Russia

The Washington Post reports: Following his summit with President Biden in Geneva, Russian President Vladimir Putin called the talks “quite constructive” and said he and Biden agreed to return their ambassadors to their respective posts in Washington and Moscow. Speaking at a news conference, Putin also said he and Biden had reached an agreement to start negotiations on cybersecurity. “There …

CBS News reports: President Biden was to sit down on Wednesday for his much-anticipated meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva, Switzerland. Mr. Biden was facing off with Putin after a week of alliance-bolstering meetings with America’s closest allies. He attended his first NATO summit as the U.S. leader, his first G-7 conference and a summit with European Union …

The Daily Beast reports: On Sunday, Russian state TV aired an interview with insurrectionist Richard Barnett—notoriously pictured with his feet up at on a desk in Nancy Pelosi’s office on Jan. 6—and his attorney, Joseph McBride. Barnett, a self-proclaimed white nationalist, was introduced as a “colorful” individual, the same expression Putin frequently uses to describe Trump. McBride welcomed Rossiya-1 special …

NBC News reports: Asked about Biden’s criticism that Russia had added to global instability, he accused the U.S. of doing the same in Libya, Afghanistan and Syria. And the Russians aren’t cracking down on internal dissent, he said, any more than the U.S. is doing with its laws against foreign agents. He even pointed to the arrests of hundreds of …

The New York Times reports: President Biden will face the press by himself after two private sessions with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, a move designed to deny the Russian leader an international platform like the one he received during a 2018 summit in Helsinki with President Donald J. Trump. Top aides to Mr. Biden said that during negotiations …

NBC News reports: “Well even now, I believe that former U.S. president Mr. Trump is an extraordinary individual, talented individual, otherwise he would not have become U.S. president,” Putin told NBC’s Keir Simmons during a wide-ranging and, at times, contentious interview. “He is a colorful individual. You may like him or not. And, but he didn’t come from the U.S. …

Reuters reports: A group suspected of being Russian has remained active on internet services favored by far-right Americans, showing that efforts to interfere in US politics continue after the election, according to the research firm’s reports. social media Graphika and the non-profit association Advance Democracy Inc. The group, which Graphika also believes to be linked to the Russian government, maintains …

“Our critical infrastructure is very exposed and we need to harden it but more than anything else, we need to go on offense. You can only play defense so long. “It’s time for the Russians to pay a price here because none of this would happen without their looking the other way or actively encouraging it.” “I don’t think he …

Mediaite reports: Ahead of a mid-June meeting in Geneva with Vladimir Putin, President Joe Biden said on Sunday he’ll bring up the issue of human rights with the Russian president. On Monday, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded by saying Russia is prepared to discuss the matter. “Of course, we will be ready to discuss everything, including problems that exist in …

Reuters reports: Hollywood actor Steven Seagal, a long-time admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has joined a pro-Kremlin party, the party said on Sunday. Seagal received a party membership card of an alliance named Just Russia Patriots For Truth on Saturday, a video released by the party showed. It was formed earlier this year. The party controls a faction in …

Reuters reports: Russia’s communications regulator Roskomnadzor on Friday warned Walt Disney Co against distributing content it said was harmful to children in Russia with its release of a short film, “Out”, which features a gay main character. Roskomnadzor said it had sent a letter to Disney noting that it was against Russian law to distribute information which “denies family values …

The New York Times reports: Hackers linked to Russia’s main intelligence agency surreptitiously seized an email system used by the State Department’s international aid agency to burrow into the computer networks of human rights groups and other organizations of the sort that have been critical of President Vladimir V. Putin, Microsoft Corporation disclosed on Thursday. Discovery of the breach comes …

The Guardian reports: French and German YouTubers, bloggers and influencers have been offered money by a supposedly UK-based PR agency with apparent Russian connections to falsely tell their followers the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is responsible for hundreds of deaths. Fazze, which said it was an “influencer marketing platform … connecting bloggers and advertisers”, claimed to be based at 5 Percy Street …

The Associated Press reports: The White House and the Kremlin are working to arrange a summit next month between President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Switzerland, according to officials. National security adviser Jake Sullivan is meeting with his Russian counterpart in Geneva, the proposed host city, this week to finalize details, according to one U.S. official familiar …

CNN reports: Two White House officials were struck by a mysterious illness late last year — including one who was passing through a gate onto the property — newly revealed details that come as investigators are still struggling to determine who or what is behind these strange incidents. The cases are consistent with an inexplicable constellation of sensory experiences and …

Axios reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday ordered the Russian Federal Service of National Guard Troops to start working on new gun regulations following a school shooting that left at least eight people dead, according to the Kremlin. Driving the news: A gunman on Tuesday morning attacked a school in the city of Kazan and killed seven students and …

Politico reports: U.S. officials suspect that a notorious Russian spy agency may be behind alleged attacks that are causing mysterious health issues among U.S. government personnel across the world, according to three current and former officials with direct knowledge of the discussions. The intelligence community has not reached a consensus or made a formal determination. However, officials have told lawmakers …

The Guardian reports: The Biden administration has invoked emergency powers as part of an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to avoid fuel shortages after the worst-ever cyber-attack on US infrastructure shut down a crucial pipeline supplying the east coast. The federal transport department issued an emergency declaration on Sunday to relax regulations for drivers carrying gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined petroleum …

The Associated Press reports: Speaking to the annual military parade on Moscow’s Red Square, Putin on Sunday decried “attempts to rewrite history, to justify traitors and criminals, on whose hands lies the blood of hundreds of thousands of peaceful people.” “Unfortunately, many of the ideologies of the Nazis, those who were obsessed with the delusional theory of their exclusiveness, are …

Bloomberg News reports: Russia said it will begin pulling thousands of troops back from areas near the Ukrainian border starting Friday, in a step that could calm strains with the West that have surged in recent weeks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy welcomed the move, saying in a tweet it “reduces tension.” The ruble gained as much as 1.4% against the …