Russia

ST. PETERSBURG, January 7. / TASS /: Russian President Vladimir Putin presented the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God to the Transfiguration Cathedral of St. Petersburg on Tuesday at the Christmas services.

For more than half an hour, the President, along with other worshipers, took part in a nightly Divine Liturgy, after which he briefly talked with the Archpriest of the cathedral, Nikolai Bryndin, and presented him with an icon as a gift.

In response, the President received an icon of the Kazan Mother of Godv from Bryndin.

MOSCOW, January 6. /TASS/: Russian Defense Minister Army General Sergey Shoigu held telephone talks on Monday with Chief of Staff of Iran Major General Mohammad Bagheri in connection with the killing of the Iran’s Quds Force Commander Qasem Soleimani.

"The military leaders discussed practical steps during the conversation for prevention of escalation of the situation in the Syrian Arab Republic and the Middle East in connection with the killing of commander of the Quds special unit General Qasem Soleimani near Baghdad," the Ministry said.

MOSCOW, January 7. / TASS /: Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova wrote on her Facebook page on Tuesday, that it is necessary to emphasize the word "mistake" in Pentagon's explanation of the withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

"I propose that we attach the word 'error' to it, otherwise tomorrow everyone will start again with the "Russian hackers" did it, or nod in the direction of Russia Today," Zakharova said.

MOSCOW, January 5. /TASS/: The Progress Rocket and Space Center (RCC) (part of Russian space corporation Roscosmos), together with S7 Space (operator of the Sea Launch project), have begun to work on the parameters of a rocket for the Sea Launch projects, a spokesperson with the center told TASS.

"At present, the specialists of our company are discussing with S7 Space tactical and technical requirements for a launch vehicle in ensure launches from the Sea Launch platform and the timing of the main stages of work," the spokesperson said.

MOSCOW, January 5. /TASS/: Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has signed a decree on the order of providing subsidies to encourage demand and improving the competitiveness of Russia’s manufactures. The document has been published on the cabinet’s website. The federal budget for 2020 envisions as much as 9.8 bln rubles ($157 mln) allocated for such state support measures.

The rules have been approved to meet the demands of manufacturing corporations for production modernization. The state support mechanism will be available for a wide range of customers.

MOSCOW, January 5. /TASS/: Russia’s government plans to draft 230 bills in 2020 as Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has approved a respective plan of legislative drafting activities. The document has been published on the government’s website.

Moscow, Jan 5, IRNA – Russian and Chinese foreign ministers in a phone call on Saturday described assassination of Lieutenant General Qasem Soleimani as outright violation the United Nations Charter.

Seregey Lavrov and Wan Yi also discussed major regional developments as well as repercussions of US targeted airstrike on Iranian Commander Lieutenant General Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad Airport.

05 Jan 2019; MEMO: The Russian Ministry of Health has honoured Palestinian doctor, Imad Meri, as the best cardiology and resuscitation doctor in 2019, Palestine Information Centre (PIC) reported on Friday.

According to the PIC, Meri was hailed as the best doctor as a result of a series of achievements during his career.

MOSCOW, January 3. /TASS/: Russia and Belarus have found a temporary solution for renewing oil export to Belarusian oil refineries with the aid of one-off oil shipments from independent suppliers, a source in the Russian government informed TASS. Russia expects to finalize the corresponding agreement in the near future, the source added.

MOSCOW, January 3. /TASS/: US strikes in Syria and Iraq could be an issue for discussion by the UN Security Council, Chairman of the Russian State Duma (lower house) Foreign Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky told TASS on Friday commenting on the murder of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in Iraq.