MOSCOW, November 13. /TASS/. Putin discussed Ukraine peace efforts with US envoys in Moscow as European involvement in future talks remains on the table; Armenia lost its CSTO voting rights but retained membership amid tensions with Moscow; and Russia is expanding the Northern Sea Route as cargo traffic rises and foreign interest grows. These stories topped Friday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.
Vedomosti: European opposition to security overhaul complicates US-led Ukraine peace efforts
Another meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump’s negotiators - Special Envoy Steven Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner - was held at the Kremlin on November 12. The talks lasted more than two hours. Also present in a hall of the Kremlin’s First Building were Russian presidential aide for foreign policy Yury Ushakov, Special Presidential Representative for Investment and Economic Cooperation with Foreign Countries Kirill Dmitriev, and another presidential aide, Vladimir Medinsky, who heads Russia’s negotiating team. Experts interviewed by Vedomosti believe that Europe’s opposition to revising the post-Cold War security order and Ukraine’s reluctance to compromise weaken the chances of a durable settlement.
The Russian president noted some progress on the humanitarian front in Ukraine. Putin also said that the Ukrainian side had raised the issue of "gray zones." In his assessment, disputes and instability surrounding these issues would only mean that "there will be no lasting peace." The Russian president also proposed setting up a humanitarian mission from Konstantinovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), following the example of an operation previously conducted in Alyoshki in the Kherson Region.
Maria Khorolskaya, head of the Risk Assessment Group at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Primakov Institute of World Economy and International Relations, believes that Europe’s position on the Ukrainian conflict remains unchanged and does little to advance the prospects for a peaceful settlement.
There is no prevailing view in Europe that the security system needs to be reformed, according to Fyodor Lukyanov, editor-in-chief of the journal Russia in Global Affairs. The expert explained that Europeans are almost unanimous in their conviction that the model of relations on the continent established after the end of the Cold War is optimal. Regarding their perception of Russia’s demands and actions in this sphere, Europeans regard them as manifestations of an inferiority complex and a malicious desire to dismantle what they consider an established and stable world order.
Trump needs to show that he is actively pursuing peacemaking efforts to achieve at least symbolic gains on the Russia-Ukraine track, according to Pavel Koshkin, a senior research fellow at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute for US and Canadian Studies. In his view, such attempts to revive negotiations will continue regularly as long as Trump remains president, until January 2029. After that, however, Ukraine’s incentives to compromise will also diminish, depending on whether the Democrats succeed in undermining Trump’s policy toward the post-Soviet region. In this context, Koshkin stressed, Ukraine is prepared to adopt a wait-and-see approach, making it unlikely to make concessions.
Nevertheless, the expert believes that Trump will remain steadfast in his willingness to engage in discussions on a settlement.
Nezavisimaya Gazeta: Armenia retains CSTO membership despite losing voting rights
Armenia has not only been stripped of its voting rights in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) but has also been given a hint of what it could face in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) if it continues pursuing European integration, political analyst Sergey Melkonyan told Nezavisimaya Gazeta. According to experts, Armenia’s pursuit of EU membership could jeopardize its economic ties with Russia and undermine regional security.
CSTO members have revoked Armenia’s voting rights within the organization and its ability to appoint officials to various positions. According to Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the decision was made because Yerevan had failed to meet its obligations under the CSTO Charter for several years. Nevertheless, despite the restrictions imposed, Yerevan has retained all its basic rights within the organization, including the right to collective security.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced the "freezing" of the country’s CSTO membership in February 2024. Among other things, Armenia stopped making financial contributions and participating in military exercises.
Sergey Melkonyan, a research fellow at the Applied Policy Research Institute (APRI Armenia), told Nezavisimaya Gazeta that Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk had signaled as early as the summer of 2024 that Yerevan could not end defense cooperation with Moscow without harming their economic ties.
"On the one hand, stripping Armenia of its voting rights in the CSTO has no effect on the country because it has not exercised those rights for several years and had no intention of doing so. On the other hand, if Armenia unilaterally froze its membership in the organization, even though its charter makes no provision for such a move, why could it not be treated in exactly the same way in the EAEU?" Melkonyan said.
Former Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan noted that European integration could turn out to be an unattainable dream, with Armenia becoming increasingly dependent on Russia as it pursues that goal. This could happen, among other reasons, if the country does not have the "economic momentum" needed to escape the EAEU’s gravitational pull. He also stressed that Yerevan’s attempts to join the European Union could cause discontent in Moscow, Tehran, and Ankara and undermine regional security. At the same time, Brussels would demand that Armenia participate in anti-Russian and anti-Iranian sanctions, which would also go against the country’s interests.
Izvestia: Russia’s Northern Sea Route gains traction as alternative trade corridor between Asia and Europe
The Northern Sea Route (NSR) is emerging as one of the key areas of development in international logistics, with rising cargo volumes and growing interest from foreign partners. Meanwhile, Russia intends to develop the route’s infrastructure. Investment in 300 Arctic projects is estimated at 38 trillion rubles ($458.9 bln), Russian Minister for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic Alexey Chekunkov told Izvestia.
The Northern Sea Route is recording unprecedented cargo transportation figures, the newspaper writes. In early 2026, for instance, the number of voyages along the Arctic route increased 1.5-fold compared with the same period last year, while the total volume of goods delivered rose by 25%. Amid shifts in international logistics flows, trans-Arctic routes are becoming increasingly important and are viewed as a safe and economically viable alternative to southern transport corridors. According to forecasts, cargo transportation along the NSR could reach 40 mln metric tons by the end of 2026.
Meanwhile, foreign countries are also expressing interest in the route. Russia and Indonesia, for example, are developing plans for a joint pilot voyage along the NSR in 2027. China, South Korea, and India regard the Arctic route as a promising option for regular commercial shipping.
The Northern Sea Route is of strategic importance to Russia, supporting the delivery of essential supplies to northern regions, the transportation of raw materials, and the development of international transport links between Asia and Europe, Alexander Vorotnikov, associate professor at the Institute of Social Sciences of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration and coordinator of the Expert Council of the Arctic Development Project Office, told Izvestia.
According to Anastasia Prikladova, associate professor at the Department of International Business at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, disruptions to international logistics caused by conflicts are making the NSR increasingly attractive for cargo transit between Europe and Asia as a more reliable and cost-effective route.
Izvestia: Russia strengthens ties with Afghanistan to expand trade and transit opportunities
Russia and Afghanistan are seeking to elevate their relations to a new level, with a high-level delegation of officials and businesspeople led by Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk visiting Kabul on November 12. The primary objective of the visit was to turn bilateral dialogue into concrete agreements that will help increase trade turnover, while also making use of Afghanistan’s transit and logistics potential. This would give Moscow direct access to Indian Ocean ports, bypassing traditional maritime routes, Izvestia writes.
In the energy and industrial sectors, the Afghan side invited Russian businesses to participate in the exploration, extraction, and development of mineral resources, as well as oil and gas fields. Afghan representatives also expressed interest in supplies of high-quality medicines and medical equipment from Russia.
Particular attention was paid to Afghanistan’s transit potential. Kabul aims to turn the country into a transit hub linking the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Central Asia, and South Asia within the framework of the North-South transport corridor. Moscow backs these efforts, Overchuk emphasized.
Russia’s main interest in Afghanistan is long-term and centers specifically on participation in trans-Afghan transit projects, Omar Nessar, research fellow at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Oriental Studies, noted. This is the shortest overland route that gives Moscow and Central Asian countries direct access to Pakistan’s ports and the Indian Ocean, bypassing traditional maritime routes.
For centuries, Afghanistan has been regarded as a strategically important crossroads on the world map, around which major powers have competed for regional influence. Today, that competition for control over the crossroads is shifting from the military sphere to the economic and diplomatic arenas, Izvestia writes. According to the newspaper, "the Russian delegation’s latest visit to Kabul clearly shows Moscow’s readiness to establish a serious and lasting presence in this area by building a pragmatic dialogue with the country’s new authorities."
Rossiyskaya Gazeta: Oil price war looms as Middle East producers prepare to ramp up output
The decline in oil prices that began in November could mark the start of a new cycle in the oil market, characterized by low prices and an uncontrolled increase in supply. The countries hardest hit by the Middle East crisis will seek to offset their losses in 2026 by increasing oil production and exports. Experts told Rossiyskaya Gazeta they expect Middle Eastern oil producers to prioritize restoring lost capacity after the Hormuz crisis, potentially triggering a race to increase output and ending the era of high oil prices.
All that is needed is an end to the conflict between the United States and Iran, the establishment of lasting peace in the region, and the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers. Despite considerable skepticism about such a scenario unfolding anytime soon, it is bound to happen, the newspaper writes. The only question is when. At that point, the OPEC+ agreement will become the only factor holding back an uncontrolled increase in global oil supply.
Oleg Zhirnov, partner in Kept’s Investment and Capital Markets Department, told Rossiyskaya Gazeta that Saudi Arabia remains virtually the only country with the capacity to rapidly increase oil production. As the leader of the alliance, however, it is unlikely to want to see the group disintegrate. Moreover, unplanned production capacity outages in OPEC countries are still estimated at 4-6 mln barrels per day. Restoring that capacity will take time, two to four quarters, and will become the primary short-term objective for all participants once the crisis ends.
Energy expert Kirill Rodionov is convinced that once oil transit through the Strait of Hormuz is fully restored, OPEC+ countries will vie to increase production at the fastest pace. Rodionov believes the 2026 Middle East crisis will mark the end of the era of high oil prices.
Russia, of course, has no interest in lower oil prices, the newspaper writes. Discounts on Russian crude and sanctions restricting exports leave the country vulnerable in terms of government oil and gas revenues and corporate profits. However, this should not affect Russia’s oil production volumes, and the country should be able to maintain its share of the global market, Rossiyskaya Gazeta noted.
TASS is not responsible for the material quoted in these press reviews