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MMK reduces steel output by 2.9% to 2.97 mln tons in Q1

Sales of metal products of the MMK group in the reporting period reached 2.73 mln tons (-1.1%)

MOSCOW, April 18. /TASS/. Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK) in January - March 2024 reduced steel output by 2.9% year-on year to 2.97 mln tons. At the same time, pig iron output remained at the 2023 level at 2.34 mln tones, the company said.

Output of coal concentrate decreased by 14.9% compared to the Q1 2023 to 730,000 tons, while output of iron ore raw materials fell by 14.4% to 408,000 tons.

Sales of metal products of the MMK group in the reporting period reached 2.73 mln tons (-1.1%). Sales of premium products decreased by 10.4% year-on-year.

At the same time, steel production decreased by 4.7% compared to the Q4 of 2023 due to seasonal factors, MMK noted. Pig iron smelting also decreased by 3%, while sales of the group's steel products decreased by 5.5% to 2.73 mln tons. The volume of coal concentrate production decreased by 9.9%.

MMK is one of the world's largest steel producers and occupies a leading position among Russian ferrous metallurgy companies, producing a wide range of metal products with a predominant share of products with high added value for all major metal-consuming sectors of Russian industry.

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Putin concludes state visit to Kazakhstan

Before leaving, the Russian president was answering journalists’ questions on various subjects for almost an hour

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Chad severs defense cooperation agreement with France — AFP

On April 18, the Chadian authorities sent a letter to the United States, in which they notified Washington about their intent to sever the military agreement

Western analysts describe Russia's Oreshnik as longest-range weapon ever used in Europe

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Israel ready for all-out war should Lebanon ceasefire be disrupted, PM says

"If the agreement is violated, we will proceed to an all-out war," Benjamin Netanyahu told

Hungarian PM’s office rules out his trip to Moscow for 80th anniversary of Victory

Gergely Gulyas was commenting on the decision of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico to go to the Russian capital to celebrate the anniversary of Victory at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin

Zelensky shook up by Russia’s response to permission to attack it — Lavrov

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Georgia suspends consultations on launch of EU accession talks until 2028

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Sending EU troops to Ukraine to make peace settlement impossible — Austrian lawmaker

Harald Vilimsky noted that the joint deployment of European troops will further escalate the security situation in Europe

Russia’s SVR chief questions role of NATO membership for Finnish people

"History shows that cooperation with Russia benefited Finland more than its previous attempts to follow the lead of aggressive Russophobic and even neo-Nazi policies," Sergey Naryshkin noted

Putin declares Kazakhstan visit a success

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"In general, the doctrine is uncomplicated, clear, and transparent," Sergey Shoigu noted

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Police officers are using tear gas, trying to push protesters back

No injuries in Ukrainian drone attack on Russia's Krasnodar Region

Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that eight drones fired by Ukraine at the Krasnodar Region were destroyed

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Oreshnik’s massive strike comparable to nuclear weapons — Putin

The Russian leader additionally stressed that "certainly, Oreshnik is not a weapon of mass destruction"

Russia strikes Ukrainian military airfields, manpower in 146 areas over past day

Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicted roughly 330 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed two enemy ammunition depots in its area of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry reported

Russia, North Korea remain good neighbors, longtime friends — Russian defense minister

"The most important outcome of the summit was the signing of a new fundamental interstate document - the Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Russia and North Korea," Andrey Belousov stressed

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He made this comment answering a question if Russia can strike military hubs in Romania and Poland

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Explosions occurred in Kiev, Nikolayev, Vinnitsa, Kropivnitskoye, Odessa, Kharkov, Lutsk, Ivanovo-Frankovsk, and Rovno

Japan's PM reiterates desire to sign peace treaty with Russia

Moscow and Tokyo have been negotiating a peace treaty to mark the end of World War II since the mid-20th century

Paris grants Netanyahu immunity for Lebanon ceasefire role, French magazine says

The report indicates that shortly after the ICC issued its warrant, Macron had a phone conversation with Netanyahu, in which he acknowledged that Paris was obliged to respect the ICC and cooperate fully

Several Oreshnik missiles equivalent to nuclear strike, do not harm environment — Putin

The Russian president still reiterated that such a strike is not nuclear, because it is highly accurate and not equipped with a nuclear explosive device

NATO spies study damage from Oreshnik at Yuzhmash — expert

Alexander Stepanov emphasized that both Kiev and its Western allies are closely scrutinizing the consequences of the strike on the plant

Peacekeepers deployment in Ukraine possible only with consent of all conflict parties

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service said in a statement earlier in the day that the West may seek to achieve its objectives in Ukraine by implementing an actual occupation, deploying a so-called peacekeeping contingent of 100,000 personnel, with plans to divide the country among Romania, Poland, Germany, and the UK

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Oreshnik becomes serious problem for Ukraine — Polish general

According to Waldemar Skrzypczak, satellite reconnaissance failed to detect the launch and flight of this missile

Biden's decision on ATACMS 'not panacea', it will harm Kiev — Defense News columnists

The article reads that the US intelligence community warned of the risks associated with US missile strikes on Russian territory and suggested abandoning the decision

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Bilateral exchanges between Russia, North Korea their own business — Chinese MFA

Mao Ning also stated that she was not aware of the details of Belousov's visit and reiterated that China's position on the Ukrainian crisis remains consistent

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The Russian president also spoke about inflation and the ruble exchange rate, noting that the situation is under control

Iran informs IAEA of plans to install more uranium enrichment units — report

Tehran informed the IAEA that eight recently added cascades of IR-6 machines would enrich uranium to up to 5% purity

Unidentified UAVs continue to appear over US Air Force bases in UK — newspaper

On Tuesday, about 60 British military experts were stationed at US airbases across the UK to operate a counter-UAV system to operate a counter-UAV system designed to detect, track and destroy them

Putin apologizes to Merkel over labrador incident

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Belarusian President Lukashenko points to 'NATOfication' of Europe, entire world

"The arms race is rapidly gaining momentum," Alexander Lukashenko underlined

Israel reports some violations of Lebanon ceasefire by Hezbollah

"The Israeli Air Force attacked the terrorists," IDF said

Design of super-heavy rocket to be finalized based on new technologies — Roscosmos

"The development of a super-heavy class rocket exposed a need for introducing innovative solutions, including new materials and engines," the press service said

Ukrainians facing critical battlefield situation amid manpower shortages — CNN

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Groundless attacks on Russian journalists become trend in West — TASS

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Protests break out in Georgia after ruling party moves to suspend talks with EU

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Georgian Police pushes protesters from entire Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi

Several people were apprehended

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Putin believes that US President-elect Trump’s life may be in danger

Donald Trump survived two assassination attempts this year: one during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July, and the second one in September, when a radical supporter of aid to Ukraine opened fire near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida

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The head of state is confident that there will be a quick response from the Russian side

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"As I have repeatedly said, we will always respond," the president emphasized

Lavrov clarifies Russia's position on Ukraine crisis to foreign diplomats — MFA

"Participants in the roundtable exchanged views on the conflict and other pressing international topics," the ministry stated

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Alexander Stepanov pointed out that "this also applies to intermediate-range high-precision systems such as the Tomahawk and other weapons that NATO countries may provide to Ukraine"

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Russia launches 100 missiles at Ukraine in past two days — Putin

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Ukrainian group of 22 servicemen surrenders in Kursk Region — law enforcement officials

Photos and videos of the surrender were also posted by military reporter and expert Boris Rozhin on his Telegram channel

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Here are the key points about the strikes on Ukrainian military-industrial facilities

Ukraine not South Korea's ally to demand weapons — newspaper

The author of the article recalled that in September the Ukrainian ambassador to Tokyo visited the Yasukuni Shrine, considered in East Asia as a symbol of Japanese militarism, of which the Korean Peninsula was a victim

Romania, Poland, Germany, UK plan to divide Ukraine — Russia's foreign intel

"A total of 100,000 so-called peacekeepers are planned to be sent to Ukraine," the SVR noted

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The Russian president pointed to a tense global situation

Situation with ruble rate under control — Putin

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Russia winning in Ukrainian conflict, Polish national security chief says

"The Russian side unquestionably holds both the initiative and the advantage on the battlefield," Head of the Polish National Security Bureau Jacek Siewiera said

Russian scientists to develop computer working at ‘speed of light’ by 2027 — researcher

"In the next two years, we plan to create a working prototype with processing speed of over 10 to the power of 19 operations per second, which significantly exceeds the current global level," Alexander Sergeyev said

Russia designs Titan rifle for commandos

The rifle is reliable with precise and dense fire

North Korean defense minister notes extensive exchanges with Russia

No Kwang Chol expressed confidence that the official visit of the Russian Defense Minister to North Korea "marks a key moment in the exchange of valuable and constructive proposals, contributing to strengthening the defense and security capabilities of both countries and fostering friendship, cooperation, and development between their armies"

Israel violates ceasefire agreement multiple times — Lebanese army

According to the statement, the Lebanese military command "is keeping an eye on [Israel’s] violations in coordination with the relevant agencies"

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Hungarian PM sounds alarm over presence of US, French troops in Ukraine

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Russia may block agenda of US Security Council presidency next month — mission to UN

First Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN Dmitry Polyansky said that the US may try to complicate life for the successors to the presidency

Biden’s initiative on Middle Eastern ceasefire overdue yet important — Erdogan

"Regional and global peace cannot be achieved unless an urgent, just, lasting ceasefire is established in Gaza," the Turkish leader stressed

Kiev regime’s ringleaders completely illegitimate, says Putin

"From the legal point of view, they do not even have the right to give orders to the armed forces, because they are usurpers of power," the president said

Russia's opponents see Finland as springboard in case of open conflict — politician

Leonid Slutsky noted that the current and previous leadership of Finland has been and remains engaged "on the lower turn of the sine wave, which is now marked by a sharp cooling of bilateral relations"

Russia works on transforming '3+3' platform into organization — senior diplomat

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Kiev troops attempted to kill British mercenary who surrendered to Russians — officer

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Biden unlikely to dare to seriously increase military aid to Kiev — expert

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FACTBOX: Impact of UAV attack on Krasnodar Region

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Up to 200,000 deserters in Ukrainian army, Verkhovna Rada MP says

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Kremlin considers militants' attack on Aleppo encroachment on Syria's sovereignty

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Ukrainian media reports plant in Lvov Region destroyed

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Maria Zakharova pointed out that the Kiev regime itself brands these figures as "terrible"

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Erik Prince noted that it was necessary to end the Ukrainian conflict as soon as possible

Executioner of Nazi war criminal Eichmann dies in Israel aged 86

The Israeli authorities have long kept his name secret

Kiev 'experimented' with using NATO troops in Kursk hostilities — official

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Kiev opposes Washington's demand for lowering draft age — media

A representative of US President Joe Biden's administration had earlier stated that the Ukrainian military is facing a critical manpower shortage

Decision-making centers in Kiev could be targeted in Oreshnik strikes — Putin

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Over 400 terrorists from Jabhat al-Nusra group wiped out in Aleppo, Idlib in past day

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Putin slams election mudslinging against Trump’s family as 'vile'

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Case against Ukrainian militants, Ukrainian losses: situation in Kursk Region

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Defense Minister notes active expansion of Russia-North Korea military cooperation

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Three dead, 21 poisoned in social center in Russia’s Altay Region

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Three countries express interest in BrahMos missiles

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Russian forces wipe out five ATACMS launchers using Iskander missiles

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NATO growing more inclined to freeze Ukraine conflict — Russia’s SVR

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West beginning to realize only part of Ukraine will remain — Lavrov

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