Russian

• Oekraïense strijdkrachten hebben een Indiase man gevangen genomen die als strijder voor de Russische troepen vocht tijdens de lopende conflictoperaties. • De gevangenname onderstreept de internationale dimensie van het conflict tussen Rusland en Oekraïne, waarbij buitenlandse staatsburgers worden geworven om te vechten voor Russische militaire belangen. • Het incident roept vragen op over wervingspraktijken en de betrokkenheid van internationale vrijwilligers in het langdurige conflict.

Sergei Lavrov reageert voordat de leiders van de 'Bucharest Nine' later vandaag bijeenkomen met Nato-secretaris generaal Mark Rutte. De Russische minister van Buitenlandse Zaken, Sergei Lavrov, stelde dat ondanks enkele vroege positieve signalen over de Amerikaans-Russische relaties onder Donald Trump, er in werkelijkheid "niets gebeurt", aangezien het vredesproces om de oorlog in Oekraïne te beëindigen vast lijkt te lopen. In gesprek met de Russische media zei Lavrov dat "goede woorden" over potentiële samenwerkingen met de VS tot nu toe geen resultaten hebben opgeleverd, omdat er "in het echte leven niets gebeurt." Lees verder...

• China imported about 1.1 million barrels per day of Russian crude in January, with Moscow's share of total oil imports declining to 21%. • This reduction aligns with broader trends where China has quietly slashed overall oil imports by roughly a quarter from pre-war levels to around 8.2 million barrels per day, according to Vortexa data. • The cuts have rebalanced the global oil market by freeing up supply, keeping benchmarks near US$100 per barrel despite over 60 days of Persian Gulf conflict.

Moscow steps up maritime presence in North Sea after UK threats to seize shadow fleet oil tankersBritain’s Royal Navy tracked and followed a Russian frigate every day last month as it sailed from the Atlantic to the North Sea as Moscow steps up its maritime presence after UK threats to seize shadow fleet oil tankers.The Russian navy’s Admiral Grigorovich escorted six Russia-linked vessels during April, including at least three under economic sanction passing east through the Dover strait, while being watched continuously by four UK ships and helicopters. Continue reading...

Demonstrators, angered by Russia’s inclusion at arts festival, shouted ‘Curated by Putin, dead bodies included’The Russian pavilion at the Venice Biennale was forced to temporarily shutter its doors on the second day of the preview after the activist group Pussy Riot staged a chaotic protest against the country’s inclusion in the art festival.Wearing pink balaclavas, the protesters ran towards the Russian pavilion where they gathered outside and lit pink, blue and yellow flares while playing punk music and shouting slogans, including “Blood is Russia’s Art”. Continue reading...

Russian attack on gas facility in Poltava region kills three energy firm employees and two emergency service workersVolodymyr Zelenskyy has accused the Kremlin of “utter cynicism” for killing five people in overnight strikes at the same time as seeking a truce so it can stage a military parade in Moscow.Three employees of the state energy firm Naftogaz were killed in an initial attack on a gas facility in Ukraine’s central Poltava region, and two emergency service workers died at the scene in a follow-on bombing. Thirty-seven people were injured in the strikes. Continue reading...

Austrian foreign minister says ‘forest of antennae’ at mission in Vienna being used for illicit collection of dataAustria has expelled three Russian embassy staff on suspicion of spying after determining that a “forest of antennae” on the diplomatic mission in Vienna, Europe’s espionage capital since the cold war, was being be used for illicit data collection.“It is unacceptable that diplomatic immunity be used to commit espionage,” Austria’s foreign minister, Beate Meinl-Reisinger, said on Monday. She added that the three embassy staff – whose expulsions bring the number of Russian diplomats sent home by Vienna to 14 since 2020 – had already left the country. Continue reading...