charter"

The Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190, en route from Baku to Grozny, crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, on December 25

On December 6, EDB head Nikolai Podguzov said the bank’s board made all decisions necessary for Uzbekistan's accession

It includes the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Japan and other states

The top Russian diplomat drew attention to the fact that "the Kiev regime plays into the hands the West, which needs to remove such a strong competitor as Russia from the international scene"

The BREST-300 fast neutron reactor is due to be launched in 2026-2027 and to go on stream in 2028

KazAeroNavigation’s flight director immediately notified all emergency services

The Aktau air traffic controller promptly performed all necessary measures for the aircraft’s landing

The Ursa Major dry cargo ship wrecked in the Mediterranean Sea

The tourist complex will unite ten domed houses each to accommodate up to four people, a sauna, a geo-dome restaurant and a pier

Denmark plans to increase the number of personnel at the Joint Arctic Command in the Greenlandic capital of Nuuk

Yury Ushakov noted that uncontrolled expansion of the association would break its backbone

International reserves, which are highly liquid foreign assets at the disposal of the Bank of Russia and the Russian government, consist of foreign currency funds, special drawing rights, a reserve position in the IMF and monetary gold

Damage also came from sweeping fires that were set off by strikes on oil tanks in both ports

It is also reported that the Eagle S "noticeably slowed down" presumably at the moment when the cable between Finland and Estonia was damaged

These include an agreement on the single customs transit system, a decision on the entry into force of the free trade agreement with Iran, and an order on the functioning of the single services market within the EAEU

Alexander Novak reiterated that the Russian economy was currently experiencing sustainable and dynamic development

The airline will assess the situation in the upcoming weeks and will decide whether the flights will resume depending on the assessment

According to the Russian president, cooperation between CIS states in the currency and financial area is expanding