THINK TWICE, STAN

 31 December 2020 On December 31, in Nagorno-Karabakh,   220 refugees returned to their homes. Their safety was ensured by the Russian peacekeepers, the Russian Defense Ministry said.  “Russian peacekeepers accompanied another column of refugees who are returning to Nagorno-Karabakh from the territory of the Republic of Armenia. Another 220 refugees were delivered by buses from Yerevan to Stepanakert today,” RIA Novosti  reported.  The Defense Ministry reminded the reporters that the peacekeepers are conducting round-the-clock monitoring of the situation and control over the ceasefire at 23 observation posts. They also ensure the safe return of people to their homes and provide humanitarian assistance to the local population on a daily basis. Text: Alexei Degtyariov Source: www.vz.ru

On its official YouTube channel The Kalashnikov Concern has shown the updated AK-12 assault rifle.  The AK-12 was presented to the general public at the Army-2020 International Military-Technical Forum.  The weapon is more user-friendly. It is now easier to install a silencer, and bars for additional equipment such as optical sights, a flashlight and a laser designator have been added.  AK-12 demonstrates improved tactical and technical characteristics, such as an increased grouping and accuracy of fire. It became possible to fire "cutoffs" (bursts of two shots). Length: 880-940mm  Barrel length: 415 mm  Ammunition: 5.45 x 39 mm round Magazine capacity: 30 rounds  Weight: 3.5 kg (7.7 lbs) Video:   https://youtu.be/F3SB8DcvPmA

 28 December 2020 "Hungary has already received 6,000 doses of the Russian Sputnik V   vaccine against the coronavirus", said the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the republic, Peter Siyjarto.  “Cooperation between Russia and Hungary will continue on the basis of our agreement". He noted that Hungarian experts will continue to study the Russian drug in order to make a decision on its use in the country. In early December, specialists from Hungary arrived in Russia to get acquainted with the  research,  development, and manufacturing process of the  Sputnik V  vaccine. Photo: Abzal Kaliev Text: Ksenia Pen'kova Source: www.vz.ru

  31 December 2020 The Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree according to which highly qualified specialists will be able to come to Russia with their families with minimum formalities. Earlier, the government lifted restrictions on the entry into Russia for family members of foreign athletes, coaches, judges and other specialists in the field of physical culture. Source: http://government.ru/news/41268/

 31 December 2020 Dinner with black caviar, juices from exotic fruits, a Christmas tree on the ceiling and a complete absence of champagne - this is how it is customary to celebrate the New Year at the International Space Station, Acting Pilot-Cosmonaut Andrey Borisenko, who has visited the ISS more than once, told the newspaper VZGLYAD . Due to the fact that the launch of the Progress MS-16 spacecraft was postponed, the Russian cosmonauts on the ISS will not be able to receive gifts from families and friends on New Year's Eve. Despite thат, they have still prepared surprise gifts for  their international colleagues. “It is customary on the ISS to celebrate the New Year in the same way as on Earth. That is, with some kind of a gala dinner all crews together.  "The tradition is that for Christmas, the US crew invites the Russian crew members over, and for New Year's we invite all our colleagues to visit us, to the Russian segment, ”says Borisenko. “Russian crew members spe...

Residents of Kamchatka and Chukotka on the Russian Pacific coast were the first in Russia to celebrate the New Year 2021, as in the most eastern regions of the country, it has already come to midnight (at 3:00 PM Moscow time which is 7:00 AM EST). On New Year's Eve, in the largest city of Chukotka it was about  -13 o C (8.6 o F)

30 December 2020 In 2020, almost 1.5 thousand baby animals were born at the Moscow Zoo, among them rare species that are listed in the International Red Book and the Red Book of Russia. As the Zoo press service explained , birds have traditionally become the record holders for the number of offspring. This year, rare black storks, curly pelicans and kaffir crows were born. Pheasant argus chicks hatched for the first time in five years. In addition, chicks of polar owls, white-tailed eagles, pink and red flamingos, and cormorants were born. The Bolivian nocturnal monkey was born for the first time at the Moscow Zoo. The babies of bush dogs, the cubs of northern fur seals were born. It was possible to achieve offspring of rare primates: this year two lion-tailed macaque cubs appeared at once, a crybaby capuchin, and cubs of a ring-tailed lemur were born. Ungulates were also replenished: the cubs of the domestic yak Cupid and Noir were born, the baby alpaca Vitamin, and the Welsh Sheep Ma...

  29 December 2020 There are 70 vaccination locations in the city. The number will be increased if necessary. “A large number of people have already been vaccinated, and they all feel fine. Today, about 50 thousand people have been vaccinated, 70 thousand have signed up. All vaccination points are doing fine, there are no crowds and no lines,” said the Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. The first wave of the pandemic allowed doctors to develop an algorithm for treating patients with coronavirus, and the city to equip emergency hospitals with modern tools, and to stockpile protective equipment and medications.  At the same time, the pandemic did not affect the key plans for the development of the city. This year, more than 80 buildings were commissioned as part of the neighborhoods renovation program, over 100 kilometers of roads were built or reconstructed, more than 20 kilometers of subway lines were laid, and 15 railway stations became operational. The construction and...

 30 December 2020 13.5 metric tons of blood plasma from people who had coronavirus have been collected.  58 regions are involved in the process of harvesting the anti-COVID plasma, said Veronika Skvortsova, the head of the Federal Medical Biology Agency, at a meeting with the Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. “Since last April, we have created a methodology for the preparation of anti-COVID plasma. We have established a dedicated center coordinating the preparation of the plasma. Now, 58 regions are participating in this process on the basis of a unified methodology. 86 blood transfusion stations collect the plasma. We have accumulated 13.5 thousand tons, ” she said on the government website. Text: Elizaveta Bulkina Source: www.vz.ru

 30 December 2020 Russian leader Vladimir Putin sent  New Year's greetings to  the US President Donald Trump and US President-elect Joe Biden, the Kremlin press service reported. The Russian leader sent his greetings to the President of the United States of America Donald Trump on the occasion of the Christmas and New Year holidays and wished him and his family good health, good spirits and prosperity, as well as and happiness and prosperity to all US citizens. In his message to the US President-elect Joe Biden, Vladimir Putin noted that the coronavirus pandemic and other challenges the world faced in the outgoing year re-confirmed the need for a broad international cooperation. Putin expressed confidence that Russia and the United States, while building their bilateral relations, could do a lot to strengthen the stability and security at the regional and global levels.  Text: Evgenia Shestak Source: www.vz.ru

  30 December 2020 Orphans in Russia were shown the ballet "Nutcracker" choreographed by the ballet master Yuri Grigorovich. Created in October 2020 by the decree of President Vladimir Putin, the Russian Fund for the Protection of Children, together with the Ministry of Education, and with the support of the Bolshoi Theater and the French company Pathe Live , broadcast the Nutcracker ballet online. Today, the Christmas fairy tale by Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa staged by Yuri Grigorovich was seen in 1,100 orphanages  from Anadyr in the Pacific Far East t o Kaliningrad in the Far West of the country. In total, more than 30,000  children of different ages, as well as their educators watched the performance. In addition, all the institutions received book libraries as a gift from the Fund, delivered free of charge by the Russia Postal Service. “For these New Year's days, we asked the country's best theater to do a show specially for orphans - a fairy tale about ...

Over 9.5 billion rubles will be allocated for the modernization of children's art schools in the regions within the upcoming three years, the press service of the Russian government reported. “Over the next three years, more than 9.5 billion rubles will be allocated for the overhaul and the reconstruction of children's art schools. These changes to the  "Development of Culture"  program   have been introduced by the Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.  The work is carried out within the framework of the federal project "Ensuring a qualitatively new level of the development of cultural infrastructure". The government also set the amount of support for rural cultural institutions and their best employees for the period between 2021 and 2023. Every rural culture institution will receive 150 million rubles per each of the three years. Arts image: https://economiststalkart.org/ Text: Alexei Degtiaryov Source: www.vz.ru

 30 December 2020 More than 2 million doses of the  Sputnik V  domestic vaccine against the coronavirus have been produced in Russia. By the end of 2020, more than 1 million doses will go into civil circulation, said the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov. “More than two million doses of Sputnik V have already been produced - that is both the first and the second component. By the end of the current year, more than a million doses will be put into civilian circulation, which allows us to ensure a steady supply to the regions of our country, " RIA Novosti reported.  “Cumulatively, from the beginning of production to the present [day] we have produced even a little more than originally planned. That happened due to the new technologies that allowed us to scale up,” noted Manturov. According to him, now all regions are provided with the vaccine and the medications for the treatment of the coronavirus.  “All regions have several weeks' ...

 30 December 2020 The first batch of the  "Sputnik V"  Russian vaccine against the coronavirus infection was delivered to Serbia. The vaccine was sent to the Institute of Virology "Torlak" in Belgrade. The vaccine was delivered to the institute by  DHL courier service. Earlier, the head of the Ministry of Health of Serbia, Zlatibor Loncar  noted that the clinical study of  the Russian vaccine by  the Serbian Agency for Medicines is at the final stage. It will be completed in the first days of the new year. Earlier it was reported that Argentina began vaccinating the population against coronavirus with the "Sputnik V ". The President of the country Alberto Fernandez noted that thanks to the Russian vaccine, Argentina entered an extremely narrow circle of states that have already started vaccination. Text: Alexei Degtiaryov Source: www.vz.ru

 30 December 2020 Guinea has begun vaccination against coronavirus with the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, said Sori Keira, an official with the country's National Sanitary Safety Agency. “This test is being carried out on an experimental basis. By agreement with the Russian authorities who have already started vaccination at home, the Guinean government was able to receive 60 doses of vaccines,” he told the Africa Guinee portal (www.africaguinee.com). According to the portal, one of the first to receive the vaccine was Mohamed Diane, Minister of Defense of Guinea who is responsible for the affairs of the presidential administration. “As a geneticist, I have full confidence in the progress of research and science. We will defeat the pandemic, all together, ”said Diane. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the registration of the first coronavirus vaccine in Russia on August 11. It received the name "Sputnik V" by analogy with the launch of the first artificial Earth...

Bolivia is buying 5.2 million doses of the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, Bolivian President Luis Arce said. “We have held negotiations. The contract that we signed was for 5.2 million doses," he said on the air of the Unitel TV channel, the TASS news agency  reports. In October, Arce announced that Bolivia intended to buy the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine. The agreement will provide vaccines for more than 20 percent of the country's population. The vaccine for export will be produced by Russia's international partners in India, China, South Korea and other countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the registration of the first coronavirus vaccine in Russia on August 11. It received the name "Sputnik V" by analogy with the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite in 1957. Putin stressed that Russia is ready to join forces with other countries to combat the spread of infections. Text: Ksenia Pan'kova Source: www.vz.ru

 30 December 2020 I n Russia, 70,921 patients died from the coronavirus. Additional 45,000 deaths are counted as those impacted by COVID-19 but where the coronavirus was not the primary case of death, said Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova. “70,921 deaths are those resulting solely from the COVID. The number has been officially confirmed and it is not subject to any doubt. This number may be slightly adjusted in the coming months because updated data of postmortem autopsies come every day," Golikova said in an interview to the Russia 24 TV channel, RIA News reported.  She pointed out that although another 45,109 infected patients died from other causes, in all of those cases, the deceased tested positive for coronavirus.”  Text: Ksenia Pan'kova Source: www.vz.ru

Britain has registered a record number of deaths from the coronavirus per day - 981 people, the country's health ministry said. In total, since the beginning of the pandemic,  2,429,049 people have contracted  the disease.   72,367 people have died. Text: Alexei Degtiaryov Soutce: www.vz.ru

  Guys, you are cool ”- these words of gratitude were written by the doctors of the Sosnovy Bor clinic to the medical trainees students who are practicing there.  At two o'clock in the morning in the COVID department, one patient's condition worsened. The doctors sent an "all-hands" about this to their working group via a messenger app. Several interns rushed to help them in the middle of the night. The students were on duty by the patient's bed until eight in the morning, until another shift came.  After that, they lay down to rest right in the ward of the intensive care unit. The picture was taken by the head nurse of the COVID department of the clinic. “This morning I came to the department, and on the monitor in the staff room this is the picture,” she wrote. "I would like to express my deep gratitude to Rasul, Katya and Lesha for the fact that they took their shift outside their schedule and helped in a difficult moment on the shift".  The clinic no...

An information war around coronavirus vaccines is already underway. Russia's strength lies in the truth about domestic achievements, said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.    “Unfortunately, yes, the vaccine war is already underway. This is a war of everything, as the politicization of the COVID theme has taken place. The pandemic has started an infodemic . A part of this eerie reality is that the "war" involves not only the vaccines - anything and everything related to Russian efforts to fight the pandemic is criticized, while the information about Russian achievements is blocked, ”she said in an interview to the TASS news agency.  The diplomat considers it important to be able to respond to disinformation, to refute it and to provide counter-arguments. “[Russia's strength] lies in the truth, as always, the truth about our achievements, about what we are doing,” she stressed. The Foreign Ministry spokeswoman noted that she had seen a lot of "rumors, ...

29 December 2020 The Latvian government has decided to introduce a curfew on New Year's holidays in connection with the spread of the coronavirus, the State Chancellery of the Republic said. Residents of Latvia will have to stay at home from December 30 to January 4, as well as January 8 and 9 between 10.00 PM and 5.00, the agency LETA reports. The State Chancellery said that there are no plans to limit travel during the day. Points of sale will be open from 6.00 to 21.00. In catering establishments, food and drinks will only be available to take away. Other European countries are also tightening restrictions. German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the current restrictions insufficient to combat the spread of the coronavirus and supported recommendations to tighten them, including the closure of some stores and schools until January 10. The Netherlands are also tightening COVID-19 restrictions. Turkey has introduced new restrictions on restaurants and cafes in hotels due to the inc...

29 December 2020 Mortality from coronavirus in November in Moscow decreased by 11% compared to October, the press service of the city's health department said. "Compared to the previous month, mortality from COVID-19 as a primary or co-cause reduced by 11%," the report said, citing statistics for November. The department reminded that a set of measures was introduced in Moscow to contain the spread of coronavirus infection: a large-scale vaccination against coronavirus has started in the city, systems for mass testing for coronavirus infection, CT diagnostics, outpatient treatment and free medications supply operation have been launched, and a redundant hospital network has been deployed to treat coronavirus in a hospital setting, the report said. The mortality rate from coronavirus in Moscow for the entire period of the epidemic, according to the Department of Health, is currently at 2.23 percent, taking into account only cases when COVID-19 was the primary cause of deat...

29 December 2020 150 people over the age of 60 received the first dose of the new " EpiVacCorona" coronavirus vaccine. 89 of them received the second dose of the drug, the  Rospotrebnadzor  Agency reported. Research in the 60+ age group began on November 21, when the first trial participants were vaccinated. Since then, the volunteers have been under a close medical supervision. Vaccination was carried out in groups of 30-40 people with hospitalization for a day, RIA Novosti reports. The department will publish interim results of the study in February. In total, the volunteers will be monitored for six months. The "EpiVacCorona" is one of two vaccines (along with the " Sputnik V" ) already registered in Russia. The vaccine was developed at the Vector Center of the Government Agency Rospotrebnadzor . The Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said that by the end of the year, more than 14 thousand doses of the EpiVacCorona vaccine will be delivered to the reg...

President Vladimir Putin has decided to be vaccinated against coronavirus, the head of state will decide for himself in what form and when to report that he was vaccinated, said the press secretary of the Russian leader Dmitry Peskov.   “Yes, indeed, the president said that he had decided to get vaccinated. To do that, it was necessary to complete all the test formalities for a specific age category. They were completed this week.  Earlier, at the annual press conference, Putin, responding to a question about the coronavirus vaccine, said that he would get vaccinated as soon as possible. Earlier, the Ministry of Health approved the vaccine against the coronavirus "Sputnik V" for vaccination of people over 60 years. Photo: Mikhail Klimentiev / press service RF President / TASS Text: Elozaveta Bulkina

20 December 202 0 Russia is interested in normalizing relations with Ukraine but the necessary political will on the part of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has not yet been observed, said Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Russian leader. The Kremlin spokesman noted that for a conversation at the highest level, "at least some prerequisites must be ripe." Peskov also recalled that Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said that the Russian side is interested in normalizing relations with all its neighbors, including Ukraine. Recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin noted a certain progress in implementing the agreements reached last year at the Normandy summit in Paris. At the same time, he stressed, Ukraine had done nothing for a political solution to the conflict.  The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier that he needs to talk with the head of the Russian state Vladimir Putin "globally tete-a-tete." In addition, he promised to mo...

28 December 2020 At an extraordinary meeting, the government of Ukraine canceled the preferential tariff for electricity for the l ow-income  population. Beginning January 1, the electric bills will nearly double. At a meeting of the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers that was broadcast on YouTube, the newly appointed Energy Secretary  Yuriy Vitrenko said,  “The project of the Ministry of Energy on special obligations in the electricity market provides for the extension of special obligations from January 1 to March 31, 2021, the establishment for the period until March 31 of a fixed price for household consumers in the amount of 1.68 hryvnia kW".  Before becoming the "energy tzar", Mr. Vitrenko was  the executive director of the Naftogaz of Ukraine, a quasi-government giant that controlled all oil and natural gas extraction, transportation and sales in Ukraine. The cabinet of  ministers supported the draft resolution, thereby canceling the preferential ta...

28 December 2020 Four Armenian prisoners of war returned to their homeland with the help of Russia and the International Committee of the Red Cross, Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan said. “The relatives have already announced their return, and the prisoners are now under medical supervision. They will receive the necessary medical and moral support. The process of exchange of prisoners will continue, ”Avinyan wrote on Facebook.  Meanwhile, the commander of the Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh, Rustam Muradov, announced the exchange of prisoners between Baku and Yerevan. “As a result of the work carried out by the Russian peacekeepers under my personal control, a Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft delivered to Baku two Azerbaijanis held captive, and also returned four prisoners to Erebuni,Armenia” Muradov reported to RIA Novosti . Earlier, the Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia announced that 44 prisoners of war had already returned to Yerevan by Russian aircraft. ...

 27 December 2020 The increased NATO aviation and naval activity in 2020 may lead to serious incidents, says the Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin. “In 2020, the alliance's aviation and navy activity significantly increased.  More and more situations that can lead to serious incidents are arising,” Mr. Fomin said in an interview to the Rossiyskaya Gazeta .  He recalled that in May 2020, on the eve of the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Soviet Victory in the Barents Sea, exercises of a detachment of warships of the NATO united naval forces took place. Then, in August and September 2020, more than 15 flights of American strategic bombers were recorded in the immediate vicinity of the Russian border.  Those and similar episodes, he said, were openly of a provocative nature. “We managed to avoid incidents only thanks to the high level of professional training of Russian pilots and sailors,” the deputy minister emphasized. He a...

The establishment of a logistic support base for the Russian Navy in Sudan meets the goals of maintaining peace and stability in the region. This does not imply any aggression against any state, said the Russia's Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin. "The top military leadership of the host country is in favor of expanding military and military-technical ties with the Russian Federation, emphasizing its readiness to maintain continuity in relations with Russia, and reaching the strategic level of cooperation," he told the Rossiyskaya Gazeta , commenting on the establishment of the facility in Sudan. According to Mr. Fomin, Russia is interested in a military presence in the region in order to fight terrorism, piracy, human trafficking, and smuggling of weapons and drugs. "Russia's goal is also to support safe commercial shipping", he added.  Source:  https://russian.rt.com/world/news/817110-rossiya-pmto-sudan

December 18, 2020   --   Press Release Washington, D.C.  – On Friday, December 18, 2020, Congressmen Greg Murphy, M.D. (NC-03), Jim Banks (IN-03), and Ralph Abraham, M.D. (LA-05) introduced the Stop China’s Heinous Exploitation and Malicious Espionage (SCHEME) Against Congressional Access Act to bolster security against Chinese espionage amid recent reports that a Chinese operative had successfully infiltrated Capitol Hill in 2014. The bill requires the House and Senate Sergeant-at-Arms to consult with the Department of National Intelligence (DNI), the Department of State, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to create an interagency background review plan that more strictly assesses ties to the Chinese Communist Party. All Congressional staff members and paid interns would be required to undergo this background check. If staffers are found to be connected to the Chinese Community Party (CCP) or have intent to commit espionage, they would be fired immed...

26 December 2020 The Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine has been shown to be more than 90 percent effective in people over 60, according to the manufacturer. "The Russian Ministry of Health approved the use of the vaccine for people over 60 years of age after clinical trials that have shown complete safety and efficacy over 90% in this age group," the vaccine manufacturer said on Twitter. Text: Ksania Pan'kova Photo: Frank Augstein/АР/ТАСС www.vz.ru

26 December 2020 Photo: Mikhail Metzel/TASS The Russian Ministry of Public Health has approved the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine for inoculating citizens over 60 years old, said the head of the department Mikhail Murashko at an interview to the Russia 24 TV channel. “Now the Sputnik vaccine is approved for use for people aged 18 and over. Now , citizens over 60 years old can also be vaccinated against the coronavirus", Murashko said. The tests confirmed the safety and efficiency of the Sputnik V , the minister said.

75 years have passed since the end of the Great Patriotic War. Several generations have grown up over the years. The political map of the planet has changed. The Soviet Union that claimed an epic and crushing victory over Nazism and saved the entire world is gone. Besides, the events of that war have long become a distant memory, even for its participants. So why does Russia celebrate May 9 as the biggest holiday? Why does life almost come to a halt on June 22? And why does one feel a lump rise in their throat? They usually say that the war has left a deep imprint on every family’s history. Behind these words, there are fates of millions of people, their sufferings and the pain of loss. Behind these words, there is also the pride, the truth and the memory. For my parents, the war meant the terrible ordeals of the Siege of Leningrad where my two-year old brother Vitya died. It was the place where my mother miraculously managed to survive. My father, despite being exempt from active duty...