Russian latest nuclear-powered sub test-fires Bulava missile for first time during trials

The sub launched the missile from the White Sea towards the Kura range in the Far Eastern Kamchatka Region.

MOSCOW, October 30. /TASS/. The Project 955A (Borei-A-class) lead nuclear-powered submarine Knyaz Vladimir (Prince Vladimir) test-fired a Bulava ballistic missile for the first time during trials in the White Sea, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Wednesday.

"For the first time ever, a seaborne Bulava ballistic missile was test-fired from the latest Project Borei-A strategic missile-carrying submarine Knyaz Vladimir," the ministry said.

The submarine launched the Bulava missile from its submerged position during its planned trials. The sub launched the missile from the White Sea towards the Kura range in the Far Eastern Kamchatka Region, the ministry added.

The Bulava missile’s flight proceeded in the normal mode and "its dummy warheads reached the range within the established time, which was registered by data recording equipment," it said.

The missile firing area was closed for shipping and vessels of the Northern Fleet’s Belomorskaya naval base provided the security regime.

As Northern Fleet Commander Vice-Admiral Alexander Moiseyev earlier told TASS, the submarine Knyaz Vladimir is completing its state trials this year, during which all its armament will be tested. As the commander specified, the sub is due to be delivered to the Navy "on the eve of the New Year," i.e. in December. The submarine will be operational in the Northern Fleet, the vice-admiral said.

By now, the Sevmash Shipyard in northwestern Russia (part of the United Shipbuilding Corporation) has built and delivered three baseline Project 955 Borei-class strategic submarines to the Navy. The lead submarine Yuri Dolgoruky has entered service with the Northern Fleet, while two serial-produced subs Alexander Nevsky and Vladimir Monomakh are operational in the Pacific Fleet.

The Project 955 and 955A submarines have been developed by the Rubin Central Design Bureau for Marine Engineering. The Sevmash Shipyard continues building four Project 955A submarines (the Knyaz Oleg, the Generalissimus Suvorov, the Emperor Alexander III and the Knyaz Pozharsky).

The Knyaz Vladimir is the first strategic underwater cruiser built under the renewed Project 955A (it was floated out in November 2017). According to Russia’s Defense Ministry, the sub features better acoustic stealth, maneuvering and deep-sea running capabilities and an improved armament control system.

All Borei-class submarines can carry 16 Bulava missiles and are also armed with 533mm torpedo tubes.

Source: ITAR-TASS 30-10-2019

Spray and vanish: Troops use aerosol screen to hide redeploying forces during Volga drills

MOSCOW, October 29. /TASS/. Radiation, chemical and biological protection troops from Russia’s Central Military District used an aerosol screen to hide the motorized infantry’s redeployment during the final end-of-year drills at the Chapayev training range in the Samara Region, the District’s press office reported on Tuesday.

"Specialists of the radiation, chemical and biological protection troops employed TDA-3 thermo-smoke vehicles to generate an aerosol cloud about 2km long in front of a notional enemy. Therefore, the chemical warfare troops managed to hide the motorized infantry’s maneuvers from the enemy’s observation devices, which helped accomplish the assigned mission without any casualties," the press office said.

The drills involved about 500 personnel and over 30 items of military hardware.

Source: ITAR-TASS 29-10-2019

Lugansk slams Kiev chief negotiator’s remarks on Steinmeier formula as nonsense

Earlier Leonid Kuchma stated, that the Steinmeier formula could not bring peace to Donbass since it was aimed at "putting the squeeze on Ukraine" and "selling it out".

LUGANSK, October 27. /TASS/. Remarks by Ukraine’s chief negotiator at the Minsk talks Leonid Kuchma that the Steinmeier formula is absurd and harmful for Ukraine are total nonsense, Vladislav Deinego, foreign minister of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), said on Sunday.

"Such escapades are total nonsense for a serious politician who is responsible for talks on fulfilling the Minsk agreements, which he had signed," Deinego said, according to the LuganskInformCenter.

The foreign minister recalled that the Steinmeier formula’s text had been agreed on at the meeting of political advisers of the Normandy Four (Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine). Later the document was sent to the Contact Group for settling the crisis in southeastern Ukraine to be signed by the conflicting sides - Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk.

Some three weeks ago, at the Contact Group’s meeting on October 1 Kuchma confirmed that Ukraine had agreed on the Steinmeier formula by sending an official letter to Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine Martin Sajdik, he noted.

"Moreover, several days later Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky at a meeting in Tokyo personally thanked Frank-Walter Steinmeier for his formula and for supporting Ukraine," Deinego said.

On Friday, Kuchma stated at a meeting with students of Chernigov National University of Technology that the Steinmeier formula could not bring peace to Donbass since it was aimed at "putting the squeeze on Ukraine" and "selling it out." He also rejected the idea of holding elections in Donbass before Ukraine’s authorities assume control over the border with Russia as demanded by the Minsk deal. Kuchma ruled out a special status for Donbass stressing that this would be switching to confederation, which he considered as unacceptable.

Source: ITAR-TASS 27-10-2019

Plane carrying Russian national Maria Butina lands in Moscow

MOSCOW, October 26. /TASS/. The plane carrying Russian citizen Maria Butina who was released from a US prison on Friday has landed at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport.

According to the Flightradar24 website, the plane landed earlier than scheduled.

Maria’s father Valery, who arrived in Moscow to meet his daughter, was waiting for her at the airport. About 50 reporters were waiting for Butina as well.

Among those who met the Russian national was Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

Butina, 30, was arrested in Washington on July 15, 2018, ahead of a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump in Helsinki. She was charged with conspiracy to act as a foreign agent in the United States. US intelligence services argued that the Russian citizen carried out this activity without being registered as an agent of a foreign state with the Department of Justice. On April 26, Butina was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Moscow stated that the charges had been trumped-up and demanded her release from custody. Butina's sentence ended on Friday, October 25.

Source: ITAR-TASS 26-10-2019

Marine aviation carries out live firing exercise in Crimea

The planes’ crews destroyed land targets in the Konchekskaya mountain area with 12 air bombs.

MOSCOW, October 25. /TASS/. The crews of the Su-30SM, Su-27 and Su-24M planes of the Naval Air and Air Defense Force of the Black Sea Fleet have carried out an exercise in Crimea during which they destroyed the "enemy’s" command center, the press service of the Southern Military District reported on Friday.

According to the scenario, a Su-24MR reconnaissance plane found the "enemy’s" command center on mountainous terrain. "Multi-purpose Su-30SM and Su-27 fighters, as well as Su-24M bombers, were scrambled. The crews carried out a bomb strike on the hypothetical enemy by using OFAB-250-270-class aviation bombs," the report says.

The drills were carried out at the Opuk range in Crimea. The planes’ crews destroyed land targets in the Konchekskaya mountain area with 12 air bombs.

The pilots also performed urgent flight missions and trained elements of advanced flying to avoid the hypothetical enemy’s air defense weapons at different altitudes both solely and in pairs.

Seven planes of the Naval Air and Air Defense Force of the Black Sea Fleet were involved in the drills.

Source: ITAR-TASS 25-10-2019

Army aviation brigade in Urals to get four Mi-24P attack helicopters

In September, the army aviation brigade in the Sverdlovsk Region received one Mi-24P gunship.

YEKATERINBURG, October 22. /TASS/. Four Mil Mi-24P strike helicopters will arrive for the Central Military District’s army aviation brigade stationed in the Sverdlovsk Region in the Urals by the end of October, the District’s press office reported on Tuesday.

"The arrival of four multirole strike helicopters will complete the process of forming a squadron of Mi-24P gunships. The rotorcraft crews will be accomplishing missions in flight tactical drills and will also be employed in various tactical exercises, from the company to the brigade level," the press office said in a statement.

The pilots of the Mi-24P squadron have gained theoretical knowledge and practical skills at the combat training center for the army aviation flight personnel in the Tver Region in central Russia, the statement says.

In September, the army aviation brigade in the Sverdlovsk Region received one Mi-24P gunship.

The Mi-24P is a heavy upgrade of the domestically produced Mi-24 helicopter. The helicopter’s armament includes 23mm twin-barrel automatic guns placed in a nacelle under the wing. The gunship can carry up to 2.5 tonnes of underslung bomb armament weighing from 50 to 500 kilograms.

Source: ITAR-TASS 22-10-2019

Dam collapse death toll in Krasnoyarsk region rises to 15

A dam at a technological reservoir of a gold mining artel collapsed near the settlement of Schetinkino in the Krasnoyarsk region.

MOSCOW, October 19. /TASS/. The official death toll from the dam collapse in the Krasnoyarsk region rises to 15 people, press service of the Russian Emergencies Ministry's told TASS on Saturday.

A dam at a technological reservoir of a gold mining artel collapsed early on Saturday near the settlement of Schetinkino in the Krasnoyarsk region. Two temporary dormitories were flooded. The Russian Emergencies Ministry sent rescuers from neighboring regions to the site of the incident to assist in disaster relief efforts.

A criminal case has been opened.

Source: ITAR-TASS 20-10-2019

Russia in talks with Serbia on delivering SSJ 100 — official

First Deputy Head of the Russian Government Office Sergey Prikhodko said that Russia's Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company and Serbia's airline Air Serbia are in talks on the matter.

MOSCOW, October 19. /TASS/. Russia's Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company and Serbia's airline Air Serbia are in talks on the possibility of supplying Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ 100) aircraft, First Deputy Head of the Russian Government Office Sergey Prikhodko told reporters ahead of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's official visit to Serbia.

"The issue of supplying Russian-made aircraft to Serbia is being discussed in several formats. In particular, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company is working with Serbia's airline Air Serbia on the issue of updating the airline's fleet by purchasing Russia's Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft," Prikhodko said.

The possibility of establishing a service center for SSJ 100 in the Belgrade airport is also being considered, he added. "In June, the Serbian side has completed the process of certification for technical servicing of Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft in accordance with requirements of the European Aviation Safety Agency," Prikhodko noted.

In the future, Air Serbia may also be interested in purchasing Russia's MS-21 aircraft which is currently at the stage of pre-certification trials, he said.

Source: ITAR-TASS 19-10-2019

S-400, Pantsir anti-aircraft missile systems repel enemy air attack in Crimea drills

The combat crews of air defense systems detected the notional enemy’s aircraft and helicopters and conducted electronic missile launches.

SEVASTOPOL, October 17. /TASS/. Air defense troops fired S-400 and Pantsir anti-aircraft missile systems to defend facilities against an attack by a notional enemy’s aircraft and helicopters in Crimea drills, the press office of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet reported on Thursday.

"During the drills in Crimea, the crews of aircraft and helicopters of the Black Sea Fleet’s naval aviation ‘attacked’ installations that were defended by the crews of S-400 Triumf and Pantsir air defense systems. The crews of Su-24 and Su-30 planes and Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters from the Black Sea Fleet’s naval aviation simulated targets for the air defense alert forces," the press office said in a statement.

During the drills, the aircraft and helicopters performed their assignments both at top speeds at a maximum distance from radar-covered areas and at ultra-low altitudes following terrain features, which complicated the task for air defense forces.

In turn, the combat crews of air defense systems detected the notional enemy’s aircraft and helicopters and conducted electronic missile launches.

Overall, the drills involved five aircraft and three helicopters, including Su-24MR reconnaissance planes, Su-24M frontline bombers, Su-30SM multirole fighters, Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters and S-400 Triumf and Pantsir systems from the Southern Military District’s Air Force and Air Defense Army.

Russia’s S-400 Triumf (NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler) is the latest long- and medium-range surface-to-air missile system that went into service in 2007. It is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles, and can also be used against ground installations. The S-400 can engage targets at a distance of up to 400 km and at an altitude of up to 30 km under intensive enemy fire and jamming.

The Pantsir-S1 (NATO reporting name: SA-22 Greyhound) is a ground-based self-propelled surface-to-air missile/gun system designed to shield military and civilian facilities, including long-range air defense systems, from all modern and future air attack weapons.

The Pantsir mounted on the truck chassis for greater mobility is armed with two 30mm guns, each of which is capable of firing up to 40 rounds per second, as well as 12 anti-aircraft missiles.

Source: ITAR-TASS 17-10-2019

Searches underway at 30 regional branches of Navalny’s foundation in money laundering case

Some staff members have been summoned for questioning.

MOSCOW, October 15. /TASS/. Russia’s Investigative Committee is carrying out searches in 30 regions across the country at the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), founded by Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny, as part of a criminal probe into money laundering, IC Spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko told TASS on Tuesday.

"Today searches are being conducted as part of preliminary investigation in 30 federal subjects in the organization’s headquarters and at the places of residence of staff members of FBK’s regional branches. Items and documents are being seized, which the investigators deem as important," Petrenko said, noting that some staff members had been summoned for questioning.

Earlier, a source in the law enforcement agencies told TASS that on Tuesday investigators launched searches in regional headquarters in Arkhangelsk and Belgorod. Searches are also being held at the places of residence of FBK’s activists in Ufa, Samara, Saratov, Yekaterinburg, Yaroslavl, Chelyabinsk, Novokuznetsk and Krasnodar.

According to the spokeswoman, upon the investigators’ request the court had arrested FBK’s accounts in credit organizations. "It has been confirmed that money from foreign sources had been transferred to these accounts. In particular, this fact served as a ground for including the foundation into the registry of organizations fulfilling the functions of foreign agents," Petrenko said.

On October 9, the Russian Justice Ministry reported that Navalny’s foundation had been placed on the list of non-profit organizations acting as foreign agents. According to the ministry, FBK was engaged in political activity and was bankrolled from abroad. Only in 2019, the organization received some 140,000 rubles ($2,157) in two tranches from Spain and one from the US.

The Russian Investigative Committee earlier launched criminal proceedings regarding the financing of the Anti-Corruption Foundation. According to the investigation, since January 2016 until December 2018, people tied to the foundation received large-scale sums of money in Russian and foreign currency by unlawful means, and later used a money laundering scheme to bankroll the foundation. The courts froze more than 100 accounts of the foundation and individuals tied to it as part of the case.

Source: ITAR-TASS 15-10-2019

Russia to hold Strategic Missile Force drills with over 200 missile launchers

The drills on October 15-17 will involve 12,000 troops.

MOSCOW, October 14. /TASS/. Russia will hold its Strategic Missile Force drills on October 15-17 that will involve 12,000 troops, 213 missile launchers, 105 aircraft and five submarines, the Defense Ministry announced on Monday.

"Command and staff drills will take place on October 15-17, 2019 to practice the Armed Forces’ command and control," the ministry said in a statement.

The drills will involve "about 12,000 personnel, 213 launchers of the Strategic Missile Force, up to 105 planes, including five strategic missile-carrying aircraft, up to 15 surface ships and five submarines and 310 items of military and special hardware," the statement reads.

"During the drills, cruise and ballistic missiles of various types of basing will be launched, including against the Pemboi, Chizha and Kura firing ranges," the ministry said.

The drills will bring together military command centers' operational staff, units and formations of the Strategic Missile Force, long-range and military transport aviation, and also military units and formations that provide for the operation of strategic deterrence forces and special units that will simulate a notional enemy, the statement says.

Aerodromes of long-range, military transport and operational-tactical aviation, the training ranges of Russia’s military districts and of the Northern Fleet and the naval ranges in the Barents, Baltic, Black, Okhotsk and Caspian Seas will also be involved in the drills, the statement informs.

Source: ITAR-TASS 14-10-2019

Ukrainian military shells DPR settlement – militia

DPR envoys have called on observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to make the Ukrainian military abide by the current ceasefire agreement.

DONETSK, October 12. /TASS/. The Ukrainian military shelled the Kominternovo settlement in the south of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) overnight into Saturday, the DPR militia said in a statement.

"Last night, war criminals from the 36th Marine Brigade carried out a massive shelling attack on the Kominternovo settlement. A 120 mm mine hit a home, causing damage," the Donetsk News Agency quoted the statement as saying.

The DPR militia added that international human rights organizations and the DPR Prosecutor General would be informed about the attack. DPR envoys have called on observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to make the Ukrainian military abide by the current ceasefire agreement.

On July 17, members of the Contact Group on resolving the situation in eastern Ukraine declared an indefinite ceasefire in Donbass starting on July 21. The ceasefire agreement particularly includes the parties’ obligations to take additional measures to ensure the ceasefire, which is what the Donbass republics had called for. The agreement particularly emphasizes the need to abandon offensive and reconnaissance operations, as well as the deployment of heavy weapons to settlements, particularly to civilian infrastructure facilities, including schools, kindergartens and hospitals. However, the Ukrainian military violated the new ceasefire on the very first day, shelling the Novaya Tavriya settlement.

Source: ITAR-TASS 12-10-2019

Putin says Zelensky unable to ensure disengagement in Donbass because of nationalists

The nationalist units openly said that, if the army withdrew from these positions, they would take them up, Putin said.

ASHGABAT, October 11. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky was unable to ensure the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops as part of disengagement of forces at Zolotoye and Petrovskoye in Donbass, the manifestation of political will is needed to implement that agreement, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council on Friday.

"An agreement on the disengagement of forces has been reached. However, the incumbent [Ukrainian] president cannot ensure the disengagement of troops and military equipment. The nationalist units, which arrived there, openly said that, if the army withdrew from these positions, they would take them up. The army is not leaving the area," the Russian leader noted. He added that the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics had signaled their readiness to begin disengagement several times firing white flares, but there was no response from the Ukrainian side.

"The manifestation of political will is needed there," Putin stressed.

"I believe it is essential to support not specific people, but the policy pursued by them," he added. Earlier on Friday, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko called on the leaders of the CIS member-states to support the current Ukrainian administration.

Troop withdrawal deal

At the October 1 meeting of the Contact Group, the parties agreed to begin the disengagement process at Zolotoye and Petrovskoye. Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine Martin Sajdik said the disengagement was due to start on October 7. However, the process was not launched on that day. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadim Pristaiko said a seven-day ceasefire had to be observed before starting the disengagement.

However, the Donbass republics recalled that this time that demand was not a condition for launching the disengagement. The LPR has linked Kiev’s disruption of the effort to an increased activity of radical forces in Ukraine. Radical groups had staged protests across the country, and on October 6 militants from the Azov battalion arrived in Zolotoye calling to stop the planned disengagement.

Ukrainian media reports later said that the disengagement at Zolotoye had been postponed until October 9.

The decision of the Trilateral Contact Group on the disengagement of forces in Donbass was signed by representatives of Ukraine, the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics, Russia and the OSCE in September 2016. The document stipulates creating three security zones near Zolotoye, Stanitsa Luganskaya (LPR) and Petrovskoye (DPR). Disengagement at Zolotoye and Petrovskoye remains the last condition for a new Normandy Four summit, which has not been fulfilled to date.

Source: ITAR-TASS 11-10-2019

Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation placed on foreign agents list

In early August, the Russian Investigative Committee initiated criminal proceedings regarding the financing of the foundation.

MOSCOW, October 9. /TASS/. The Anti-Corruption Foundation, founded by Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny, has been placed on the register of non-profit organizations acting as foreign agents, the Russian Ministry of Justice informed on Wednesday.

"On October 9, based on the federal law "On non-commercial organizations", the non-profit organization "Anti-Corruption Foundation" has been placed on the register of non-commercial organizations acting as foreign agents by the Russian Ministry of Justice," the ministry stated.

The Anti-Corruption Foundation has refuted accusations of foreign financing.

"The Anti-Corruption Foundation is financed solely by Russian citizens. The foundation has never received foreign financing," head of the foundation Ivan Zhdanov wrote on Twitter, adding that the attempt to place the foundation on the register of foreign agents is "another attempt to smother the Anti-Corruption Foundation."

According to the law, non-profit organizations placed on the list of foreign agents must provide a report on its activity and management every six months, as well as the report on their financial activity every year. The organizations are also required to undergo audit every year and provide a report on their activity to the media every six months.

​​​​​​In early August, the Russian Investigative Committee initiated criminal proceedings regarding the financing of the Anti-Corruption Foundation. According to the investigation, since January 2016 until December 2018, people tied to the foundation received significant sums of money in Russian and foreign currency via unlawful means, later legalizing it for the financing of the foundation.

Source: ITAR-TASS 09-10-2019

FC commission has evidence of preparations for unrest in Moscow during elections

Commission’s chief Andrei Klimov said foreign interference in Russia’s internal affairs, including elections, was an objective reality confirmed legally and having "visible administrative and financial support".

MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. The temporary commission of the Federation Council for the protection of state sovereignty and prevention of interference in Russia’s internal affairs has evidence of preparations for mass riots in Moscow during the period of May 30 - September 12, 2019, in other words, during the election campaign, the commission’s chief Andrei Klimov said on Tuesday.

"It is important that during the reviewed period we identified attempts at intervention, but their net effect was not the one certain forces abroad had anticipated. The commission has evidence of intentional preparations for mass unrest in Moscow," Klimov said.

He said foreign interference in Russia’s internal affairs, including elections, was an objective reality confirmed legally and having "visible administrative and financial support."

"That foreign mosaic technologies work is seen in the recent public opinion polls, which indicate that a large share of Russian citizens, in particular, Muscovites, do not believe in western interference in the internal political processes, including elections and unlawful demonstrations," Klimov said.

In a statement obtained by TASS Klimov said that at the demonstration in Sakharov Avenue in Moscow on August 10 foreign forces "used information technologies (including video hosting YouTube) for manipulating Russian citizens and inciting them to violate the law.".

Source: ITAR-TASS 08-10-2019

Russian Baltic Fleet’s warships transit English Channel in deployment to Indian Ocean

During their long-distance deployment, the combat teams of the Yaroslav Mudry practiced searching for and detecting a notional enemy’s submarines.

KALININGRAD, October 7. /TASS/. A group of the Baltic Fleet’s warships has passed through the English Channel as part of its deployment to the Indian Ocean, the Fleet’s press office reported on Monday.

"A group of the Baltic Fleet’s warships comprising the guard ship Yaroslav Mudry, the sea tug Viktor Konetsky and the tanker Yelnya that are accomplishing planned long-distance deployment missions has completed its transit of the Strait of Dover and the English Channel," the press office said in a statement.

During their long-distance deployment, the combat teams of the Yaroslav Mudry practiced searching for and detecting a notional enemy’s submarines during anti-subsurface warfare drills in the Atlantic.

The warships embarked on their long-distance deployment from the Baltic Fleet’s main naval base of Baltiysk in the westernmost Kaliningrad Region on October 1 and are heading for the Indian Ocean where they will take part for the first time in the naval component of the Indra-2019 Russian-Indian drills that will run on December 10-19. The warships are on their long-distance deployment in compliance with the plan of the Russian Defense Ministry’s international activity this year.

The Indra-2019 drills will run at land and naval training ranges and at a military aerodrome of the Indian Armed Forces. About 300 troops from Russia’s Eastern Military District will take part in the drills.

Source: ITAR-TASS 07-10-2019

Moldovan leader says wants to present Putin with cask of homemade wine on his birthday

 The gift will be presented at the CIS summit in Ashgabat.

CHISINAU, October 4. /TASS/. Moldovan President Igor Dodon said on Friday he plans to present his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, with a cask of home-made wine on his birthday to be celebrated on October 7.

"We will see each other on Friday [October 11 — TASS] in Ashgabat [at a summit of the CIS heads of state — TASS]. I’d rather not let it on but I have some ideas [for a present]. For instance, young wine from Sadova [Dodon’s native village — TASS] which I made myself. White and red. When he visited Moldova, he told me several times that our wine is good. We can arrange for that," Dodon said in an interview with Moldova’s television channel Number 4.

When asked what he will do if Putin does not accept the present, as laws prescribe, the Moldovan leader replied jokingly, "And what if it is a cask of wine and he tastes it? Should it be taken to a museum?"

The Moldovan president added he hoped his Russian counterpart would pay a visit to Moldova soon. "A clear agenda is needed for that. I think it will depend on the next year’s situation, on whether the current parliamentary majority stays in place and the government continues to work after the local elections," he noted.

At a CIS summit in Chisinau on October 7, 2002, Moldova’s former President Vladimir Voronin presented Putin with a crystal crocodile, saying it was the only creature that never moved backwards.

In 2017, Dodon brought to Putin several bottles from the Russian leaders’ personal wine collection kept at the famous wine cellars of Cricova, a town located some 15 kilometers north of the capital city Chisinau. The matter is that there is a tradition in Moldova to present high guests with wines from Cricova. Putin received several hundreds of bottles of rare wines as a birthday present during his visit to Chisinau back in October 2002.

Typically, the leaders don’t take their presents with them but leave their wines to age in Cricova’s wine cellars that were founded in 1954. The Cricova tunnels boast of housing a private collection of Hitler’s right-hand man Hermann Goering the Red Army captured in Berlin in 1945. The private collection sector also holds bottles belonging to former and present heads of state and royal families. The famous winery welcomed many world leaders and celebrities. Its guests included former Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev and Leonid Brezhnev, the world’s first man in space Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, China’s Mao Zedong, North Korea’s Kim Il-sung, France’s Jacques Chirac, Germany’s Angela Merkel and others. Some of them have their own collections in Cricova tunnels.

Source: ITAR-TASS 05-10-2019

Migrants involved in terrorist activity more often, says Russian security chief

The security chief noted that corruption and violations of migration legislation remain commonplace in this sphere.

TULA, October 4. /TASS/. Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev stated that migrants become involved in terrorist activity in Central Russia more often due to the expansion of hidden extremist cells.

During a session in Tula on security issues in Central Russia, Patrushev informed that the number of crimes committed by migrants remains high.

"We are especially concerned over the rise of their involvement in terrorist activity. In this context, expansion of hidden international extremist and terrorist cells on the territory of Russia through migration presents a danger," Patrushev said.

The security chief added that corruption and violations of migration legislation remain commonplace in this sphere.

In this regard, Patrushev called on Russian special services, law enforcement and regional officials "to carry on the efforts on decriminalizing the migration sphere."

According to Patrushev, as a result of the efforts of law enforcement bodies, 15 channels of illegal migration were eliminated in the Central Federal District in 2018, with 186 criminal cases launched over corruption in this sphere. In the years 2018-2019, almost 29,000 crimes related to illegal migration were discovered. "At the same time, there is still a significant amount of cases related to fictitious registration of foreign citizens and forging of migration documents," Patrushev stated.

Foiled terrorist attacks

Four terrorist attacks were prevented in Russia’s Central Federal District in the first eight months of 2019, according to Patrushev.

"Five terrorist crimes, including four terror attacks planned in Tula, Vladimir, Tambov and Voronezh, were foiled in the first eight months of this year [in Russia’s Central Federal District]. A total of 152 individuals involved in terrorist activity were detained," he said.

Patrushev stressed that "amid the ongoing activity of international terrorist organizations, attempts to penetrate into Russia’s territory made by their representatives, it is critically important to ensure counterterrorism protection of facilities, territories and, especially, crowded places. To do so, constant painstaking work by special services, law enforcement agencies and regional counterterrorism commissions is required."

Source: ITAR-TASS 04-10-2019

Russian Baltic Fleet’s warships destroy enemy sub in drills

The naval strike group interacted with a Ka-27PL anti-sub warfare helicopter of the Fleet’s naval aviation to search for the adversary sub and destroy it with the shipborne RBU-6000 launchers.

KALININGRAD, October 3. /TASS/. A naval strike group of Russia’s Baltic Fleet destroyed a notional enemy’s submarine in joint drills with a Ka-27PL anti-submarine warfare helicopter, the Fleet’s press office reported on Thursday.

"As part of a tactical exercise of the Baltic Fleet’s anti-submarine warfare forces at the training ranges in the Baltic Sea, the crews of the corvette Stoiky and the small anti-subsurface warfare ships Aleksin, Urengoi and Kazanets practiced assignments to search for and strike a notional enemy’s sub," the press office said in a statement.

During the drills, the naval strike group interacted with a Ka-27PL anti-submarine warfare helicopter of the Fleet’s naval aviation to search for the adversary sub, employing radars and sonars, and destroy it with the shipborne RBU-6000 rocket launchers.

Aside from the anti-submarine warfare, the warships’ crews practiced assignments at sea to conduct joint maneuvering and carry out electronic counter-measures. The warships also held electronic missile and artillery firings against naval and air targets.

Source:  ITAR-TASS 03-10-2019

Zelensky’s statement on new Donbass status law rings alarm bells, expert says

Certainly, neither Russia nor Donbass will recognize any new law on a special status unless they coordinate it, the expert said.

MOSCOW, October 2. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s statement that Ukraine should adopt a new law on a special Donbass status could signal Kiev’s drive to disavow its signing of the Steinmeier formula, Director of the Russian Center for Current Politics Alexei Chesnakov, who is familiar with the talks, told TASS on Wednesday.

"Zelensky’s statement that a new law on a special status of Donbass would be passed, arouses concerns," Chesnakov said. "This is reminiscent of Poroshenko’s behavior, who immediately sought to disavow his own steps in order to puzzle and con everyone. On the one hand, Zelensky signs the Steinmeier formula that guarantees a special status for Donbass. But on the other hand, he immediately announces that this is not a special status, but some other new status, but it is still unclear which one."

This mirrors Poroshenko’s drive to dilute the Minsk process, reduce it to imitation and even nonsense, the expert stressed. "Certainly, neither Russia nor Donbass will recognize any new law on a special status unless they coordinate it. The Ukrainian president should submit his ideas for discussion of the Normandy Four (Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany) and the Contact Group," he said.

Russia's envoy to the Contact Group Boris Gryzlov said that the parties to the meeting on Tuesday had endorsed "the Steinmeier formula", noting that "thus we have coordinated how the law on special status for certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions will be implemented."

President Zelensky told a news conference later that the Steinmeier formula had to be implemented in a new law on a special status. He said the current law on Donbass special status would be in force until December 31 and a new law would be drawn up by the parliament in close coordination and after a discussion with the public.

Source: ITAR-TASS 02-10-2019

Upgraded T-90M may become Russian Army’s main battle tank

The first several dozen upgraded tanks are due to arrive for the Russian troops in 2019.

MOSCOW, October 1. /TASS/. The upgraded T-90M may become the main battle tank for the Russian Army, Uralvagonzavod Special Representative for Military and Technical Cooperation, Army General Alexei Maslov told TASS on Tuesday.

"We have already prepared the T-90MS [the export version of the T-90M] for a foreign customer and tested it and by decision of Russia’s Defense Ministry we have held R&D work, as a result of which we have developed a good T-90M. And now, as far as I understand, the T-90M ‘Proryv’ [Breakthrough] will be the main battle tank in the army," the general said as Russia was celebrating Land Forces Day on October 1.

By its combat efficiency, the T-90M considerably outperforms its predecessor while its modular design allows engineers to build up its operational performance upon subsequent upgrades, the general said.

"The T-90M ensures parity with advanced foreign tanks," the army general stressed.

Uralvagonzavod defense manufacturer (part of the state hi-tech corporation Rostec) signed a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry on the delivery of heavily upgraded T-90M tanks to the troops at the Army-2017 international arms show. As was reported earlier, the first several dozen upgraded tanks are due to arrive for the Russian troops in 2019.

The T-90M ‘Proryv’ has received a principally new turret that differs from the serial-produced module and a more powerful engine. The Proryv is outfitted with a new multi-channel sighting system that allows employing weapons at any time of day or night and, as its major advantage, it can exchange data with other vehicles in real time. The T-90M’s armor features special anti-slip coating similar to that used on the latest T-14 Armata tank.

Source: ITAR-TASS 01-10-2019