Media: Moscow seeks to continue talks on security proposals rejected by US

The Russian Foreign Ministry has published Moscow’s response to Washington’s reaction towards the draft security agreements between Russia, the US and NATO. Russia’s response focuses on the US disregard for Moscow’s key proposals, which particularly include a ban on NATO’s expansion to include Ukraine and Georgia and the withdrawal of foreign NATO troops from the countries that joined the alliance after 1997. Quite a few objections were also made to the arms control measures proposed by the US, Vedomosti writes.

Despite the dissatisfaction with the West’s position that Moscow expressed in the document, Russia "is clearly taking another step towards dialogue," Russian International Affairs Council expert Alexander Yermakov pointed out. The Kremlin is not rejecting talks on intermediate-range missiles and the indivisible security issue, though the document accuses the US of violating the principles of indivisible security.

All in all, Russia’s response does not look surprising and is shaped in the same manner as the original Russian initiative and the United States’ reaction, said Dmitry Stefanovich, a researcher at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of World Economy and International Relations. Key issues related to military security, arms control and strategic stability look generally solvable. According to the analyst, there certainly is a need for at least symbolic progress on the political track and the United States’ lack of flexibility on the NATO issue endangers the entire process, the expert emphasized.

Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs magazine Fyodor Lukyanov told Kommersant that Moscow’s response to the US reaction "does not move the situation in any direction." In the expert’s view, "the next phase of the game of nerves may be a diplomatic one, with a further mutual reduction of diplomatic staff." "On the whole, another phase of manageable tensions is to be expected," he warned.

 

Vedomosti: France moves to withdraw troops from Mali

France, its European allies and Canada, have announced the withdrawal of troops involved in counterterrorism operations in Mali. According to a joint declaration, the move was triggered by "obstacles" created by Mali’s interim military government. This refers to Bamako’s failure to fulfill its obligations to hold presidential and parliamentary elections and also, as French President Emmanual Macron explained, to the presence of Russia’s so-called Wagner private military company in the African country, Vedomosti notes.

Russian Institute of Oriental Studies Researcher Grigory Lukyanov believes that by leaving Mali in order to put pressure on its military regime, Paris has harmed itself. The French will still have to continue fighting terrorists in the Sahel region, particularly if Bamako fails to contain Islamists even with the assistance of Russian private military companies, the expert noted. The decision only makes it clear for western and northern African nations that France is an unreliable partner. Also, by leaving Mali, the French authorities seek to increase Macron’s chances of being re-elected in the April presidential race, Lukyanov added.

Meanwhile, although the presence of a private military company allegedly linked to another great power irks Paris, Mali’s role in Russia’s foreign policy remains insignificant, the expert noted. It is security contractors pursuing their own profit that are active in the region and not Moscow who seeks to implement an expansionist strategy. African countries use the services of Russian private military companies to bargain for better conditions in relations with the United States, Europe and China rather than to actually achieve a rapprochement with Russia, the analyst emphasized. As for Russia, it views Africa as a rather inexpensive bargaining chip for filling the agenda in contacts with the West, Lukyanov said.

 

Nezavisimaya Gazeta: US concerned about possible Russia-China alliance in Ukraine crisis

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on all parties involved in the Ukrainian crisis to search for a political solution in a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron. Western media outlets are assessing statements by Chinese officials, trying to guess if Beijing will help Moscow should it come to military clashes and anti-Russian sanctions "from hell," Nezavisimaya Gazeta notes.

The Wall Street Journal claims that by supporting Moscow’s opposition to NATO’s expansion, China did not greenlight a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine. Beijing is unwilling to jeopardize its relations with Kiev because it is a member of China’s Belt and Road project, Chinese state companies have poured billions of dollars into Ukraine, an exporter of sunflower oil and machinery products to China.

Senior Researcher at the Higher School of Economics Vasily Kashin emphasized that "China severely reduced the staff at the Wall Street Journal's news bureau in the country and now the newspaper has started publishing quite strange articles citing some internal sources." "I doubt that the news outlet has sources capable of providing information about closed-door government meetings on sensitive issues. Since the Ukrainian crisis has been a long one, the Chinese held consultations with Moscow last year and shaped their position. It resulted in the support of Russia’s proposals on security guarantees in December and was enshrined in a joint declaration on February 4," the expert specified.

According to Kashin, China’s trade with Ukraine totals no more than $10 bln, which is less than one-tenth of Russian-Chinese trade. Beijing currently has no special interests in Ukraine. As for assisting Russia, even when China had excellent relations with the US in 2014-2015, the Asian powerhouse provided major financial assistance to Moscow, granting massive loans to Russian state companies, Kashin stressed.

 

Vedomosti: Russia plans to meet one-fourth of major consumers’ needs for hydrogen

Russia will focus its efforts on exporting hydrogen to China, Japan, South Korea and Germany. By 2030, Moscow will be capable of meeting a quarter of their needs for imported hydrogen, according to a draft comprehensive development program for Russia’s low-carbon hydrogen energy industry, drawn up by the Energy Ministry, Vedomosti writes.

There are plans to create five hydrogen clusters in Russia. Green hydrogen (generated through electrolytic water splitting) will be produced in Eastern Siberia and Russia's southwest, and blue hydrogen (converted from methane) will be manufactured in the Sakha region and on the Yamal Peninsula. The Sakhalin region will produce both types of hydrogen.

En+ Operations Director Vyacheslav Solomin says that the company is actively engaged in discussions of the program. He pointed out that according to the energy transition strategy, up to 10% of public transport will be powered by hydrogen in the future. Head of the Hydrogen and Innovative Decarbonization department at Severstal Ilya Pavlov pointed out that "the transfer of technologies from all over the world will be important for the industry’s development."

Head of Consulting Services Practice for Energy Companies at PwC Russia Dmitry Stapran estimates that the global annual demand for hydrogen will range between 88 mln tonnes and more than 100 mln tonnes by 2030. The export of green hydrogen offers the best prospects as the price of this kind of hydrogen will drop to $1.4-2 per kilogram by that time.

Hydrogen prices need to fall to boost the market, and this is where government support will be crucial, Director of the Deloitte CIS Group for Sustainable Development Services Yulia Menshikova noted. According to her, there is a need to ensure permanent tax rates and support mechanisms.

 

Izvestia: Coronavirus pandemic taking toll on people’s mental health

The demand for drugs to treat mental disorders has risen in Russia. Antidepressant sales skyrocketed by 43% in the past month compared to the same period of 2021, Izvestia writes, citing psychiatrists.

According to doctors, the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic are the main cause of the surging demand for such drugs. Medical experts point out that more patients now seek assistance from psychiatrists, neurologists and psychologists. "The number of complications related to the nervous system and mental health has grown due to the so-called post-coronavirus syndrome," psychiatrist Yury Vyalba noted. "In particular, the number of patients suffering from sleep disorders, anxiety and depressive moods has climbed," he specified.

Besides, many people have begun to experience neurosis and depression after shifting to remote work, the expert added. External factors such as uncertainty about the future and the fear of contracting the coronavirus have also played a role, Vyalba stressed. Even those who haven’t had COVID-19, have a high level of stress and anxiety, Head of the Grand Clinic immune rehabilitation and preventive medicine network Olga Shuppo said.

There are a lot of articles about the harmfulness of antidepressant drugs on the Internet. Doctors used to be reluctant to prescribe them to patients, believing that they can be harsh on the human body. However, now doctors prescribe such medications more often because they are no longer afraid of them, Associate Professor with the Institute of Medicine at the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia Olga Kotova noted.

TASS is not responsible for the material quoted in these press reviews.