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Updated: 3 months 2 weeks ago

Russia eyes opportunity to restore all Soviet bases that had to be abandoned after 1991

Thu, 11/01/2018 - 16:35
Russia has been expanding its presence in the World Ocean. Western officials believe that Russia's increasing activity at sea comes as a proof of the country's "aggressive foreign policy," whereas Russian experts say that Russia takes measures in response to NATO's actions near Russian borders. The press service of the Russian Defense Ministry said on New Year's eve that the crews of 70 warships and support vessels of the Russian Navy would celebrate winter holidays when being on long-distance missions. The Daily Telegraph wrote soon afterwards that Russia's presences in the waters around Britain and in the North Atlantic has increased ten times over the past ten years. Officials with the British General Staff assumed that Russian submarines could cut underwater cables on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean to deprive the West of military and financial ties.President of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Colonel-General Leonid Ivashov told Pravda.Ru, that the strength of naval groups of the Russian Navy in the World Ocean has grown considerably since the 1990s indeed. Russian warships, the expert said, conduct naval exercises, make long trips, including, to the American continent."This activity is required to stave off threats from our borders," the expert said. Compared to the 1990s, Russia's military doctrine has also changed, Leonid Ivashov added. In 1993, Russia announced that it had neither external enemies nor external threats. Presently, however, Russia admits the existence of external threats. "That is why Russian warships go on various missions in the World Ocean - to target aviation and naval assets on the territory of our potential adversaries," Ivashov said.Russia's activity near the shores of the British Isles is due to the Syrian campaign: "This is our response to NATO's activity in the Barents Sea and in the Arctic Ocean, where the Americans form Arctic NATO and constantly conduct exercises, test new models of ships and aircraft."Leonid Ivashov believes that there is no need for Russia to build a naval base in Sudan for the time being. "This was a proposal from the Sudanese side, and we said that we would think about it. First off, Russia needs to find an excuse to be there. If there is a threat coming from that direction, then we will think about it," Ivashov said.Political scientist, expert of the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Konstantin Blokhin, believes that it is about time Russia should stop reacting to someone else's actions and take measures to prevent threats. "For them, our weakness is an invitation to larger aggression. The entire military-political culture of the United States and the West is based on this assumption," the analyst told Pravda.Ru. From this point of view, the military base of the Russian Navy in the port of Sudan will help "balance the influence of the United States in this region," Blokhin said. The expert noted that China has been acting in this manner in the East China Sea lately. These days, Turkey and Saudi Arabia buy S-400 air defense missile systems from Russia. No one could even think that this could be possible ten years ago. Such a development designates the diminishing supremacy of the USA - not only in the Middle East, but also in other regions of the world. Pravda.Ru Read article in Russian 
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russia eyes opportunity to restore all Soviet bases that had to be abandoned after 1991

Thu, 11/01/2018 - 16:35
Western officials believe that Russia's growing activity at sea comes as a proof of the country's "aggressive foreign policy"
Categories: Russia & CIS

Ukraine welcomes NATO's Tomahawk missiles with open arms

Wed, 10/01/2018 - 14:37
It appears that Ukraine is working hard to build a US Navy base in the city of Odessa. US warships call at the port of Odessa once in every three months. Most recently, while the Russians were celebrating Orthodox Christmas, US destroyer USS Carney DDG-64 arrived in Odessa at nighttime.  According to representatives of the Sixth Fleet of the US Navy, the purpose of the mission is to conduct operations to ensure security at sea and strengthen combined readiness and naval capabilities among NATO allies and partners.The last time, when a US warship called at Odessa was in mid-November 2017 - USS James E. Williams stayed in Odessa for more than two weeks until December 2. The American destroyer was carrying 96 universal launchers with Tomahawk cruise missiles and 64 Standard-3 missiles.In turn, USS Carney DDG-64 destroyer is equipped with Aegis missile defence system and Tomahawk missiles. Also read: NATO ships will sink in ten minutes should they attack RussiaThe Carney destroyer is equipped with state-of-the-art radar equipment. Therefore, one may assume that one of the purposes of the mission to Odessa is intelligence and collection of classified information.In the Nikolayev region of Ukraine, US naval specialists continue the construction of the Operational Control Center for the Ukrainian Navy. The construction began in July 2017. Thus, as we can see, the Pentagon, under the guise of military assistance to Ukraine, has been deploying modern infrastructure in Ukraine to conduct military operations and NATO reconnaissance activities in the Black Sea.The port of Odessa is only 300 kilometres from the main base of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia in Sevastopol, so the activity of the US navy in the region is easy to understand. During the first days of 2017, the patrol anti-submarine aircraft of the US Navy P-8A Poseidon conducted a reconnaissance flight near the coast of the Crimea.The Kiev regime seeks Ukraine's accession to NATO, and the establishment of the US Navy base in Odessa is part of this plan. In December 2014, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a bill to abandon the non-bloc status. According to President Petro Poroshenko, Ukraine's entry into NATO is "the main priority of Ukrainian foreign policy."In an interview with Bloomberg, Poroshenko called NATO "the only effective security mechanism in the world." Needless to say that the Kremlin is not going to sit on its hands. Aydin MehtiyevPravda.Ru Read article in Russian
Categories: Russia & CIS

Ukraine welcomes NATO's Tomahawk missiles with open arms

Wed, 10/01/2018 - 14:37
Ukraine is working hard to build a US Navy base in the city of Odessa. US warships call at the port of Odessa once in every three months
Categories: Russia & CIS

Most important achievement of 2017: Big war with NATO canceled

Fri, 29/12/2017 - 15:55
Russian politicians and experts shared their opinion with Pravda.Ru about most important events of the outgoing year 2017. Alexei Pushkov, member of the Federation Council Committee on Defence and Security:"The biggest event of the year is the success of the Russian operation in Syria and the liquidation of ISIL* as a combat-ready formation and even more so, a state formation in Syria. This, in my opinion, is the most important thing."Another most important event of the year, or, to be more precise, an anti-event, is the facf of USA's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. This decision has set the Middle East on fire again, it became a gross violation of international law, because international resolutions of the UN and the UN Security Council, which the US supported, envisage a special status for Jerusalem."The decision to single-handedly recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital has come as a violation of all norms of international law. I think that this event is very indicative from the point of view of the role that Russia plays in the world and the role of the USA. Russia's role is stabilising and positive, whereas the role of the USA is destabilising and destructive."Evgeny Satanovsky, President of the Institute of the Middle East:"The biggest event of the year is the state of affairs in Syria. The Russian Federation has restored its military potential, and this means that a big war with NATO has been at least canceled." Anatoly Wasserman, political consultant, publicist:"I will remember the year 2017 for events that have not taken place. To be honest, I expected that the exhaustion of the current structure of the global division of labor was evident to everyone. Trump offers to dismantle this structure while it can still be done without catastrophic consequences. Nevertheless, this did not happen, and Trump himself was declared an incompetent figure, a Russian puppet, so this system will have to rot down to the bottom. In my opinion, Trump has not realised why so many people attack him from every direction, and he is still convinced that he is offering only good things. The trouble is that any good thing comes as an obstacle for those who profit from imperfections. "I will also remember 2017 for the unbridled and absolutely groundless campaign of slander against Russia in everything - from doping in sports to interference in the US elections. And, unfortunately, I will remember this year for the inability of Russian politicians to respond to all those attacks. In fact, there are only two people, who do something about it - President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov. Everyone else, as it appears, just stand and watch and do nothing. "Finally, 2017 will be remembered for the rise of the Russian economy, despite efforts of those, who believe in beneficial effects of unlimited personal freedom with no regard for society. Certainly, individual freedom is needed, but only within the limits that do not undermine the development of society. Without society, people will not be able to live, create - they will not be able to survive." *IS is a terrorist organisation banned in RussiaPravda.Ru Read article on the Russian version of Pravda.Ru
Categories: Russia & CIS

Most important achievement of 2017: Big war with NATO canceled

Fri, 29/12/2017 - 15:55
The Russian Federation has restored its military potential, and this means that a big war with NATO has been at least canceled
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russian super heroes and anti heroes of 2017

Thu, 28/12/2017 - 16:48
The list of people, whose names Russia will remember in 2017, contains the individuals, whom everyone knows, but not everybody likes. In 2017, those people have made a number of mistakes, the lessons of which Russia will have to learn in 2018. If we don't learn from those mistakes, other countries will teach us a few other lessons, but they will most likely be lessons of obedience. 1. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin takes the first place with his program of renovation. The program provides for the demolition of five-story "khrushchevka" apartment buildings (built during the times of Nikita Khrushchev). The word "renovation" was the most requested search inquiry on Russia's Yandex search engine. The program has divided Muscovites into two opposite camps, and no one can give a clear definition of whether this program is good or bad for people, especially for those, who currently live in Khrushchev's apartment buildings, but will have to move to new apartments against their own will. 2. Chairwoman of the Central Bank of Russia Elvira Nabiullina has worked hard in 2017 to legitimately impose state ownership on three of Russia's ten largest commercial banks. The liberal part of the Russian society was outraged saying that Nabiullina encroached on private property. In fact, the Central Bank has created a new tool for the recovery of the financial sector to protect the country from inflating credit bubbles. The Central Bank started playing the role of the regulator, corporate doctor and market player. As a result of this activity, a few Russian oligarchs have lost their financial assets and faced real prospects of criminal cases likely to be instituted against them.
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russian super heroes and anti heroes of 2017

Thu, 28/12/2017 - 16:48
The list of people, whose names Russia will remember in 2017, contains the individuals, whom everyone knows, but not everybody likes. In 2017, those people have made a number of mistakes
Categories: Russia & CIS

Responding to sanctions: What Russia could do right now

Thu, 21/12/2017 - 17:05
The United States added five more Russian citizens on the so-called "Magnitsky List", including President of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. The day before it became known that the US Treasury had imposed sanctions against two more Russian companies - Novator Experimental Design Bureau and Titan-Barricades Federal Research and Production Center.The number of sanctions lists continues growing fast, and one may lose count of them already. What is Russia going to do about it? In response to the news about anti-Russian sanctions, Russian officials usually say something vague about the need to develop a proper reaction, but it appears that those are only words. It goes without saying that the Russian authorities do something on the subject without advertising it much. Russian President's spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked an interesting question recently. A journalist wondered whether it was true that the Russian authorities were working to set up a special bank to service the defence sector in connection with the possible introduction of new sanctions (although the word "new" appears to be redundant here). "Indeed, Moscow is working out and taking measures to protect our interests against the backdrop of the efforts of various countries to continue taking restrictive and sanctioning actions of various countries, which we still consider illegal," Peskov said."It would be wrong to publicly disclose all these measures to hedge risks, which I will not do," Putin's press secretary added. It goes about either a reaction to the already imposed sanctions, or a response to the sanctions that are going to be imposed on Russia in the future. In addition, Russia may take measures to impose sanctions on Western countries, but the Russian authorities have not been very active in the field lately, even though top officials always say that Russia will not leave restrictive measures of the West without attention. It goes without saying that Russia is much more limited in its actions at this point, but what can Russia do and why aren't we doing it?Pravda.Ru asked this question to Doctor of Economic Sciences Valentin Katasonov."Russia has not taken any special responsive measures to sanctions of the West. It's like playing a game of pingpong, in which we do not send the ball back to the opponent. In fact, we must act ahead of schedule. A set of measures is needed to ensure the economic and financial security of the country. First of all, we need to deoffshorise the Russian economy."In the beginning of this decade, when Putin was running for president, he promised that the Russian economy would be deoffshorised. Yet, things are right where they started. On the contrary, now the authorities have come up with various reasons to prove that deoffshorising economy is harmful. "Secondly, we must protect our international reserves. This sanction has not been introduced yet, but it is hanging over our heads like the sword of Damocles. Russia should convert its international reserves into currencies other than the US dollar and then move them to the banks that remain outside the control of the US Treasury Federal Reserve System."Further, Russia needs to increase the share of gold in its international reserves. Finally, we should simply use foreign exchange reserves to strengthen our economic security. Much has been said about import substitution and the need for re-industrialization. All this requires currency. Instead of using this currency effectively to build up our production potential, we were investing it in US treasury securities."The Central Bank should be accountable to the state. Presently, the Central Bank is practically unaccountable hiding behind a vague definition of an independent institution."Undoubtedly, Russia needs to change the nature of the money issue. The Central Bank should credit the real sector of the economy. What the Central Bank is doing today is a mess. Instead of strengthening the financial position of the real sector of economy, the Central Bank wastes billions, even trillions of rubles, to sanitise the banks that suck the Russian economy dry and redirect that money to offshore companies, etc. "Russia could also take measures to restrict and prohibit cross-border movement of capital. In this case, we will have a stable ruble rate, with all ensuing positive consequences."Oleg ArtyukovPravda.Ru Read article on the Russian version of Pravda.Ru
Categories: Russia & CIS

Responding to sanctions: What Russia could do right now

Thu, 21/12/2017 - 17:05
The number of sanctions lists continues growing fast, and one may lose count of them already. What is Russia going to do about it?
Categories: Russia & CIS

Bloomberg makes gloomy forecast of brightless future for Russia

Mon, 18/12/2017 - 16:45
Bloomberg analysts have published a curious forecast embracing the period before 2028. The forecast contains a number of quite pessimistic scenarios for Russia. It focuses on the continuing decline in prices on oil because of the growing popularity of electric vehicles. It appears, though, that Bloomberg analysts do not think of any other way to produce electricity without the need to burn hydrocarbons for it. By 2021, when oil prices fall to $20 per barrel, Russia (and Saudi Arabia) will face budgetary problems, while countless factories will have to deal with serious problems because of workers' strikes. According to Bloomberg, oil will fall to $10 per barrel by 2024, Putin will leave politics, but he will continue ruling Russia through Elvira Nabiullina (currently chairwoman of the Russian Central Bank), who will succeed him." It is not the first time, when Western analysts believe that Elvira Nabiullina will take one of the key positions in the Russian administration. Last time, it was predicted that she would become the prime minister. By 2028, the forecast says, Putin will vanish from the public eye, and Nabiullina will do her best to prevent the collapse of the Russian Federation. Although the forecast itself is, of course, enchanting in its extreme degree of pessimism, Elvira Nabiullina as a successor to Vladimir Putin sounds curious. It appears that Western analysts are convinced the sitting chairwoman of the Central Bank should go deeper into politics, because what else can we expect from her after the nationalisation of all largest private banks in the country?For Western journalists, it is obvious that such decisions do not get materialised for nothing. Therefore, there is a special plan in store for Nabiullina. For some reason, though, no one in the West writes about the fact that the Central Bank simply started losing control of the sector and fears to lose it completely. Therefore, the story with the revocation of licenses and rehabilitation of many banks in Russia looks aggressive.It is worthy of note that a year ago, scientific leader of the developers of "Stolypin Club" program, Yakov Mirkin, warned about the imminent and inevitable devaluation of the ruble. According to him, the crisis scenario of 1998, 2009, and 2014 is going to repeat again.According to Bloomberg, by the end of 2017, ruble assets may ensure investors a return of 15%. Borrowing low-interest dollars on foreign markets, investors profit by investing in Russia against the background of the relatively stable Russian ruble and a high key rate.However, according to Yakov Mirkin, this trend can hardly be referred to as positive and safe. Another "explosive devaluation" of the Russian ruble will repeat scenarios of previous declines of the Russian national currency. Nevertheless, in the autumn of 2017, Minister of Economic Development, Maxim Oreshkin, said that the growth in Russia's GDP in the third quarter, according to preliminary estimates, exceeded two percent. It is worthy of note that Russia currently ranks 38th on World Economic Forum's annual index of global competitiveness. The indicator has climbed by five points since the previous year, while Russia has improved its positions in the rating by 29 points. It appears that Bloomberg has other reasons for making pessimistic forecasters about Russia. Pravda.Ru Read article on the Russian version of Pravda.Ru
Categories: Russia & CIS

Bloomberg makes gloomy forecast of brightless future for Russia

Mon, 18/12/2017 - 16:45
The forecast focuses on the continuing decline in prices on oil because of the growing popularity of electric vehicle
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russia to spend trillions to upgrade its army and navy before 2027

Mon, 18/12/2017 - 14:29
The Kremlin has received the final version of the state armament program for 2018-2027. The Russian authorities intend to spend about 19 trillion rubles to rearm the army and the navy, the Kommersant newspaper reported on Monday, December 18, citing a source close to the presidential administration.However, representatives for the Kremlin administration refuted the information. "No, this is not true to fact," Putin's official spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.The article said that Vladimir Putin may sign the document already this week. An official announcement on the subject, the article said, is to be made at the final meeting of the Russian Defense Ministry on December 22.The state armament program before 2027 has been developed over the past three years. Originally, the program was supposed to be approved in 2016, but the president postponed its adoption for two years due to the unstable economic situation. Economic problems have remained, but the political situation dictates its own conditions, a source told the publication. It has become clear over the recent years that without upgrading weapons and equipment of airborne and ground forces it will be much more difficult to counter possible threats. According to the program, the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation will receive about 19 trillion rubles for rearmament. The Interior Ministry, FSB, SVR and the Russian Guards will receive more than 3 trillion rubles. Earlier, Deputy Defense Minister for Finance Tatyana Shevtsova said that another one trillion rubles would be allocated for the construction of infrastructure for the deployment of weapons and equipment.The rearmament program pays special attention to systems of nuclear deterrence, high-precision weapons, weapons based on "new physical principles" and the development of general-purpose forces. Ground troops are to be equipped with new air defense systems, T-90 and T-14 Armata tanks, Kurganets-25 infantry armored vehicles and Boomerang armored personnel carriers.The arsenal of armaments for Arctic territories is to be expanded with S-300V4 anti-aircraft missile system and Tor-M2 anti-aircraft missile systems. The Ministry of Defense will continue purchasing air-based cruise missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles and land-based intercontinental carriers. New strategic solid-fuel complexes RS-26 Rubezh and heavy liquid RS-28 Sarmat missiles will be adopted. Russian Air Force will receive new multi-functional Su-30SM and Su-35 fighters, as well as Su-34 front bombers, as well as a series of state-of-the-art Su-57 front-line aircraft, 24 MiG-35 fighters, and Tu-160M2 strategic missile aircraft.The procurement of helicopters will be reduced. The commercial production of S-500 "Prometey" anti-aircraft missile systems and Buk-M3 complexes will be launched along with the production of  unmanned aerial vehicles and the new system of space optical-electronic reconnaissance.The program also provides for the creation of new ships. The program envisages the construction of Project 955B strategic nuclear missile carrier "Borei-B." The modernization of ships, supplies of state-of-the-art aircraft to the naval aviation of the Russian Navy and the creation of coastal missile systems will continue.Pravda.Ru
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russia to spend trillions to upgrade its army and navy before 2027

Mon, 18/12/2017 - 14:29
Originally, the program was supposed to be approved in 2016, but the president postponed its adoption for two years due to the unstable economic situation
Categories: Russia & CIS

Donbass without militia will be worse than Srebrenica - Putin

Thu, 14/12/2017 - 16:43
During Putin's annual Q&A conference with journalists, a Ukrainian correspondent asked Putin about the fate of the Russians, who are being held captive or convicted in Ukraine for their participation in the conflict in the Donbass. The journalist stated that Russian troops are staying on the territory of the Donbass to kill Ukrainian citizens rather than to regulate the armed conflict. The journalist asked the Russian president whether he was going to change his policy towards the Donbass in the event of victory in the upcoming presidential election.Another journalist asked Putin a question about Mikhail Saakashvili's political activity in Ukraine and the implementation of the Minsk agreements.Putin at first answered the second question тв said that the situation with Mikhail Saakashvili (former President of Georgia and former governor of the Odessa region of Ukraine) was a spit in the face of the Ukrainian people. "What Saakashvili is doing is like spitting in the face of the Georgian people and in the face of the Ukrainian people," Putin said. "He used to be the president of the independent Georgian state, but now he rushes around squares and screams to the whole world: I'm Ukrainian. Aren't there real Ukrainians in Ukraine? Ukraine turns a blind eye on all this, and it's pitiful to look at all this," the president added.According to Putin, the Minsk format on the settlement of the crisis in Ukraine is of low efficiency because of Kiev's unconstructive position. "They have no desire to implement the agreements and start a real political process, the completion of which can result in the implementation of the treaty on the special status of the Donbass, which is registered in the relevant law of Ukraine that the parliament has adopted, but the law has never been put into force under various pretexts," Putin said.Afterwards, Putin said that there were no Russian troops on the territory of the Donbass. According to him, there are local formations there capable of repelling military actions. "There are certain military militia groups there that are self-sufficient and are ready to repel any large-scale military actions against the Donbass," the Russian president said. "We believe that this corresponds to the  interests of those people who live there, because if they have no such opportunity, so-called nationalist battalions will arrange a massacre there that will be even worse that the one in Srebrenica. "As for the tragedy that is happening there, one should always look at the source of it. The source is a coup d'état and unconstitutional seizure of power. As we know, some of the Ukrainian people did not agree with this, but they started to destroy the dissenters, despite Ukraine's alleged aspiration to the European civilisation," the Russian president said. According to him, all that was done with the help of special services and then armed forces.Putin touched upon the topic of exchanging detainees with Ukraine, but noted that Ukraine constantly changes the list of people for exchange. He said that the process of exchanging detainees was stopped on the initiative of Kiev. Putin urged Ukrainian President Poroshenko to finish this process before the arrival of 2018. Russians and Ukrainians are one people, as they have common historical, spiritual and other roots, Putin said. Pravda.Ru
Categories: Russia & CIS

Donbass without militia will be worse than Srebrenica - Putin

Thu, 14/12/2017 - 16:43
"There are certain military militia groups there that are self-sufficient and are ready to repel any large-scale military actions against the Donbass," the Russian president said
Categories: Russia & CIS

Putin: Russia will continue spending enough on defence not to be killed

Thu, 14/12/2017 - 11:52
On December 14, President Putin holds his annual Q&A session with Russian and foreign journalists. This conference is considered to be the beginning of his presidential campaign after Putin announced his decision to run for president again. Traditionally, Putin starts such sessions with a speech about Russia's economic achievements. This conference, however, is different, because questions started at once. President Vladimir Putin will participate in the 2018 presidential election in Russia as a self-nominated candidate."Of course, I very much count on the support of the political forces that share my views on the development of the country, that trust me - in general, I count on broad support of citizens," President Putin said at a televised Q&A session with Russian and foreign journalists. The president did not answer the question of who will be appointed the head of his campaign headquarters. "No final decision has been made yet," Putin said, adding that this is a "technical decision, of course." Putin said.When asked why Putin is going to run again and what would be his mission, the president replied that Russia should be aimed at the future, and its political system should be flexible. Putin did not want to talk about the political program, noting that he practically has it already. "The main thing is to focus the attention of the authorities and the society on the development of infrastructure, healthcare, education, high technologies, productivity increase - but all this should be aimed at increasing people's incomes," Putin said.Answering the question of why Russia still does not have politician No. 2, and whether Putin is bored to run for this election, the president said that the political environment should be competitive. He wants to have a balanced political system which is impossible without competition. Yet, he added, Russian opposition activists are not competition to the current authorities because of Russia's specific peculiarities. "I cannot raise a competitor myself," the president joked.Speaking about those peculiarities, Putin switched to comparing Russia's economic indicators today to those from the late 1990s. According to him, real wages and pensions have grown in Russia since the 2000s."Real wages have fallen in Russia as a result of the crisis phenomena of recent years, but since the beginning of the 2000s, real wages have grown 3.5 times, and real pensions - 3.6 times," the head of state said."When we talk about opposition, it is important not only to talk about the regime, but to offer improvements," Putin said. "If we compare what opposition leaders offer, doubts arise. One does not need to propose a shrilling agenda, but a real one, in which people would believe," Putin said.Answering a question about Russia's defence spending and its possible influence on social benefits, President Putin said that Russia would be ensuring its security without taking part in an arms race. "Our defence spending is balanced, because we need to ensure our country's security, but it should not lead to the destruction of the economy. Next year, defence expenditures of the budget will make up about 2.8% of GDP. This is a bit more than 46 billions of dollars. In the United States, they signed a law about the defence spending of 700 billion dollars, but of course, 46 billion is a lot for Russia," Putin said and continued with a joke: "A father officer asks his son: "Have you seen my dagger?" "I've swapped it for a watch," the son replied. The father looked at the watch and said: "It's beautiful ... But what if gangsters come here tomorrow, they will kill me, your mother, rape your sister - what are you going to do? Are you going to come to them and say: "Good evening, it's 12:30 in Moscow?" Therefore, Putin proceeded, Russia needs to strengthen its defense capability and the country will spend enough on military needs. Pravda.Ru
Categories: Russia & CIS

Putin: Russia will continue spending enough on defence not to be killed

Thu, 14/12/2017 - 11:52
On December 14, President Putin holds his annual Q&A session with Russian and foreign journalists. This conference is considered to be the beginning of his presidential campaign
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russia on the eve of another Crimea referendum

Thu, 07/12/2017 - 18:15
Have you ever noticed how Putin listens to speakers at various levels, such as State Council meetings, congresses and press conferences?
Categories: Russia & CIS

Russian politician says Donald Trump extremely dangerous for Russia

Mon, 04/12/2017 - 14:14
Russia and the USA have been negotiating an agreement to limit offensive weapons for decades, and a nuclear war did not happen, but all negotiations on the subject have been stalled
Categories: Russia & CIS

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