{{dayPoint.date | date : 'd MMMM yyyy'}}

{{newsPoint.title}}

{{newsPoint.title+ ' '}}

{{newsPoint.subtitle}}

Russia says US cannot single-handedly change South Africa's G20 participation status

Russia was among the first to directly and openly support the immediate resumption of South Africa's work in the G20

MOSCOW, February 2. /TASS/. The United States is not capable of unilaterally changing the status of South Africa's participation in the Group of Twenty, and Pretoria's work should be resumed, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"South Africa is a full-fledged permanent G20 member. This status cannot be changed unilaterally by any single decision, neither by the chairman of the forum, nor by anyone else," the Foreign Ministry noted.

"Russia was among the first to directly and openly support the immediate resumption of South Africa's work in the G20.

Tags

Foreign policy United States South Africa

Japan’s policy of remilitarization poses threat to peace in Asia-Pacific — Russian MFA

This undermines the trust of Tokyo's neighbors, the ministry noted

After mopping up at Pridorozhnoye, Russian troops begin offensive on Zaporozhye — expert

Andrey Marochko noted that there were some gaps in the Ukraine’s defenses in this sector

Trumps says against relocating UN headquarters from New York

The US leader also emphasized that he was sure he could "solve the problem" on non-payment of UN contributions by some countries "very easily"

WHO chief describes 2025 as one of most difficult years in organization's history

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that WHO’s superpower is its convening power

IN BRIEF: What we know about training plane crash in Orenburg Region

According to preliminary data, two university students and an instructor were aboard the plane

FSB prevents terrorist attack on headquarters in Crimea

According to the plan of the Ukrainian special services, the detonation of the explosive device would have led to the death of not only FSB officers, but also the man who brought the bomb

Russian companies in talks to build small hydroelectric power plants in Afghanistan

"Practical steps will be taken in this direction in the near future," Afghan Ambassador to Russia Gul Hassan said

Taking heights at Ternovatoye allowed Russian army to liberate Pridorozhnoye — expert

According to Andrey Marochko, the Russian troops occupied a number of high ground areas and began to develop their success both towards southwest and advancing northward toward the Dnepropetrovsk Region

Russian forces acting with utmost caution in Donbass, Novorossia — Medvedev

Western analysts often say that if Russia had behaved differently in this territory, the consequences would have been entirely different, Dmitry Medvedev said

Military victory in special military operation visible on several fronts — Medvedev

The goal of Russia’s victory in the special military operation includes preventing new conflicts, Medvedev said

Liberation of Toretskoye opens way for offensive toward Dobropolye — DPR head

Denis Pushilin added that fighting is underway in the Dobropolye-Krasnoarmeysk sector in the area of Sukhetskoye, Novy Donbass, and Volnoye

Musk plans to create army of Optimus humanoid robots in coming years

The US entrepreneur said that a prototype of Generation 3 Optimus would be ready in the first quarter of 2026

Risks of a global war remain very high — Medvedev

The politician noted that he perceived "the decreasing pain threshold" as the main danger

British, US spy planes spotted near Russia’s Kaliningrad Region

As of 5:10 p.m. Moscow time, both planes were still in the airspace near the Kaliningrad Region

Trump’s management style negatively impacts dollar’s exchange rate — WP

According to the newspaper, the dollar has lost over 10% of its value since Donald Trump’s return to office in January 2025

Russia, China to hold cross years of cooperation in educational sphere in 2026-2027

The government has been instructed to set up an organizing committee

Russia condemns threats of new strikes on Iran as inadmissible — foreign ministry

The Russian Foreign Ministry resolutely rejects any attempts to blackmail Iran’s foreign partners by increased tariffs

Kiev continues policy of destroying canonical Orthodoxy — Russian Foreign Ministry

This policy is accompanied by massive violation of religious freedoms, seizure of churches, violence and repression

Ukraine peace deal should rule out US military presence near Russian borders — Wagenknecht

Wagenknecht said an agreement on Ukraine should not be to Germany's detriment

Russia sees real threat of nuclear weapons proliferation in collective West

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, speculation about the acquisition of their own or collective military nuclear potential by the states that do not possess nuclear weapons within the meaning of the NPT has become more frequent

Russia says work on prisoner exchanges between it, US goes on via intelligence channels

"Such information should not be prematurely disclosed," the Russian Foreign Ministry said

Zelensky says there are no specific agreements with Russia on energy truce

The head of Kiev regime noted that he was not yet ready to say whether an energy truce would be reached

Russia-China relations seen as factor of stability — Russian foreign ministry

Russia and China are consistently strengthening cooperation in the global arena, the Russian foreign ministry said

Russia sees Berlin's ultimatums as 'absurd'

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the German authorities are trying to kill the process of historical reconciliation of the peoples of Russia and Germany, the biggest thing determining Europe’s fate

Russian senators to hold a vote on ratification of logistics pact with India

The document also formulates rules of providing materiel support for joint exercises and training, humanitarian deliveries, and disaster relief efforts, among other things

Russia's recognition of Ukrainian elections to depend on situation — Medvedev

Dmitry Medvedev recalled that Russia had recognized the legitimacy of the election outcomes that brought Pyotr Poroshenko and Vladimir Zelensky to power

Russia sends ideas to US on how to break down walls in stilted relations — MFA

The Russian Foreign Ministry also pointed out that Moscow appreciated the dedicated efforts the Donald Trump administration has been making towards a Ukraine deal from day one in office

Russia takes Kiev’s terrorist steps into account when elaborating its negotiating position

The ministry recalled Kiev’s attack on the Russian president’s residence overnight to December 29, 2025

European Commission to defend in court ban on EU countries purchasing gas from Russia

"Hungary and Slovakia have the right to challenge this regulation," EC representative Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said

FIFA needs to clear Russia to play internationally, says Infantino

"This ban has not achieved anything," FIFA chief Gianni Infantino said

Russia surprised by US making Venezuela de facto colony — Medvedev

Russia definitely considers Venezuela to be a friendly state, the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council said

Russia destroys Ukraine’s HIMARS MLRS, S-300 launchers — top brass

Russian troops have liberated the settlement of Pridorozhnoye in the Zaporozhye Region

Japan’s policy of remilitarization poses threat to peace in Asia-Pacific — Russian MFA

This undermines the trust of Tokyo's neighbors, the ministry noted

Turkey, Egypt, Qatar working to organize Witkoff’s meeting with Iranian officials — media

The meeting is expected to be organized later this week

Press review: Epstein files weigh on Trump and Bitcoin plunges with little hope ahead

Top stories from the Russian press on Monday, February 2nd

Trump rejects allegations of visiting Epstein’s island

The US president threatened to go to court over the claims

Ukrainian army banned from capturing Russian servicemen — counterintelligence officer

Sergey Mykhaylov said the order was to interrogate and kill Russian soldiers

US, India negotiate trade deal — Trump

The United States will charge a reduced Reciprocal Tariff, lowering it from 25% to 18%

Medvedev says US capture of Maduro can't be legally justified

On January 3, the United States attacked civilian and military facilities in Caracas

FIFA Council unlikely to hold vote on lifting sanctions against Russia — daily

Russian national football teams are currently barred by all FIFA-sanctioned bodies from playing at the 2028 UEFA Euro Cup

Moscow lauds Myanmar for 'weathering' Western attempts to meddle in its elections

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu congratulated first minister of the Myanmar’s Presidential Office Tin Aung San and the people of Myanmar on the general elections’ success

Moscow, Washington maintain dialogue at various levels — Russia’s MFA

The ministry also stressed that it’s quite hard to talk about the future of Russia-US relations at this point

One can learn from DPRK how to achieve results with limited resources — Medvedev

The Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council expressed deep respect for North Korea’s resilience and ingenuity

Russia is the only country implementing small nuclear plant projects in practice — Rosatom

"All the other ones are dealing with their presentation," Alexey Likhachev said

Russia worried over increasingly aggressive rhetoric towards Cuba — foreign ministry

Russia is closely following the situation in Latin America and the Caribbean region

Russian senator rings WWIII alarm bell over potential US invasion of Iran

Vladimir Dzhabarov stressed that Iran was a large and "well-armed" country

Russia calls on US to release Maduro, his wife — foreign ministry

Russia reiterates its unwavering support for the Venezuelan authorities in their efforts to defend their country’s sovereignty

Afghanistan to resume active participation in SCO — ambassador to Russia

According to Gul Hassan, thanks to the efforts of Moscow and Beijing, most of the organization's member states "have come to the conclusion that it would be viable to restore Afghanistan's active participation in the SCO's work"

Russia ‘has not found’ any submarines Trump said he would deploy — Medvedev

The US leader is introducing new methods of governance and is effectively the first US president to govern through social media

Russia says US cannot single-handedly change South Africa's G20 participation status

Russia was among the first to directly and openly support the immediate resumption of South Africa's work in the G20

Lavrov to hold talks with visiting Swiss counterpart on February 6

According to Maria Zakharova, the talks will focus on ways of overcoming the current profound OSCE crisis

Second round of Abu Dhabi talks set for Wednesday and Thursday, Kremlin announces

According to Dmitry Peskov, the talks were originally slated for February 1, but the three sides’ timetables needed an extra adjustment

Gas extraction from European UGS facilities hits third-highest level in history in January

Gas withdrawals from European storage facilities in January totaled 23.9 bln cubic meters

Jordan's top diplomat vows not to let country be used as base for attacks on Iran

Ayman Safadi reiterated Jordan’s support for efforts to ease tensions and establish calm in the Middle East

Russian-Japanese dialogue on Arctic Region frozen — Russian Foreign Ministry

Tokyo took the extremely adverse position in the context of the Ukrainian crisis, the Russian Foreign Ministry said

Russia defends people in Donbass, Kiev commits war crimes there — Medvedev

The politician emphasized that the list of Kiev regime's crimes was well known and Russia's Prosecutor General's Office had a powerful evidence base of them

Afghanistan wants to buy oil and gas from Russia — Ambassador to Moscow

"Trade and economic relations between the two countries are currently developing," Gul Hassan said

Russia’s Justice Ministry designates four foreign organizations as undesirable

In particular, European cryptocurrency exchange WhiteBit, the US-based International Women's Media Foundation, Ukraine’s Regional Center for Human Rights and the W Group fintech ecosystem have been blacklisted

DPRK is true ally, Russia will not forget heroism of its soldiers, Medvedev says

At the initiative of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the Korean People's Army provided assistance to the Russian Armed Forces in liberating the Kursk Region from Ukrainian forces

NATO secretary general believes US plan for Ukraine requires further revision

Mark Rutte believes that the plan should guarantee Ukraine's security

Russian scientist copes with mathematical problem unsolved for 190 years

This breakthrough radically changes the understanding of one of the oldest areas of mathematics, crucial to fundamental physics and economics

Turkey, Azerbaijan to prove supplying non-Russian gas to EU — regulation

"The interconnection point Strandzha 1 connects the Union to a pipeline system which transports not only gas from the Republic of Azerbaijan or the Republic of Turkey, but also significant volumes of gas from the Russian Federation," the EU said

Russia continues work on ice base near North Pole

The base is due to open in 2027

Netherlands ambassador to Russia urges to keep diplomatic channels of interaction open

According to Joanneke Balfoort, representatives of the Netherlands maintain "functional" contacts with Russian diplomats

US creating strategic reserve of critical minerals — Trump

The US leader emphasized that it will be used for civilian purposes in times of emergency

IOC discriminates against Russian athletes — Russian Olympic chief

Japan’s Kyodo News Agency pointed out that this was the first public announcement to the Japanese media on behalf of the Russian Olympic chief since the beginning of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine

IN BRIEF: What we know about bus accident in Krasnoyarsk Region where minors died

According to preliminary data, the accident occurred after a trailer with a modular house disconnected from the truck

Sales of new cars in Russia down 11% in January 2026 — statistics

Sales of domestically produced vehicles lost 3% year on year to more than 54,000 cars

Hungary files lawsuit in EU Court of Justice against EU ban of Russian energy — Szijjarto

The minister explained that the Council of the EU had no right to adopt such a decision by majority vote

Trump believes US-Cuba deal close at hand

Washington is dealing with the Cuban leaders, Donald Trump said

Berlin's nuclear arming goes against international pacts — Russia's MFA

This follows from the answers of the Foreign Ministry to media questions dedicated to Sergey Lavrov's news conference summing up the results of Russian diplomacy in 2025

FACTBOX: What is known about Hungary's lawsuit against EU ban on Russian gas supplies

Similar plans are being developed in Brussels for Russian oil and nuclear fuel

Russia sees Arctic as region of special strategic importance — MFA

The ministry stressed that any attempts to ignore Russia’s interests in the Arctic will not go unanswered but will have far-reaching consequences

Support for special op in Russian society remains high — pollster

Popular assessments of how the operation is proceeding show similar dynamics, with 65% of the polled saying that Russian forces are acting rather successfully

Russian attack aircraft liberated village of Zelenoye in dense fog

Warmer temperatures, high humidity, and rising fog prevented enemy drones from operating effectively, the Russian Defense Ministry said

Poland not considering stationing foreign nukes — foreign minister

Former head of state Andrzej Duda repeatedly advocated for deploying American nuclear weapons in Poland

US cites Cuba’s ties with Russia, China as grounds for measures against oil supplies

Under the executive order signed by Donald Trump, the United States formally declares a national emergency over what it describes as a threat posed by Cuba

Laura Fernandez wins presidential election in Costa Rica after 94% of ballots counted

Laura Fernandez won 48.33% of the vote

UAVs totally change combat pattern, no return to past possible — Medvedev

"Now, everyone is trying to catch up as quickly as possible," the Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman added

Russia has strong energy-generation prospects to support AI development — Medvedev

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev noted that energy consumption will only continue to rise as AI spreads

No justifying US’ violation of international law in Caracas — Russian foreign ministry

The Russian foreign ministry stressed that this was a blatant and cynical violation of international law and the United Nations Charter principles

War crimes against Russia have no statute of limitations — Medvedev

According to the politician, this applies not only to those "misled by the Bandera regime," but also to foreign mercenaries and a number of other individuals

Gold's sharp drop linked to speculative sentiment - Bloomberg

Following the decline in gold prices, investors began to close their positions in the asset, which triggered a sharper fall in the price of the precious metal

EU authorities unable to respond to global challenges or even recognize them — Peskov

People in power in most European countries are "poorly educated, irresponsible", the Kremlin Spokesman said

Indian PM thanked Trump for reducing customs tariff for country

"When two large economies and the world’s largest democracies work together, it benefits people," Narendra Modi said

India to buy US and not Russian oil, Trump says

This will help to end the conflict in Ukraine, the US president added

Trump believes reasonable price might be set for Greenland

The US President also reiterated his assertion that ownership of Greenland is necessary for the effective deployment of the US Golden Dome missile defense system

Europe in January sets new record for LNG imports for this month

LNG supplies in January took second place among European gas sources, accounting for 27.7%

Ukrainians from Marinera tanker afraid to return home for fear of persecution

The crew consisted of 28 people in total

Witkoff discussing sitdown with Iranians during his Middle East visit

"At the current point, no meeting with the Iranians has been appointed," reporter Barak Ravid said

Russian strategic bombers fly over neutral waters of Barents, Norwegian seas

Su-33 fighter jets of the Russian Navy escorted the long-range bombers

In Ukraine, 20,000 out of 30,000 mobilized soldiers per month go AWOL

By 2025, more than 200,000 conscripts are projected to have deserted or gone AWOL

Russia follows its nuclear doctrine — Medvedev on possibility of strike on Ukraine

Dmitry Medvedev elaborated that the latest edition of the Fundamentals of Nuclear Deterrence accounts for the evolving nature of warfare and the emergence of new types of weapons

Finland loses status of ‘honest broker,’ cannot be intermediary — Russian Foreign Ministry

The Russian Foreign Ministry also noted that Moscow "has no reason to assume the possibility for Finland to become an intermediary in any future negotiation processes"

EU to ban purchases of Russian platinum, copper — Bloomberg

Such measures will be incorporated into the 20th package of anti-Russian sanctions, the news agency says

Trump is ‘genuinely trying’ to go down in history as peacemaker — Medvedev

The chaos often used to describe the actions of US President Donald Trump in fact conceals a carefully thought-out policy

China, Russia support each other on what concerns their interests — Chinese diplomat

According to Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian, Beijing and Moscow jointly defend their interests amid the unstable international situation

Bill Gates promoted unproven vaccines, blocked Sputnik — Russian envoy

"Gates became a Gatekeeper on vaccines through his foundation and effective control of vaccine alliances like Gavi," Kirill Dmitriev said

UK revokes accreditation of Russian diplomat — Foreign Office

According to a Foreign Office spokesperson, the decision comes in response to Moscow’s move to expel a British diplomat

France preparing neo-colonial coups in Africa — Russian Foreign Intelligence Service

"Emmanuel Macron's administration is feverishly seeking opportunities for 'political revenge' in Africa," the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service’s press bureau noted

Russia not seeking global conflict — Medvedev

The Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman reiterated that Moscow had repeatedly warned the West and NATO countries, calling on them to take Russia’s interests into account