Russia News

Some 65% of Russians said they backed Moscow's plans to place short-range missiles in Russia's Kaliningrad Region, but were worried that the ties with the West would worsen following the move, an opinion poll said.

The Levada Center's November survey said only 19% of the respondents said they did not support the plans, while 16% refused to answer.

Russian nuclear power plant builder Atomstroyexport will by mid-December meet Turkey's request for further information on the company's bid to build a power plant, a senior company official said on Friday.

Atomstroyexport, acting through a consortium with Russian power producer Inter RAO UES and Turkey's Ciner Group, is competing in a tender to build four nuclear reactors in Turkey.

Moscow city court is completing hearings on murders committed through national hatred by a gang of skinheads led by Arthur Ryno and Pavel Skachevsky.

Arthur Ryno and Pavel Skachevsky, who were detained on suspicion of murder of an Armenian businessman in April 2007, pleaded guilty of 37 crimes. After a meeting with his mother, Ryno renounced his testimony, although his complicity in the crimes had been already proved.

The gang was running riots during a year after acquaintance in nationalistic network forums.

Russian State Duma approved constitutional amendments extending the presidential term from four to six years and parliamentary term from four to five years in the last third reading.

New amendments will be implemented after the next presidential and parliamentary elections. 392 lawmakers voted for and 57 (communists) were against the amendments. The amendments will come into force after the approval of at least two third of regional parliaments. The constitutional amendments were proposed by President Dmitriy Medvedev.

Russian banks that have received state loans during the current financial crisis but converted them into U.S. dollars will be barred from the government's rescue package, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said on Thursday.

The move comes after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said earlier this month that some banks had transferred government bailout money to offshore accounts instead of giving it to the intended recipients.

President Dmitry Medvedev said on Tuesday as the financial crisis deepened that the government could spend more than the previously planned $200 billion on stabilization measures.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has signed a decree allowing logistics supplies for Spanish troops in Afghanistan to pass through Russian territory.

A document posted on the Kremlin's website said that the decree concerned an agreement "between Russia and Spain on the transit of military supplies and personnel through Russian territory to support the Spanish military contingent as part of a security and development mission in Afghanistan,"

Russia has called on the United Nations to revise the international system of arms exports in view of the August conflict with Georgia, Russia's envoy to the UN said on Wednesday.

Russia has accused Ukraine and the U.S. of delivering arms to Georgia prior to and during the five-day conflict over South Ossetia in August. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on October 2 that he considered alleged arms supplies a criminal act.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday ordered energy giant Gazprom to recover $2.4 billion in debts from Ukraine for natural gas supplied to the ex-Soviet republic.

"We need to finally decide on the Ukrainian debt and recover it either in a voluntary or compulsory manner in accordance with established legislation and within the framework of our bilateral agreements," Medvedev said at a meeting with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller.

Russia will send additional ships to the Horn of Africa in an effort to crack down on the recent wave of hijackings by Somalia-based pirates, its navy chief said Thursday.

The Russian frigate Neustrashimy is already in the region and has helped repel pirate attacks on at least two ships. Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky told the official news agency Ria Novosti that more ships would be joining it soon.

"After Neustrashimy, Russia will be sending warships from other fleets to this region," Vysotsky said. No additional details were provided.

The first to be an anxious foreteller was the Chairman of the Estonian Parliament for the EU issues Marko Mikhelson. He is convinced that the Russian president conveyed a very clear message that Moscow was impinging on Estonia's statehood. That means that in the coming years Russia will try to reinforce its political presence in the Baltic region. And considering that the local Russians are "the fifth column" by definition Estonia and Latvia are in the zone of extreme danger and are very likely to become the next target of "Russian aggression".

A new nuclear-powered attack submarine will be delivered to the Russian Navy in 2010, a Russian shipyard said on Wednesday.

Severodvinsk is the first Project 855 Yasen (Graney) series of the Severodvinsk class nuclear submarines, combining the ability to launch a variety of long-range cruise missiles (up to 3,100 miles) with nuclear warheads, and effectively engage hostile submarines and surface warships.

Russia's international reserves declined by $97.6 billion in January-October, the Central Bank of Russia said on Wednesday.

Russia's Central Bank earlier reported that its international reserves stood at $484.6 billion as of November 1.

Russia's proven uranium reserves have increased 275% to 545,000 metric tons since 2006, the natural resources minister said on Tuesday.

Vadim Zhivov, head of Atomredmetzoloto (ARMZ), Russia's leading uranium miner, said 3,841 tons of uranium is planned to be produced this year, a 20% increase on 2006.

"Coordinated work has dramatically changed Russia's global position, placing it third in terms of uranium reserves," Rosatom head Kiriyenko said.

In addition to deploying tactical missiles near the Polish border, Russia could use precision-guided air-based weapons to counter U.S. missile defense plans, a Russian military expert said on Monday.

"Iskander [missile system] is not the most effective combat asset to be used against the ground targets that are now being deployed in some European states. We also have the Air Force, which has precision-guided weapons," said Gen. Pyotr Deinekin, former Air Force commander.

He said strategic aviation had, in particular, Kh-55 (AS-15 Kent) long-range cruise missiles capable of delivering a nuclear warhead, with an effective range of 4,500 kilometers.

An ex-Soviet officer who claims to have shot down U.S. Senator John McCain's plane over Vietnam in 1967 has said he is happy the ex-navy pilot lost his bid for the White House, a Russian paper said on Monday.

McCain was shot down over Hanoi while on a bombing mission on October 26, 1967, and taken captive by the North Vietnamese. He spent five and a half years in a POW camp, and claims that he was tortured. His time in captivity left him unable to raise his hands above his head.

A spy at the heart of Nato may have passed secrets on the US missile shield and cyber-defence to Russian Intelligence, it has emerged.

Herman Simm, 61, an Estonian defence ministry official who was arrested in September, was responsible for handling all of his country's classified information at Nato, giving him access to every top-secret graded document from other alliance countries.

Andrew Lloyd Webber has won backing from an unlikely source in his attempt to turn around the UK's fortunes in the Eurovision song contest.

On a fact-finding mission to eastern Europe, the region which has dominated the contest in recent years, the composer met Vladimir Putin - and the Russian Prime Minister promised to pick up the phone to vote for the UK entry in next year's contest.

Lord Lloyd Webber said: "At least we have got one vote, from Mr Putin."

Belgium could veto any moves to allow Georgia to become a member of NATO. The country's senior lawmaker Josi Dubier says he will push to make this a government policy.

Following a fact-finding trip to South Ossetia, Dubier said Georgia should not become a member of the alliance due to its belligerent and aggressive policies.

Some European countries, including Germany and France, have also voiced objections to Georgia's membership fearing it could provoke conflict with Russia.

The European Union and Russia have agreed to restart talks on a new partnership and cooperation agreement, the president of the European Commission said after an EU-Russia summit in Nice on Friday.

Jose Manuel Barroso did not say however when the "strategic" document would be signed.

He said the European Commission was ready to send a delegation to Moscow at the beginning of next year so that top level contacts could be resumed.