🇷🇺 Russia Cuts Key Rate to 20%, Maintains Tight Monetary Course

➡️Central Bank Rate Cut Amid Structural Tightening

The Russian Central Bank has lowered its key interest rate to 20%—a symbolic but significant move, marking the first rate cut since 2022. Despite the adjustment, the ruble remained largely stable, underscoring confidence in the current trajectory of Russian monetary policy. The rate cut signals a limited easing but retains the broader strategy of tight fiscal and monetary control aimed at long-term stabilization.

➡️Key Messages from the Central Bank of Russia (CBR)

🔸️Wages Outpacing Productivity: Real wages continue to grow at a high pace, outstripping productivity gains. This dynamic is watched closely for its inflationary potential.

🔸️Labor Market Tightness Easing: Unemployment remains near record lows, but fewer companies are reporting workforce shortages—a sign the labor market is beginning to normalize.

🔸️Inflation Slowing, But Expectations High: Annual inflation fell to 9.8% as of June 2. However, elevated inflation expectations among the population continue to pose a threat to further disinflation.

🔸️CBR Committed to Prolonged Tight Policy: Despite the rate cut, the Bank emphasized its commitment to keeping monetary conditions strict enough to bring inflation down to target levels by 2026.

🔸️Domestic Demand Cooling: High-frequency data indicate a gradual decline in domestic demand growth—an early sign of policy effectiveness in curbing overheating.

➡️Strategic Implications

According to Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), the rate cut opens a window for renewed capital investments and economic growth. Still, the CBR’s messaging remains clear: this is not the start of a broad monetary loosening. Instead, the move provides selective breathing room for the real economy while keeping speculative and inflationary risks in check.

The rate cut to 20% is a tactical adjustment, not a shift in policy. The Central Bank remains focused on controlling inflation and maintaining financial stability. Russia is prioritizing disciplined economic management over short-term stimulus, in contrast to the debt-driven approaches seen in the West.

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🇷🇺🛸💥🇺🇦🏁 Russian Lancet Drones Destroy Majority of NATO-Supplied M109 Howitzers

Russian ZALA Lancet loitering munitions have eliminated over half of the U.S.-made M109 self-propelled howitzers delivered to Ukrainian forces by NATO. Since the beginning of the Special Military Operation, Kiev has received more than 160 of these artillery systems.

According to confirmed data from open sources, at least 103 M109 units have been destroyed by Lancet-family drones, underscoring the system’s effectiveness against expensive NATO hardware.

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🇷🇺🍆🇺🇦 Still frame from one of the missile strikes in Lutsk.

We'll leave it up to your imagination.

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🇷🇺🛸💥🇺🇦 Russian forces used an FPV drone strike to detonate a mined bridge near Seversk, disrupting Ukrainian supply routes in the area.

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🇷🇺 A second suspicious device in one day has been found under a vehicle in Moscow, according to TASS citing emergency services. Specialists are currently on the scene.

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🇺🇦🎶🇷🇺A short video of Ukrainian women dancing to the Russian track “Матушка-земля” (Mother Earth) near Kiev went viral across Ukrainian Telegram channels — and instantly sparked outrage. They were slapped with administrative charges for “petty hooliganism.”

The lyrics they danced to?

Mother Earth,
Birch so white,
Rus’ is sacred —
To others, a spite.

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🇷🇺🔁🇺🇦Russia and Ukraine exchange bodies of fallen soldiers

Chairman of the RF Public Chamber Commission on Sovereignty Issues Vladimir Rogov reports that the bodies of 42 of Russian soldiers who gave their lives in the fight against Nazism have been returned.

In response, 503 bodies of Ukrainian Armed Forces servicemen were transferred to the opposite side as part of the first stage of the transfer of 6,000 bodies.

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🇺🇸 🇺🇸 Trump is not ready to kiss and make up with Elon.
Says: "Elon lost his mind."

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🇺🇸🍌 “We Can’t Build Bananas”: U.S. Congress Comedy Over Trump Tariffs

During a congressional hearing, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick faced sharp criticism over Trump tariffs. Congresswoman Madeleine Dean highlighted how these tariffs are directly fueling price hikes for everyday Americans — using bananas as her prime example.

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🇷🇺⚔️🇺🇦 Ukraine Plots Global Drone Strikes from Shipping Containers – Washington Post

Kiev is reportedly preparing sabotage operations against Russian naval forces in the Pacific using sea drones hidden in standard shipping containers, according to Washington Post columnist David Ignatius, citing Ukrainian intelligence sources.

The plan involves covertly deploying these drones to target Russian and allied vessels in the northern Pacific.

Ignatius notes that Ukraine also considered launching an attack on Russian forces in Transnistria (Pridnestrovie), using Russian defectors and local assets. The plan was ultimately shelved to avoid opening a new front.

Another aborted plot involved targeting the Russian military training ship Smolny, which had docked in Cape Town, South Africa.

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🇷🇺🏴🇲🇱 Wagner PMC Completes Mission in Mali

After 3.5 years of coordinated operations with Malian forces, Wagner is officially withdrawing from Mali.

What the West failed to do in a decade, Wagner achieved in a few short years:

– Terrorist groups dismantled
– Key cities like Gao, Timbuktu, Anefis, and Kidal liberated
– Government control restored across all regional capitals
– A new, disciplined Malian army built from the ground up

While France and its allies looted under the guise of “peacekeeping,” Wagner delivered results.

Mission accomplished. Time to return home.

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🇷🇺🇺🇸 Intel says Agent Red and Agent Blue are at it again.

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🇪🇺🇺🇦 Exiled Self-Appointed “Russian Leaders” Push Talks with Kiev — Politico

Vladimir Kara-Murza told Politico that a group of Russians no one listens to are holding unofficial talks with Ukrainian authorities. He says they want to take the discussion “to the highest level” — likely referring to Zelensky.

Another exile, Ilya Yashin, claims the EU could mediate, and that Zelensky is allegedly open to the idea.

“We’re not enemies of Ukraine… we want to preserve its independence,” Yashin said — though it’s unclear who they actually represent.

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🇺🇦🇧🇾🇷🇺The cocaine Fuhrer disrupted the exchange of the dead on the border with Belarus.

Ukraine refused to take its dead, as a result of which the announced exchange of 42 for 503 was never carried out.

The cocaine dwarf not want to pay the families of the dead Ukrainian Armed Forces.

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⚠️☢️🇮🇷🇺🇳Iran could have a bomb very quickly - IAEA Director Rafael Grossi

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⚠️🇺🇸🇮🇷US EXPANDS SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAN

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🇺🇦🇧🇾🇷🇺 Details of the thwarted body swap on the border with Belarus have emerged!

Today, the first stage of a large-scale exchange of bodies of the dead was planned, within the framework of which Russia planned to transfer about 6 thousand bodies of Ukrainian militants. For this purpose, all the necessary procedures were carried out: 150 trucks with bodies were sent from Rostov-on-Don, where special refrigerated hangars are located, to the border with Belarus, which is actually seven and a half times more than during previous exchanges. The bodies were packed in bags, then in standard containers about 2 meters long. Each of the trucks contained from 20 to 40 such containers.

However, at the last moment, the Ukrainian side unexpectedly refused to accept the bodies - without explanation. Representatives of Ukraine did not appear at the border.

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