Russia

ST. PETERSBURG, December 29. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin is confident that implementing union programs will create better conditions for the development of the economies of Russia and Belarus.

At a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on Wednesday, Putin recalled the adoption of 28 union programs earlier this year. "This is very important, it will create better conditions for the development of the economies of the two countries," Putin said.

MOSCOW, December 28. /TASS/: Russia’s MC-21 civilian aircraft has received a basic type certificate, Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov told reporters.

"The MC-21 aircraft has received a basic type certificate today," he said.

The basic certification assumes the use of an American Pratt&Whitney (PW140) engine and a wing made of materials from abroad.

Next year, the certificate will be amended to allow the use of the Russian composite wing and the PD-14 engine in the aircraft, the minister added.

MOSCOW, December 28. /TASS/: Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu thanked the domestic defense industry for substantially upgrading the Russian Army’s armaments in 2021.

MOSCOW, December 28. / TASS /: It is necessary to protect the rights of compatriots living abroad, further uniting the Russian community and supporting the national language and culture, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Tuesday at the United Russia General Council commission on international cooperation and support of compatriots abroad, which he chairs.

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that one of the country’s oldest and most prominent human rights organizations should be shut down, a move that stirred up public outrage and is the latest step in a months-long crackdown on rights activists, independent media and opposition supporters.

MOSCOW, December 26. /TASS/: Russia understands that it will have to live with US sanctions for a long time as the US president cannot simply lift them, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday.

"Many processes are codified, which means that the [US] president is bound hand and foot by the laws and acts passed by the Congress," he said in an interview with the Moscow.Kremlin.Putin program on the Rossiya-1 television channel.

MOSCOW, December 26. / TASS /: The allegations of insufficient gas supplies against Russia and the Gazprom energy corporation are unacceptable and groundless, European states create obstacles for themselves, Spokesman for the Russian gas giant Sergey Kupriyanov told the Rossiya-1 TV channel.

"All accusations against Russia and Gazprom relating to delivering insufficient amount of gas to the European market are absolutely groundless, unacceptable and untrue. To put it simply, it is a pack of lies," the Gazprom spokesman noted.

MOSCOW, December 26. /TASS/: Moscow is weighing time, format and delegates for a Russia-NATO Council meeting, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told TASS on Sunday.

"The time, modalities, format and makeup of the delegation are being considered," he said.

Moscow believes it’s essential that top military commanders take part in the NATO-Russia Council "because the matter is about military security issues," the diplomat said.

MOSCOW, December 26. /TASS/: Russia’s coronavirus death toll rose by 968 to 304,218 in the past 24 hours, the federal anti-coronavirus crisis center said on Sunday.

MOSCOW, December 26. /TASS/: Russia may choose various responses based on advice from military experts if US and NATO decline to provide security guarantees, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Rossiya 1 television on Sunday.

"It may vary," he said in an interview with the Moscow. Kremlin. Putin program. "It will depend on the proposals that our military experts will make to me."

The president said Russia will seek to achieve a positive outcome in the talks on security guarantees.