Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused US-led forces of carrying out “bloody provocations” against Russian troops in Syria in an interview published by the Saudi-owned newspaper Asharq al-Awsat on Wednesday. “The activities of US-led forces raise many questions… In some cases, these forces have indirectly …
Read More »Google, Facebook, Twitter asked to testify in Russia probe
Washington, United States | AFP | The Senate Intelligence Committee has asked top tech companies Google, Facebook and Twitter to testify about Russian interference in US politics, a Senate aide confirmed Wednesday. The three internet and online social media giants are expected to appear on November 1 in an open hearing …
Read More »Putin heads to Turkey for talks on weapons deal, Syria
Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday meets his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for talks on Syria and a key weapons deal, hoping to strengthen an increasingly active relationship that has troubled the West. Despite a regional rivalry that goes back to the Ottoman Empire and …
Read More »Russia threatens to ban Facebook in 2018
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia’s internet watchdog on Tuesday warned Facebook it would be banned in 2018 unless it complies with a law on storing local users’ data. “The law is compulsory for all,” the head of Roskomnadzor telecoms watchdog Alexander Zharov told journalists in Moscow, quoted by Interfax news …
Read More »Kremlin says not involved in Russia-linked Facebook ads
Moscow, Russia | AFP | The Kremlin on Friday distanced itself from the controversy over Russia-linked Facebook ads which may have influenced last year’s US election, saying Moscow had nothing to do with them. “We don’t know who places ads on Facebook and how,” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told …
Read More »Russia ‘concerned’ by escalation of Korea tensions after Trump, Kim exchange: Kremlin
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia is “deeply concerned” by the escalation of tensions over North Korea, the Kremlin said on Friday, after US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un exchanged stinging barbs. “Moscow is deeply concerned by an escalation of tensions on the Korean peninsula related to …
Read More »China, Russia urge end to North Korea vicious cycle
New York, United States | AFP | The Chinese and Russian foreign ministers called for a peaceful end to the “vicious cycle” on the Korean peninsula as they met in New York for the UN General Assembly, Beijing said Tuesday. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Russian counterpart Sergei …
Read More »Russia launches war games on NATO’s eastern flank
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia On Thursday began major joint military exercises with Belarus along the European Union’s eastern flank — a show of strength that has rattled nervous NATO members. Named Zapad-2017 (West-2017), the manoeuvres, scheduled to last until September 20, are taking place on the territory of …
Read More »World Cup trophy starts tour in Moscow
Moscow, Russia | AFP | The World Cup trophy tour began a worldwide tour in Moscow on Saturday at a ceremony attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin and FIFA chief Gianni Infantino. Ten months before the 2018 World Cup kicks off there, the ceremony took place at Luzhniki stadium, which has …
Read More »Putin warns of ‘global catastrophe’ in N.Korea impasse
Xiamen, China | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Tuesday of a global “catastrophe” unless a diplomatic solution over North Korea is reached, saying imposing further sanctions on Pyongyang would be useless. Putin’s comments, following an international summit in China, came after the United States called for the “strongest …
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