19 Mar, 11:57

EC chief hopes phone call between Trump, Putin progress in direction of peace in Ukraine

The European Union remains steadfast in its support for Ukraine, Ursula von der Leyen stressed

BRUSSELS, March 19. /TASS/. The European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen has expressed hope that the phone call between Presidents of Russia and the US, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, is progress in the direction of reaching peace in Ukraine.

"A comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine must be the outcome of this terrible war. We hope that yesterday’s phone call is progress in this direction," she said on her page on X social media.

The European Union remains steadfast in its support for Ukraine, the EC chief stressed.

Putin and Trump held a phone call on March 18, discussing the idea of a 30-day ceasefire in the conflict in Ukraine, ways to prevent a further escalation of tensions and a number of international issues. The Russian leader supported the US president’s initiative for the parties to the conflict to abandon strikes on energy infrastructure.

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Summit on Ukraine to be held in Paris on March 27 — Macron

Earlier, Bloomberg reported that leading EU countries, including Germany, France and Poland, as well as non-EU countries Canada and the UK, will hold a new summit in Paris next week to discuss the situation around Ukraine

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US and Ukraine to sign resource agreement in near future — Trump

US president did not indicate when or where exactly the agreement would be signed

Almost whole Kursk Region has been liberated — Russian commander

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EU protracts conflict in Ukraine at any cost, ignoring calls for peace — European MP

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Hungary wants to resumes its exports to Russia — PM

The Hungarian Prime Minister spoke to journalists in Brussels after a meeting of the leaders of the parties that formed the Patriots of Europe faction

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Kiev already broke US-proposed ceasefire — Foreign Ministry

Maria Zakharova noted that attacking an energy facility in this context is understandable, 'because everything began with the energy sector in 2022'

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US president also said he has just signed an executive order to "dramatically increase" production of rare earth minerals

Russia stresses risk of rogue Ukrainian military groups disrupting any agreement with Kiev

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Trump fully supports Israel’s current military operation in Gaza — White House

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that previously Donald Trump threatened Palestine’s radical movement Hamas with tough measures if Israeli hostages are not released

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EU summit participants support White Paper on the EU defense

The meeting participants instructed the European Commission and the EU Council to begin implementing the European Commission's proposals in practice

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"It seems that Brussels is still incapable of clearly answering certain questions, including what specific role the EU could play amid the shifting dynamics of the Ukrainian crisis," Maria Zakharova noted

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Russian forces push Ukrainians out of Zherebyanki in Zaporozhye region — official

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"[Other aspects] related to the Ukrainian settlement that the parties deem necessary may also be discussed," Dmitry Peskov added

Yesterday, 11:27

Released Russian POWs report widespread torture, secret jails in Ukraine, Kursk — MFA

According to the report, the existence of these facilities is well known at all levels of the Ukrainian government

Yesterday, 16:02

Macron's talk of sending 'peacekeepers' to Ukraine shows disconnect from reality — MFA

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Yesterday, 08:50

Kiev sees Trump’s idea of US control of Ukrainian nuke plants as unworkable — newspaper

According to the newspaper, Kiev and Washington "did not seem in sync about what plants were at issue"

Yesterday, 08:33

FACTBOX: What we know about Ukraine's drone attack on Russia's Saratov Region

Air defenses downed 132 Ukrainian drones over Ukrainian regions overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said

Yesterday, 17:30

UN chief ready to mediate Ukraine talks — deputy spokesperson

According to Farhan Haq, Antonio Guterres "made clear to his various interlocutors the willingness of the UN to make available its good offices, if the parties accept"

Yesterday, 08:02

Trump says United States should build relations with Russia — Breitbart News

On March 18, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the situation in Ukraine, conditions for preventing escalation, and some international topics by phone

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27 Chinese planes approach Taiwan — defense ministry

Taiwan’s defense agency has regularly recorded the approach of Chinese warplanes and warships of late

Yesterday, 18:14

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"As of the end of 2024, Rosneft maintained the status of the largest independent gas producer in Russia," the company said

Israel chose war in Gaza Strip — Russia’s UN mission

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Putin says armed conflict in Ukraine forced on Russia

"The entire law enforcement sector and its key link, the Interior Ministry, should certainly build all their activities based on these threats, which undoubtedly arise in today's situation," the Russian president said

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Russia to boost arms exports after special military operation — Security Council

This refers to air defense systems, strike drones and upgraded armored vehicles, Sergey Shoigu said

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Leader of Iran calls on world to unite in opposing new Israeli attacks on Gaza

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Yesterday, 12:17

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During the day, the enemy lost a MaxxPro armored combat vehicle

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Yesterday, 17:45

Putin congratulates Coventry on her election as IOC president — Kremlin

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Yesterday, 16:29

Poland’s exit from Ottawa Convention shows disregard for int'l obligations — Zakharova

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Yesterday, 10:00

Press review: Israel restarts Gaza operation while US mulls lifting sanctions on Russia

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Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry becomes first female IOC president

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Yesterday, 17:15

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Russian stock market closed in the red on Thursday - market data

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Yesterday, 14:51

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"Anyone who wants peace will naturally support an end to the militarization of the terrorist gang," Maria Zakharova stated

Yesterday, 10:03

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Ukrainian soldiers stunned by Russia’s Operation Pipeline — Russian commander

Operation Pipeline involved a joint assault unit comprising soldiers from the 11th Separate Guards Air Assault Brigade, the 30th Regiment of the 72nd Motorized Rifle Division, the Akhmat special forces unit, and volunteers from the Veterans and Vostok V assault brigades

Two days ago, 13:39

Putin speaks on imminent Ukrainian defeat in Kursk at Prosecutor Office board meeting

The Russian president noted that the number of complaints received by the Prosecutor's Office increased by 10% in 2024

Yesterday, 11:41

Russian forces strike military train with Ukrainian ammo, armament over past day

Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicted more than 240 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed five enemy artillery guns in its area of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry reported

Erdogan accuses opposition of playing up Istanbul mayor’s detention for political gain

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Yesterday, 10:02

Kremlin says Europe becomes 'war party'

"The main signals from Brussels and the European capitals now relate to the plans for militarization of Europe, which is clearly at odds with the mood of the presidents of Russia and the United States to seek ways out for a peaceful settlement process," Dmitry Peskov said

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In Wieslaw Kukula's words, general staffs of European countries will be involved in the planning

30 Dec 2020, 12:26

First newly-built Tu-160M to make maiden flight in 4th quarter of 2021

The decision to resume the production of the upgraded version of the Tu-160, the Tu-160M, was made in 2015

US intends to hold Russia-Ukraine ‘proximity’ talks in Riyadh — envoy Kellogg

According to US Special Envoy for Ukraine, 'it, basically, shuttle diplomacy'

Slovakia, Hungary receive Russian oil over Druzhba pipeline — Transneft

The Druzhba oil pipeline provides for oil deliveries to Belarusian refineries and for its transit to Europe

Yesterday, 13:46

Russia's international reserves rise by $2.8 bln over week to $641.9 bln

As of March 7, total reserves amounted to $639.1 bln

No Foreign Ministry delegates to March 24 talks in Riyadh — spokeswoman

The Russian delegation will be led by senator Grigory Karasin and the adviser to the FSB chief, Sergey Beseda

Putin confused why G7 known as 'big' seven

The GDP growth in the G7 countries for 2024 was just 1.9%, while the BRICS countries saw a growth rate of 4.9%, the Russian leader noted

Yesterday, 14:04

European Council fails to approve 5-billion-euro plan to supply weapons to Kiev

The final statement of the meeting makes no mention of the 40-billion-euro military aid package, proposed by EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, or its reduced variant

Citizens rally in support of mayor Imamoglu in Ankara, Istanbul

Large groups of young people and students are taking part in the rally

Yesterday, 14:05

FSB makes public archived evidence exposing Nazi atrocities in Dnepropetrovsk Region

According to the FSB’s public relations center, among the documents there is a special message from the chief of the counterintelligence directorate Smersh of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, addressed to the Military Council of the 3rd Ukrainian Front and dated February 1944

Senior diplomat briefs BRICS ambassadors in Moscow on advancing Russia-US dialogue

The diplomats pointed out that the meeting participants urged increased efforts to resolve the conflict over Ukraine and expressed readiness to provide appropriate assistance

Yesterday, 16:01

Israel kills Hamas internal security chief in Gaza — IDF

The statement also says that "in an additional strike, the IDF and ISA eliminated Ismail Abd al-Aal"

Yesterday, 18:50

Sales of new premium cars in Russia dip twofold in February — statistics

"Avtostat agency experts note that premium cars made up 8.8% of total car sales in Russia last month," the report said

Yesterday, 13:12

Israel believes Iran won’t be able to defend itself in case of air attack — media

The magazine recalled that Israeli authorities said in April and October 2024 that the country's armed forces destroyed four air defense systems located near key sites in different parts of Iran

Russian MFA says no hidden meaning in differing statements on Putin-Trump talks

Maria Zakharova emphasized that while there are certain "nuances" in both statements, they do not contradict each other

Two days ago, 01:22

UK policy may lead to total destruction of Ukraine — Russian ambassador

In his words, the United Kingdom has chosen to go into confrontation

Yesterday, 18:12

Rosneft reports 14.4% drop in IFRS net profit for 2024

Company’s expenses for paying interest on loans increased by 1.5 times, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin said

Yesterday, 15:40

Ukraine’s military stored foreign munitions in civilian hospital in Kursk Region

According to the report, the hospital itself suffered severely in the battles and its first floor burnt out

Yesterday, 05:49

Russian Volga cities of Saratov, Engels come under most massive drone attack — governor

According to Roman Busargin, more than 30 private homes and summer houses in Engels were damaged in the attack

UK discusses options for its military presence in Ukraine — prime minister

Keir Starmer argued that Russia could allegedly violate any future agreements, so Western countries should work on security guarantees for Ukraine

Yesterday, 16:57

Zelensky admits Ukraine no longer being invited to NATO

At the same time, the Ukrainian president denied saying that he was ready "to discuss the question of Ukraine’s neutral status"

Yesterday, 13:00

Orban says other EU states quietly support Hungary's stance against Ukrainian accession

In recent days, the Hungarian prime minister has repeatedly warned that Hungary will not allow Ukraine's immediate accession to the EU, claiming this would cause irreparable damage to the European economy

Yesterday, 06:58

Medvedev says return will be challenging for companies that left Russia

"Life has proved that those were true words. We did not chase anyone off, they left themselves, someone under pressure from their governments, someone out of fear, someone in solidarity with the neo-Nazis," the politician said

Yesterday, 15:04

Russia has no plans to attack Germany — MFA on Merz's remarks

"If Berlin makes such claims, it means that Germany may have such plans itself; but in that case, Berlin needs to call things by their proper name," Maria Zakharova stated