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Dec 27 (Reuters) - A Minsk court sentenced in absentia former Olympic swimmer Aliaksandra Herasimenia and political activist Alexander Opeykin to 12 years in prison for calling for sanctions and actions aimed at harming the national security of Belarus. Belarus has been shunned by the United Nations and many countries for an ongoing crackdown on political opponents, civil society and journalists. According to the U.S. embassy in Belarus, there are more than 1,300 political prisoners in Belarus. "The regime can't get to them, but their property in Belarus was seized, including a car & an apartment. Reporting in Winnipeg by Ron Popeski and in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Writing by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Lincoln Feast.

Dec 27 (Reuters) - Moscow's proposals for settlement in Ukraine are well known to Kyiv and either Ukraine fulfils them for their own good or the Russian army will decide the issue, TASS agency quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying. Moscow has been calling its invasion in Ukraine a "special military operation" to "demilitarise" and "denazify" its neighbour. Lavrov told TASS that when it comes to how long the conflict will last, "the ball is in the regime's court and Washington behind it." Kyiv has ruled out conceding any land to Russia in return for peace, and publicly demands Russia relinquish all territory. Moscow has insisted it is pursing "demilitarisation" and "denazification" but in reality its aims have not been fully defined.

Summary Russia says air base targeted by Ukrainian droneSays it shot the drone down, no aircraft damagedSays three servicemen were killed by falling debrisNo immediate comment from UkraineDec 26 (Reuters) - Russia said on Monday it had shot down a Ukrainian drone close to one of its air bases for long-range bombers deep inside its own territory and that three Russian air force personnel had been killed in the incident. The drone was allegedly flying near Russia's Engels air base where long-range strategic bombers that may have been used to target Ukrainian cities and infrastructure are based. Unverified Russian and Ukrainian social media accounts reported that a number of planes had been destroyed however. The same base was attacked earlier this month by Ukrainian drones, Russia said at the time. The earlier Dec. 5 strike on the same base, along with another attack the same day on another base, raised questions about the effectiveness of Russian air defences and shocked Russian commentators.

☆ Three killed from falling drone wreckage at Russian military base in Saratov -Defence Ministry
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Three military personnel were killed as a result of wreckage from a Ukrainian drone falling on a military base in Russia's Saratov region, Russian agencies reported citing the country's defence ministry. "On December 26, at about 01:35 Moscow time, a Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down at low altitude while approaching the Engels military airfield in the Saratov region," the Russian Defence Ministry said. "As a result of the fall of the wreckage of the drone, three Russian servicemen of the technical staff who were at the airfield were fatally wounded." The ministry added that aviation equipment was not damaged. Reporting in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russian troops work 'round-the-clock' on new air defence positions - Interfax
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Russians troops are working "round-the-clock" at new anti-aircraft missile system positions to defend against missile and air strikes by Ukraine, the Russian Interfax reported late on Sunday citing the defence ministry. Crews of the S-300V systems were "mastering new position areas" of the Russian long range surface-to-air missile systems, the news agency reported, citing a ministry statement. "The air defence units of the Western Military District continue to serve in the new position areas on combat duty around the clock," the agency cited the ministry as saying. The Western Military District, one of Russia's five military districts, incorporates regions bordering Ukraine, including the Belgorod and Bryansk regions. Reporting in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Belarus says Russia-deployed Iskander missile systems ready for use
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 25 (Reuters) - The Iskander tactical missile systems and the S-400 air defence systems that Russia has deployed to Belarus are fully prepared to perform their intended tasks, a senior Belarusian defence ministry official said on Sunday. "These types of weapons (Iskander and S-400 systems) are on combat duty today and they are fully prepared to perform tasks for their intended purpose." It is not clear how many of the Iskander systems - which are capable of carrying nuclear weapons - have been deployed to Belarus after Russian President Vladimir Putin said in June that Moscow would supply Minsk with them and the air defence systems. The Iskander-M, a mobile guided missile system code named "SS-26 Stone" by NATO, replaced the Soviet "Scud". The S-400 system is a Russian mobile, surface-to-air missile (SAM) interception system capable of engaging aircraft, UAVs, cruise missiles, and has a terminal ballistic missile defence capability.

☆ Blasts reported at Engels air base deep inside Russia - online media
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Blasts were heard at Russia's Engels air base, hundreds of kilometres (miles) from the frontlines in Ukraine, Ukrainian and Russian media outlets reported early on Monday. There was no immediate official confirmation of the blasts and Reuters was not able to independently verify the reports. The Russian news outlet Baza reported, citing local residents, that air raid sirens were wailing and an explosion was heard. The air base, near the city of Saratov, about 730 km (450 miles) southeast of Moscow, was hit on Dec. 5 in what Russia said was Ukrainian drone attacks on two Russian air bases that day. Ukraine has never publicly claimed responsibility for attacks inside Russia, but has said, however, that such incidents are "karma" for Russia's invasion.

☆ Russia's Rosatom sees 2022 exports growth at 15% - report
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Rosatom GK FollowDec 26 (Reuters) - Russia's Rosatom expects its 2022 exports growth at 15%, while its foreign order portfolio has remained stable at $200 billion, the state nuclear energy company's Chief Executive Officer Alexei Likhachev told the Russian Izvestia newspaper. The growth comes, among others, from contracts already being implemented, supplies of fuel, enriched uranium products, as well as conversion services, Likhachev said. It also includes the construction of 23 nuclear power units at projects in a dozen countries, he added. Rosatom has been in talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency about a safe zone around Ukraine's Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, which Russian troops captured in March. In August, Rosatom and its Finnish partner Fennovoima have filed claims for billions of dollars in damages from each other over Fennovoima's decision to cancel a planned nuclear power plant in Finland.

☆ Duma prepares higher taxation for Russians who left country - speaker
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 25 (Reuters) - Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the Duma, said the Russian lower house of parliament was preparing a law to introduce higher taxation for people who have left the country, as many have since the war in Ukraine began in February. "It is right to cancel preferences for those who have left the Russian Federation and to introduce an increased tax rate for them," Volodin wrote on the Telegram messaging app. The number of Russians who have left since the start of the war is unclear. Russians working abroad who are Russian tax residents must pay the tax independently, according to the Federal Tax Service of Russia. "It's completely understandable why they fled," Volodin said.

☆ Three emergency services workers killed while demining Ukraine's Kherson
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 25 (Reuters) - Three Ukrainian emergency services workers were killed on Saturday when a mine exploded while they were demining parts of the Kherson region, said the emergency service of another region, in which they served. "All three selflessly served in the emergency and rescue squad of the Special Purpose Unit of the State Department of Ukraine in Zhytomyr region and performed the task of demining territories liberated from the enemy in the Kherson region," the Zhytomyr emergency service said on its Facebook page. Russia, which invaded Ukraine 10 months ago, controls most but not all of Kherson region. By mid-November, Ukrainian forces retook Kherson city - the region's administrative centre - and a number of settlements in the region. On Saturday, Ukrainian authorities said a Russian strike had killed at least 10 people in the Kherson City, while Moscow blamed Ukrainian forces for the attack.

☆ Russia ready to resume gas supplies to Europe via Yamal-Europe pipeline -Novak
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Companies Gazprom PAO FollowDec 25 (Reuters) - Moscow is ready to resume gas supplies to Europe through the Yamal-Europe pipeline, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told state TASS news agency. Novak, in remarks published by the agency on Sunday, also said that Moscow expects it will have shipped 21 billion cubic metres of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe in 2022. Reporting in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

"On my way to the United States to strengthen resilience and defence capabilities of Ukraine," Zelenskiy said on his Twitter account early on Wednesday. Russia calls its invasion in Ukraine a "special military operation" to denazify and demilitarise its neighbour. His wife, Olena Zelenska, travelled to Washington in July to address Congress and has made several other international trips pleading for Ukraine, as have his aides and ministers. In contrast, his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin, has spent much of his time inside the halls of the Kremlin. Reporting in Kyiv by Pavel Polityuk; Writing in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly Editing by Shri Navaratnam, Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Belarus restricts access to parts of region bordering Ukraine, Russia
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 21 (Reuters) - Belarus issued a ruling on Wednesday temporarily restricting access to parts of the southeastern Gomel region that borders Ukraine and Russia. The government said on its website it would "temporarily restrict entry, temporary stay and movement in the border zone within the Loevsky, Braginsky and Khoiniki districts of the Gomel region". Belarus began staging what it called anti-sabotage drills in the Gomel region on Oct. 11. Russian servicemen arrived in Belarus four days later to join a regional grouping that the neighbours have set up. Reporting by Reuters; Writing in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Zelenskiy may visit Washington to meet Biden, congressional leaders- sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Punchbowl News first reported the possible trip, which would be Zelenskiy's first known visit outside Ukraine since Russia launched its assault on the country on Feb. 24. Zelenskiy is expected to meet congressional leadership and national-security committee chiefs from the Republican and Democratic parties and could address a joint session of Congress, Punchbowl reported earlier. Zelenskiy made a surprise trip to troops in the battered eastern frontline city of Bakhmut, underlining Russia's stuttering but persistent attempts to capture it. Zelenskiy last left Ukraine for the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 19, according to his official schedule. Her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the reported visit by Zelenskiy.

☆ Russia's Transneft receives Polish and German requests for oil
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The EU has pledged to stop buying Russian oil via maritime routes from Dec. 5, with Western nations also imposing price caps on Russian crude oil, but the Druzhba pipeline remains exempt from sanctions. And now we have received requests from Polish consumers: give us 3 million tonnes next year, and 360,000 tonnes for December, and Germany has already submitted a request for the first quarter," Transneft head Nikolay Tokarev said on Tuesday. Transneft, which handles more than 80% of total oil produced in Russia, has cranked up oil exports by a fifth this year, he added. Tokarev also said that oil supplies via the southern spur of Druzhba, which transports oil through Ukraine to Slovakia and the Czech Republic, will remain unchanged next year thanks to a ssanctions exception. Exports via the far eastern port of Kozmino are expected to total 42 million tonnes this year, exceeding usual annual capacity of 30 million tonnes, Tokarev said.

☆ Russian troops stationed in Belarus to begin military exercises - Interfax
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russian troops that were moved to Belarus in October to become part of a regional formation will conduct battalion tactical exercises, the Russian Interfax news agency reported on Monday, citing the Russian defence ministry. "The final assessment of the combat capability and combat readiness of the units will be given by the command at the final stage of coordination - after the battalion tactical exercises have been conducted," Interfax cited the ministry's statement. It was not immediately clear when and where in Belarus the exercises will be conducted. Belarus defence ministry said in October that 9,000 Russian troops were moving to the country as part of a "regional grouping" of forces to protect its borders. Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Lincoln Feast.

☆ Putin orders border strengthening, demands greater control of society by special services
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 19 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the strengthening of Russia's borders and instructed special services to keep greater control of society and to ensure the safety of people in regions in Ukraine that Moscow claims as its own, news agencies reported. "Work must be intensified through the border services and the Federal Security Service (FSB)," Russia's state-owned RIA news agency cited Putin as saying. Speaking on Security Services Day, widely celebrated in Russia, Putin instructed the services to increase control of the society and maximise their "use of the operational, technical and personnel potential" to prevent risks coming from abroad and internal traitors. "Maximum composure, concentration of forces is now required from counterintelligence agencies, including military intelligence," TASS state agency citied Putin as saying. "It is necessary to severely suppress the actions of foreign special services, quickly identify traitors, spies and saboteurs."

KYIV, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Nine Iranian-made Shahed drones were shot down early on Monday in Kyiv's airspace in the latest attack by Russia on the city, the capital's military administration said on the Telegram messaging app. Several blasts were heard in the city and in the region surrounding the capital, Reuters witnesses reported. "The enemy is attacking the capital with 'Shahed' barrage ammunition," the administration said on the Telegram messaging app. A Reuters witness reported that there was a fire as a result of the attack in Kyiv's central - and often targeted - Shevchenkivskyi district. Reporting by Gleb Garanich and Valentyn Origienko; Writing in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Christopher Cushing & Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Dec 19 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the Federal Security Services to step up surveillance of Russian society and the country's borders to prevent risks from abroad and traitors at home. Speaking ahead of Tuesday's Security Services Day - widely celebrated in Russia - Putin said the "emergence of new threats" increases the need for greater intelligence activity. "Work must be intensified through the border services and the Federal Security Service (FSB)," Putin said. Putin instructed the FSB to maximise their "use of the operational, technical and personnel potential" to tighten control of the society. "It is necessary to severely suppress the actions of foreign special services, quickly identify traitors, spies and saboteurs."

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Members of Russia's Pussy Riot band were detained on Sunday after trying to storm the pitch at the World Cup final in Qatar to protest the war in Ukraine, the imprisonment of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and the oppression of women in Iran, activists said. According to the Cinema for Peace Foundation, a Berlin-based charity that focuses on humanitarian and environmental issues, security detained member Nika Nikulshina, an associate of the protest group, Peter Verzilov, and a Ukrainian member of Pussy Riot. The activists were stopped by security forces before they could invade the pitch, Cinema for Peace said in a statement. The 2018 World Cup final in Moscow was briefly interrupted when Pussy Riot activists, including Verzilov, burst onto the pitch to draw attention to human rights abuses in Russia before being hauled off by stewards. Cinema for Peace evacuated Verzilov after the 2018 World Cup in Moscow for treatment for alleged poisoning.

☆ Heating restored in freezing Kyiv, Mayor Klitschko says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 18 (Reuters) - Heating has been fully restored to Kyiv after the latest Russian bombardment that targeted water and power infrastructure, the capital's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Sunday. "The city is restoring all services after the latest shelling," Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging app. "In particular, the capital's heat supply system was fully restored. All sources of heat supply work normally." Kyiv is by far the largest city in Ukraine with an estimated population of about 3 million, with up to two million more in the Kyiv region.

☆ Russia's defence minister visits troops involved in Ukraine operation, ministry says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 18 (Reuters) - Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu inspected the country's troops involved in Moscow's "special military operation" in Ukraine, the defence ministry said on Sunday. "The head of the Russian military flew around the areas of deployment of troops and checked the advanced positions of Russian units in the zone of the special military operation," the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app. Moscow calls its invasion in Ukraine a "special military operation" to "demilitarise" and "denazify" its neighbour. The ministry said in the statement that Shoigu spoke with troops "on the frontline" and at a "command post." However, it was not immediately clear when the visit took place or if Shoigu had visited Ukraine itself.

☆ Zelenskiy's talks with other leaders signal diplomatic flurry around Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Nick Starkov | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

KYIV, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy held talks with U.S. President Joe Biden and with the leaders of Turkey and France on Sunday, an increase in diplomatic activity around the war started by Russia that is dragging into a 10th month. Erdogan's office said the Turkish leader had a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday, in which he had called for a quick end to the conflict. Putin said last week that Moscow's near-total loss of trust in the West would make an eventual settlement over Ukraine much harder to reach and warned of a protracted war. The government in Kyiv has ruled out conceding any land to Russia in return for peace. On the ground in Ukraine, the entire eastern front line has been continuously shelled with heavy fighting taking place.

☆ U.S. bars Russian diplomats from Soviet graves on Alaska base - TASS
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 11 (Reuters) - U.S. officials barred Russian diplomats from visiting the graves of Soviet servicemen at a cemetery on a military base in Alaska, Russian state agency TASS said on Sunday. Russia's embassy in Washington said on the Telegram messaging app late on Saturday that a group of Russian diplomats had visited Anchorage on Friday and Saturday. "Attempts to obtain access to the memorials through the State Department were unsuccessful, the diplomatic note of the (Russian) embassy in this regard was ignored." Russian diplomats have visited the cemetery in the past, the embassy said on Twitter. Nine Soviet pilots and two other military personnel are buried at the cemetery, TASS said.

☆ Zelenskiy thanks Biden for 'unprecedented' help to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 12 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he had a phone call on Sunday with U.S. President Joe Biden and thanked him for the "unprecedented" help Washington has provided to Ukraine since Russian forces invaded in February. "I thanked for the unprecedented defence and financial assistance that the USA provides to Ukraine," Zelenskiy said, according to his official Telegram messaging app. "This not only contributes to success on the battlefield, but also supports the stability of the Ukrainian economy. "We also appreciate the help that the USA is providing to restore Ukraine's energy system." Reporting in Winnipeg by Ronald Popeski and in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; editing by Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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