Page 52 - Vladimir Putin

Russian President Putin to receive EAM Jaishankar today, says Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday, the Kremlin has announced. "Tonight, the president plans to receive Mr. Jaishankar, India's foreign minister, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters here. Jaishankar is here on a five-day official visit to Russia. Peskov noted that the top Indian diplomat had already met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. According to the Kremlin spokesman, India is an important partner of Russia, so the ministers will talk about the contacts held and the course of their discussion. "It's always good to be in Moscow. So, I agree with you that our relationship has been very strong, very steady, and I think we have lived up to the responsibilities of a special and privileged strategic partnership," Jaishankar told Lavrov. On Tuesday, Jaishankar held a "comprehensive and productive" meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Manturov on the bilateral economic cooperation during which they

6 killed in Russian drone-artillery attack in Ukraine, Kherson out of power

Russia fired almost 50 Shahed drones at targets in Ukraine and shelled a train station where more than 100 civilians were gathered to catch a train to Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday. The barrages killed at least five people and knocked out power in most of the southern city of Kherson. The aerial barrage came a day after Ukrainian warplanes damaged a Russian ship moored in the Black Sea off Crimea as both sides' soldiers struggle to make much progress along the front line of the 22-month war. Overnight, the Kremlin's forces launched an artillery and drone bombardment of the Kherson region just as some 140 civilians were waiting for a train at the region's capital city of the same name, according to Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. The shelling killed one policeman and injured two other police officers, as well as two civilians. More than 100 people who were waiting for the train at the time of the attack arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday morning, national rail ..

Jaishankar-Lavrov talks to focus on trade in national currencies, banking

Hydrocarbon development in the Arctic Shelf and Russian Far East to be discussed, Russian Foreign Ministry has said

Foreign shareholders freeze participation in Russia's Arctic LNG 2: Report

The project, seen as a key element in Russia's drive to boost its LNG global market share to 20 per cent by 2030 from 8 per cent, was already facing difficulties due to US sanctions

Bracing for more sanctions, says Bank of Russia governor amid Ukraine war

The US announced Friday that it would use sanctions against banks that facilitate deals in which Russia procures semiconductors, ball bearings and other equipment necessary for its war machine

Jailed Russian opposition leader Navalny located 3 weeks after contact lost

Associates of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said on Monday that he has been located at a prison colony above the Arctic Circle, nearly three weeks after contact with him was lost. Navalny, the most prominent foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism. He had been imprisoned in the Vladimir region of central Russia, about 230 kilometers (140 miles) east of Moscow, but his lawyers said they had not been able to reach him since December 6. His spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said on X, formerly Twitter, that he was located in a prison colony in the town of Kharp, in the Yamalo-Nenetsk region about 1,900 kilometers (1,200 miles) northeast of Moscow.

US aims tougher sanctions at banks in new bid to hurt Putin: Report

Under Friday's action, some of those banks could face penalties for maintaining those relationships if the trade continues

Prez Putin increases military pressure on Ukraine, expects western support

After blunting Ukraine's counteroffensive from the summer, Russia is building up its resources for a new stage of the war over the winter, which could involve trying to extend its gains in the east and deal significant blows to the country's vital infrastructure. Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to be hoping that relentless military pressure, combined with changing Western political dynamics and a global focus on the Israeli-Hamas war, will drain support for Ukraine in the nearly 2-year-old war and force Kyiv to yield to Moscow's demands. As far as the Russian leadership is concerned, the confrontation with the West has reached a turning point: The Ukrainian counteroffensive has failed, Russia is more confident than ever, and the cracks in Western solidarity are spreading, said Tatiana Stanovaya, senior fellow with Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, in a recent analysis. An aid package for Ukraine has stalled in the US Congress as Republicans insist on linking any more money to .

Weighing request for mobilisation of up to 500,000 troops: Zelenskyy

Ukraine's military wants to mobilise up to 500,000 more troops to fight Russia's invasion, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday that he has asked them to spell out their plans in detail on what is a very sensitive matter before deciding whether he grants their wish as the war approaches the two-year mark. Such a major mobilisation would cost Ukraine around 500 billion hryvnias ($13.4 billion), Zelenskyy said. Other aspects to be considered include whether troops currently on the front line would be rotated or allowed home leave after almost 22 months of full-scale war. Ukrainian Ministry of Defence statistics say the Ukrainian army had nearly 800,000 troops in October. That doesn't include National Guard or other units. In total, 1 million Ukrainians are in uniform. Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country's military to increase the number of troops by nearly 170,000 to a total of 1.32 million. Russia, Ukraine's far bigger neighbo

Ready to talk on Ukraine but will defend our national interests: Putin

Putin, who sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, has repeatedly said he would be prepared to talk about peace, though Western officials say he is waiting for the U.S. presidential election

Putin officially registered as candidate for Russian presidential election

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday presented documents to Russia's Central Election Commission to register as a candidate in the 2024 presidential election. He submitted them, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state media. Supporters of Putin on Saturday formally nominated him to run in the 2024 presidential election as an independent candidate. The nomination by a group of at least 500 supporters, under Russian election law, is mandatory for those running not on a party ticket. Independent candidates also need to gather at least 300,000 signatures of support from 40 regions or more. The group that nominated Putin included top officials from the ruling United Russia party, prominent Russian actors and singers, athletes and other public figures. Putin has used different tactics over the years. He ran as an independent in 2018 and his campaign gathered signatures. In 2012, he ran as a nominee of the Kremlin's United Russia party, so there was no need for ...

No plan to attack Nato: Putin dismisses Biden's remark as 'nonsense'

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly cast the post-Cold War expansion of NATO as evidence of the West's arrogant way of dealing with Russia's security concerns

Russia presidential polls: Supporters name Putin as independent candidate

Russian President Vladimir Putin's supporters on Saturday formally nominated him to run in the 2024 presidential election as an independent candidate, state news agencies reported. The nomination by a group of at least 500 supporters is mandatory under Russian election law for those not running on a party ticket. Independent candidates also need to gather at least 300,000 signatures in their support. The group that nominated Putin included top officials from the ruling United Russia party, prominent Russian actors and singers, athletes and other public figures. Whoever is ready to support the candidacy of Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin for the post of president of Russia, please vote. Who's in favour? Mikhail Kuznetsov, head of the executive committee of the People's Front, asked those gathered. The People's Front is a political coalition, founded in 2011 by Putin. After the vote, Kuznetsov announced that the group had voted unanimously to nominate Putin. According to Russian electi

Kremlin has 'no information' about missing Putin critic Alexei Navalny

The prison authorities moved him from the penal colony, where he was serving his sentence for multiple charges, including extremism, but have not said where he was transferred to

Is the West abandoning Ukraine? Prez Volodymyr Zelenskiy's tough week

France and Germany and others let it be known showing up wouldn't be a good idea, according to people familiar with the discussion, who spoke on condition of anonymity

I didn't change my number, still open to talk with Putin for peace: Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday he would still consider talking with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin if it helps creating a sustainable peace between Ukraine and Russia. Macron and Putin enjoyed a good working relationship before Russia invaded its neighbour in February 2022. In weeks preceding the start of hostilities, Macron's diplomatic efforts failed to stop the war but he then kept open a line of communication with the Russian president for months. Their diplomatic and personal links deteriorated badly as the war dragged on. Earlier this year, Macron weighed the possibility of stripping Putin of France's highest medal of honor. Putin was asked Thursday during his year-end news conference by a journalist from the French channel TF1 about his views on France and Macron. Putin said: "At some point, the French president stopped the relationship with us. We didn't do it, I didn't. He did. If there's interest, we're ready. If not, we'll cope. Speaking in Brussel

Advantage Moscow: 'Fortress Russia' hasn't turned into 'rubble Russia'

Russia will pay a long-term price, of course, but it has weathered Western sanctions. Its current position isn't what Western powers would have predicted in February 2022, writes T N Ninan

Russian President Putin vows victory in war as West wavers on Ukraine

Putin is holding the news conference for the first time since he ordered the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine

617,000 Russian troops in Ukraine: Putin at rare 4 hour media interaction

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday there would be no peace in Ukraine until the Kremlin realises its goals, which remain unchanged after nearly two years of fighting that has sent tensions soaring between Moscow and the West. Speaking at a year-end news conference that lasted over four hours and offered him an opportunity to reinforce his grip on power, Putin gave some rare details on what Moscow calls its special military operation. He dismissed the need for a second wave of mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine a move that has been deeply unpopular. He said there are some 617,000 Russian soldiers there, including around 244,000 troops who were called up to fight alongside professional military forces. There will be peace when we will achieve our goals, Putin said, repeating a frequent Kremlin line. Victory will be ours. Putin highlighted Russian military gains in Ukraine as the conflict's second winter approached. Almost all along the line of contact our ar

Russian volunteers join Ukrainian ranks to fight against Putin's forces

When Russia's invasion of Ukraine ignited into war, back in Moscow, a young Russian who now goes by the name of Karabas was plunged into despair. Shocked by images of what was happening to Ukrainians in Russian-occupied areas, he decided to act against Russia, his home and country. Karabas said he knew that what he was doing was drastic. He packed his bags and decided to find a way to get to Ukraine to join the ranks of Kyiv's troops fighting Russian forces. It took him almost a year to make it happen. Today, he is part of the Siberian Battalion, a unit made up of Russians who have joined Ukrainian military ranks to fight against their homeland, hoping someday to help oust Russian President Vladimir Putin. Its members hail mostly from ethnic minorities from Russia's far east. I was disillusioned with my own people," recounted Karabas, who like other fighters in the battalion spoke to The Associated Press on condition that only his military call sign be used. "That is why I wanted