Russia

MOSCOW, March 22. /TASS/: Russia’s Defense Ministry will send to Italy nearly 100 virologists and epidemiologists, and eight medical teams with equipment to provide assistance in combating the coronavirus, the ministry told reporters on Sunday.

"A group of some 100 people is ready for the flight, which consists of leading specialists of the Russian Defense Ministry in the field of virology and epidemiology, who have major international experience in fighting against the epidemic along with modern equipment for diagnosing and carrying out disinfection efforts," the ministry said.

MOSCOW, March 22. /TASS/: Russia’s special services in Bashkortostan have killed a gunman who plotted a terrorist attack, the National Anti-Terrorism Committee’s information center told TASS on Sunday.

At 17:00 on Saturday the security services attempted to stop a car with a gunman inside near Bashkortostan’s capital of Ufa. "When asked to lay down arms and surrender to the authorities he opened fire. The gunman was neutralized by return fire," the NAC said.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia never sought a sharp oil price fall or an end to cooperation with Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and the Gulf nations are to blame for the crisis on the global oil markets, a senior Russian official said.

In early March, Russia and OPEC failed to agree how their deal to cut oil production should work: OPEC wanted to deepen the cuts while Moscow proposed extending existing curbs. The disagreement came at a time when global demand was slumping because of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

MOSCOW, Mar 22 (NNN-TASS) – Russian Prime Minister, Mikhail Mishustin and his Belarusian counterpart, Sergei Rumas, held a phone conversation concerning energy issues, the Russian government said.

“The heads of government noted the achievement of principle agreements on the parameters of cooperation in the oil sector, taking into account the mutual interests of the parties,” it said in a statement.

The implementation of these agreements will ensure the supply of Russian oil to Belarusian oil refineries in full and on agreed terms, it added.

MOSCOW (AP) — The breakaway Georgian republic of Abkhazia is holding a presidential election Sunday to replace the leader who stepped down in January under pressure from the opposition.

Raul Khadzhimba resigned as president in January, days after demonstrators seized his office to protest alleged violations in September’s election in which Khadzhimba won a second five-year term.

MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/: The coronavirus pandemic had a serious impact on the oil market, but positive news from China demonstrate that this problem should not be exaggerated, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin said on Friday.

MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/: Oil prices should reach about $35-40 per barrel, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov said in an interview with the ‘Vesti v Subbotu’ (News on Saturday) program on the Rossiya-1 TV channel.

"My estimation is that [the prices] will adjust at the level of about $35-40. There are other estimations, namely by the Russian Ministry of Energy, that it will be higher, over $40. We shall see who is right," he said.

MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/: The Russian Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare has delivered over 100,000 COVID-19 test kits to 13 states, the watchdog’s press service informed on Saturday, adding that delivery to three more states is planned.

MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/: The global economy will begin to recover after the current situation with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) stabilizes, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said during the government session on economic issues on Saturday. He added that Russia’s oil industry is ready for volatility on world markets.

MOSCOW, March 20. /TASS/: Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has detected a financing cell of the Islamic State (IS terrorist group, outlawed in Russia) operating in Crimea, the Rostov Region and the Komi Republic, the FSB’s Center for Public Relations informed TASS.

The FSB noted that activity of the clandestine IS financing cell had been suspended. "The detained persons established an international network collecting, accumulating and transferring money." Under the guise of charity, about 2 mln roubles ($26,000) were transferred to terrorist accounts.