Sonntag, 30. November 2014

Putin to insist on tax preferences for Russian nuclear corporation Rosatom in Turkey

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/economy/764425

MOSCOW, December 1. /TASS/. Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom would like to obtain the status of a strategic investor in Turkey, which would make it possible to cut its income tax by 18%. The issue is expected to be discussed during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state visit to Ankara on Monday.

“During the upcoming talks, we will make our address regarding the granting of a strategic investor status to Rosatom on the project to build the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, which would mean certain tax relief and would allow to cut the income tax from 20% to 2%,” Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said.

He said the issue has been discussed for two years and added that Moscow intends to raise it again.

Rosatom is building Turkey’s first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu, which is due to be completed in 2022. Ushakov recalled that the volume of investment in the project totals $20 billion. Four power units,1,200 MW each, are due to be constructed.

Ushakov said gas supplies to Turkey would also be discussed. He refused to go into detail.

In an interview with Turkish news agency Anadolu shortly before his visit, Putin said the issue of the price of additional volumes of Russian gas for Turkey needs a thorough consideration.

Ushakov said Turkey is in second place after Germany in terms of Russian gas purchases. He said gas supplies are currently carried out via the “western corridor” — in transit via Ukraine, Moldova, Romania and Bulgaria, as well as through the Blue Stream pipeline.

In 2013, Russia supplied to Turkey 26.6 billion cubic meters of gas, and in January-September 2014 — 20.7 billion cu m, or 7.2% more than over the same period last year. In October this year, an agreement was reached to increase the Blue Stream capacity from 16 to 19 billion cu m annually.

He also said Russia and Turkey interact in the issue of the South Stream gas pipeline construction.

Ushakov said ten new agreements are expected to be signed in Ankara on Monday, including a memorandum between Rosatom and Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Ministry on training of staff for the nuclear power industry, a deal on mutual legal assistance and a protocol of the intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation.

Freitag, 28. November 2014

MiG-31 fighter force to get $630 million upgrade

Source : http://m.in.rbth.com/economics/2014/11/28/mig-31_fighter_force_to_get_630_million_upgrade_40001.html

Russia's Defence Ministry has signed a 30 billion rouble ($630 million) contract with a major state-owned aircraft manufacturer to modernize over 50 of its high-speed MiG-31 interceptor jets, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

The move comes amid a 20 trillion rouble ($500 billion) ongoing state rearmament program and rising tensions over Ukraine that have seen Russian jets repeatedly test the boundaries of NATO airspace in recent months.

"The armed forces will receive over 50 modernized MiG-31s by the end of 2018," RIA quoted Deputy Defense Minister Yury Borisov as saying Thursday. The modernization will be carried out by Russia's largest aircraft manufacturer, United Aircraft Corporation.

The MiG-31 is a classic Soviet aircraft. Designed in the 1970s as a follow on to the MiG-25 supersonic interceptor jet, the plane is a supersonic bomber killer.

The MiG-31 is capable of intercepting and destroying any target from low-flying satellites to cruise missiles. A group of interceptors can control a large portion of air space, by directing fighters to any target, as well as ground-based anti-aircraft missiles.

This aircraft was called the “flying radar” by the pilots, for its unique avionics capabilities. This complex has at its basis the ‘Barrier’ control system, equipped with the world’s first phased-array antenna. This PAA differs from the classic radar as it allows to move the beam at a fixed antenna, as well as to create the necessary number of rays, tracking multiple targets simultaneously.

Modernized MiG-31s are outfitted with new avionics and fire control systems, and can simultaneously fire on six targets within a 280-kilometre radius.

The U.S. and most other Western air forces phased out dedicated bomber interceptors by the time the MiG-31 entered service in 1975, as the focus of Soviet nuclear strategy focused on ballistic missiles. However, the Soviets saw continued need to operate fighters capable of dealing with the comparatively massive U.S. strategic bomber fleet in the event of nuclear conflict.

Russia has already modernized around 20 MiG-31s, according to media reports. A separate contract to modernize 60 of the aircraft by 2020 was signed with United Aircraft Corporation in 2011, RIA reported.

Syria coordinates with Russia to start new dialogue with opposition: FM

Source : English.news.cn

DAMASCUS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Friday that the Syrian government is coordinating with Russia for launching dialogue with the Syrian opposition, according to the pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV.

In an interview with the TV, al-Moallem, who has been on an official visit to Moscow, said that the Syrian government is coordinating with Moscow for embarking on a dialogue between the Syrian administration and the opposition parties that could start in Moscow and continue in Syria.

The head of the Syrian diplomacy said his government's relations with Moscow are strategic, noting that the previous talks between his government and the Syrian opposition in Geneva had failed, according to the TV.

Meanwhile, al-Moallem said that Russia is committed to implement its arms deals with Syria.

It's worth mentioning that al-Moallem had personally met with President Vladimir Putin during his visit to Moscow, a move that signifies the strong relations between both countries.

Talks about possible dialogue between the government and opposition in Russia were first floated earlier this month by the pro-government al-Watan newspaper, which said that there was a Russian plan for holding a political dialogue in Moscow between delegations of the Syrian government and opposition figures.

According to the paper, the Russian plan relies on a Syrian dialogue in Moscow that would be attended by an official Syrian delegation and a number of Syrian opposition figures from inside and outside Syria, mainly the former head of the exiled Syrian National Coalition (SNC), Muaz al-Khatib, who is being floated as the leading character that would lead the opposition delegation.

The paper said the opposition delegation would include members of the Syria-based National Coordination Body and a number of independent opposition figures that defected from the exiled SNC, which had been floated at the beginning of the crisis as the sole representative of the Syrian people.

The newspaper said Washington had withdrawn its recognition of the SNC as the sole representative of the Syrians, citing the group's inability to forge a strong front of political weight to face the Syrian government, especially after the faltering political talks between the SNC and the Syrian government in the series of Geneva talks earlier this year.

The Geneva talks have given the sentiment that the SNC had failed to lead the opposition talks, prompting the powers to mull broader representation of the Syrian opposition in future talks.

Al-Watan said Washington does not mind the Russian plan to continue the political dialogue on the basis of the Geneva communique, which was adopted in 2012 and includes the formation of a provisional government that would pave the way for legislative and presidential elections in Syria.

The paper said the UN envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura was familiar with the Russian plan, as he had visited Muaz al-Khatib this month.

Before resigning from the SNC's leadership, Muaz al-Khatib has emerged as one of the voices inside the group and advocated negotiation with the Syrian administration, but was completely rejected by the SNC, which support all means to bring down the Damascus administration, even by foreign militaries.

Donnerstag, 27. November 2014

The BBC Worries That Russia Has Military Control of its Own Coastline

Source : http://russia-insider.com/en

How is that for a ridiculous headline? You like it?

Well, it is just a little variation of a BBC headline today:

"Nato commander warns Russia could control whole Black Sea"

"Russia's top military commander, Gen Valerii Gerasimov, has warned that US "militarisation" of the annexed Florida Peninsula could be used to exert control over the whole Gulf of Mexico."Well, the real excerpt was just slightly different:"Nato's top military commander, Gen Philip Breedlove, has warned that Russian "militarisation" of the annexed Crimea Peninsula could be used to exert control over the whole Black Sea."

Come to think of it, there is another difference: the US and NATO just tried to take control of Crimea via the Maidan color revolution whereas Russia did not try to take control of Florida.

That, of course, also begs the following question: if the US and NATO suspect that Russia might use the Crimea Peninsula to control the whole of the Black Sea, then would it be most unreasonable to ask what exactly the US and NATO were hoping to achieve had they succeeded in taking over Crimea?

This is, of course, absolutely ridiculous and yet another example of the mind-blowing hypocrisy western corporate media. It goes like this:

US in Gulf of Mexico - good.US in Black Sea - also good.Russia in Black Sea - bad. Russia in Gulf of Mexico - unthinkable.

And the worst here is not the imperial hubris and arrogance of the USA, it is the willing subservience of the Europeans to Uncle Sam. They all know it, but they pretend not to notice.

Still, does Gen Breedlove have a point? Oh yes, he sure does. Crimea will, indeed, give Russia total control of the Black Sea and even beyond.

Russia will station at the very least one missile cruiser, several ultra-modern diesel attack submarines (ideal for brown and green water operations), supersonic medium range bombers armed with cruise missiles, coastal artillery and cruise missile batteries, fast attack craft, anti-submarine rotary and fixed-wing aircraft, etc.

Russia, Vietnam agree on simplified Cam Ranh port entry for Russian warships

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/world/763988

MOSCOW, November 27. /TASS/. Russia and Vietnam have signed an intergovernmental agreement on the simplified entry of Russian warships to Vietnam’s Cam Ranh port, a source in the Russian Defense Ministry told TASS on Thursday.

“The agreement was signed in Sochi on November 25 during the visit of Secretary General of the Central Committee of the Vietnamese Communist Party Nguyen Phu Trong to Russia. The procedure sets the requirement for Russian vessels that are approaching the Vietnamese port only to notify its authorities for entry,” said the source.

Vietnam is the second country with which Russia has such an agreement. “Russia had signed a similar agreement many years ago with Syria on Russian Navy ships and vessels’ Tartus port entry. However, Russia has another agreement with Syria on the sustainment center of the Russian Navy in Tartus. Russia so far has no such agreement with Vietnam,” the source said. According to him, the document signing will be discussed at future bilateral negotiations.

US responsible for two-thirds of all military conflicts – Russia’s top brass

Source : http://rt.com/news

US interference in the internal affairs of countries around the world has brought neither peace, nor democracy, said Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister. America’s double standard experiments in supporting terrorists are provoking further destabilization.

“Think of it, over the last decades the US initiated two-thirds of all military conflicts (worldwide). Call to memory, how it all turned out in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria,” Russia’s deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said, addressing colleagues from the Southern and Southeast Asian states in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

“Using social and economic difficulties, various ethnical and religious conflicts and under the pretext of spreading democracy, Western political spin masters add populist slogans to the fire of public discontent, provoking mass disturbances,”he said. “As a result, a lawful government is taken down, chaos, abuse of power and lawlessness spread, people die, and in some cases a regime favorable to the West is brought into power. Of course, terrorists feel comfortable in such conditions.”

Antonov called on the US authorities to “give up double standards in the implementation of counter-terrorist measures” and stop dividing terrorists into good and bad ones.

“No matter what slogans terrorists use – they should remain outlaws,” Antonov said, speaking about the current disastrous situations in Syria and Iraq as a vivid example of consequences of such “ineffectual experiments.”

Russian top brass stressed their concern over the creation of terrorist organizations for serving the specific needs of certain states. A classic example is the Taliban movement in Afghanistan, created to combat the Soviet Union, but which ended as the Al-Qaeda terrorist network that bit back hard at the US.

Russia is always ready to cooperate in fighting terrorism and to coordinate activities to defeat the new challenge presented by the Islamic State, Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister said, pointing out that Moscow has never stopped supplying legitimate governments with weapons and military hardware to ease their fight against religious extremism.

Initially created to eliminate President Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria, it became a terror threat for the whole Middle East region, Antonov said.

Another global threat to world security and stability is the so-called global trend in “color revolutions” Antonov said, comparing the ongoing protests in Hong-Kong with the Maidan protests in Ukraine, which ended in chaos, mass murder, economic downturn, split of the country and eventually – a civil war.

The deputy defense minister blamed the US for“pushing Ukraine to the abyss” in an internal conflict, which has already killed thousands through the support of an unconstitutional power takeover.”

For those who doubt that “color revolutions” are not typical for the Southeast Asian states, Antonov highlighted the fact that “10 percent of Islamic State militants now fighting in Syria and Iraq come from the Southeast Asia.”

“What will happen in the countries of the region when those highly trained militants with battlefield experience come back to their home countries?”Antonov questioned.

It is a primary task of the national armed forces of Southern and Southeast Asian states to maintain regional security and neutralize the potential threat of color revolutions internally, Antonov stressed, proposing to develop closer ties between national defense forces.

The US foreign is now bringing instability to the Asia-Pacific (A/P) region, developing its global missile defense network under the pretext of a North Korean nuclear threat.

“In reality, American global missile defense is aimed at undermining regional and international security and poses a serious threat to the Asia-Pacific region,” Antonov said.

The US is beefing up its military presence in the Asia-Pacific region with nuclear air carriers and strategic bombers “under a vain pretext” in order to master other countries policies, Antonov said, noting that the region’s governments suffered unprecedented pressure recently when Washington forced them to “join illegal anti-Russian (economic) sanctions.”

The military potential being readied by Washington“considerably exceeds the level required to neutralize any existing or potential missile threat,”Antonov said.

Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister recalled President Vladimir Putin saying some time ago that America’s attempts to interfere in other countries’ internal affairs usually end up in a catastrophe.

Addressing a gathering on Lake Seliger in Russia’s Tver regionin in August, President Vladimir Putinsaid that he had an impression that “whatever Americans touch they always end up with Libya or Iraq.”

China Negotiating to Buy Russian S-400 Anti-Aircraft Missile Systems

Source : http://www.themoscowtimes.com/mobile/business/article/china-negotiating-purchase-of-s-400-anti-aircraft-missile-systems-from-russia/511882.html

Russia is in the process of selling cutting-edge S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems to China, which would hand Beijing a defense system capable of deterring even the most advanced air powers from infringing on Chinese airspace, the Vedomosti newspaper reported Wednesday.

China this fall signed an agreement with Russia's arms export agency, Rosoboronexport, that calls for the delivery of at least six divisions of the S-400 system costing over $3 billion, the paper said citing unidentified Defense Ministry and industry officials.

 Factbox: Russia's S-400 Air-Defense Missile SystemThe report comes a week after Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on a visit to Beijing agreed to deepen military-industrial ties and hold more joint naval exercises with China.

The Moscow Times was unable to receive confirmation from Rosoboronexport that a contract has been signed, but a representative of another government agency involved in defense exports, the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, told the RIA Novosti news agency the contract had not yet been signed.

A next-generation air defense system originally designed to counter the increasing air power of the U.S., the S-400 can strike F-35 stealth fighters and shoot down ballistic missiles.

Built by Russia's largest defense contractor Almaz-Antey, primarily for use by the Russian military but also for export, the system provides a coverage of up to 400 kilometers and an altitude of 30 kilometers, and is ideal for defending cities, military bases and sensitive facilities from enemy aircraft, according to Russian media reports.

Armed with three types of missiles suited for short-, medium- and long-range intercepts with aerial targets, a single S-400 battery can engage up to 36 targets with 72 missiles simultaneously, according to Russian media reports.

The S-400's ability to deter well-equipped foreign aggressors has earned both it and its predecessor, the S-300, high demand among nations that do not consider themselves to be U.S. allies.

China appears to be particularly interested. It already has Russian-made S-300s, and is licensed to produce its own versions of that system. But the defensive capabilities and wider range of the S-400 give it superiority over anything else that Chinese industry can field at the moment, which is limited to about 200 kilometers.

In modern warfare, domination of the sky is perhaps the single most important factor in achieving victory over an enemy. A system such as the S-400 would make it very difficult for an invading power to advance without diverting time, energy and resources to destroying these defenses.

The S-300 was a huge export success for Russia, and the S-400 has garnered interest from India, Algeria and Vietnam as well as China. These four are Russia's primary arms customers, accounting for over 60 percent of its annual exports, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Moscow has however run into problems with its anti-aircraft missile system sales. The United Nations pressured Russia to halt an $800 million purchase of five S-300 systems by Iran in 2010 and a similar sale to Bashar Assad's regime in Syria, but Russia is holding of on completing the deal after the international body placed sanctions on Damascus last year.

Last test of Russia's new Yars-based ballistic missile due in December — source

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/763994

MOSCOW, November 27. /TASS/. The last test launch of the solid propellant inter-continental ballistic missile RS-26 (also known as Avangard and Rubezh), created on the basis of the RS-24 Yars missile, has been scheduled for December, a source in the defence-industrial complex told TASS.

“The testing is not over yet. According to the current plans the new missile is to enter duty in 2015. In December, there will be the final launch to be followed by a decision in favour of serial manufacturing,” the source said.

RS-26 has improved combat capabilities and a multiple warheads. The missile is to be lighter than its predecessor RS-24 Yars.

Strategic Missile Force commander, Colonel Sergey Karakayev said the missile will be launched from a mobile surface vehicle. There are no plans for its silo deployment.

Top US Analyst: Russia's Next-Gen Fighter Jet Better Than US's (Sukhoi T-50)

Source : http://russia-insider.com/en/military

The Russian Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA stealth fighter could prove to be a formidable competitor to American fifth-generation combat aircraft such as the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

Indeed, in some measures, the new Russian warplane will exceed both U.S.-built jets, but the PAK-FA is not without its flaws.

“The analysis that I have seen on the PAK-FA indicates a pretty sophisticated design that is at least equal to, and some have said even superior to U.S. fifth-generation aircraft,” former U.S. Air Force intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Dave Deptula told the National Interest.

“It certainly has greater agility with its combination of thrust vectoring, all moving tail surfaces, and excellent aerodynamic design, than does the F-35.”

Indeed, the PAK-FA appears to be optimized for the air-superiority role like the F-22 more so than the multirole, strike-optimized F-35.

Like the Raptor, the PAK-FA is being designed to fly high and fast to impart the maximum amount of launch energy to its arsenal of long-range air-to-air missiles—which would greatly increase the range of those missiles.

“Performance-wise it certainly looks to compete with the Raptor,” one senior military official with extensive experience on U.S. fifth-generation fighters told the National Interest.

Like the F-22, the Russian machine is expected to be able to cruise supersonically for extended periods of time—probably faster than Mach 1.5.

The aircraft’s maximum speed should be greater than Mach 2.0—assuming its low observables coatings can handle the stress.

Bottom

However, unlike the American fifth-generation aircraft, the PAK-FA places less emphasis of stealth, and much more emphasis on maneuverability.

While it could compete with the Raptor in terms of raw kinematic performance, the PAK-FA greatly exceeds the F-35. And that performance margin might increase.

The Russian aircraft is currently powered by modified versions of the Su-30 Flanker’s engines called the Izdeliye 117 or AL-41F1, which produce about 33,000 pounds of thrust.

The engine, which runs far hotter than the original AL-31 engines from which it was derived, is not proving to be as reliable as initially hoped.

But the current engines are only temporary. Later production variants of the PAK-FA are expected to be powered by a new engine called the Izdeliye 30, which should enter service in 2020.

The Russian jet is also equipped with a powerful avionics suite, which is an evolution of Sukhoi’s work on the Flanker-series fighters.

“Indications are that the avionics are derived from the Su-35S with the addition of a very high power-aperture X-band multimode AESA radar,” Deptula said.

Further, there are indications that the PAK-FA is also equipped with L-band radar arrays, which are able to detect the presence of a fighter-sized stealth aircraft.

While the L-band radar would not allow the PAK-FA to target a stealth aircraft, it would allow the pilot to focus the jet’s other sensors on a particular area of the sky.

In addition to radars and electronic support measures, the PAK-FA is equipped with infrared search and track capabilities.

Front

While the Russians have made enormous leaps in their sensor capabilities, U.S. warplanes still hold the edge in terms of sensor and data-fusion, which is critical for modern warfare.

Comprehensively assessing the PAK-FA before it is fielded is a difficult proposition even for those with access to military intelligence data.

Cyber Berkut Leak US Document Scans With Plans to Supply Weapons to Kiev

Source : http://sputniknews.com/world/20141125/1015143794.html

MOSCOW, November 25 (Sputnik) – The Ukrainian hacker group CyberBerkut published on Tuesday documents showing, in particular, that the Ukrainian military are receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars from Washington.

According to the hackers, the information was obtained during the visit of US Vice President Joe Biden to Ukraine last week, when they were able to access confidential State Department documents via a mobile device of a US delegation member.

"After examination of just a several files there is the impression that the Ukrainian army is the branch of US Armed Forces. The volume of US financial assistance amazes with its scale. They also show the highest level of degradation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Besides, thousands of dollars go on personal accounts of military personnel and used by certain officers in personal needs. What will the American taxpayers say?" the statement published on the official CyberBerkut web page said.

US Weapons Supply to Ukraine Would Violate International Law: Ombudsman

Other documents published by the hackers indicate that Washington is ready to supply Ukraine with "400 units of sniper rifles, 2,000 units of assault rifles, 720 hand grenade launchers, nearly 200 mortars and more than 70,000 shells for them, 150 stingers and 420 anti-tank missiles."

Earlier, the United States said it had no intention of supplying Ukraine with lethal weapons, instead planning to deliver non-lethal aid, including armored vehicles, radars, body armor, binoculars, small boats and other gear. However, the documents leaked by the hackers reveal that Washington's aid to Ukraine includes lethal weapons, such as rifles, grenade launchers and mortars.

Russia nuclear submarine to test-launch Bulava missile on Nov 30 — military source

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/763965

MOSCOW, November 27. /TASS/. The Alexander Nevsky strategic nuclear-powered submarine will make a single test-launch of the Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile on Sunday, November 30, a source in the Northern Fleet headquarters told TASS on Thursday.

“According to updated reports, the Alexander Nevsky is due to test-launch Bulava in a time interval between 12.00 and 3pm Moscow time (9am-12.00 GMT) on November 30. The test-launch will be made from the Barents Sea at the Kura firing range on the Kamchatka Peninsula from a submerged position,” the military source said.

Earlier it was reported that the Alexander Nevsky is to fire the only missile that will be on board. In October, the Yuri Dolgoruky submarine carried out the launch with a full load of Bulava missiles on board.

In early November, Russia’s Defense Ministry rejected media reports that the test launch of Bulava planned until year-end has been postponed. The ministry’s official spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said the missile will be launched from the submarine until the end of this year. The spokesman added that in line with the plan for 2015, two launches of sea-based Bulava are to be conducted.

Montag, 24. November 2014

EU calls on Serbia to join sanctions against Russia rude — Russian lawmaker

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/761310

ASTANA, November 24. /TASS/. The speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament, the State Duma, Sergey Naryshkin said on Monday that the European Union’s statement that Serbia has to join the sanctions against Russia is “rude and caddish.”

“Just several days ago we heard a rude and, I should say, a caddish statement from one of the EU high-ranking officials in regard to an independent sovereign state of Serbia. It was stated so: you should join the so-called anti-Russian sanctions or otherwise there is no place for you in the European Union,” Naryshkin told an international conference in Kazakhstan’s capital Astana.

Naryshkin said such an EU stance contradicts the norms of the international law and is in fact blackmail. “Undoubtedly, such steps have nothing in common with the principles of sovereign equality or the principles of respect towards history, culture and traditions of the partner-state,” he said.

Last week, Johannes Hahn, the EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, said Serbia should bring its foreign political position in line with the European stance by imposing anti-Russian economic sanctions.

Meanwhile, both Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic and Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that Serbia would not impose sanctions on Russia despite its goal to join the European Union. Nikolic, however, admitted that the EU membership which Serbia was seeking implies an obligation to pursue a common foreign policy.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Alexander Lukashevich said on Thursday Moscow hopes that Serbia will remember the friendly nature of relations with Russia when it makes a decision whether it should join the EU sanctions against Russia.

Russia will support UNSC draft resolution on Palestinian state formation

Source : http://m.rbth.co.uk/news

Russia has pledged to support the UN Security Council's draft resolution on the formation of a Palestinian state, but does not rule out Washington's veto.

"Such a resolution could become a springboard for restarting the Palestinian-Israeli talks. This being so, Russia is ready to support this resolution when and if it is put to the vote," special presidential envoy, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said in an interview with Interfax.

"However, the above-mentioned Palestinian draft got a hostile reception from Israel and the U.S. right away," he said. "It is not ruled out, therefore, that if the draft is put to the vote, the U.S. will use its veto right, which will only complicate the situation further. Palestine has said on many occasions that if the resolution is blocked in the UN Security Council it will seek membership in various international structures, including the International Criminal Court," Bogdanov said.

Ukraine will buy nuclear fuel in Russia for Ukrainian nuclear power plant in 2015

Source : http://korrespondent.net/business/economics

Russia has signed a contract with Ukraine for the supply of nuclear fuel for Ukrainian NUCLEAR POWER PLANT in the year 2015. The Director General of Rosatom Sergei Kirienko, the RIA Novosti News Agency on Friday, 21 November.

"A contract was signed for the year 2015 to supply fuel to the Ukrainian nuclear power plants", said Kiriyenko.

He stressed that the supply of nuclear fuel from Russia on Ukrainian nuclear power plants are on schedule and never stopped.

As reported by the Корреспондент.net, the Ukrainian energy generating company Centrenergo due to coal shortages in Ukraine formed an energy like "a" and "t" buy before the end of the year 509 thousand tons of coal in Russia. 

Sonntag, 23. November 2014

Russian military ‘unofficially’ bans iPhones during service – report

Source : http://rt.com/news/208195-iphone-banned-russian-military/

New conscripts in Russia’s mandatory military service are reportedly not being allowed to bring iPhones with them for the duration of the service over concerns that the closed operating system might contain spying backdoors, Izvestia reports.

“iPhones are banned,” a representative of the official draft and military hotline told Izvestia Daily.“You can take any mobile phone with you, but not iPhone, as [Apple] is an entirely American company.”

The unofficial ban on Apple products during conscription in the military is being explained as an effort to avoid possible security threats. “With the help of the iPhone everything can be monitored,” the hotline told the paper.

The Ministry of Defense press service has not yet commented on the reports, but the information has been confirmed by one of Moscow's conscripts who told Izvestia that he was advised not to take Apple products with him.

“Mobiles from other manufacturers did not cause such a reaction,” the unnamed young man said, claiming that “no documents on the official ban of iPhone” were offered to him.

Meanwhile, security experts agree that Apple devices could compromise Russia’s national security if widely used during military service at highly sensitive facilities.

“The assumption that Apple is actively working with the US Department of Defense is not groundless. As a rule, the encryption systems, such as the one used by Apple, are provided by the manufacturer working with the DoD. You can’t casually walk in and say you want to install such a system,” mobile research analyst Eldar Murtazin told the publication.

“The US controls 99 percent of the market of mobile operating systems. We can assume that backdoor access to the OS could have been introduced even without the manufacturer's knowledge,” Murtazin added. He believes that Russia should develop proper infrastructure and information security policies to be able to block unsolicited data transmission.

Independent expert Mikhail Romanov meanwhile says that iPhones may have a lot more hidden functions then their Android counterparts, pointing out that starting with the iPhone 5 the M7 motion processor chip tracks statistics on the movement of the device.

“There are developments, which in theory, could allow to render internal layouts of the premises in which only authorized personnel is allowed,”Romanov says, adding that if enough people carrying smartphones enter the restricted area, a more precise layout could be produced. “This is a real threat.”

Cellphone use in the Russian military is not either officially allowed or banned. It is up to the unit’s commander to allow mobile phone and internet usage at their discretion. The US on the other side has a list of all electronic devices that are approved for military service by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), which certifies commercial technology for defense use.

Strategic forces to be equipped with Yars nuclear missile system

Source : http://m.rbth.co.uk/defence

The commander of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces (SMF) has announced that its regiments and divisions are to be upgraded with new Yars nuclear weapon systems for stationary and mobile deployment.

"As part of creating a capable group, it is planned to place 16 missile launch sites armed with the Yars missile on operational duty," said General Sergei Karakayev at a session of the SMF’s military council on Nov. 14.

This formidable technology is produced in two versions – mobile and stationary. Depending on the location of the unit and their operating zone, missiles can ‘serve’ based either in silos or from railway tracks. In the latter case, they can be controlled from a mobile command post.

The Ministry of Defense has made it clear that the Yars, alongside the Topol-M, will serve as the SMFs main strike force for the next decades. The missiles not only increase its military capabilities but strengthen the potential deterrence of Russia’s strategic triad. Furthermore, the Yars will replace several divisions of the reliable but outdated Topol nuclear missile system.

According to SMF Commander Sergei Karakayev, the START 3 agreement places no restrictions on upgrading existing weapons and the creation of new weapons, and new developments in the interests of the Strategic Missile Forces take the requirements of the agreement into account.

The Teykovskoye command has already switched to the mobile Yars, and the mobile ground units are now being provided to the Tagilsk and Novosibirsk divisions. The Kozelsk division will shortly introduce a Yars missile system consisting of four silo launchers and a unified command post into operational duty in its missile regiment.

The Yars system was developed based on the Topol but is much more powerful. Its missile, the RS-24, is superior in throw-weight to the Topol’s RS-12 by more than 20 percent. Although the Yars carries not one warhead but three to four, the designers have succeeded in keeping the strategic missile’s range to greater than 6,200 miles. It uses a three-stage system.

Its body and instrument compartment have been treated with a coating that reduces the impact of various damaging factors, including a nuclear explosion. Furthermore, on launch, the missile can carry out a programmed manoeuver. This helps it make a relatively safe passage through a nuclear cloud should an enemy attack the Yars’ position with a ballistic missile.

According to experts, the breakthrough technological solutions used in creating the RS-24 guarantee the high survivability of the missile when overcoming any missile defense systems. The strategic Yars does not need to fear even layered missile defense systems, including ones based in space.

The Sarmatians are coming

The operational strength of the SMF is now 400 strategic missile launchers with intercontinental ballistic missiles. Since their numbers are limited by Russia’s international obligations, the development of the land-based component of its nuclear triad is focused on two areas: Firstly, the modernization of silo-based and mobile missile systems already in use; secondly, the development of a new strategic arsenal.

Experimental design work on this project is being carried out by a group of industrial enterprises under the direction of the Makeyev Rocket Design Bureau. They plan to complete the work in five to six years. According to the former chief of the General Staff of the SMF Viktor Yesin, the Sarmat will replace the RS-20V Voevoda, which is currently on operational duty.

The former head of the 4th Central Research Institute of the Ministry of Defense, General Vladimir Vasilenko believes that the new heavy intercontinental ballistic silo-based missile will possess the capacity to deliver warheads to targets using not only energetically optimal trajectories with direct approach bearings, but also strikes from various directions, including via the South Pole. 

Russia may develop hypersonic weapons before end of this decade

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/761186

MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. Russia may develop hypersonic weapons before the end of this decade, Director-General of the Tactical Missiles corporation Boris Obnosov told Russian News Service radio on Saturday.

Development of these weapons is given a priority, he said. “To create weapons with a speed exceeding Mach 4 (about 4,900 km/h) is a major task. This implies a huge scope of scientific problems,” he noted.

The corporation is working on these weapons for Russia to be in parity with many developed countries, Obnosov said.

“Weapons which will reach a speed of Mach 6-8 (about 7,350-9,800 km/h) should be produced before the end of this decade,” the corporation chief noted.

Russia calls for diversification of trade-economic relations with Turkmenistan

Source : http://en.trend.az/business/economy/2335897.html

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has pointed to the possibility of diversifying the Russian-Turkmen trade and economic relations, taking into account new approaches and current realities during a meeting with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov in Ashgabat, the Turkmen government said Nov. 22.

"Russia is a major trading partner of Turkmenistan,” the president said. “The largest Russian companies successfully operate on the Turkmen market which is attractive for foreign investors."

A meeting was held as part of the Ashgabat summit of the CIS Heads of Governments. A positive trend was stressed in the trade turnover between the two countries. On average, it has recently amounted to over $5 billion.

While discussing the international agenda issues, Berdimuhamedov and Medvedev paid attention to the important aspects of cooperation in the field of ensuring the global security of energy supplies and the formation of its legal framework, optimizing the transportation flows in Eurasia and solving the environmental problems, Turkmen dovlet khabarlary state news agency reported.

There are reserves for further trade expansion. Thus, Turkmenistan purchased about 1,500 various types of KAMAZ machinery worth more than $ 125 million. The country plans to purchase new batches in 2015, Neutral Turkmenistan newspaper wrote.

The effective relations have been established in the field of shipbuilding and maritime freight transportation via the Caspian Sea. In this regard, Russia is showing great interest in purchasing Turkmen horticultural products, building materials and other goods.

"Some issues of investment cooperation, development of the agro-industrial complex, the prospects of expanding the dialogue on science, technology, education, sports and culture were discussed at the meeting," Vatan newspaper wrote.

The Caucasus will provide Russians with fruit and vegetables

Source : http://vestnikkavkaza.net/m/a/62434

By Vestnik Kavkaza On August 7th 2014, food countersanctions against the EU, the USA, Australia, Canada and Norway were launched. As a result of a potential lack of some fruits and vegetables, which could be caused by breaking traditional import contacts, Russia has an opportunity to develop many branches of agriculture. Yuri Lachuga, a member of the RAS Presidium, the vice-president of the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, told Vestnik Kavkaza about the agricultural potential of the North Caucasus republics and its implementation.“Import displacement questions appeared suddenly and through no fault of Russia. But Russia has great opportunities for displacement of food imports, as production of raw materials is wide-scale, including in the North Caucasus,” Lachuga stated. “The North Caucasus produces various agricultural raw materials – grain, oilseeds, sugar beet and a lot of fruit, grapes. Recently a congress on development of viticulture and the wine trade was held; it was headed by Premier Dmitry Medvedev. The direction needs support and investment. We have many grape varieties which could be used for recycling and winemaking.”Speaking about fruit, the North Caucasus could produce a lot of pomaceous fruits (apples, pears) and stone fruits (plums, cherries). “I often visit various regions of the North Caucasus. A program for establishing orchards is being implemented, and ever more are being established each year; more resources are allocated,” Yuri Lachuga stated.At the same time, according to him, the sanctions have damaged Polish agricultural business: “We used to buy a lot of apples from Poland. We are sorry for the damage to the Polish farmers who used to export apples to our country, but it is not our fault. It was a decision by Europe, which should compensate for the losses to Polish farmers. We will develop our own fruit growing; and the North Caucasus is a favorable territory for this. Dagestan, Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Krasnodar Territory are regions which have great opportunities for production of them.”The expert said that self-production of vegetables and fruits is not something outstanding for Russia: “In Soviet times we had greenhouse complexes which exported products to Moscow – cucumbers, tomatoes, greens. Today the Ministry of Agriculture is taking measures. The Russian government has the will to increase the number of greenhouses in the North Caucasus. The North Caucasus is a sunny territory, and it could produce vegetables, saving energy. I know that a program is being developed today, and resources which will be allocated to agriculture (unfortunately, they are not great, but this is the structure of our budget) will be spent on development of fruit and vegetable production.”

Russia, China seek to form Asia-Pacific collective security system — defense minister

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/760322

BEIJING, November 18. /TASS/. Defense ministries of Russia and China seek to form a regional collective security system in the Asia-Pacific region, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Tuesday after talks with his Chinese counterpart Colonel General Chang Wanquan in Beijing.

According to the Russian defense minister, Russia and China are concerned over US attempts to strengthen its military and political clout in the Asia-Pacific Region (APR).

“During talks with Comrade Chang Wanquan, we discussed the state and prospects of the Russian-Chinese relations in the military field, exchanged opinions on the military-political situation in general and the APR in particular,” Shoigu said.

“We also expressed concern over US attempts to strengthen its military and political clout in the APR,” he said. “We believe that the main goal of pooling our effort is to shape a collective regional security system.”

Russia, China to hold joint naval drills in Pacific, Mediterranean in 2015

Sergey Shoigu announced that Russia and China will hold joint naval drills in the Pacific and in the Mediterranean in 2015.

Donnerstag, 20. November 2014

Russia, Pakistan sign agreement on military cooperation

ISLAMABAD, November 20. /TASS/. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and his Pakistani counterpart Khawaja Asif signed a deal on military cooperation on Thursday in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad.

Shoigu said after talks with Pakistan’s defense minister that the agreement is an important step towards strengthening ties between Moscow and Islamabad in the military sphere.

“During the meeting, we agreed that bilateral military cooperation should have a great practical focus and contribute to increasing combat efficiency of our armed forces,” Shoigu said.

Shoigu earlier expressed confidence that the implementation of this agreement will give an additional impetus to all the aspects of Russia-Tajikistan cooperation.

The minister said the sides discussed a range of specific events of particular importance.

This is the first visit by Russia’s defense minister to Pakistan after the collapse of the former Soviet Union. The latest visit took place as far back as 1969, when USSR Defense Minister Andrey Grechko made a trip to the country.

Russia and Tajikistan to fight terrorism, drugs together

Russia and Pakistan will pool effort in the struggle against terrorism and drug trafficking with due account of the current situation in Afghanistan and the region as a whole Shoigu said during the visit.

“We shared views on the scope of pressing problems of international and regional security. First of all, this concerns Afghanistan. Our assessments of the situation in that country are mainly close or coincide,” the Russian minister noted.

“We are interested in soonest peaceful settlement of problems amassed here,” he said, adding that easing tensions in the region is one of the priority tasks for the world community.

The two ministers focused on importance of joint effort to fight international terrorism and drug trafficking, Shoigu noted.

Russia's modernised Tu-160 fighter jet completes first flight

Source : http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php/sid/227797221

Russia's Tu-160 strategic bomber has completed its first flight after modernisation, the aircraft's designers Tupolev said Wednesday.

"On Nov 16, 2014, the Tu-160 bomber performed its first flight after a major overhaul," the Tupolev Design Bureau said in a statement.

According to the company, the bomber took off from the Kazan airfield, in the Tatarstan Republic (a constituent republic of the Russian Federation), and the flight lasted 2 hours and 40 minutes, Xinhua reported.

During the modernisation, the aircraft underwent complete upgrade of nearly all its onboard radar equipments and avionics, the bureau said.

The Tu-160 is the world's largest combat aircraft and the largest supersonic aircraft. It has the heaviest take off weight of any military aircraft.

Entering service in 1987, it was the last strategic bomber designed for the erstwhile Soviet Union.

The aircraft has all-weather, day-and-night capabilities and can operate at all geographical latitudes.

Currently, the Russian Air Force has 16 Tu-160 aircrafts on duty.

In November 2013, Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded the modernisation of long-range warplanes, including the SU-25SM fighters, Tu-160 and Tu-95 bombers, as well as air-based strategic nuclear weapons.

Russia plans to upgrade 70 percent of its combat aircrafts by 2020.

Russia is preparing a new humanitarian aid for Donbass

Source : http://m.gazeta.ru/social/news/2014/11/20/n_6667325.shtml

Russia forms a new batch of humanitarian assistance to the South-East of Ukraine. It is reported with reference to the Deputy Head of the Russian emergency situations Ministry, Vladimir Artamonov.

"The process of forming the next convoy, said Artamonov.

According to him, the shipment will be sent to the Donbass, once through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The exact date of sending humanitarian assistance is still unknown.

Russia wants UN Security Council to comment on the use of chemical weapons in the Middle East

Source : http://vestnikkavkaza.net/m/a/62354

 

Russia wants UN Security Council to comment on the use of chemical weapons in the Middle EastRussia has suggested to the UN Security Council that the use of chemical weapons in Middle Eastern conflicts is inadmissable, Russia's permanent representative to the Organization, Vitaly Churkin said."Against the background of the numerous reports on the production and use of chemical weapons by terrorists in Syria and Iraq, as well as the threat of possible use of this dangerous weapons by non-state armed groups in Iraq and Libya, the Russian delegation considers it necessary to draw attention to these risks and to send a strong signal to all regional players that the use of chemical weapons by anyone would not remain without consequences," Gazeta.ru quotes him as saying.

Russia has suggested to the UN Security Council that the use of chemical weapons in Middle Eastern conflicts is inadmissable, Russia's permanent representative to the Organization, Vitaly Churkin said."Against the background of the numerous reports on the production and use of chemical weapons by terrorists in Syria and Iraq, as well as the threat of possible use of this dangerous weapons by non-state armed groups in Iraq and Libya, the Russian delegation considers it necessary to draw attention to these risks and to send a strong signal to all regional players that the use of chemical weapons by anyone would not remain without consequences," Gazeta.ru quotes him as saying.

Mittwoch, 19. November 2014

President Putin receives high-ranking envoy from DPRK

Source : http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/europe/europe/2014-11/19/c_127226324.htm

MOSCOW, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin has received a special envoy of Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday.

Choe Ryong Hae, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the Worker's Party of Korea, has handed Putin a message from Kim Jong Un, Peskov told reporters, without providing further details.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said earlier that the sides would discuss key issues of bilateral relations, including steps to raise the level of their political dialogue and ways to intensify trade and economic cooperation.

The situation on the Korean peninsula and in the Northeast Asia region, as well as certain international topics of mutual interest could also be discussed during Choe's eight-day visit, which will also take him to Russia's Far East cities of Khabarovsk and Vladivostok near the DPRK border on his way back home.

Choe's arrival followed a series of high-ranking visits by DPRK officials this year. Vice Marshal Hyon Yong Chol, Minister of the People's Armed Forces, met Putin in Moscow on Nov. 8 and conveyed Kim Jong Un's greetings. DPRK Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong visited Russia on Sept. 30.

Local experts said Choe's visit testified to the improving ties between Moscow and Pyongyang, as the latter has apparently been seeking to diversify its diplomatic relations.

"A visit to Moscow of a DPRK official of such senior level is a logical continuation of the policy aimed at increasing cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang in all spheres," Alexander Vorontsov, head of Korea and Mongolia department of the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Xinhua.

He called it "possible and logical" that Choe's visit could be preparations for the visit of the DPRK leader Kim Jong Un to Russia.

Kim Yen Un, a senior researcher at the Far East Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said the two sides will " definitely" discuss the top-level visit.

"But it's too early to predict the exact timing," said the expert.

US, NATO ‘lie’ about Russian buildup in East Ukraine

Source : http://edition.presstv.ir

The US and NATO “lie” about the deployment of Russian military forces inside and near Ukraine in order to provide a smokescreen for their own buildup of forces targeted against Russia, a commentator tells Press TV.

Rick Rozoff, the manager of Stop NATO Network, said in an interview with Press TV from Chicago on Tuesday that reports of a Russian military buildup in Ukraine are “lies” and that “it is camouflage to disguise what is in fact an incontestable buildup by the United States and NATO along Russia’s entire Western border.”

He pointed to examples of US and NATO buildup by referring to “the rotation of F-16s capable of carrying a nuclear payload... accompanied by US paratroopers; the deployment of US Special Forces; Operation Atlantic Resolve, which is aimed specifically at Russia; the development of a 25,000-troop NATO response force aimed at Russia; and coming out of the NATO Wales Summit a high-readiness task force to be deployed in eastern Europe aimed at Russia.”

Rozoff added, “What we see is a monumental buildup against Russia... and at the same time accusing the victim of being the perpetrator.”

The US-led NATO has expressed concern over what it described as a “very serious” buildup of Russian troops and equipment inside Ukraine and on the border with the east European country.

The West has accused Moscow of having sent troops to Ukraine to support pro-Russia forces in the east of the country.

Tensions between Russia and the West heightened after Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula of Crimea separated from Ukraine and joined the Russian Federation following a referendum in March 2014.

Dienstag, 18. November 2014

Ukraine Rearms the Army, Europe pays, Poroshenko threatens--and the risk of a major war is growing

Source : http://oraclesyndicate.twoday.net

Military reform the Ukrainian leadership wants to give new impetus to the fight against pro-Russian separatists in the East of the country. Prime Minister, Arseni Jazenjuk announced modern weapons and a new management system of the armed forces on Friday agencies according to Kiev. In the past week alone, the Ukraine had spent 65 million dollars for weapons according to information from the Ministry of the Interior.

What the article does not say: the upgrade come from extensive credits, granted by the EU their newly associated member.

The upgrade alone should weigh on the Ukrainian State budget in the high three digit million region in the next few weeks and months. 

Upgrade operated by a country which is technically bankrupt, and survives only on the drip of the EU. 

The EU transfers to the Ukraine are likely to move summa Summarum in the next 12 months the total double-digit billions. 

Worse still, The duo of Poroshenko / Yatsenyuk operates the upgrade, to defeat the rebels in the East of Ukraine. There are now but also Russian tanks, heavy Russian artillery and anti-aircraft missiles. In addition, stated Putin in an interview with ARD, Russia will not quietly and watch, the Ukrainian Government should intensify their attacks in the East.

In other words: The opponents there are no longer solely the separatists, but Russia. The Ukrainian President Poroschenko full bodied said he don't be afraid of a war with Russia.

"Our army is in a much better State than they were five months ago, and we have the support from around the world. Our soldiers show that they are able to defend our country." 

Only a fool can believe the Ukraine - could teach there, or in the Crimea, a defeat Russia even after upgrading the Ukrainian army -. 

The calculus of the Ukrainian Government duo is two-fold: to get the EU to further massive aid by the escalation of the conflict, and ultimately NATO into the conflict with drag.

Feel encouraged the Ukrainian Government doubles team in this approach by announcing a big NATO should maneuver, in which tens of thousands of soldiers to take part.

A gross misjudgment is that NATO apparently believes to be able to impress the Russian Government with such military maneuvers. However, there is the danger that the conflict developed a momentum of its own, which could eventually lead to the brink of nuclear war.
Therefore, it is high time that the Government in Kiev to force to tilt instead of more fuel to the fire if necessary with financial pressure to the negotiating table.

German Chancellor Merkel met Putin for an interview lasting several hours at the edge of the G-20 Summit in Brisbane/Australia with Russia's President. As long as you but doesn't want to take note, that Russia - not can be forced even with tougher sanctions--to withdraw the East Ukraine, or to give up support for the rebels, but only a comprehensive, mutually satisfactory negotiated solution can resolve the conflict, so long such meetings can produce no results. 

Iskander Brigade units deployed to Kaliningrad and Leningrad, also to the Russian Far East and the North Caucasus

Source : http://www.arms-expo.ru/news/politics_and_society/

Mobility, precision and power to three main points that make complex tactical "Iskander-m" one of the most dangerous weapons systems deter a large-scale aggression against Russia. 

Brigade units deployed in the Kaliningrad and Leningrad oblast, in the Russian Far East and the Northern Caucasus. In November, the Defense Ministry will receive the Fifth Brigade set "Iskander-m" and it is quite possible that he will be thrown in the Crimea. Anyway, the General staff did not preclude their appearance on the peninsula until the year 2016. 

This fact has caused a storm of emotions in the Congress of the United States. The head of the armed forces Committee Howard Mccone, Chairman of the Subcommittee on strategic forces Subcommittee's Manager and Mike Rogers of the lower Chamber on tactical air and land forces Michael Turn demanded from Barack Obama to stop all cooperation with Russia because of the possibility of "deployment in Crimea media tactical nuclear weapons".

According to the congressmen, in early August, the Russian authorities decided to transfer to the Crimea, the Tu-22 m 3 bombers and tactical complexes "Iskander-m", able to attack with precision-guided cruise missiles, and equipped, including nuclear warheads. According to a member of the Senate Armed Services United States James Inofe, is not only a clear violation of the Treaty on intermediate-range and SHORTER-RANGE MISSILES, short-range and poses a direct threat to the whole of Europe. Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu has responded to it very concisely: complexes "Iskander-m" may be placed on the territory of Russia at any time and in any place. "Where we want to go there and put!",-added the Minister, reports News of the MIC.

Beginning of the operative-tactical missile system "Iskander-m missile Contract put medium and small-range missiles (INF TREATY) of 1987, as well as the non-use of nuclear weapons during the war. Therefore, to create a military complex through which is possible to control the trajectory of a rocket and fall exactly on target.  

Important and highly automated processes, information sharing and combat work. For the first time, "Iskander" submitted in August 1999 at the air show MAX. Today's tactical and technical characteristics of the Iskander is superior to existing domestic and foreign missile systems.    

The complex consists of missiles, self-propelled launcher and clearness, transportation machines, maintenance, training information and item sets of Arsenal equipment. Today there are three types of complexes: "Iskander-m", "Iskander-e" and "Iskander-k".    

The first is intended for the Russian army, the second is the export version, the third is equipped with cruise missiles. Complexes are different levels of privacy and "distribution" missiles.    

PTRC also can be fitted with two types of missiles: its characteristics "Iskander-m" exceeds foreign analogues in its class on the accuracy and speed of the missile launch. In addition, due to unique stealth-technology "Iskander-m" has a high probability of overcoming anti-missile defence.   

To output the missiles at a target in the complex use the inertial control system. She is captured by the autonomous correlation and extreme optical homing head (GOS). Principle of operation the homing rocket is based on the formation of optical equipment of the NATIONAL imagery at the end. The missile manoeuvres with large overloads and flies through the unpredictable trajectory.    

It is expected that in the future, "Iskander-m" will be the basis of missile formations of land forces of the Russian Federation. Up to the year 2020 to put 120 new missile systems.  Production of iskanders is kolomenskaya scientific production Corporation "Design Bureau of machine-building", which is holding "high-precision complexes". The Bureau was founded in the year 1942. And over 70 years of its existence, produced over 40 different models of weapons. Among them: «malyutka ATGM "," shturm-s» and «Sturm-b "Strela-2" and "needle", TRK "tochka", "tochka-u" and "Oka" PTRC.  

Russian energy giants Gazprom, Rosneft to get new licenses on Arctic shelf — minister

Source : http://en.itar-tass.com/economy/760290

MOSCOW, November 18. /TASS/. The Russian energy giants Gazprom and Rosneft may get new licenses for developing hydrocarbon deposits on the Arctic shelf in the coming months, Natural Resources Minister Sergey Donskoy said on Tuesday.

“I believe new licenses will be issued in winter — in December or January next year,” he said. The minister said unallocated deposit blocs remained on the shelf, adding “Gazprom and Rosneft are filing applications.”

As of August 1, 2014, Gazprom and Rosneft received 113 hydrocarbon blocks on the Russian Arctic shelf. In early September, the Russian government granted Gazprom the right to develop the North-Western hydrocarbon bloc while Rosneft received the license for the Deryuginskoye deposit.

Under the Russian law on subsoil, these continental shelf blocs of federal significance are provided for exploration and development without auctions.

Ukrainian Conflict Leading to New Cold War: Belarusian Foreign Minister

Source : http://indian.ruvr.ru

Foreign Minister of Belarus Vladimir Makei believes the world is on the verge of a new Cold War because of the Ukrainian conflict.

he conflict in Ukraine has brought the world to the brink of a new Cold War, Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said Tuesday.

"The world is in fact on the brink of a new Cold War. The political crisis in Ukraine has extremely intensified disagreements and formed a high level of mutual distrust," the minister said at the opening of the joint meeting between the Russian and Belarusian foreign ministries in Minsk.

Authorities in Kiev launched a military campaign in April aimed at suppressing the region's pro-independence forces. As of October 31, the conflict claimed more than 4,000 lives and injured about 9,000 people, according to the United Nations.

The Contact Group, comprising representatives from Russia, Ukraine, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's republics reached a ceasefire deal in Minsk on September 5. Later in September, the Contact Group also adopted a nine-point memorandum, specifying the implementation of the ceasefire.

However, both warring sides have since accused each other of repeatedly violating the truce.

Russia, China agree on joint modernization of RD-93 engines for fighter jets

Source : http://indian.ruvr.ru/news

Russia’s United Engine-building Corporation (a part of Rostec) and China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC) have agreed to jointly modernize the RD-93 turbojet engine developed by Russia’s St. Petersburg-based company Klimov.

An agreement to this effect was signed at the international aerospace show Air China-2014 that ended in China’s Zhuhai on Monday, the press service of the United Engine-building Corporation said.

“The agreement provides for the modernization of the engine’s power unit to augment thrust and for the organization of sales of these engines in China,” the press service said.

The Russian company and CATIC have a contract for the delivery, design supervision, technical maintenance, post-warranty servicing and assistance in the organization of capital repairs of RD-93 engines that are installed in Chinese FC-1 (JF-17) fighters.

Earlier, TASS learnt at the Air China show that a contract on the delivery of 100 such engines by 2016 had been signed earlier this year within the framework of a previous call.

In 2005, Russia’s biggest arms trade Rosoboronexport signed a deal with China on the delivery 100 RD-93 engines for FC-1 fighters, which was executed in 2010, and an option agreement for the supplies of 400 more engines of that type. Now, the delivery of the first 100 units under this agreement begins.

RD-93 engines are manufactured by the Moscow-based Chernyshev Machine-building plant.

A military diplomatic source told TASS on the sidelines of the Air China show that RD-93 engines were also installed in China’s stealth fighter of the fifth generation J-31 that had taken part in sow flights.

Russia-Iran trade may increase to $3 bln in few years - Russian lawmaker

Source : http://www.strategic-culture.org/news

Trade between Russia and Iran may soon increased from the current 1.7 billion U.S. dollars to three billion U.S. dollars, Alexei Pushkov, the chairman of the international committee of the Russian State Duma lower parliament house, said on Monday, commenting on the results of Duma speaker Sergei Natyshkin’s visit to Teheran.

Pushkov said that while in Iran the Russian delegation focused on economic cooperation issues. “Trade between Russia and Iran is not as big as might be. Now it is about 1.7 billion U.S. dollars. Some experts say it can be increased to three billiob U.S. dollars in the next few years,” he said.

“Thus, the sides are currently discussing a deal ‘oil in exchange for good’ that is implemented not as quickly as the sides would like it to, but nonetheless it is being realized,” Pushkov said, noting that there were some objective obstacles.

“I think that since this deal is on the agenda of the two countries’ governments, solutions to problems hindering its finalization would finally be reached,” he noted.

While on a working visit to Teheran, Naryshkin met with his counterpart, Iran’s Majilis /parliament/ Speaker Ali Larijani and former President of Iran Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who is now heading the council that looks at the expediency of decision-making.

Montag, 17. November 2014

Russia, Iran agree pooled efforts needed to fight against Islamic State

Source : http://en.trend.az/iran/politics/2333982.html

Russia and Iran have agreed pooled efforts are needed to fight against the Islamic State group and terrorism in general, since they pose a threat to all countries of the region, Alexei Pushkov, the chairman of the international committee of the Russian State Duma lower parliament house, said commenting on the results of Duma speaker Sergei Natyshkin’s visit to Teheran, TASSreported.

“The sides shared approaches to the assessment of the developments in the Middle East and Asia Minor. They agreed pooled efforts are needed to fight against terrorism, since the Islamic State is a threat not only for those states that are currently in the zone of its activity, such as Syria and Iraq, but for all neighbouring states too,” he told journalists onboard a plane bound for Moscow.

He said that the Islamic State’s threats “are a very serious challenge to Russia’s and Iran’s security.”

“I think it was among the most topical subjects (during the visit) - the fight against terrorist in general and the Islamic State as its most aggressive and dangerous manifestation in the Middle East and Asia Minor,” Pushkov said.

While on a working visit to Teheran, Naryshkin met with his counterpart, Iran’s Majilis /parliament/ Speaker Ali Larijani and former President of Iran Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who is now heading the council that looks at the expediency of decision-making.

Russia to build its own space station in the period from 2017 to 2019

Source : http://english.pravda.ru/science/tech/17-11-2014/129053-russia_space_station-0/

During the coming years, Russia may begin deploying its own high-latitude space station, Kommersant newspaper wrote with reference to a source close to the administration of the Central Research Institute of Machine Engineering. The construction of the station in orbit, the newspaper wrote, is a key aspect of the project for the development of manned space exploration for the period up to 2050. 

At first, an anonymous source in the Federal Space Agency denied the information, saying that there was neither technical nor financial possibility for the realization of the idea. Later, however, deputy head of the agency Denis Lyskov said that there were "various options" considered. 

The project of the Federal Space Program does not provide for the deployment of a new space station in the years 2017-2019. Roscosmos will not be able to provide resources for such a project while implementing obligations under the project of the International Space Station (ISS), Interfax said with reference to a source in the space agency. "This is simply unfeasible both technically and financially," the source told the agency.

However, deputy head of the Federal Space Agency, Denis Lyskov, told TASS that Roscosmos was indeed considering various options to create a new national space station that could replace the ISS. "We are looking at different options, without being attached to one particular option," he said. Lyskov did not unveil any details of the project.

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The Kommersant said that the Russian station would be built in the period from 2017 to 2019. The initial configuration will be formed on the basis of a multi-purpose laboratory and node modules, spacecraft OKA-T. Soyuz-MS and MS-Progress will maintain the operation of the station. In 2020-2024, energy and transformed modules used in the lunar program would be developed, the article said. According to Interfax, some orbital modules mentioned in the article were designed to supplement the Russian segment of the ISS.

"Roscosmos, as its leaders have repeatedly stated, is interested in extending the operation of the ISS at least before 2020. The resources for the Russian side to abide by obligations under the ISS program are stipulated in the Roscosmos budget. The project of a separate space station will require a much larger allocation of funds. The fact that they will be assigned in today's tense financial situation is unlikely," said the source. 

The source also said that the characteristics of a would-be Russian station were not correct in terms of capabilities for monitoring the Russian territory. "The ISS orbits the globe six times a day with an inclination of about 51.8 degrees. Any more or less knowledgeable person understands that one can observe a large part of Russia from the station. In addition, the problem of remote sensing of the Earth, as experience proved, is a lot easier and cheaper to solve with the help of special spacecraft, including small ones. Using a large heavy station for this purpose is, at least, not rational," said the source.

The costs for the project have not been established yet. At the initial stage, it is planned to use the modules and devices developed for the Russian segment of the ISS. At the same time, there are no plans to curtail the ISS. Moscow intends to firmly fulfill its international obligations through 2020. It is worthy of note that Russia has not given its agreement yet to extend the operation of the ISS.

The new station is to be located in a geometrically favorable location. From the station, one will be able to see up to 90% of the territory of Russia and the Arctic shelf, while at the ISS, this figure does not exceed 5%.

Flight tests of manned lunar infrastructure are said to be another feature of the new station. It goes about creating a certain platform. At first, space vehicles will be delivered to the station before proceeding to the moon.

Pravda.Ru asked expert opinion from chief editor of News of Cosmonautics journal,  Igor Afanasyev, about the feasibility of the project of a Russian space station. 

"First and foremost, there has been no official decision made on the subject, as far as I know. The article published in the Kommersant newspaper remains on the conscience of the person who wrote it. I have not seen any official documents, not even among the people involved in this issue. This issue was not even discussed.

"In the federal space program, there are elements of orbital infrastructure, but they do not correspond to what was written in the newspaper article. So I do not understand what this is all about. For me, the article in the newspaper is a very strange piece of news. Also, the administration of the country says that the next step in the field of space exploration would be a flight to the moon. I do not see a point then in building a new station."

 Mistral Ship Still Under French Flag: French Foreign Ministry

PARIS, November 17 (Sputnik) – The Vladivostok Mistral-class helicopter carrier, built by France for the Russian Navy, is still flying the flag of France, French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Romain Nadal said at a press briefing Monday.

On Friday ship-tracking system AIS showed two ships with the same dimensions named Vladivostok moored to the pier in the French city of Saint-Nazaire, one sailing under the Russian flag, and the other under the French one.

"I confirm that the Vladivostok amphibious assault ship is flying the flag of France," Nadal said.

On Sunday, French President Francois Hollande said at a press conference following the G20 summit in Australia that he would not cede to any pressure and decide on the delivery of the Mistral ships to Russia based purely on the interests of France.

In June 2011, Russia signed a 1.2 billion euro ($1.5 billion) deal for two Mistral-class helicopter carrier ships from France. Hollande has threatened to suspend the deliveries of the ships to Russia over Moscow's alleged involvement in the Ukrainian conflict.

The handover ceremony of the first carrier, the Vladivostok, was scheduled for November 14 but the event did not take place. A high-ranking defense source told RIA Novosti last week that Russia will wait until the end of November for Paris to hand over the ship before making "serious claims."

In October, Kremlin vowed to sue France if it did not fulfill its delivery obligations on the Mistral carriers.

Special Envoy of the DPRK leader starts visit to Russia

Source : http://indian.ruvr.ru/news/2014_11_17/Special-Envoy-of-the-DPRK-leader-starts-visit-to-Russia-6122/

North Korean diplomats active again in the Russian direction. North Korea is the third time in a year send a senior representative in the Russian Federation. 

Begins a seven-day visit of a member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, Secretary of the WPK Central Committee Choe Ryong Hae, arriving as a special envoy of leader Kim Jong-un. The chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly Kim Yong-nam in February, visited Russia, and in October (after a four-year hiatus) - Foreign Minister Lee Soo-young visited Russia.

As reported in the Russian Foreign Ministry, during the visit of Choi Ryong Hae, "will discuss topical issues of bilateral relations, including increasing the level of political dialogue and ways to enhance trade and economic cooperation, the situation on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia." In addition, will be considered "some international issues of mutual interest." Choe Ryong Hae also visit Khabarovsk and Vladivostok.

Relations between Moscow and Pyongyang

Details of the North Korean government representatives stay was concretized by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov."There will be three sets of questions, as I understand it, - he said. - First it's nuclear program, more precisely, the prospects for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Secondly, it is the security of the North-East Asia in a broad context, there are many problems."

"Besides, it's bilateral relations between Moscow and Pyongyang, which have certain dynamics, as I understand, in recent times," - said Ryabkov. North Korea-Russia relations, especially trade and economic profile, acquired in recent months, a new dimension. Russia has written off debts of the DPRK in 2020 is planned to be at the level of turnover of 1 billion dollars. This figure may seem excessive at first glance, but the estimated cost of the projects of Russian companies in North Korea several times more.

Mittwoch, 12. November 2014

China’s 5G fighter to fly Russian jet engines

Source : rt.com

Computer-generated imagery (CGI) of the J-31/ F-60 fifth generation fighter jet in action with beyond visual range (BVR) air to air missiles and fifth generation short range infrared homing air-to-air missiles.

An exportable Chinese fifth-generation fighter jet will be equipped with gas-turbine jet engines developed and assembled by Russian companies, confirmed the head of Russian delegation at the Airshow China exhibition.

The mid-sized advanced J-31 fighter jet developed by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation got off the ground for the first time on October 31, 2012, and has been in the process of modification ever since.

“The J-31 with the Russian RD-93 engine is considered to be an export program, capable of rivaling the American F-35 fifth-generation aircraft on the regional markets,”Rosoboronexport’s Air Force Equipment Export Department Head Sergey Kornev said in an interview to RIA Novosti.

The Russian RD-93 turbofan jet engine is a modification of the RD-33 engines, developed in 1968-1985 by the Klimov Design Bureau specifically for MiG-29 fighter jet family.

Initially, the RD-93 was developed by Klimov specifically for the FC-1 Xiaolong (also known as JF-17 Thunder), a lightweight, single-engine, multi-role combat aircraft developed jointly by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) of China to become the Pakistan Air Force’s primary fighter jet.

Kornev said that the J-31 competing with the F-35 “is an ambitious program, yet very real, particularly taking into consideration the high cost of F-35 and certain problems with its development,” in comments to RIA Novosti at the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai.

China’s science and aviation industries demonstrate high potential, since the country has two fifth-generation fighter jets, the J-31 and J-20, in development, Kornev said.

The Chengdu J-20 is stealth, twin-engine fifth-generation fighter aircraft prototype being developed by Chengdu Aerospace Corp. for the Chinese Air Force. It performed its maiden flight in 2011 and could be introduced into service starting from 2017, if it gets the quality of engine a true fifth-generation fighter jet deserves.

In March 2012, RT reported that J-20 was performing test flights with two Russian AL-31F jet engines it borrowed from the Russian Su-27 fighter jet that entered Chinese service in the mid-1980s.

The J-20 needs an engine with characteristics similar to AL-41F1C engines Russian newest Su-35 multifunctional fighter jets are equipped with. This engine enables a fighter to achieve supersonic speed without an afterburner, a feature attributed to 5G jets. The AL-41F1C is actually a de-rated version of the AL-41F1 (117C) engine used on the T-50 PAK-FA, Russian 5G fighter jet currently undergoing tests.

The Su-35 fighter has arrived at Airshow China and will perform demonstration stunts in an attempt to impress the Chinese Air Force top brass, as Beijing has been considering buying the Su-35 fighters for several years now.

Chinese engineers are busy developing jet engines of home design, such as WS-10, WS-13 and WS-15, but so far have not succeeded to reach reliability and durability similar to Russian engines.

“The aircraft engines design and construction technology is very complex, lengthy and costly process,” Kornev told RIA Novosti, noting that two years ago Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) reported it had made real progress in creating new heat-resistant alloys, the key technology in developing afterburning turbofan jet engines.

For the moment there are five 5G fighter jets put on a wing worldwide, namely American F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II, Russian T-50 (PAK FA) and Chinese J-20 and J-31, with only the US F-22 being deployed for active service.

China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition to be conducted in China’s Zhuhai on November 11-16.

Montag, 10. November 2014

Shipyard in St. Petersburg to build icebreaker for Russian Navy

MOSCOW, November 10. /TASS/. The first icebreaker of project 21180 for the Russian Navy will begin to be built in St. Petersburg next spring. The ship’s frame will be laid at the JSC Admiralty Shipyards in March 2015, a reliable source in the military-industrial complex has told TASS.

As the chief of the United Shipbuilding Corporation Alexey Rakhmanov said earlier, “the support icebreaker of project 21180 will be built at the Admiralty shipyards for the needs of the Northern Fleet.”

© ITAR-TASS/Sergei Medvedev

Russia to put over 40 warships, submarines, support vessels into military service in 2014

“In the longer term, under a program for upgrading the support fleet a family of seven such icebreakers may be built for use on the Arctic routes, Rakhmanov said, adding that the project 21180 ship was expected to provide ice-breaking services for the naval forces to be based and deployed in the Arctic and to tug combat ships.

The icebreaker, designed at the Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau, of St. Petersburg, is capable of negotiating ice floes up to 0.8 meter thick. Under the terms of reference ships of this type will be employed in the Arctic and in the Far East. The ice-breaker’s estimated endurance is 60 days, and range, 12 miles.

Creation of a large heavy-duty ice-breaker fleet was identified as a task of national importance in the early 1950s with the beginning of intensive development of Arctic regions.

Currently Russia has seven nuclear-powered ice-breakers (The Arktika, The Rossiya, The Soviet Union, The Taimyr, The Vaigach, The Yamal, and The 50 Let Pobedy (50 Years of Victory), and nuclear-powered lighter carrier The Sevmorput. Two nuclear powered icebreakers: The Lenin and The Sibir, have been withdrawn from operation.

Russian Engine to Power Chinese J-31 5th Generation Fighter: Rosoboronexport

MOSCOW, November 10 (RIA Novosti) - A Russian-made RD-93 engine will power the Chinese J-31 fifth generation fighter,Rosoboronexport official told RIA Novosti Monday.

"J-31 with the Russian engine RD-93 is considered to be an export program, able to compete with the American F-35 fifth generation aircraft on the regional markets," Rosoboronexport’s Air Force Equipment Export Department Head Sergey Kornev told RIA Novosti in an interview.

"The program is ambitious, but very real, especially considering the high cost of F-35 and some problems with its development," Kornev added.

Sergey Kornev, who is heading the Russian delegation at China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, told RIA Novosti that two fifth generation fighters are being developed in China, the J-20 and J-31, which demonstrates the high potential of Chinese science and aviation industry.

The J-31 fifth generation fighter flew a maiden flight in October 2012 and there is currently only one prototype available. The twin-engine jet bears some resemblance with the Russian T-50 or PAK FA fifth-generation fighter.

China has also been developing its stealth J-20 fighter, which first took off in 2011, and is expected to be operational by 2017 or later.

Russian RD-93 engines are a variant of the RD-33 engines, initially developed to power MiG-29 fighters. The RD-93 was developed by Russia’s Klimov design bureau specifically for the FC-1 fighter, known in Pakistan as the JF-17 Thunder.

The world's only fifth generation fighter in service is the US F-22 Raptor, while F-35, Russian T-50 and Chinese J-20 and J-31 are at various stages of development.

Kornev also mentioned about the problem of China's making copycat copies of Russian weapons, but pointed out that there is a resolution to that.

"The problem [of China violating copyright of Russian weapons] exists, but it is solvable, and both sides are seeking the settlement of controversial situations," Rosoboronexport's Air Force Equipment Export Department Head Sergei Kornev said prior to the Airshow China 2014 exhibition, which will be held in southern China's city of Zhuhai on November 11-16.

He cited a 2008 deal on intellectual property protection in military-technical cooperation between the two nations as a good example of Russia-China cooperation on the issue.

"We continue joint activities on elaboration of working mechanisms of exposing violations. The problem is concealed in the inconsistence of local legislations as well as international acts," Kornev added.

The defense official, however, underscored that military-technical cooperation between Russia and China has no hurdles which could not be cleared.

In 1992, China bought Russia's Su-27 fighter jets. Fifteen years later, Beijing unveiled J-11B aircraft which Moscow labeled as a copycat version of Su-27.

Russia has also accused China of producing cloned versions of Su-33 fighter jet, S-300 air defense system, the Smerch multiple rocket launcher and the Msta self-propelled howitzer in violation of intellectual property agreements.

Freitag, 7. November 2014

Russian paratroopers landed in Serbia

On the eve of the military airport "Batajnica" landed 6 transport aircraft. They brought to the Balkans tactical AIRBORNE group — hundreds of soldiers in full gear.

The soldiers flew to Serbia APC, command and staff vehicles, ATVs, and even combat drones. All of this equipment will take part in joint counter-terrorism exercises. They will take place shortly at one of the local landfill.

Russian paratroopers along with Serb special forces troops would storm the base of a conditional enemy and free the hostages. Under the scenario planned mass landings on parachutes and military equipment from the air, according to NTV.

More info on NTV.Ru: http://www.ntv.ru/novosti/1259958/#ixzz3IOLDexFc

Donnerstag, 6. November 2014

Ukraine introduces passport controls for rebel areas Donetsk Republic and Luhansk Republic

Source : http://m.spiegel.de/politik/ausland

Deepened the split of Ukraine: the Government in Kiev has issued passport controls at the borders of the areas controlled by pro-Russian separatists.

China interested in buying food from Belarus, investing in processing industry

Source : http://eng.belta.by/all_news/economics/China-interested-in-buying-food-from-Belarus-investing-in-processing-industry_i_77136.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

MOGILEV, 6 November (BelTA) – China is interested in buying food in Belarus and investing in the processing of agricultural products. The statement was made by Ambassador of China to Belarus Cui Qiming during the meeting with Mogilev Oblast Governor Piotr Rudnik on 6 November, BelTA has learned. The Ambassador took part in the 7th international investment forum Mogilev Oblast – Way to Success.

According to the Ambassador, searching for new opportunities to advance Belarus-China cooperation was one of the key tasks of his working visit to Mogilev Oblast. At presence Belarus-China trade is misbalanced, with China selling a lot more to Belarus than buying from Belarus. Therefore, the export of Belarusian food and agricultural products to China may become one of the promising avenues of cooperation.

Cui Qiming was also interested in proposals regarding the possibilities of investing in a number of projects in Mogilev Oblast. The number includes the construction of a sugar refinery near the town of Chausy, the processing of peat deposits in Klichev District, the establishment of a nodal freight airport near Mogilev, and several other projects relating to renewable energy sources. The Ambassador assured Piotr Rudnik that he will visit Beijing soon and all the proposals will be forwarded to representatives of business circles. The Ambassador also said he will put efforts into accelerating the implementation of joint investment projects. “Chinese investors have a great interest in investing in Mogilev Oblast. The region offers the most favorable investment climate and I've managed to make sure of that during the forum,” said Cui Qiming.

The Ambassador accepted the Mogilev Oblast Governor's invitation to attend major international cultural events that will take place in Mogilev Oblast in 2015. Those are the Kupalye festival (Alexandria Gathers Friends) and the international music festival Golden Hit. The Ambassador stressed that he felt like home in Mogilev Oblast although it was his first visit.

Russian airborne troops for the first time since the beginning of the century arrived on the joint exercises in Serbia

Source : http://topwar.ru/61941-rossiyskie-desantniki-vpervye-s-nachala-veka-pribyli-na-sovmestnye-ucheniya-v-serbiyu.html

Russian airborne troops for the first time since the beginning of the century arrived on the joint exercises in SerbiûRaspečatat′ Units of airborne troops of Russia and Serbia for the first time after a long hiatus in Serbian territory will hold a joint military exercise. It is reported the Star TV channel.

Russian military transport planes landed at the Belgrade military airfield. 6 transport workers were taken to the Serbian capital over 100 paratroopers, 7 BMD, 2 at the rear, several trucks. It is reported that the exercises will be equipped with machine guns and quad bikes. Their use as vehicles of the rapid response force to destroy the enemy. 

Reported that Russian and Serb troops did not take part in joint exercises with the beginning of the century is about 13 years old. Now the soldiers have all the chances to sharpen your skills of joint operations with the landings of not only personnel but also of military equipment in the rear position in terms of the teachings of the enemy.

Mittwoch, 5. November 2014

Russian Sineva ballistic missile launched from Barents Sea

MOSCOW, November 5. /TASS/. The Tula nuclear-powered submarine of the Northern Fleet has successfully test-fired the Sineva intercontinental ballistic missile from the Barents Sea aiming at the Kura range in Kamchatka, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.

“The sea-based ballistic missile launch was conducted from a submerged position. According to telemetric data, the missile’s warheads hit the Kura range target at the set time,” the ministry said.