Russia & CIS

Head of the Committee Against Torture NGO Igor Kalyapin could have avoided an attack in the Chechen capital of Grozny if he had come to the Russian republic with good intentions.

A quarter of a century has passed since the first (and as it turned out the last) all-Union referendum. The referendum was dedicated to the preservation of the Soviet Union as a federation of sovereign republics. Was there a need in the referendum? Was such an initiative productive?

A pharmacy at the State Duma has registered a spike in demand for meldonium after Russian tennis champion Maria Sharapova failed a doping test for the recently banned drug, Interfax reported on Wednesday.

The Russian government has approved a long-awaited federal program for space exploration, valued at 1.4 trillion rubles over the next decade, according to an announcement posted on the government's website.

From a military point of view, Russia's operation to annex CrimeaВ was an exceptionally clean affair, and gave an opportunity to demonstrate the fruits of Moscow's military modernization efforts.

After a career of exciting and far-flung postings - from Brezhnev's Soviet Union to Saddam Hussein's Iraq - Irish Ambassador Adrian McDaid never expected he would wind up back in Russia.

On March 16th, Russia and Crimea mark their 2nd year since reunification. Almost 100% of Russians believe that the Crimea is a part of Russia. It all started for us on February 22, the day after the coup in Kiev, when President Yanukovych was forced to flee not to end up like Gaddafi. In the EU, they want this conflict to end as soon as possible

Barely a month has gone by without a controversy involving Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.

In a courtroom in Stavropol, Viktor Krasnov, a physician's assistant, is accused of the same crime as Giordano Bruno, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Salman Rushdie - atheism.

Russian Defense Minister Shoigu, following the order from President Putin to withdraw troops from Syria, instructed to begin the operation to redeploy Russian air combat units to the territory of Russia from March 15, 2016. Washington did not expect such a turn of events. Neither the White House nor the State Department were ready for comments

Many in Russia believe that what is good for Gazprom is bad for the country. This is not quite true. Yet, what is bad for Gazprom, is bad for Russia, as Gazprom plays a huge role in Russia's economy. Gas production in Russia dropped in 2015 in comparison with 2014. Yet, exports of natural gas from Russia to Europe increased considerably

"This reminds me of a joke that we had in Soviet times. Now we can see something like this happening in relation to Russia and the West. No matter what Russia may do, the West comes up with Savchenko, late Boris Nemtsov, the Crimea referendum, the support for Donetsk and Luhansk and so on," an expert told Pravda.Ru

We are witnessing yet another political circus and crocodile tears for the "poor woman, who was caught in the brutal bone-breaking mill of the Russian system." Savchenko is suspected of the murder of Russian citizens. Moreover, she stated that she had killed Russians before, although "without malice"

According to fleet spokesman, naval infantry and motorized troops with Russia’s Northern Fleet held amphibious assault training drills in the Far North.

Providing strategic deterrence will be the main goal of the upgraded Russian Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack supersonic strategic bomber, according to Dave Majumdar, the defense editor of The National Interest, a US political magazine.

Deputy prime minister of Russia's Republic of Crimea said that Turkish military instructors have gathered in Ukraine's southern region of Kherson, which borders Crimea.

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said Saturday that Moody's recent decision to place Russia’s government bond rating on review for downgrade reflects the need for the country's budget to be adapted to new, harsher market realities.

Moody’s has placed Russia’s Ba1 government and issuer ratings on review for downgrade, the rating agency said in a statement.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) commended Russia's part in the deliveries of humanitarian aid to besieged areas of war-torn Syria, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday.