Tag Archives: Russia

Putin Revives Soviet-Era “Patriotic Education” Program

The Sunday Times reports: Russian students heading back to school in the autumn will be taught about the country’s values amid the Kremlin’s wider campaign to implement “patriotic” education in schools. Starting from September 5, schools across the country will dedicate hours to so-called “conversations about important things”, Sergei Novikov, head of the presidential directorate for social projects, told Tass, …

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Trump Attacks Proposed Prisoner Swap For Brittney Griner: She Went To Russia “Loaded Up With Drugs”

Mediaite has the transcript: She went in there loaded up with drugs into a hostile territory where they’re very vigilant about drugs. They don’t like drugs. And she got caught. And now we’re supposed to get her out — and she makes, you know, a lot of money, I guess. We’re supposed to get her out for an absolute killer …

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Zelensky: US Should Declare Russia A “Terrorist State”

The Hill reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged civilians remaining in the easternmost Donbas region of the country to leave as the most intense fighting with Russian forces continues there. Zelensky also called on the world, and specifically the U.S. State Department, to recognize Russia as a terrorist state. He said it would not be just a political gesture but …

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Russia Open To Discussing Prisoner Swap For Griner

ABC News reports: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Friday that he’s open to a call with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to discuss a possible prisoner swap involving American basketball star Brittney Griner. Blinken said Wednesday that Washington had offered Russia a deal that would bring home Griner and another jailed American, Paul Whelan. A person familiar with …

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US Offers Prisoner Swap For Griner And Paul Whelan

The Guardian reports: The Biden administration has offered a deal to Russia aimed at bringing home WNBA star Brittney Griner and another jailed American, ex-US marine Paul Whelan, the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, said on Wednesday. In a sharp reversal of previous policy, Blinken also said he expects to speak with his Kremlin counterpart for the first time since …

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BOOK: Trump Advisor Considered Faking Heart Attack To Stop Trump’s Infamous Helsinki Presser With Putin

Axios reports: The versatile Jonathan Lemire — Politico’s White House bureau chief and host of MSNBC’s “Way Too Early” — is out Tuesday with “The Big Lie,” his new book that includes this account of President Trump’s disastrous press conference with Vladimir Putin in Helsinki in 2018: “Fiona Hill, the senior Russia expert on the National Security Council, who was …

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Russia To Leave International Space Station In 2024

The Associated Press reports: Russia will opt out of the International Space Station after 2024 and focus on building its own orbiting outpost, the country’s newly appointed space chief said Tuesday. Yuri Borisov, who was appointed earlier this month to lead the state-controlled space corporation Roscosmos, said during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that Russia will fulfill its …

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Fabergé Egg Found On Russian Oligarch’s Seized Yacht

CNN reports: US law enforcement officials recovered what appeared to be a Fabergé egg from a yacht seized from a Russian oligarch in Fiji, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Wednesday. The $300 million yacht, owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov, was sailed by US law enforcement officials from Fiji to the San Diego Bay late last month, where …

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Russia May Extend “Gay Propaganda” Ban To Adults

Reuters reports: Russian lawmakers have proposed extending a ban on the promotion of “non-traditional” sexual relationships to minors to include adults as well, a senior legislator said on Monday. Russia’s existing “gay propaganda” law, passed in 2013, has been used to stop gay pride marches and detain gay rights activists. Under the proposed changes, any event or act regarded as …

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Western Leaders Snub Lavrov At Bali G20 Summit

Politico Europe reports: The absence of a picture is worth a thousand words. Foreign ministers of the G20 countries, who are meeting on the Indonesian island of Bali this week, did not take a customary group photo, after several Western leaders reportedly refused to be pictured with Russia’s Sergey Lavrov over his country’s invasion of Ukraine. According to a report …

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Putin Warns Ukraine: “We Haven’t Even Started Yet”

The Associated Press reports: With Russia’s military action in Ukraine in its fifth month, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday warned Kyiv that it should quickly accept Moscow’s terms or brace for the worst, adding ominously that Russia has barely started its action. Speaking at a meeting with leaders of the Kremlin-controlled parliament, Putin accused Western allies of fueling the …

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WNBA’s Brittney Griner Pleads Guilty In Russian Court

ESPN reports: Detained WNBA star Brittney Griner pleaded guilty on Thursday to bringing hashish oil into Russia, telling a judge that she had done so “inadvertently” while asking the court for mercy. The move is not expected to end her trial in Khimki, Russia, anytime soon. Even with a guilty plea in Russian criminal courts, the judge will continue to …

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NATO Allies Sign Off On Admitting Sweden And Finland

The Associated Press reports: The 30 NATO allies signed off on the accession protocols for Sweden and Finland on Tuesday, sending the membership bids of the two nations to the alliance capitals for legislative approvals — and possible political trouble in Turkey. The move further increases Russia’s strategic isolation in the wake of its invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February …

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Putin Mocks G7 Leaders As Out Of Shape: “Disgusting”

The Associated Press reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin shot back at Western leaders who mocked his athletic exploits, saying they would look “disgusting” if they tried to emulate his bare-torso appearances. Putin made the comment during a visit to Turkmenistan early Thursday when asked about Western leaders joking about him at the G7 summit. Speaking to reporters, Putin retorted that, …

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Biden: US To Bolster Military Presence In Europe

Reuters reports: U.S. President Joe Biden pledged more American troops, warplanes and warships for Europe on Wednesday as NATO agreed the biggest strengthening of its deterrents since the Cold War in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Biden’s commitment at the Madrid summit “to defend every inch of allied territory” came as the U.S.-led military alliance also set in motion …

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Putin To Attend G20 Summit Where Zelensky Will Speak

Politico reports: Vladimir Putin plans to attend the G20 summit in Indonesia in November, an aide to the Russian president said Monday. Despite launching a brutal full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin was invited to the meeting of the world’s major developed and emerging economies by Indonesian President Joko Widodo — a move that will spark soul-searching for Western allied leaders …

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NATO To Place 300,000 Troops On “High Readiness”

Reuters reports: NATO will massively boost the number of troops on high readiness to over 300,000, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday, with allies set to adopt a new strategy describing Moscow as a direct threat four months into the Ukraine war. “Russia has walked away from the partnership and the dialogue that NATO has tried to establish with Russia …

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Russia Defaults On $100 Million Foreign Debt Payment

Bloomberg News reports: Russia defaulted on its foreign-currency sovereign debt for the first time in a century, the culmination of ever-tougher Western sanctions that shut down payment routes to overseas creditors. For months, the country found paths around the penalties imposed after the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine. But at the end of the day on Sunday, the grace period on …

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Russian Missiles Strike Ukrainian Capital Kyiv [VIDEO]

Reuters reports: Russian missiles hit an apartment block and kindergarten in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Sunday, in strikes U.S. President Joe Biden condemned as “barbarism” as world leaders gathered in Europe to discuss further sanctions against Moscow. Up to four explosions shook central Kyiv in the early ours, in the first such attack on the city in weeks. Two …

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Putin Promises Nuclear-Capable Missiles To Belarus

Reuters reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday told his counterpart from Belarus that Moscow would supply Minsk with missile systems capable of carrying nuclear weapons, the Russian foreign ministry said. At a meeting with Putin in St Petersburg, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko expressed concern about the “aggressive”, “confrontational” and “repulsive” policies of its neighbours Lithuania and Poland. He asked …

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