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Middle East conflict

Israel slams Amnesty International report as 'completely false'

The Israeli Foreign Ministry emphasized that "Israel is defending itself against these attacks, acting fully in accordance with international law"

TEL AVIV, December 5. /TASS/. Israel's Foreign Ministry has denounced Amnesty International’s scathing report accusing the Jewish state of deliberately committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, calling it "completely false" and saying that it is "based on lies."

"The deplorable and fanatical organization Amnesty International has once again produced a fabricated report, completely false and based on lies," the Israeli Foreign Ministry stated in its official response to the human rights group's claims. "On October 7, 2023, the terrorist organization Hamas perpetrated a massacre against Israeli civilians, which constituted an act of genocide. Since then, Israeli citizens have been under daily attacks from seven different fronts," the ministry added.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry emphasized that "Israel is defending itself against these attacks, acting fully in accordance with international law."

Earlier, Amnesty International claimed that the Jewish state is openly "committing acts prohibited under the Genocide Convention, with the specific intent of destroying Palestinians in the Gaza." Amnesty International also stated that, as part of its investigation, its staff "interviewed 212 individuals, conducted fieldwork," and analyzed "an extensive range of visual and digital evidence, including satellite imagery" as well as "statements by senior Israeli government and military officials, and official Israeli bodies."

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from Gaza, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking 250 hostages. In response, Israel launched a military operation in the Gaza Strip to destroy Hamas military and political wings and free all hostages.

Hungary refuses loyal cooperation with EU on issue of Russian assets — Orban

Viktor Orban also said that EU leaders violated EU law by proposing to make decisions on Russian financial assets not by consensus, but by a qualified majority vote

Trump to sum up results of outgoing year in his address — White House

Earlier in the day, the US leader announced his plans to address the nation on Wednesday evening

Russian assets expropriation to undermine EU's authority in financial markets — EP deputy

Thierry Mariani said the lack of a clear mechanism for lifting the freeze is a conscious decision of the authors of the initiative

UK blackmailing US, exploiting 'loopholes' for asset seizure: statements by Russia’s SVR

The UK is urging the European Commission to justify the theft of Russian assets by exploiting legal gaps in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and by referring to "exceptional circumstances"

Japan-Russia trade turnover down 4.51% year-on-year in November to $617 mln

Imports of coal from Russia to Japan in November fell by 26%, iron and steel by 82.6%

Ministerial meeting in Cairo to formalize new level of Russia-Africa relations

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin described the event in Cairo as "a milestone event in Russia-Africa relations" in 2025

Azerbaijani-Russian trade turnover up 3% in 11M 2025

Exports of Azerbaijani products to Russia equaled $1.088 bln in the first eleven months of this year

Safe operating conditions for power units at Zaporozhye NPP not upset — power plant

The radiation level is normal and corresponds to natural background values, the statement reads

Italians change their attitude to aiding Ukraine after corruption scandal — journalist

According to Daniele Dell’Orco, the Italian public seems to be growing increasingly tired of this whole situation month after month and wants a peace treaty to be signed

Georgian PM says Tbilisi’s prospects for NATO membership are vague

Irakli Kobakhidze emphasized that Tbilisi should be pragmatic about the developments

Investigative Committee outraged by publication of footage of school attack near Moscow

According to Armen Gasparyan, if the media does not adhere to the request of the Human Rights Council, the state should punish them

Russia will help strengthen Africa’s defense capabilities — Vershinin

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said that Moscow is already assisting in building capacity of African countries to counter internal and external threats

Policeman guilty of traffic accident in Mari El dismissed

It was the policeman's fault. The medical test showed he had signs of alcohol intoxication

Ukraine’s ex-commander-in-chief warns about risks of civil war after conflict is ended

In Valery Zaluzhny's words, "the end of the war and the return of around one million of soldiers" will be "another challenge to the state and civil society"

Solution to Ukrainian crisis is near, Russia’s deputy foreign minister says

Sergey Ryabkov noted that "Russia's special military operation was inevitable because things were developing in a very wrong direction"

Alrosa's diamond production to decline by 10-15% in 2025 — chief executive

Production will depend on market conditions, Marinychev said, adding that the company intends to remain a global leader

Moscow to make no concessions on Donbass, Novorossiya and Crimea — Ryabkov

The diplomat noted that in 2022, following referendums, the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), Lugansk People’s Republic, as well as Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions, were formally incorporated into Russia

Karin Kneissl: Zelensky Has No Chance Left

Hungary refuses loyal cooperation with EU on issue of Russian assets — Orban

Viktor Orban also said that EU leaders violated EU law by proposing to make decisions on Russian financial assets not by consensus, but by a qualified majority vote

Russia unaware of outcome of talks on Ukraine between US, Kiev and Europe — Kremlin

Moscow has not yet received this information, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said

Africa should be free to manage its national resources independently — diplomat

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin stressed that Africans should stop financing the prosperity of the United States, the European Union, NATO, and their allies at their own expense

West uses 'Russian threat' narrative to justify confiscation of frozen assets — Dmitriev

This is also to cover up mass immigration, child abuse gangs, rising crime rates and economic decline, Head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev said

NABU detectives to carry out investigative actions at embassy in Israel — ambassador

Yevgeny Korniychuk did not name the reasons for the investigative actions or their date

Four drones jammed over Russia’s Smolensk Region — governor

Emergency personnel are working at the site where debris came down

Kiev lying about battlefield situation to influence US peace plan — source

The Ukrainian mass media are disseminating reports alleging that the Ukrainian army has taken control of the settlements of Kondrashovka, Radkovka, and Moskovka northwest and southwest of Kupyansk

Two Project 677 Lada submarines to be laid down in 2026 — Navy chief

Lada-class submarines are quiet and capable of diving to depths of around 300 meters

Trump says he held conversation with Putin recently

The US leader did not give any details

Arctic Council has good chance of maintaining its relevance — Lavrov

The Russian foreign minster noted that, overall, "there are certain advances" in the work of the Arctic Council

Russian ambassador calls efficiency of increasing British military spending questionable

Andrey Kelin noted that the British military department's 2025 overruns may amount to more than 2 billion pounds

Kalashnikov presents new model of silent motorcycle

The motorcycle develops a speed of up to 100 km/h, has easy controls and is equipped with a universal trailer with a load capacity of up to 200 kg

Trump names countries that will truly play important role — Kneissl

"Europe no longer plays any role in the world at all," the former Austrian Foreign Minister noted

Press review: US-Ukraine talks fail on Donbass as Kiev struggles with election competition

Top stories from the Russian press on Tuesday, December 16th

Four regions stand out in push to bring 'traditional' foreigners to Russia — Lavrov

The minister recalled that practical steps had previously been outlined to implement Russian President Vladimir Putin's decree on the voluntary resettlement of foreign citizens who share the country's traditional spiritual and moral values

No concessions from Russia, dialogue with US: statements by Russian senior diplomat

Sergey Ryabkov reiterated that Russia "stands firm" on the understandings reached during the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Anchorage

Merz assesses chances of EU agreement on Russian assets at 50-50

German Chancellor admitted that Europe has certain fears concerning the potential use of Russian frozen assets

German authorities rapidly preparing for full-scale conflict with Russia — envoy

"Berlin has chosen the path of destroying the unique bilateral interaction formats built by generations of predecessors," Sergey Nechayev noted

Germany’s Left party critical of ‘multinational force’ idea for Ukraine

According to Soren Pellmann, the deployment of NATO forces to ensure the security of Ukraine’s airspace would lead to the "further escalation of the situation"

Lukashenko says Ukraine simply handed Crimea over to Russia, no one fought for it

"There was no war in Crimea," Alexander Lukashenko said

Foreign journalists to be able to ask questions during Putin’s Q&A session — Kremlin

Dmitry Peskov also noted that there will be journalists from unfriendly countries as well

Europe has no plan B in case seizure of Russian assets is rejected — Finnish PM

Petteri Orpo said he does not want to think about that

US declares end of era of global trade convergence in document to WTO — FT

The six-page document lists US grievances against the organization, veiled attacks on China for accumulating huge trade surpluses and on India for blocking improvements in the WTO's decision-making process

India's BRICS presidency in 2026 promises to be eventful — Russian envoy

Last year several countries began working within the BRICS framework, and many states are planning to join this association, the diplomat noted

Ukraine's non-NATO pledge moot as alliance decides everything — top Hungarian diplomat

Peter Szijjarto emphasized that Ukraine’s membership in NATO was "purely a Ukrainian agenda item"

Lukashenko believes conflict in Ukraine will end in peace

Belarusian President emphasized that if the issue of a peaceful settlement depended solely on US President Donald Trump, then given his current policies the conflict would have ended long ago

Former UN expert warns against deploying European force to Ukraine

Alfred de Zayas stressed that "NATO boots on the ground would only mean an escalation to the war"

Lukashenko says Putin seeks to achieve peace in Ukraine conflict

Belarusian President believes that Vladimir Zelensky also wants the end of the conflict

FACTBOX: Project 677 Lada-class submarines

Project 677 diesel-electric submarines are designed to destroy enemy surface ships and vessels, conduct patrols, conduct reconnaissance, protect sea lanes, lay minefields, and perform other missions

Fire occurs at submarine under repair at Russian shipyards — source

According to the source, there's no ammunition on board

Revival of Nazism in EU and Europe’s 'bent towards stealing:' What Lavrov said

Russian Foreign Minister also noted that the situation around Russia’s frozen assets made it clear that "stealing is in the Europeans’ blood"

Germany withdrawing Patriot air defense systems, military personnel from Poland

The command in Rzeszow has been taken over by the Dutch military

'Coalition of Willing' prepares plans to deploy troops to Ukraine — British PM

Keir Starmer stated that the prior question is whether a just and lasting peace can be achieved

Germany agrees on ten-point plan to expand military cooperation with Kiev — media

The German government also plans to build a sort of alliance with its European partners to jointly purchase weapons for Ukraine

Erdogan warns against attacks on commercial ships in Black Sea

Turkey issue a clear warning to both sides concerning this matter, the Turkish president said

West, Kiev use African groups to carry out sabotage against Russia’s interests — Vershinin

According to the Deputy Foreign Minister, the "criminal actions of the Kiev regime and its patrons, who cooperate with local terrorist groups and provide them with support," pose a grave threat not only to Africa, but to the entire world

US resumes use of Guantanamo base for detention of illegal migrants

According to the newspaper, 22 illegal Cuban migrants are now housed there

Russia, African countries begin joint research into dangerous infections

More than 200 African specialists have been trained using Russian methodologies, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said

About 70,000 Indians working in Russia — Russian ambassador to India

Denis Alipov added that "overall, the prospects in the Russian labor market are enormous"

US spy strategy in the Himalayas could have also been aimed at Soviet Union — expert

Recent reports by The New York Times revealed that during a covert operation in 1965, the CIA installed a SNAP-19C nuclear generator on Mount Nanda Devi’s summit to monitor Chinese missile activity

Germany doesn't rule out sending its troops to Ukraine as part of 'multinational force'

"The deployment of troops largely depends on the situation, context, and specific tasks," Germany's Social Democratic Party leader Matthias Miersch said

Czech Republic's ruling party to abstain from European Parliament vote on Russian gas

ANO MPs announced their decision to journalists in Strasbourg

VEB.RF, Alfa-Bank allocate $63 mln to Trans-Eurasian fiber-optic communication line

The new communication line will be approximately 11,700 kilometers long

Russia adds Deutsche Welle to list of undesirable organizations

Bulgaria’s For Free Russia, Estonia’s House of Ingria, Norway’s Nature and Youth, and Germany’s Alliance for a Free Democratic Russia were also added to the list

Russian embassy calls UK’s claims about threat from Moscow unfounded

The diplomatic mission emphasized that Russia had no plans, intentions or reasons to engage in armed confrontation with the United Kingdom

Lavrov to hold separate talks with African countries at Cairo meeting

On the sidelines of the second ministerial conference in Cairo, Russian Foreign Minister will also sign a set of documents

Ombudsmen of Russia and Ukraine exchange letters for prisoners

The parties agreed to continue searching for missing persons

Russia may ultimately replace UK in technology deal with US — Dmitriev

Russian Presidential Special Representative Kirill Dmitriev emphasized that "the UK needs to learn to solve real problems - not imaginary ones"

African countries eye cooperation with Russia, these expectations must be met — Lavrov

The Russian top diplomat noted that the African continent was experiencing a "second awakening"

Elon Musk throws money behind GOP ahead of 2026 midterms — Axios

Midterm elections to the US Congress will be held on November 3, 2026

EU’s 19 packages of sanctions on Russia weaken European economy — Italian official

Italian deputy prime minister and minister of transport and infrastructure Matteo Salvini emphasized that sanctions brought European economies to their knees, leading to more expensive energy for Italians

Continuation of conflict to do more harm to Ukraine — Slovak defense minister

Kiev could have made a peace deal with Russia on more advantageous terms right after the conflict began, Robert Kalinak recalled

Roscosmos defines advantageous location for lunar base — official

Roscosmos is currently laying an "experimental foundation" for formulating further goals for human exploration of space, Denis Kutovoy emphasized

Russia had to start special op to change world — Serbian journalist

Mario Bojic said it needed to happen for the world to change

Russia will not agree to deployment of Western troops in Ukraine in any form — MFA

Russia is open-minded in terms of what decisions might be made, Sergey Ryabkov noted

Russian stock indices up as trading on Moscow Exchange closes

The yuan-to-ruble rate fell 1.9 kopecks to 11.26 rubles

Hungary to use US nuclear fuel at Paks NPP after 2028

Fuel for the Paks nuclear power plant will be produced at a joint venture in Europe established by Rosatom and the French company Framatome, Lantos noted

Well-trained Russian specialists in CAR suffer minimal losses — military operative

According to Russian instructor with the call sign Gipalon, the group is always on full combat alert

Zelensky lying to Trump about being ready for elections — Ukrainian opposition politician

According to Viktor Medvedchuk, Zelensky and his gang have usurped the entire vertical of state power in Ukraine

Serbia to hold early parliamentary elections at end of 2026 — Vucic

The Serbian president said he would appeal to his supporters camping out near the parliament building to disperse

Silver outpaces Microsoft by market capitalization

Silver capitalization is computed by multiplying the current silver price by the silver volume estimated to be mined to date, about 1,751,000 metric tons of silver

West keeps trying to harm BRICS as it becomes real force on world stage — senior diplomat

Sergey Ryabkov stressed that the desire for cooperation in this format remained strong

Anti-government protests took place in Slovakia — TV

The protests, where people demanded the resignation of the government led by Prime Minister Robert Fico, a Social Democrat, were organized by opposition liberal parties and movements of Slovakia

Austria’s former top diplomat slams EU’s indefinite freeze of Russian assets as theft

Karin Kneissl noted that the European Union had ditched a number of its own rules and norms

Belarus suppresses attempt to arrange provocation during national assembly

According to an Interior Ministry official, several searches took place after the identification of a suspicious citizen in the border area

Kupyansk is under Russian army’s control — Battlegroup West

According tp the report, Battlegroup West forces are firmly rebuffing all the Ukrainian army’s attacks on communities near Kupyansk, keeping them under control

US national security strategy states diagnosis for Europe — Deputy Secretary of State

According to the Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg, the US President laid out "in clear and simple terms" that there is a turning point that Europe is facing

Finnish politician calls EU 'bankrupt' over plans to use Russian assets

Armando Mema emphasized that the EU is not doing "one thing right" and the bloc "should respect Belgium’s sovereignty" and its decision to refuse to transfer the assets to Ukraine

Putin already working with Russians' questions for year-end Q&A session — Kremlin

"All information from the questions of Russians to the direct line is constantly reported to the president," Dmitry Peskov stressed

Trump says Ukraine 'already lost territory'

Donald Trump also added that the US is working with Europe on the security guarantee

Russian troops liberate Novoplatonovka in Kharkov Region over past day — top brass

The Ukrainian army lost roughly 1,520 troops in battles with Russian forces in all the frontline areas over the past 24 hours

Lavrov, Iranian foreign minister to discuss regional security, Iran’s nuclear program

US President Donald Trump and his peace initiatives related to Ukraine and the Gaza Strip will also be on the agenda of the talks

It’s time for real diplomacy on the ground in Gaza — Russian mission to UN

According to Dmitry Polyansky, there is no clarity about which countries are willing to take part in the international stabilization force in Gaza

Upgraded Force drone intercepting Ukraine’s UAVs in Belgorod Region

The Drone Force company previously announced the development of a reconnaissance version of the 15-inch Force drone with proprietary software and shifted control frequencies

Steel consumption in Russia to fall to lowest level since 2011 in 2025 — forecast

The decline from the historical peak amounts to nearly 20%

West tries to destabilize situation in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger — Deputy Foreign Minister

Sergey Vershinin also pointed out that Moscow is paying increasing attention to building multifaceted cooperation with Africa’s subregional communities

Moscow to assess EU leaders' statement on guarantees to Kiev once it sees text — Kremlin

Dmitry Peskov noted that Moscow has only seen media reports about the joint statement by EU leaders on security guarantees for Kiev

Russian shipbuilders deliver 19 ships, three subs to Navy in 2025

Head of the Russian Presidential Directorate for State Defense Industry Policy Viktor Yevtukhov emphasized that domestic innovative solutions were used in the construction of each ship

Hungary boost Russian pipe gas imports by 15% in 10M 2025

The TurkStream gas pipeline remains the only active route of Russian gas deliveries to Europe

'Coalition of willing' has not called Putin's hotline, Kremlin official jokes

The event will be held at noon on December 19

FACTBOX: What we know about attack on school in Moscow Region

One child was killed and a security guard was injured in the attack, the Russian Investigative Committee’s press service reported

Kremlin invites special military operation veterans to talk to Putin during hot line

In 2024, the headquarters of the Popular Front received just over 2.5 million questions to the president in various formats

Putin studies questions from Russians for upcoming Q&A session in detail — Kremlin

Dmitry Peskov pointed out that there were fewer pressing questions from the participants of the special military operation