Russia

SEVASTOPOL, January 9. /TASS/: Russian President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces Vladimir Putin has overseen the joint drills of Russia’s Black Sea and Northern Fleets from the Russian cruiser Marshal Ustinov belonging to the Northern Fleet.

MOSCOW, January 9. /TASS/: Super apps, cloud gaming, artificial intelligence and the growing consumption of paid video content will determine the trends in the IT sphere in Russia in 2020, experts told TASS.

MOSCOW, January 9. /TASS/: US President Donald Trump’s gamble to urge other countries to abandon the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on Iran’s nuclear program and hammer out a new deal will hardly garner their support, Ivan Timofeev, Program Director of the Valdai Discussion Club and Director of Programs at the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), told TASS on Thursday.

MOSCOW, January 9. /TASS/: Employees of the Amur Shipbuilding Plant in eastern Russia have been evacuated amid a bomb threat, a source in the Khabarovsk Region’s emergencies services told TASS on Thursday.

"A warning of a bomb at the Amur Shipbuilding Plant has been received. Some 3,500 people have been evacuated," the source said.

The plant’s press service has confirmed the evacuation, without revealing the reason. "People have been evacuated, necessary events are being conducted," it informed.

MOSCOW, January 8. /TASS/: The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency advised Russian airlines not to use airspace over Iran and Iraq, as well as over the Persian and Oman gulfs, the Agency said on Wednesday.

"Due to information on the existing risks to security of international flights of civil aircraft, the Federal Air Transport Agency recommends not using the airspace over the territories of Iran, Iraq, the Persian and Oman gulfs for flights of civil aircraft of the Russian Federation, including transit flights, until further notice," the message said.

MOSCOW, January 8. /TASS/: Russian military personnel in Syria not only provides help to Syrians but also defend their motherland from terrorists, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in Damascus when visiting the headquarters of the Russian Armed Forces’ group stationed in Syria.

"Here, in Syria, you are not only addressing the task of helping the Syrian people in liberating [them] from terrorist groups and gangs. Here, in Syria, you are also protecting your own homes, preventing fighters from infiltrating Russia and our neighbor states," Putin addressed the Russian military.

MOSCOW, January 8. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram to President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky, expressing condolences over the tragic crash of a Ukrainian passenger plane near Tehran, the Kremlin press service said on Wednesday.

"Head of the Russian state offered words of sympathy and support to the families and friends of the victims," the press service said.

MOSCOW, January 8. /TASS/: 80 people were killed in Iran’s missile attack on US bases in Iraq, Reuters reported with reference to Iran’s state television.

Earlier, CNN said citing sources that the missiles launched by the Iranian side hit the part of the Ain al-Asad air base in Iraq where no American troops were stationed.

07 Jan 2019; MEMO: Senior officials from Turkey, Russia and Iran discussed the latest developments in the Middle East and North Africa region yesterday.

The Russian Ministry of Defence said the country’s Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu discussed the developments in the Middle East and Libya during a telephone conversation with the head of the Turkish intelligence organisation, Hakan Fidan. The two officials also discussed joint actions to reduce tensions in the region.

MOSCOW, January 7. /TASS/: The death toll from a fire in construction trailers in the Moscow region rose to eight people, emergency services told TASS.

"The bodies of two more people were discovered. Thus, there are eight people deceased in total. Presumably, all of them are citizens of Tajikistan," the source said.