Russia

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: The European Parliament’s decision to equate Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union is unacceptable, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at his annual news conference in Moscow on Thursday.

"I am aware of the European Parliament’s decision and I consider it to be unacceptable and incorrect. One may condemn the Stalin regime and totalitarianism in general, and not without a reason. Undoubtedly, our people had fallen victim to totalitarianism and we have condemned it, as well as Stalin's cult of personality," Putin pointed out.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: The Russian armed forces has received the first batch of ADS amphibious assault rifles, which are effective both under water and on the ground, the press service of the High Precision Systems holding (part of the State Corporation Rostec) told TASS.

"Regarding the ADS amphibious assault rifles, production has been set up. Last week, the delivery of first batch of the assault rifles under the state procurement order has been completed," the source said.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: An Ilyuzhin-76 transport plane has made a safe landing at Zhukovsky Airport near Moscow after one of its four engines failed, emergency services said.

The plane belongs to the flight research institute.

"After burning off the fuel the Ilyushin-76 made a normal landing. Nobody was hurt. Assistance of emergency services was not necessary," the source said.

There were 13 people on board. The plane had 50 tonnes of fuel in its tanks.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he expects his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump’s to remain in office despite the House of Representatives voting to impeach Trump on Wednesday.

Putin said the allegations against Trump are “dreamt up” and that he believes the U.S. Senate is unlikely to remove Trump from office.

Putin added that Russia is ready to agree on a new START arms treaty with the United States, but that there has been no response to Russian proposals.

PARIS, Dec 19 (NNN-TASS) — Russia’s Soyuz-ST-A carrier rocket launched from the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana has successfully orbited five European space vehicles, including the CHEOPS telescope intended to study exoplanets.

The flight operator Arianespace held a live broadcast of the space mission on its website on Wednesday, reported Russian news agency TASS.

The Russian carrier rocket blasted off at 11:54 a.m. Moscow time. About 10 minutes after the liftoff, the Fregat-MT booster separated from the Russian launch vehicle in the normal mode.

MOSCOW, December 18. /TASS/: Five Japanese vessels carrying over six tonnes of illegally poached octopus have been detained off Sakhalin Island in the North Pacific Ocean, the Russian Federal Security Service’s Border Service said on Wednesday.

The Japanese vessels, which were poaching near the Kuril Islands, were detained during the checks on December 17. "In order to establish all circumstances of violations and amid deteriorating weather conditions, the Japanese ships were escorted to the Yuzhno-Kurilsk maritime terminal," the statement said.

MOSCOW, December 18. /TASS/: Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi considers it necessary for Tokyo and Moscow to expand cooperation on the energy project Arctic LNG 2.

"Trade turnover between Japan and Russia has slightly decreased this year, though personally I consider the possibility of developing mutually beneficial trade exceptionally large," he said at the 15th plenary session of the intergovernmental commission on trade and economic issues on Wednesday.

MOSCOW, December 18. /TASS/: NATO military exercises in the Baltic States, Poland, and in the Black and Baltic Seas indicate that the Alliance is preparing for a large-scale conflict, Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasinov told foreign military attaches on Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project are a breach of international law and an example of unfair competition, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.

Moscow expects the project to be completed, Peskov added.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate passed a defense policy bill which includes sanctions on companies building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

It now goes to the White House, where President Donald Trump is expected to sign it.

MOSCOW, December 17. /TASS/: The Russian Pacific Fleet’s task force arrived on a business call in the port of Busan to meet with the South Korean Navy’s command and the city authorities and hold friendly sports competitions, the Fleet’s press service said on Tuesday.