RIA Novosty / Russia

A number of cities and towns in the Russian republic of Crimea have cut ties with sister cities in Turkey, the head of the Black Sea republic said on Tuesday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Vladimir Putin has instructed all law enforcement agencies in the country to take measures in heightening domestic security.

According to Russian Federal Security Service’s press center, Russian Special Services have offered $50 million for information on those responsible for the terrorist act of the A321 passenger plane that crashed over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula on October 31 killing all 224 on board.

An explosion of the homemade bomb of up to 1kg of TNT equivalent was the cause of the A321 crash in Sinai, Russian Security Service (FSB) head Alexander Bortnikov said.

According to the ministry, Russia’s Frigate rocket booster carrying a state-of-the-art Defense Ministry satellite successfully separated from its Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket.

Russian Defense Ministry said that a Russian Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket laden with the newest defense satellite was launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the country’s northwest.

According to a document published on Tuesday, Vladimir Putin has signed a decree implementing the country’s defense plans for 2016-2020.

Vladimir Putin said that the Russian ports in the Far East region are likely to become a major infrastructure link between the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.

In the wake of attacks in Paris by the Islamic State, the head of the CIA on Monday said he wants to see "enhanced" ties between the United States and Russia in order to prevent future terrorist attacks.

Russia’s Deputy Economic Development Minister Stanislav Voskresensky said that Japan can invest in Russia’s Far East as a part of its $110-billion plan to fund infrastructure projects in Asia.

In line with the growing 'buy domestic' trend which has swept Russia over the past two years, developers have created a home-grown suite of office applications designed as an alternative to popular Western products such as Microsoft Office, LifeNews reports.

Dmitry Medvedev said that Russia has created a control system on its nuclear facilities that has brought the main risks of radiation ecological disasters to nil.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the investigation of debris found in the wreckage of the Russian A321 passenger jet that crashed over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula on October 31, killing all 224 on board, has entered its final stage.

Some 500 people were evacuated from a Moscow train station after a bomb threat, a source said Monday.

A quarter-century after the collapse of the Soviet Union, an event which resulted in the near-destruction of the country's once-proud civil aviation industry, Russia is looking to resurrect its production of civilian aircraft, from the Sukhoi Superjet 100 to the Ilyushin Il-114, German newspaper Handelsblatt reports.

Almost a thousand people have been evacuated from the “Cosmos” hotel in northern Moscow after a call about an explosive device planted in the building. The hotel has been checked by K-9 police teams. The latest info suggests the call was false.

The launch of Russian spacecraft Progress-MS is scheduled for December 21, 2015 from Baikonur, according to Roscosmos.

The deadly terror attacks which struck Paris on Friday night have left Russians shocked, outraged, and mourning for victims and their families. From officials, to journalists, to celebrities and ordinary citizens, Russians are calling for solidarity with the French people, and for swift justice against the perpetrators of the attacks.

Thousands of Muscovites arrived at the French embassy to lay candles and flowers in memory of the Paris attack victims.

The Russian Embassy spokesperson said that the embassy to the United States has stepped up measures to ensure its security following Friday’s terrorist attacks in Paris.