Russia

MOSCOW, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Russia will have to take reciprocal and asymmetrical measures in response to possible threats brought by intentions of the United States to use outer space for military purposes, a Russian military official said Saturday.

According to the chief of the Russian Armed Forces General Staff Valery Gerasimov, the U.S. intentions to use space for military purposes, in particular, the decision to form a Space Force, create prerequisites for the militarization of outer space.

MOSCOW, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Russia is ready for consultations on the Venezuela crisis with the United States in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Saturday.

According to a statement by the ministry, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the situation around Venezuela with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a telephone conversation.

MOSCOW, March 1 (Xinhua) -- Russia is concerned about possible U.S. military intervention in Venezuela and hopes its plans will fail amid international opposition, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday.

MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. A unique transparent with a visible yellow shade, gem-quality rough diamond weighing 98.8 carats was mined at Zapolyarnaya kimberlite pipe, which is the part of the Verkhne-Munskoye diamond deposit on February 17, 2019, Russia’s diamond producer Alrosa said in a statement on Wednesday.

MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Wednesday that Russian structures including the Russian presidential website have regularly experienced cyber attacks from the US and Europe, when commenting on a report by The Washington Post claiming that the US military had carried out a cyber attack against Russia’s Internet Research Agency in the run-up to the 2018 midterm elections.

MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. The Kalashnikov Group, the maker of the renowned AK-47 assault rifle, has completed the acquisition of ship-building assets, gaining a full set of competences for this activity, Kalashnikov CEO Vladimir Dmitriyev told TASS on Wednesday.

KOMSOMOLSK-ON-AMUR, February 26. /TASS/. The first serial-produced Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jet will arrive for Russia’s Aerospace Force in 2019, Deputy CEO of the Sukhoi Aircraft Company Alexander Pekarsh said on Tuesday.

Pekarsh heads the Company’s branch in Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the Russian Far East where Su-57 planes are manufactured.

MOSCOW, February 26. /TASS/. Flights from Russia to popular Egyptian resorts may be fully resumed in the near future, Russian Federation Council (the upper house of parliament) Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Konstantin Kosachev said at a meeting with Egyptian Ambassador Ihab Nasr on Tuesday.

"Now the flights, at least en route from Moscow to Cairo, have been fully resumed. As for other popular routes, we are close to also resuming these routes in full in accordance with the sides’ interests," Kosachev said.

MOSCOW, February 26. /TASS/. The Russian measles vaccine makes it possible to prevent that disease from circulating, Head of Russia’s Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-Being and Chief State Sanitary Physician Anna Popova told reporters on Tuesday.

Earlier reports said that most measles cases in Russia were because the infection was brought into the country from overseas. A timely inoculation makes it possible to nip 80% of measles infection cases in the bud.

ASTRAKHAN, February 26. /TASS/. Expanding the practice of issuing electronic visas to foreigners in the future may increase the incoming tourist flow to Russia by 20-30%, Deputy Economic Development Minister Sergey Galkin told reporters on Tuesday.