Page 52 - Russia

Crashed plane was shot at from Russia, says Azerbaijan Prez Ilham Aliyev

President Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologised to Aliyev for Wednesday's "tragic incident" in Russian airspace involving the plane after Russian air defences engaged Ukrainian attack drones

2024: A year of triumphs, setbacks for Putin, here's how it unfolded

In 2024, President Vladimir Putin further cemented his grip on power and sought to counter Russia's isolation from the West over the war in Ukraine. But he faced continuing challenges, with a deadly attack by gunmen in Moscow and an incursion by Kyiv's troops on his territory. As Russia's nearly 3-year-old war in Ukraine enters a new, potentially pivotal phase amid a new U.S. administration and its uncertain support for Kyiv, here's a look back at how the year unfolded for Putin: January: A presidential campaign with no real opponents Putin ran for a fifth term in office with his top opponents either jailed or exiled abroad. But in a rare show of defiance, thousands of Russians queued in the January cold to sign petitions for an unlikely challenger. Boris Nadezhdin, a 60-year-old legislator and war critic, got the 100,000 signatures needed to put him on the ballot, but election authorities eventually barred him from running. Still, the support he received reflected anti-war sentimen

Ukrainian troops face risk of losing more hard-won land in Kursk to Russia

Five months after their shock offensive into Russia, Ukrainian troops are bloodied and demoralised by the rising risk of defeat in Kursk, a region some want to hold at all costs while others question the value of having gone in at all. Battles are so intense that some Ukrainian commanders can't evacuate the dead. Communication lags and poorly timed tactics have cost lives, and troops have little way to counterattack, seven front-line soldiers and commanders told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity so they could discuss sensitive operations. Since being caught unaware by the lightning Ukrainian incursion, Russia has amassed more than 50,000 troops in the region, including some from its ally North Korea. Precise numbers are hard to obtain, but Moscow's counterattack has killed and wounded thousands and the overstretched Ukrainians have lost more then 40% of the 984 square kilometers (380 square miles) of Kursk they seized in August. Its full-scale invasion three years ago .

Ukrainian attack was underway before Azerbaijani plane crash, says Russia

Russia's aviation chief said Friday that a Ukrainian drone attack was under way in the region of Chechnya at the time an Azerbaijani airliner attempted to land before diverting to Kazakhstan and crashing there earlier this week. Dmitry Yadrov, head of Russia's civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia, didn't comment on statements by an Azerbaijani lawmaker and many aviation experts who blamed Wednesday's crash on Russian air defence fire. Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer 190 was flying from Azerbaijan's capital of Baku to Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, but it turned to Aktau in Kazakhstan across the Caspian Sea and crashed while making an attempt to land there. The crash killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured. Authorities in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia were tight-lipped about a possible cause of the crash pending an official probe, but a member of Azerbaijan's parliament, Rasim Musabekov told the Azerbaijani news agency Turan on Thursday

Azerbaijan Airlines suspends flights to Russian cities after plane crash

Azerbaijan's flag carrier announced Friday that it will suspend flights to several Russian airports, citing potential flight safety risks after a crash of one of its planes that many experts blamed on Russian air defence fire. Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer 190 was flying from Azerbaijan's capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus on Wednesday when it was diverted for reasons still unclear and crashed while making an attempt to land in Aktau in Kazakhstan after flying east across the Caspian Sea. The crash killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured. Authorities in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia were tight-lipped about a possible cause of the crash pending an official probe, but a lawmaker in Azerbaijan blamed Moscow. Rasim Musabekov told the Azerbaijani news agency Turan on Thursday that the plane was fired on while in the skies over Grozny, and urged Russia to offer an official apology. Asked about Musabekov's statement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry .

Altercation erupts at high-level meeting of Russia-dominated economic union

A tightly-scripted meeting of the Russia-dominated economic alliance of several ex-Soviet nations briefly went awry Thursday when two leaders engaged in bickering during a live broadcast of the event. Russian President Vladimir Putin and other heads of states attended the meeting of the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has increasingly sought to phase down his country's ties with Moscow and forge closer relations with the West, joined the meeting via video link after cancelling his trip following a positive test for COVID-19. The carefully choreographed session at a resort near St. Petersburg veered off script when Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, whose country was taking the rotating chairmanship in the economic grouping from Armenia, urged Pashinyan to visit Belarus for the union's next meeting. Pashinyan responded that he plans to attend the Belarus meeting via vide

Finland seizes Russian 'Shadow Fleet'-linked oil tanker over cable sabotage

Finland and European Union link undersea cable sabotages in the Baltic to Russian 'Shadow Fleet', announce sanctions

World leaders mourn 'Great Champion' Manmohan Singh's passing

Leaders from around the world including the US, Canada, Afghanistan, Russia, and more share their condolences on the passing of former Prime MInister Manmohan Singh

China's President Xi Jinping will visit Russia in 2025, says Russian envoy

China, working with Brazil, has put forward a peace plan for the Ukraine war, calling for a freezing of battle lines and taking into account the security interests of both sides

Russia's air defence likely caused Azerbaijan plane crash: Aviation experts

Aviation experts said Thursday that Russian air defence fire was likely responsible for the Azerbaijani plane crash the day before that killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured. Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer 190 was en route from Azerbaijan's capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus on Wednesday when it was diverted for reasons still unclear and crashed while making an attempt to land in Aktau in Kazakhstan after flying east across the Caspian Sea. The plane went down about 3 km (2 miles) from Aktau. Cellphone footage circulating online appeared to show the aircraft making a steep descent before crashing into the ground and exploding in a fireball. Other footage showed a part of its fuselage ripped away from the wings and the rest of the aircraft lying upside down on the grass. Azerbaijan mourned the crash victims with national flags at half-staff across on Thursday. Traffic stopped at noon, and sirens sounded from ships and trains as it observed

It's up to Trump team to make first move to improve ties, says Russia

Trump's designated Ukraine envoy, retired Lieutenant-General Kellogg, told Fox News on Dec. 18 that both sides were ready for peace talks and that Trump was in a perfect position to execute a deal

Azerbaijan Airlines flight likely downed by Russian air defences: Reports

Flight J2-8243 crashed down on Wednesday in a ball of fire near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan after diverting from an area of southern Russia

Russian bank VTB says on track for record profit of $5.5 billion in 2024

Bank said it was still on track to hit profit target of 550 billion roubles in 2024 despite a significant depreciation in the value of many of its assets in November as a result of monetary tightening

Russia's CBRF to resume regular forex operations under budget rule in 2025

Under Russia's budget rule, the finance ministry sells foreign currency from its rainy day National Wealth Fund (NWF) to make up for any shortfall in revenue from oil and gas exports

Foiled Ukrainian plots to kill senior officials, their families: Russia

FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said that the Russian citizens had been recruited by the Ukrainian intelligence services

Bird strike, Russian missiles among Azerbaijan plane crash conspiracies

As investigators cite a possible bird strike for the plane crash, viral videos and social media speculation raise questions about shrapnel damage and a potential Russian defense system involvement

Russia's inflation at 9.5% amid rising prices of essentials, shows data

Inflationary expectations among households for the coming year also reached 13.9 per cent in December, the highest level since the beginning of the year

Russia says pipeline gas, LNG exports to Europe up by 18-20% in 2024

Russian pipeline gas exports to Europe face serious challenges

Russian missiles target Ukraine's energy infrastructure on Christmas day

Russia launched a massive missile barrage targeting Ukraine's energy infrastructure on Wednesday, striking a thermal power plant and prompting Ukrainians to take shelter in metro stations on Christmas morning. In a Facebook statement, Ukrainian energy minister, Herman Halushchenko, said Russia again massively attacks energy infrastructure." Ukraine's Air Force alerted multiple missiles fired at Kharkiv, Dnipro, and Poltava regions east of the country. The (electricity) distribution system operator takes the necessary measures to limit consumption to minimise negative consequences for the power system, he said. As soon as the security situation allows, energy workers will establish the damage caused. Ukraine's biggest private energy company, DTEK, said Russia struck one of their thermal power plants Wednesday morning, making it the 13th attack on Ukraine's power grid this year. Denying light and warmth to millions of peace-loving people as they celebrate Christmas is a depraved and

UP man's body returns home 6 months after death in Russia-Ukraine war

Kanhaiya Yadav, a resident of Bankata village here, left for Russia in January to work as a cook. Almost a year later, he returned home in a casket. Soon after arriving there, Yadav, 41, was enlisted in the Russian army and sent to the front lines of the Russia-Ukraine war where he was injured. Days after fighting for his life in a hospital, Yadav died on June 17, according to his family. His mortal remains were finally brought home on Monday. Yadav left for St. Peter's Square, Russia on January 16 after securing a work visa through an agent. He underwent training as a cook and was subsequently enlisted in the Russian army, said his wife Geeta. "On May 9, Yadav informed us that he was injured in the fighting. He was in touch with us till May 25, but there was no communication after that," she said. On December 6, the Indian embassy in Moscow informed the family that Yadav died on June 17 while undergoing treatment at a hospital, she added. Yadav's body was brought back on ...