Russia

MOSCOW, October 27. /TASS/: Moscow is set for active and constructive work within the framework of the 'Caspian Five' (Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan) in order to strengthen the region's stance as a zone of profitable international cooperation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday.

"Russia is determined for active and constructive work within the ‘Caspian Five’ in order to bolster the region’s position as a zone of peace, harmony, good-neighborliness and fruitful international cooperation," Lavrov said.

VLADIVOSTOK, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the first module of the Russian Orbital Station could be launched into orbit by 2027, as the International Space Station (ISS) resources are exhausted.

Speaking at a meeting with young scientists and space industry specialists, Putin said that Russia aims to build a complete station, not just a single segment.

26 October 2023; MEMO: Representatives of Palestinian group, Hamas, are holding talks with Russian diplomats in Moscow, a Russian government spokesperson said on Thursday, Anadolu Agency reports.

"I can say and confirm that representatives of the relevant Palestinian Movement (Hamas) are on a visit to Moscow. As for contacts, we will inform you (about their results) additionally" Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, said at a news conference in Moscow.

MOSCOW, October 26. /TASS/: Russian forces destroyed two German-made Leopard tanks and roughly 85 Ukrainian troops in the Zaporozhye area over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Thursday.

MOSCOW, October 26. /TASS/: The Copenhagen meeting on Ukraine set to take place in Malta will be counterproductive, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

"On October 28-29, Malta will host another meeting of the so-called Copenhagen platform, which will involve national security advisors to the leaders of participating countries Clearly, such get-togethers will lead nowhere as they are simply counterproductive," the diplomat noted.

MOSCOW Oct 25 (Reuters) - Russian forces are disregarding heavy losses and pressing on with a drive to capture the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday.

Russia has focused on the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk since failing in its initial drive on the capital Kyiv after mounting its invasion in February 2022.

Over the past two weeks, Russia has concentrated on Avdiivka in Donetsk, a town known in peacetime for its big coking plant and now seen as a bulwark of Ukrainian resistance.

MOSCOW, Oct 26 (Reuters) - A delegation from Hamas visited Moscow on Thursday for talks on the release of foreign hostages including Russian citizens that the militant group is currently holding in Gaza, Russian news agencies reported, citing the foreign ministry.

Senior Hamas member Abu Marzouk was among those attending the talks, TASS reported.

MOSCOW, October 25. /TASS/: Russia has been and still is in favor of creating a genuine system of international security based on fair principles, but if the United States takes no steps to fulfill its obligations, the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) will remain window dressing, and there is no point in Russia's participation in this toothless travesty, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said.

MOSCOW, October 25. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin watched an exercise of the country’s strategic deterrence forces via video conferencing on Wednesday.

The Russian president joined the exercise from the Kremlin’s situational center and listened to the reports by Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov.

The exercise was carried out with the forces and capabilities of the ground-based, naval and airborne components of the Russian nuclear deterrence forces, the Kremlin press office said on its website.

MOSCOW Oct 25 (Reuters) - Russia has successfully tested its ability to deliver a massive retaliatory nuclear strike by land, sea and air, a Kremlin statement said on Wednesday, a display of force which coincides with Moscow de-ratifying a landmark nuclear test ban treaty.

The exercise, which involved the test launch of missiles from a land-based silo, a nuclear submarine, and from long-range bomber aircraft, comes as Moscow is locked in what it casts as an existential standoff with the West over Ukraine.