German companies are stepping up their efforts to bypass Western anti-Russian sanctions since Russian remains one of the most lucrative markets in Europe. In order to operate under sanctions, German companies open their own production in and invest in factories in Russia. [...]

Work on the fourth and final power line to deliver electricity from mainland Russia to the Crimean peninsula has been completed. President Putin oversaw the launch of the energy bridge by video link from the Black Sea resort of Sochi. [...]

Russia’s human rights ombudsman, Tatyana Moskalkova, has invited international observers to Crimea so that they can personally see the republic’s peaceful integration into the Russian Federation and the local population’s massive support for this. Moskalkova made the statement ahead of a conference on human rights observation during the process of Crimea and Sevastopol’s accession into [...]

The West’s propaganda war against Russia filters events there through a prism of cynicism and contempt, but that misses the human component of a country still remembering the deep personal scars of World War II, as Gilbert Doctorow reflects. I will open with full disclosure: I am generally not enthusiastic about crowds or going with the flow. [...]

Independent French political analyst Thierry Meyssan lays out what he believes is the real reason behind the destabilization of Syria and Ukraine, and how the horrific bleeding wounds can finally be stopped. In his analysis, published in the foreign affairs analysis website Voltaire Network, Meyssan laments that in spite of the assistance which Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah have provided to Syria [...]

As the project for a united Europe continues to experience arguably the most serious political crisis since its inception, policy elites in Brussels are urging Europeans not to despair, to stay together, and to prepare for confrontation with Russia instead. European Council President Donald Tusk is unsatisfied with the defeatist attitudes among Europeans. Speaking in Rome on Thursday on the 69t [...]

Not everyone was happy about the three-hour long talks between Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe which took place in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi on Friday. While for Abe the meeting was diplomatically significant — a chance to discuss the disputed Kuril islands face-to-face with Putin — for the White House, it was an unwelcome fissure in the united front Washing [...]

The French government ignored its own intelligence in dealing with crises in Ukraine and Syria, and recklessly followed Washington’s lead by joining anti-Russian sanctions, dealing a huge blow to its agriculture, said a former French intelligence boss. [...]

Paleo-conservative commentator Pat Buchanan slams NATO hawks for working to expand the alliance's presence all along Russia's borders, while calling Russia out as the aggressive power. Instead of touting Putin's belligerence, Buchanan suggests, observers should think about what it would be like to walk a mile in the Russian president's shoes. On Friday, Buchanan recalls, "a Russian Su-27 did a [...]

Two new divisions will be set up in the Western Military District while one division will be set up in the Southern Military District. Russia will set up two new divisions in its Western Military District and one division in its Southern Military District to counteract NATO buildup near its borders, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Wednesday. [...]

The US has long relied on financial sanctions as a preferred weapon against its adversaries. However, in Russia's case, it turned out to be an “outright failure” and the West should admit this. Let’s have a look why. Washington’s favorite economic power tool has been so overused, it’s becoming ineffective and, in some cases, even counterproductive [...]

There are at least four reasons why Washington should not ban Russian RD-180 engines, Loren B. Thompson and Constance Baroudos of the Lexington Institute pointed out. Whether US Senator John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, likes it or not, Washington is unlikely to ban Russian RD-180 rocket engines anytime soon, and with good reason. [...]

The U.S. government doesn’t want to admit that its heady “unipolar” days are over with Russia no longer the doormat of the 1990s, but Washington’s arrogance risks war, even nuclear annihilation, explains Gilbert Doctorow. In Moscow, the preparations for the May 9th Victory Day parade began in the middle of the final week of April. [...]

A few decades ago, Russia's Aeroflot was notoriously considered to be among the world's worst airlines. Now it ranks among the world's best. The Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten took a closer glance at the miraculous transformation. Today, Aeroflot's fleet consists mainly of new and modern Boeing and Airbus aircrafts, the average age being just 4.5 years. [...]

More and more the Western media is acknowledging that Russia is emerging as a great power and its economy is far from being “in tatters”, as was earlier suggested by President Obama. “The unthinkable has become a reality. Russia, seemingly finished after its defeat in the Cold War, is now emerging as a prospective great power challenging the West   [...]

Damascus and Moscow have signed nearly a billion dollars worth of agreements to rebuild war-torn Syria, according to the Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi. The two countries intend to develop energy, trade, finance and other sectors of the economy. [...]

No side wins from the sanctions introduced by the European Union against Russia, it is necessary to find a way that would lead to the removal of most of them, Austrian President Heinz Fischer said Wednesday. Fischer arrived on an official two-day visit to Moscow on Tuesday at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invitation. [...]

Syrian moderate opposition has failed to withdraw from areas controlled by Al-Nusra Front terrorists, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, blaming the US for failing to exert influence on the opposition and questioned its claims of being moderate. Washington has itself earlier raised the issue of moderate opposition forces, who are part of the ceasefire agreement in Syria, being present [...]

Chief of the General Staff of the Austrian Armed Forces, Lt. Gen. Othmar Commenda said that Russia for Austria is much closer than other great powers. The Austrian Armed Forces are ready to develop cooperation with Russia, despite recommendations of other world powers, the Chief of the General Staff of the Austrian Armed Forces, Lt. Gen. Othmar Commenda said Wednesday. [...]

Russian President Putin appeared on top of his game as he fielded questions from across Russia in his annual Q&A event which focused on concerns about the economy, as Gilbert Doctorow describes. Anyone watching Russian state television in the past weeks would have been keenly aware that Thursday was D-day, the day of the annual marathon Q&A session of President Vladimir Putin with the n [...]

Appearing at the XXIV Assembly of the Foreign and Defense Policy Council on April 9, 2016, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov openly said the country was adopting a polycentric paradigm for its foreign policy: “…one can observe the general trends, and we are trying to reflect them in our basic doctrinal documents, including the National Security Strategy, the Foreign Policy Concept w [...]

To answer the dilemma whether “Panama papers” are part of the informational war, we need to look at the list of directly or indirectly mentioned persons. Who is and who is not mentioned in the papers? And who was financially assisted this operation? Because, “Consortium of Investigative Journalism” does not work for free? Or it just works for the ideals of the world freed of tax havens and [...]