Russia

SEVASTOPOL, January 28. /TASS/: A mobile coastal defense anti-ship system Bastion has carried out a march to a deployment site in Crimea within the framework of an exercise being held against the backdrop of the US destroyer Donald Cook’s visit to the Black Sea, the Black Sea Fleet’s information support office said on Thursday.

Combat crews arrived in the designated area, readied the systems for combat and carried out preparations for virtual fire. The Bastion battalion performed a set of standard tasks and drills in field conditions, the news release says.

MOSCOW, January 28. /TASS/: Law enforcement agencies were performing their duties when they searched and detained participants in illegal demonstrations that occurred on January 23, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov told the media.

We had expressed our concerns before those events took place (January 23 demonstrations). Presently, officers of the law are performing their functions," Peskov said when asked to what extent the Kremlin was concerned about the "significant number of detentions and searches after the demonstrations."

MOSCOW, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that the international community is facing higher risks of military conflicts as some countries may seek scapegoats for their problems.

"Unresolved and growing internal socio-economic problems can push people to look for someone to blame for all the troubles," Putin said in a speech at the World Economic Forum virtual event of the Davos Agenda.

Trade barriers, sanctions, and other restrictions are being used to pressure countries that do not agree to be "obedient," he said.

MOSCOW, January 27. /TASS/: The issue of blogger Alexey Navalny was touched upon during a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed to journalists Wednesday.

"As for this topic, yes, it was raised by the US president, and President Putin provided all necessary explanations," the spokesman said.

He refrained from answering a question whether the two presidents have a mutual understanding or vastly different positions. "We provided all necessary explanations," he reiterated.

MOSCOW, January 27. /TASS/: Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has exposed a clandestine cell of the Hizb-ut Tahrir terrorist organization, outlawed in Russia, in the Kaluga region, the FSB said in a statement on Wednesday.

"Federal Security Service and National Guard officers have exposed a clandestine cell of the Hizb-ut Tahrir international terrorist organization (outlawed by the Russian Supreme Court in 2003) in the Kaluga region," the statement reads.

MOSCOW, January 27. /TASS/: Russia confirmed 17,741 coronavirus cases in the past day, a record low since October 29, the anti-coronavirus crisis center reported.

The total coronavirus caseload hit 3,774,672. The average growth rate reached 0.47%.

The lowest growth rates in the past day were registered in the Tuva Republic (0.07%), the Altai Republic (0.1%), Moscow, the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region, the Pskov Region, the Kostroma Region and the Republic of Khakassia (0.2%).

MOSCOW, January 27. /TASS/: Russia and the US have agreed to extend the Treaty on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (New START) without pre-conditions, as Moscow insisted, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told journalists on Wednesday.

"On our conditions," he said in response to a corresponding question by TASS. "For five years without pre-conditions, without any additions, without any appendices whatsoever," he added.

MOSCOW, Jan 27 (NNN-TASS) — Starting from Wednesday, Russia resumes regular air service with Vietnam, India, Finland and Qatar, suspended last year due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The decision was made in mid-January by the novel coronavirus crisis center.

The center authorized flights to Vietnam (Moscow-Hanoi, twice a week), India (Moscow-New Delhi, twice a week), Finland (Moscow-Helsinki, twice a week, as well as St. Petersburg-Helsinki, twice a week) and Qatar (Moscow-Doha, thrice a week).

MOSCOW, January 26. /TASS/: Moscow is ready to help Tehran expand the capacity of the operating Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant through construction of more nuclear power units, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif on Tuesday.

VLADIVOSTOK, January 26. /TASS/: Long-range anti-submarine Tu-142МЗ planes of the Pacific Fleet have performed a scheduled flight over the Bering and the Chukchi Seas, the press service of the Eastern Military District reported on Tuesday.

"On January 26, 2021, two long-range anti-submarine Tu-142МЗ planes of naval aviation of the Pacific Fleet performed a scheduled flight over the waters of the Bering and the Chukchi Seas. The mission time surpassed 11 hours. During this time they covered over 8,000 kilometers," the press service reported.