Ukraine to become EU associate member on June 27 — president

Military commanders of Ukrainian army brigades "lack both personnel and the required amount of equipment" while Russian troops enjoy a considerable superiority, especially in artillery, Sergey Krivonos noted

Murmansk authorities said earlier that the capacity of the port of Lavna under construction on the western coast of the Kola Bay is planned to be involved in transshipping export cargoes from Belarus

Earlier on Wednesday, Georgia’s parliament passed the foreign agents bill in the first reading

Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva welcomed Gustavo Petro’s initiative, "being committed to promotion of Colombia’s candidacy"

Maria Zakharova described France’s decision to place its aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, directly under NATO control as a symbolic move marking the end of "the era of an independent Paris in the international arena"

According to Maria Zakharova, in order for Moscow to take Macron’s initiative seriously, "practical steps" are needed

Vasily Nebenzya is convinced that the work of the UNRWA is indispensable under these circumstances

The EU, the US, Japan and Canada have frozen Russian assets worth a total amount of around $300 bln

Emmanuel Macron added that Europe’s resources are limited, and the European Union will continue helping Kiev keeping in mind its own reserves

Russian forces improved their frontline positions and repelled a Ukrainian army counterattack in the Donetsk area where the enemy lost roughly 590 troops over the past day, the ministry reported

State trials of S-500 are under way at a testing range in southern Russia

Viktor Orban noted that there should be a buffer zone between NATO and Russia and Ukraine could serve as one

Top stories from the Russian press on Monday, April 15th

"The experienced and all-too-familiar Hollywood touch can be seen behind these rallies," the politician pointed out

"We will keep working to rebuild ties that will enable us to upgrade and train our forces in accordance with NATO standards," Luis Petri noted

The Russian embassy has called attempts to probe into the alleged involvement of Russian special services in the development of rumored plans for attacks on military facilities in Germany "absurd and ridiculous"

Following the escalation of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis said they would strike Israeli territory and prevent ships affiliated with that country from passing through the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait until the operation in the Palestinian enclave ended

Commenting on the men's arrest, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said: "Our security services have prevented possible explosions aimed at undermining our military assistance to Ukraine"

"In any case, whatever the modality of providing this aid, de facto it is about provoking Ukraine into further hostilities down to the last Ukrainian, putting guarantted money in the pockets of the US," Dmitry Peskov said

Earlier it was reported that the German automobile concern Mercedes-Benz plans to sell its enterprise located in the Solnechnogorsk district of the Moscow region

Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin also said that an explosive device had detonated in the Kievsky District of Donetsk, injuring a man born in 1964

According to the General Administration of Customs of China, in 2022 the volume of Chinese-Ukrainian trade fell by 60% to $7.65 bln

"The Israeli forces carry out strikes at humanitarian forces, block their access, slow down the cargo clearance," Vasily Nebenzya said

The two other State Duma members mentioned in the verdict alongside Karpov are Viktor Kazakov and Georgy Karlov

The first Konteiner radar went on combat duty in the Volga area region of Mordovia on December 1, 2019

According to Maria Zakharova, Moscow "regards this provocative attack as the latest move by the German side aimed at further twisting history, painting the course and outcome of World War II in an anti-Russian manner"

Infrastructure is required to implement the investment project, both power transmission lines and the railroad, Andrey Chibis noted

The law enforcement employees exert efforts to identify the instigators of this crime, Igor Krasnov said

Another source said MiG-31I differs from previous MiG-K option by "different engines, avionics and missiles"

The Russian defense minister has given his instructions to speed up the introduction of promising weapons that have been tested in the special military operation zone into service with the Russian Army

The report did not specify which facilities in Israel had been attacked with hypersonic missiles

The country faces the task of doubling the flow of passengers in excursion trains by 2030 compared with 2023, while Russian Railways sets tripling the number of passengers as a goal, Ivan Kolesnikov noted

It provides for the organization of joint drills and exercises, participation in and monitoring drills at the invitation of relevant agencies, visits by warships and warplanes at an invitation or request, training of the military and other formats of cooperation

Yevgeny Pogrebnyak said that he was treated well by Russian troops in his captivity

According to the minister, Russia is interested in increasing the role of the BRICS states in the international monetary, financial and trading systems, developing interbank cooperation, expanding the use of national currencies and creating its own exchange

Kazem Jalali noted that Iran had demonstrated its ability to ensure security and nudge the region toward a de-escalation

According to the official, the investigation established that Mikhail Maurov planned to travel to Ukraine to join the ranks of a right-wing Ukrainian organization called the Freedom of Russia Legion

Top stories from the Russian press on Wednesday, April 17th

The area for the terminal to transship Belarusian potash fertilizers, where the capacity of the port of Lavna under construction and railroad approaches to it, have already been selected, Andrey Chibis noted

Sergey Aksenov noted that the increase in budget revenues helped use a large amount of funds on the development of priority areas, including environmental protection, education, health care, and road construction

Igor Kimakovsky said that Ukrainian forces suffered heavy casualties among personnel and military hardware, including Western equipment

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian added that prior to the attack, Tehran said that it would not target US military infrastructure in the Middle East "except in a situation where the United States wants to take military measures in support of Israel"

Maria Zakharova said it was "absurd" to say Russia nurtured any aggressive plans about Ukraine

The agency said it and the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine informed their Polish counterparts about the alleged assassination attempt

According to Rada Deputy Speaker Alexander Korniyenko, some of the law’s provisions will take effect after its publication, while most of them will enter into force in a month

Alexander Orlov noted that recently French President Emmanuel Macron "has made a number of questionable moves that have increased the divide" between both countries

"The West is not only taking state assets and private property, but also threatening to destroy the major civilian infrastructure facilities, which were built with investments and then miraculously blown up, and they have now threatened insurance," Maria Zakharova said

It is reported that the US has benefited from more favorable conditions in terms of energy prices, something that has been quite a serious factor for Europe, not a positive factor for Europe

On the evening of April 13, Iran launched drones and missiles toward Israel in response to what it called "repeated crimes" from Tel Aviv, including the attack on the consular office of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus ascribed to Israel

Arnulf Damerau said that he provided details of the meeting, along with evidence and a list of names of those involved, to US and European intelligence agencies

On November 9, 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed a joint statement on a complete ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh

Dmitry Peskov underscored that Moscow has already made its position clear on this matter

"I think that the decision has been taken by the member-states - all 27 have agreed that we use the windfall profits following our proposal," Ursula von der Leyen said

The European Commission suggested introducing duties on agricultural products from Russia and Belarus earlier

Maria Zakharova noted that Moscow would not be surprised if it turned out that the US and the EU had imposed their plans on Yerevan

Sergey Ryabkov said that "very soon, Russia and Iran will have new additional opportunities to discuss the situation in the Middle East in general, as well as details of what is going on there at this point"

The Russian president pointed out that Moscow’s "program of assistance to the African countries in sanitary and epidemiological well-being provides for the delivery of ten mobile high-containment biological laboratories"

Ramzan Kadyrov said the Russian Defense Ministry had already opened the necessary number of vacancies to recruit soldiers

The changes were attributed to reconstruction works on the Russian side of the checkpoint Ivangorod

Asked if it was because of Russia’s nuclear weapons, Kirby repeated that the circumstances were different

Investigators have established that the funds that were received through commercial organizations, such as the oil and gas company Burisma Holdings operating in Ukraine, have been used to carry out terrorist acts in Russia and abroad

The Ukrainian army losses were up to 70 servicemen, three motor vehicles, a D-30 howitzer, 2 Plastun-3000 electronic reconnaissance stations and a Nota electronic warfare station

Maria Zakharova also pointed to the fact that Ukraine's special services do not give up attempts to "massacre their former compatriots"

According to the newspaper’s assessments, Russia "has never been closer to its goals" in the special military operation zone

"Without noticing it themselves, they spoke the language of an ultimatum," Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova underlined

Anatoly Antonov has urged the US "not to open Pandora's Box" and follow Russia’s suit "by taking all necessary steps to ensure global stability and predictability"

Donald Tusk said that German Chancellor’s call to send more air defense systems to Kiev had no relation to Poland, provided the country's geographical position near the frontline

According to materials in the case, the accused man has a residence permit in Ukraine, where his wife lives, and Kyrgyz citizenship

"There are increasingly fewer people willing to discuss this subject with Kiev’s envoys, let alone going there," Rodion Miroshnik stressed

Juan Carlos Garcia Granda expressed hope that in a short term the number could climb to half a million

Yury Popov said that aircraft of the so-called international anti-terrorism coalition, led by the United States, continue to set dangerous precedents in skies above Syria

"So we got two letters that said: whatever we do, we would be violating the US Constitution," Pavel Durov said

Restrictions have been imposed on Sayyed Javad Musavi, commercial director of the Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group (SHIG), which is responsible for the Iranian ballistics program

The organizers will present multimedia and interactive materials on main sectors of the regional economy

More than 100 employees of the Russian Ministry of Emergencies are fencing the shores and filling the least reliable dam segments

Top stories from the Russian press on Thursday, April 18th

Cooperation between Moscow and Beijing in the military-technical sphere contributes to enhancing security of Russia and China and "is not directed against third countries," Maria Zakharova stressed

Earlier, the German Public Prosecutor’s Office said that two people had been detained on suspicion of spying for Russia

According to Sergey Ryabkov, Russia and Argentina maintain a good dialogue at various levels

William Burns said "there is a very real risk that the Ukrainians could at least put Putin in a position where he could essentially dictate the terms of a political settlement"

Evacuation campaigns are regularly organized by the Kiev government, under the pretext of security issues

OJSC Gazprom Transgaz Belarus is a 100% subsidiary of PJSC Gazprom in the Republic of Belarus

On April 10, the vehicle was also spotted when the North Korean leader visited Kim Jong Il Military and Political Academy

The bill also includes a proposal to earmark $2.4 billion to fund US Armed Forces operating in the Middle East in response to threats against Israel

Vladimir Zelensky asked his country’s supporters to provide "everything that helps to hold the frontline," including shells, military vehicles and drones

According to Grigory Karasin, many BRICS members share the opinion that the association should be in no hurry to adopt a strict charter, "seeing how counterproductively and even provocatively the European Union is acting"

The agreement allows "Venezuelan prosecutors to participate in training sessions free of charge and paves the way for Venezuelan students to receive higher education in our university," Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov said

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Israel will "most likely" respond to the recent Iranian attack

Ahmad Haghtalab pointed out that the Iranian Army and other security forces protect Iranian nuclear facilities using the most advanced equipment, so "national nuclear centers are completely safe"

Robert Fico believes Moscow will win in its confrontation with Kiev

Maria Zakharova noted the need to "wait for official information from the investigation"

The exact location of the damaged pipeline or the causes of the incident is not reported

"No one was injured as a result of the attack," the news release said

Maria Zakharova also highlighted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s recent US visit, adding that "it was yet again accompanied by anti-Russian outbursts"

Nikol Pashinyan pointed out that the demarcation process also involves risks, but they are manageable, after which "Armenia will become ten times stronger"

"China always opposes the illegal unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States and will continue to take necessary measures to firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises," Liu Pengyu said

According to the minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, in the event that Israel uses force against Tehran's interests, "the Islamic Republic of Iran will not hesitate to use its right to give an immediate and decisive response that will make them regret"

The group contains US finance and justice ministers, representatives of Australia, the UK, Germany, Italy, Canada, France, Japan, as well as the European Commission

The Ukrainian army used the outbuilding as an ammunition depot, which accommodated about 15 fighters at the time of the air strike, spokesman Sergey Lebedev specified

The previous intergovernmental agreement dated December 23, 1998 on checkpoints through the Kazakh-Russian state border will cease to have effect on the effective date of the new document