Russia

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin confirmed on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin would take part in a four-way international summit in Paris on Dec. 9, an attempt to advance efforts for a peaceful resolution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

The French presidency said on Friday that the leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine would take part. But until Monday the Kremlin had failed to publicly confirm its attendance.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia on Monday began the process of handing over three captured naval ships to Ukraine in the Black Sea, the TASS news agency cited a security source as saying.

A Reuters reporter in Crimea, which Russian annexed from Ukraine in 2014, saw coastguard boats pulling the three vessels through the Kerch Strait towards the Black Sea on Sunday in preparation for the handover.

Ukraine has been pushing for their return as a good will gesture from Moscow ahead of a four-way peace summit on eastern Ukraine next month in Paris.

ROSTOV-ON-DON, November 17. /TASS/: Russia began moving Ukrainian Navy warships, which were seized in the Kerch Strait on November 25, 2018, a source in the Southern Federal District’s emergency services told TASS.

"The operation on moving [the vessels] has started," the source said.

MOSCOW, November 16. /TASS/: The number of terrorist crimes has risen in the first nine months of 2019 by 3% in comparison with last year’s figures in the same period, while extremist crimes fell by 61%, the Russian Exterior Ministry statistics shows.

"In January-September 2019, 1,382 terrorist crimes were registered [which is 3.1% more than in the same period last year] and 454 extremist crimes [61% fewer]," the statistics says.

MOSCOW, November 16. /TASS/: The death toll in the blast that rocked Baghdad on Friday has climbed to six people, Xinhua news agency reported citing a source in the Iraqi Interior Ministry.

Thirty people were also injured in the blast. Earlier reports said that four people died and 20 were injured.

A car bomb exploded near Tahrir Square in downtown Baghdad where many protesters gathered.

MOSCOW, November 15. /TASS/: The Russian military police conducted a number of patrol missions in Syria’s Aleppo and al-Hasakah governorates, and the air taskforce conducted an aerial patrol mission in northern Syria, Major General Yury Borenkov, chief of the Russian Center for reconciliation of the conflicting sides in Syria, told reporters on Friday.

MOSCOW, November 15. /TASS/: Russia and Saudi Arabia, despite decline of oil production under the OPEC+ agreement, which has been operating for three years, have increased their oil revenues, like most countries involved in the transaction, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) report published on Friday.

KALININGRAD, November 15. /TASS/: The Baltic Fleet training ship Perekop currently on its long-distance deployment with cadets on its board has wrapped up its call at the port of Yangon in the Republic of Myanmar and set off for the Bay of Bengal, the Fleet’s press office reported on Friday.

MOSCOW, November 15. /TASS/: The Black Sea Fleet’s Project 636.3 diesel-electric submarine Novorossiysk has taken to the sea for drills after its repairs, the Fleet’s press office reported on Friday.

"In accordance with the Fleet’s combat training plan, the Black Sea Fleet submarine Novorossiysk has taken to the sea for a set of drills as part of accomplishing the assigned mission," the press office said in a statement.

MOSCOW, November 15. /TASS/: Law enforcement authorities have detained 10 real estate swindlers who conned their victims that were seeking apartments in different Russian regions, Russian Interior Ministry Spokeswoman Irina Volk told TASS on Friday.

"Police officers and the Russian National Guard Troops Service detained 10 people," Volk stated.