Page 123 - Russia

Russia's Wagner group faces uncertainty after presumed death of leader

The Wagner Group's presence extends from the ancient battlegrounds of Syria to the deserts of sub-Saharan Africa, projecting the Kremlin's global influence with mercenaries accused of using brutal force and profiting on mineral riches they seized. But that was under Yevgeny Prigozhin, who in what could have been his final video released earlier this week appeared in military fatigues and held an assault rifle from an unidentified dry and dusty plain as he boasted that Wagner is making Russia even greater on all continents and Africa even more free. On Wednesday, a private jet carrying Prigozhin and his top lieutenants of the mercenary group crashed northwest of Moscow, two months after he led an armed rebellion that challenged the authority of President Vladimir Putin. There is wide speculation that Prigozhin, who is presumed dead, was targeted for his uprising, although the Kremlin has denied involvement. That crash has raised questions about the future of the Wagner Group. In ...

Russia's Wagner mercenaries face uncertainty after death of Prigozhin

The Wagner Group's presence extends from the ancient battlegrounds of Syria to the deserts of sub-Saharan Africa, projecting the Kremlin's global influence with mercenaries accused of using brutal force and profiting on mineral riches they seized. But that was under Yevgeny Prigozhin, who in what could have been his final video released earlier this week appeared in military fatigues and held an assault rifle from an unidentified dry and dusty plain as he boasted that Wagner is making Russia even greater on all continents and Africa even more free. On Wednesday, a private jet carrying Prigozhin and his top lieutenants of the mercenary group crashed northwest of Moscow, two months after he led an armed rebellion that challenged the authority of President Vladimir Putin. There is wide speculation that Prigozhin, who is presumed dead, was targeted for his uprising, although the Kremlin has denied involvement. That crash has raised questions about the future of the Wagner Group. In ...

Engineering exports to Russia more than doubled to $123.6 mn in July: EEPC

Engineering goods exports to Russia continued its uptrend and more than doubled to USD 123.65 million in July 2023 as against USD 55.65 million in the corresponding period a year ago, according to data released by EEPC. During the same period this year, engineering exports to the US declined 10.4 per cent on-year to USD 1.44 billion, it said. Engineering shipments to China during in July also fell 10 per cent year-on-year to USD 197.98 million, the data released by the Engineering Export Promotion Council showed. Among the 25 key markets for Indian engineering goods, which contribute to more than 76 per cent of total exports, 14 countries witnessed a year-on-year decline in July, it said. India's overall engineering exports dropped 6.62 per cent to USD 8.75 billion in the month under review from USD 9.37 billion in the year-earlier period. This was mainly due to a fall in exports of iron, steel and aluminium coupled with reduced global demand, EEPC said. EEPC India Chairman Arun

Russia denies role in plane crash believed to have killed Yevgeny Prigozhin

President Vladimir Putin's spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, on Friday rejected allegations that the Kremlin was behind a plane crash that is presumed to have killed mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, whose brutal fighters were feared in Ukraine, Africa and Syria and conducted a brief but shocking mutiny in Russia two months ago. Prigozhin, who was listed among those on board the plane, was eulogised by Putin, even as suspicions grew that the Russian leader was behind a Wednesday crash that many saw as an assassination. A preliminary US intelligence assessment concluded that the plane was downed by an intentional explosion. One of the US and Western officials who described the initial US assessment said it determined that Prigozhin was very likely targeted and that the explosion falls in line with Putin's long history of trying to silence his critics. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to comment, did not offer any details about what

Russian mercenary chief's likely death could destabilize his army: UK

Britain's defense ministry said on Friday that the presumed death of Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash could destabilise the Wagner Group, whose brutal fighters were feared in Ukraine, Africa and Syria and conducted a brief but shocking mutiny in Russia. Prigozhin, who was listed among those on board, was eulogized Thursday by Russian President Vladimir Putin, even as suspicions grew that the Russian president was behind a Wednesday crash that many saw as an assassination. Russian authorities have not yet confirmed Prigozhin's death. The British ministry wrote that It is highly likely that he is indeed dead. However, it noted that he is known to exercise exceptional security measures. The demise of Prigozhin almost certainly would have a deeply destabilizing effect on the Wagner Group. His personal attributes of hyperactivity, exceptional audacity, a drive for results and extreme brutality permeated Wagner and are unlikely to be matched by any successor, t

Heineken sells its Russian operations for 1 euro, takes 300-mn-euro hit

Dutch brewer Heineken has completed its withdrawal from Russia, 18 months after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, selling its business in Russia for just 1 euro, the company announced Friday. Heineken said it would incur a total loss of 300 million euros ($325 million) for the sale to Russian manufacturing giant the Arnest Group. Heineken had faced criticism for the slow pace of its exit in the wake of the outbreak of war, but insisted it was seeking to look after its local employees in Russia. In March last year, Heineken had said it was quitting Russia as its business there was no longer sustainable nor viable in the current environment," but added that it wanted to ensure an orderly transfer to a new owner. While it took much longer than we had hoped, this transaction secures the livelihoods of our employees and allows us to exit the country in a responsible manner, Heineken CEO Dolf van den Brink said in a statement. The sale covers all of Heineken's assets i

Prigozhin's death removes one problem, may create new ones for Putin

The United States is looking at a number of theories over what brought down the plane, including a surface-to-air missile hitting it, U.S. officials told Reuters

Yevgeny Prigozhin presumed dead: What lies ahead for Wagner Group?

Founded by Prigozhin in 2014, Wagner is a private military company that supported Kremlin objectives on battlefields in Ukraine, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa

Putin expresses 'condolences' over Wagner's Prigozhin plane crash

He described those on board as people "who greatly contributed" to fighting in Ukraine

Brics: All you need to know about the global partnership and latest updates

The members countries announced the expansion of the grouping by adding six new countries - Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) - into the fold

Yevgeny Prigozhin: "Putin's butcher" behind Wagner uprising

Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash on Wednesday, several media reports stated. It was later confirmed by the Russian aviation authorities.

Moscow court extends arrest of jailed WSJ reporter Gershkovich: Report

The arrest of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on espionage charges has been extended to November 30, Russian state news agency Tass said. Gershkovich arrived at the Moscow court Thursday in a white prison van and was led out handcuffed, wearing jeans, sneakers and a shirt. Journalists outside the court were not allowed to witness the proceedings. Tass said they were held behind closed doors because details of the criminal case are classified. The prosecution had asked to extend his arrest from August 30. He has appealed against the extensions to his detention. A 31-year-old US citizen, Gershkovich was arrested Yekaterinburg while on a reporting trip in late March. Russia's Federal Security Service said Gershkovich, acting on the instructions of the American side, collected information constituting a state secret about the activities of one of the enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex. Gershkovich and his employer deny the allegations, and the US ...

Putin's chef, dead in plane crash: Who was Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin?

In 2014, Prigozhin founded Wagner, a private military company. Its fighters were used in support of Moscow's allies in countries including Syria, Libya and the Central African Republic

UN Security Council, minus China, Russia condemns Myanmar military actions

Members of the U.N. Security Council minus China and Russia condemned the unrelenting violence and killing of civilians in Myanmar and again urged its military rulers to stop attacks, release ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi and respect human rights. Thirteen of the 15 council members on Wednesday backed a joint statement that said there had been insufficient progress on implementing the first-ever Security Council resolution on Myanmar that was adopted last December. In that 12-0 vote, China and Russia, which have ties to the military that seized power from Suu Kyi's elected civilian government in February 2021, abstained along with India whose two-year term on the council has ended. Britain's deputy U.N. ambassador James Kariuki read the statement, flanked by diplomats from the other countries, after the council was briefed at a closed meeting by U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths on his recent visit to Myanmar and by Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari on efforts to ..

Wagner chief Prigozhin who led rebellion against Putin dies in plane crash

Mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a brief armed rebellion against the Russian military earlier this year, was presumed dead Wednesday after a plane crash north of Moscow that killed all 10 people on board. Prigozhin was on the plane, according to Russia's civil aviation agency, which cited the airline. The crash immediately raised suspicions since the fate of the founder of the Wagner private military company has been the subject of intense speculation ever since he mounted the mutiny. At the time, President Vladimir Putin denounced the rebellion as treason and a stab in the back and vowed to avenge it. But the charges against Prigozhin were soon dropped. The Wagner chief, whose troops were some of the best fighting forces for Russia in Ukraine, was allowed to retreat to Belarus, while reportedly popping up in Russia from time to time. The crash also comes after Russian media reported that a top general linked to Prigozhin was dismissed from his position as commander of th

Plane crashes near Moscow, mercenary chief Prigozhin on passenger list

Earlier TASS had reported that ten people had died after a private jet crashed in Russia's Tver region north of Moscow. The jet, en route from Moscow to St Petersburg, was carrying seven passengers an

Brics nations agree for considering new members: S African minister

No new Brics bank members to be announced at summit, says CFO

Russian Prez congratulates India on Chandrayaan-3's successful moon landing

Russian President Vladimir Putin and UAE Vice President Sheikh Mohammed were among the world leaders who congratulated India on Wednesday on the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon, saying the historic event is evidence of India's impressive progress in the scientific-technological sphere. President Putin has congratulated India's President Draupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the successful landing of the Indian space probe Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon near its South Pole, the Kremlin's press service said. "Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on the successful landing of India's Chandrayaan-3 space probe on the Moon near the South Pole. This is a long stride in the exploration of outer space and, of course, evidence of the impressive progress made by India in science and engineering, Putin said in his message. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, congratulated India on becoming the firs

India hopeful of consensus among G20 nations on 5 trade, investment issues

G20 nations also aim to remove bottlenecks that impede integration of MSMEs in international trade

Russia pursues goal of ending war 'unleashed' by West in Ukraine: Putin

President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday accused the Western countries of "unleashing a war" in Ukraine against the people living in Donbass region and said Russia's special military operation pursues the goal of ending that war. President Putin, who is attending the 15th BRICS summit virtually as he could face possible arrest in terms of an International Criminal Court warrant if he lands in South Africa, also stressed that it was the wish of a number of Western countries to preserve their hegemony in the world that "has led to the grave crisis in Ukraine." "Russia has decided to support the people who are fighting for their culture, for their traditions, for their language and for their future. Our actions in Ukraine have only one reason - to put an end to the war that was unleashed by the West and their satellites in Ukraine against the people living in Donbass," Putin said while virtually addressing the annual summit of leaders of BRICS. The BRICS bloc - comprising Brazil, Russia,