Kremlin calls new possible US sanctions 'illegal'

The Kremlin stresses Moscow is ready for dialogue with Washington

MOSCOW, November 7. /TASS/. Moscow will consider new possible sanctions by Washington as part of the Salisbury case as illegal, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.

"We view these restrictions slapped by the US against Russia as illegal and therefore we will treat similar steps in the same way if they follow," Peskov said when commenting on Moscow’s reaction to new US sanctions, which may be introduced in connection with the Skripal poisoning case.

US Department of State Spokesperson Heather Nauert said earlier Washington was set to act in accordance with the law on chemical and biological weapons that stipulates imposing another package of sanctions against Russia. According to the US diplomat, the Department of State informed the US Congress on Tuesday that it "could not certify that the Russian Federation met the conditions required by the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991."

Moscow is in favor of a dialogue with Washington to solve the existing problems but so far it sees no bright prospects for normalizing bilateral relations, he said.

According to Peskov, it is up to the Americans themselves to decide whether the domestic political situation in the US improved or deteriorated after the elections, and Kremlin has "no desire whatsoever to intervene there."

"One can assume with a high degree of confidence that, of course, no bright prospects for normalizing Russian-American relations are in the offing," the Kremlin spokesman said when asked about relations between the two countries’ leaders after the November 6 midterm elections in the US.

"That does not mean, however, that we seek no dialogue, that we want no dialogue, because we have numerous problems that require Russian-American intercommunication. These are the problems of strategic stability and arms control. These problems will not be solved by themselves without maintaining a dialogue," Peskov concluded.

When asked whether the outcome of the US elections could further exacerbate bilateral relations, the Kremlin spokesman noted that "It would hardly be possible to make them even more complicated." He stressed that, in spite of all the phobias existing in the US, Russia has never meddled in the electoral processes in any country, including the United States, and has no intention of doing so in the future."

According to the results of the US midterms held on Tuesday, the Democratic Party has won the majority of seats in the House of Representatives, while the Republican Party will retain and strengthen control of the Senate.

Source: ITAR-TASS 07-11-2018

Kremlin says upcoming elections in DPR and LPR do not run counter to Minsk accords

The republics' right to hold the elections, scheduled for November 11, was not recognized by Kiev and some Western countries

MOSCOW, November 6. /TASS/. The upcoming elections of the heads and members of People’s Councils of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) do not contradict the Minsk accords, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists.

"They do not run counter, at least to the Minsk accords; nothing is said about it there," Peskov said.

Commenting on a journalist’s comment that the specified agreements concern the organization of such elections under Ukrainian law, the spokesman noted that "if you read the items of the Minsk accords which precede it you’ll see that the Ukrainian side had to do much, but didn’t do it."

Elections of the DPR and LPR heads and members of the People’s Councils will be held on November 11, 2018. Kiev and some Western countries refused to recognize the republics’ right to hold them. As many as 408 voting stations will operate on the DPR territory on Sunday. Five candidates will fight for the leadership in the republic - Denis Pushilin, Yelena Shishkina, Roman Khramenkov, Vladimir Medvedev and Roman Yevstifeyev. Two social movements - the Donetsk Republic and Free Donbass - will compete at the election to the People’s Council.

Source: ITAR-TASS 06-11-2018

Belarus will be "forced to deploy something" against US base in Poland - Lukashenko

"I told Foreign Minister (of Poland) who spoke in Minsk that we are not going to fight with you, which is why do not establish more bases", he said.

MINSK, November 4. /TASS/. A possible deployment of the US military base in Poland will force Belarus and Russia to respond in kind, which particularly envisions additional military infrastructure to be stationed on the Belarusian territory, the country’s President Alexander Lukashenko said on Sunday.

"I told Foreign Minister (of Poland) who spoke in Minsk that we are not going to fight with you, which is why do not establish more bases. Otherwise the Russians and we will have to respond, meaning we will be forced to deploy something for standing against you," the BelTA news agency quoted Lukashenko as saying.

He added that addressing the participants of the Core Group meeting of the Munich Security Conference earlier this week, he urged western countries to see value in Belarus. "I told them: see value in Belarus, do not impose sanctions against us. Both drugs, and mobsters, and radioactive elements, and illegal migration, all that goes to the west through us, and we tackle them at our own expense," Lukashenko emphasized.

Source: ITAR-TASS 05-11-2018

Glonass-M satellite has been placed into orbit

This is the fourth launch of a Soyuz-2 carrier rocket from Plesetsk Cosmodrome in 2018

MOSCOW, November 4. /TASS/. After the separation from the Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket the Fregat upper successfully launched the Glonass-M satellite into orbit, an official with the Defense Ministry told reporters on Sunday.

"The Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket that was launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome on Saturday, November 3 at 23:17 Moscow time, has successfully launched the Russian navigation spacecraft Glonass-M into the calculated orbit at a set time," the official said.

This is the fourth launch of a Soyuz-2 carrier rocket from Plesetsk Cosmodrome in 2018

Flight tests of the Soyuz-2 space launch complex began at Plesetsk in the autumn of 2004. Over the past 14 years, 36 launches of the Soyuz-2 carrier rockets (modernization stages 1a, 1b and 1b) have been conducted from the northern cosmodrome, including the launch on Saturday.

The Soyuz-2 rocket replaced the Soyuz-U carriers, which was launched from Plesetsk from 1973 to 2012. In total, 435 Soyuz-U missiles were launched from the cosmodrome, about 430 vehicles were launched into orbit.

Source: ITAR-TASS 04-11-2018

Putin to take part in celebrations to mark National Unity Day

Russian President will present awards for the contribution to strengthening the unity of the Russian nation.

MOSCOW, November 3. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in celebrations to mark National Unity Day on November 4, the Kremlin press service reported on Saturday.

"Festive events will begin with laying flowers at the Monument to Minin and Pozharsky (in Moscow’s Red Square - TASS). After that, the president will visit the exhibition titled Treasures of Russian Museums, which is being held at the Manezh Central Exhibition Hall as part of Orthodox Russia - National Unity Day exhibition and forum," the press service said. The exhibition features over 280 items from 50 Russian museums.

Later in the day, the head of state will present awards for the contribution to strengthening the unity of the Russian nation and state awards to foreign citizens for special merits in strengthening peace, friendship, cooperation and mutual understanding between peoples, preserving and promoting the Russian language and culture abroad.

Source: ITAR-TASS 03-11-2018

US waging propaganda campaign against Russia in quest to exit INF, Moscow says

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the INF Treaty situation concerns not only Moscow and Washington, but other members of the international community as well.

MOSCOW, November 1. /TASS/. The United States is waging a large-scale propaganda campaign against Russia, seeking to shift the responsibility for its plans to quit the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty), Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters on Thursday.

"While undermining the INF Treaty, the US is waging a large-scale propaganda campaign, seeking to make the world believe that its withdrawal is caused by Russia’s violations of the document," she said. "Such an approach is totally inappropriate, and attempts to shift the responsibility to Russia are absolutely unacceptable," Zakharova added.

The Russian diplomat pointed out that the US had not bothered to clearly justify its claims. "These claims remain groundless and are openly provocative," she noted. "We would like to state once again that our country has been strictly abiding by the treaty, while Washington seeks to cover up its own violations by putting forward groundless accusations against us," Zakharova pointed out.

According to her, the situation surrounding the INF Treaty concerns not only Moscow and Washington but other members of the international community as well. "We call on all who realize their responsibility for the future of global stability and security, to send a clear signal to Washington that its plans are dangerous," Zakharova stressed.

INF Treaty situation

On October 20, US President Donald Trump said that Washington would pull out of the INF Treaty because Russia had allegedly violated it.

The INF Treaty was concluded on December 8, 1987, and took effect on June 1, 1988. It applies to deployed and non-deployed ground-based missiles of intermediate range (1,000-5,000 kilometers) and shorter range (500-1,000 kilometers). In the recent years, Washington has been repeatedly accusing Russia of violating the treaty. Moscow strongly dismissed the accusations and voiced its own claims concerning Washington’s non-compliance.

At the same time, Trump does not rule out that a new treaty may be signed with Russia and China, provided they give assurances they will stop developing these kinds of weapons.

Source: ITAR-TASS 02-11-2018

Russia introduces countermeasures against 322 Ukrainian citizens and 68 companies

The list includes a number of acting Ukrainian government officials and businessmen

MOSCOW, November 1. /TASS/. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed a government decree introducing special economic measures against 322 Ukrainian citizens and 68 companies, the Government press service said on Thursday.

"Special economic measures are introduced in relation to individuals and legal entities of Ukraine, which include freezing non-cash funds, non-documentary securities and property in Russia and banning transfer of funds (withdrawal of capital) outside Russia. Sanctions will be extended to 322 individuals and 68 legal entities," the Russian government said.

The list of the sanctioned individuals includes the Ukrainian president’s son Alexei Poroshenko, Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov, Head of Naftogaz of Ukraine Andrei Kobolev, Head of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Viktor Muzhenko, Prosecutor General of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko, Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak, Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Andrei Paruby, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Konstantin Yeliseyev, ultra-nationalists Oleg Tyagnibok and Dmitri Yarosh, ex-premier of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk, leader of the Batkivshchyna (Motherland) party Yulia Timoshenko.

These restrictions also are also being imposed on judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, lawmakers of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine of the 8th convocation, major Ukrainian businessmen, officials of the presidential administration of Ukraine, heads of executive authorities and large Ukrainian companies, and legal entities controlled by Ukraine’s top businessmen, the statement said.

Ukraine’s chemical and mining enterprises make up the majority of the list of 68 legal entities that fell under the countersanctions. Among those are Azot, Dniproazot, Ukrhimenergo, Glikohim, Mezhdurechensk Mining and Processing Plant, United Mining-Chemical Company and its branches, and a number of other companies.

Moscow's countermeasures are aimed at countering Kiev’s unfriendly actions against Russian citizens and companies and can be lifted if Ukraine annuls its sanctions, the Russian government stated.

Thus, Russia’s countermeasures "are aimed at countering unfriendly actions against Russian citizens and legal entities from Ukraine and normalizing bilateral relations." "The Russian government reserves the right to cancel special economic measures if Ukraine abolishes its restrictive measures imposed on Russian citizens and legal entities," the government said.

Precautionary measures

The Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia must steer Russian companies clear of any negative impact when slapping retaliatory measures against Ukraine.

"The Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation should ensure a balance on commodity markets and prevent any negative impact from the special economic measures ... on the activities of Russian organizations," the government resolution published on the Russian government’s official website said.

According to the statement, the Russian government could issue temporary permits to authorize certain operations of companies under the restrictions.

According to the Russian Federal Customs Service, trade turnover between Russia and Ukraine in 2017 increased by 25.6% to $12.9 bln. Growth of mutual trade was observed in the first time since 2012. Thus, in 2017, Russian exports to Ukraine rose in all key product groups and imports grew in all product groups, with the exception of wood.

Russian-Ukrainian trade relations peaked in 2011, when the volume of mutual trade amounted to $50.6 bln. Since 2012, trade began to gradually decline and reached its bottom in 2016, dropping to $10.26 bln. Because of a prolonged decline in mutual trade, in 2017 Ukraine occupied only 14th place in Russia’s foreign trade. Whereas Russia, despite the sanctions introduced by Ukraine since 2014, according to the Ukrainian State Statistics Service, remains its main trading partner with a 12.4% share in foreign trade.

According to the data of the Russian Central Bank, direct investments by residents of Ukraine and Russia in each other’s economies has been on the decline since 2016. At the end of 2016, there was an inflow of direct investment to the tune of $270 mln from Ukraine to Russia. Similarly, Russian companies poured $3.4 bln into Ukraine, Ukraine’s investments in Russia amounted to $285 mln (+21%). At the same time, Russia's investments in Ukraine in the reporting period reached $3.4 bln (+10%).

Presidential decree

On October 22, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on special economic measures in response to the anti-Russian sanctions of Ukraine. The decree notes that this decision was made "in response to Ukraine’s unfriendly actions, which are contrary to the international law and imply introduction of restrictive measures against citizens and legal entities of the Russian Federation", adding that they were imposed "in order to protect national interests."

Prime Minister Medvedev clarified later, countersanctions "would not apply to Ukrainians in general," but will concern "only those Ukrainian citizens who harm the interests of the Russian Federation and take actions aimed at causing damage to Russia." The list will also include legal entities registered under the laws of Ukraine, which are in any way controlled by citizens under countersanctions.

Ukraine’s sanctions against Russia

In February 2014, Ukraine introduced sanctions against 1,228 individuals and 468 legal entities, including Russian government officials, politicians, CEOs, along with reporters, some Donbass residents, the Almaz-Antey concern, Gazprombank and Aeroflot.

In 2017, Ukraine also introduced sanctions against Russian internet and media companies, such as Mail.ru Group, Yandex, VKontakte and Odnoklassniki.

On June 21, 2018, Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko signed a decree on expanding sanctions against Russian individuals and legal entities. The updated list included six political parties of Russia: United Russia, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, the Rodina party, the Democratic Party of Russia, and the Agrarian Party of Russia. The list also includes the Central Election Commission and its head Ella Pamfilova, the Electoral Commission of Crimea and members of territorial commissions at various levels.

Source: ITAR-TASS 01-11-2018