📆 On April 6, 1654, exactly 370 years ago, Russia's Tsar Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov aka Alexey I, granted his royal charter to Hetman of the Zaporozhian Host Bogdan Khmelnitsky. The document secured Russia’s reunification with Left-Bank Ukraine (then – part of Little Russia aka Malorossiya).
In the late 16th and the first half of the 17th century, pressure on the Orthodox population increased from the Polish-Lithuanian gentry in the lands of Ancient Rus controlled by the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
After the Union of Brest was adopted in 1596, a majority of Orthodox priests became completely subordinate to the Pope. Those who remained faithful to Orthodoxy became outcasts and were deprived of hierarchical leadership, since Metropolitan of Kiev Mikhail Rogoza also joined the Greek Catholics. The gentry pursued aggressive Polonisation and Latinisation policy, and those who had the courage to resist were deprived of titles and lands and suffered persecution.
All attempts by the Zaporozhian Cossacks to come to an agreement with the Polish king failed as the Polish nobility did not plan to tolerate a free Orthodox community in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Under the threat of losing religious and national identity, a liberation movement of the Orthodox population of the Dnieper region began to form, with prerequisites created for supporters who sought to overthrow the gentry and reunify with Russia.
In 1648, the Cossacks stepped up their liberation struggle led by Hetman Bogdan Khmelnitsky, who repeatedly asked Tsar Alexey I for help, urging him to take the Hetmanate under “his royal hand.”
On January 8, 1654, Pereyaslav Rada officially declared the acceptance of the Zaporozhian Cossacks into the Russian state. On April 5, Tsar Alexey I signed the royal charter, where the Russian monarch’s title “Tsar of all Russia Great and Little” was used for the first time.
👉 Read more about the Pereyaslav Agreement
In the late 16th and the first half of the 17th century, pressure on the Orthodox population increased from the Polish-Lithuanian gentry in the lands of Ancient Rus controlled by the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
After the Union of Brest was adopted in 1596, a majority of Orthodox priests became completely subordinate to the Pope. Those who remained faithful to Orthodoxy became outcasts and were deprived of hierarchical leadership, since Metropolitan of Kiev Mikhail Rogoza also joined the Greek Catholics. The gentry pursued aggressive Polonisation and Latinisation policy, and those who had the courage to resist were deprived of titles and lands and suffered persecution.
All attempts by the Zaporozhian Cossacks to come to an agreement with the Polish king failed as the Polish nobility did not plan to tolerate a free Orthodox community in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Under the threat of losing religious and national identity, a liberation movement of the Orthodox population of the Dnieper region began to form, with prerequisites created for supporters who sought to overthrow the gentry and reunify with Russia.
In 1648, the Cossacks stepped up their liberation struggle led by Hetman Bogdan Khmelnitsky, who repeatedly asked Tsar Alexey I for help, urging him to take the Hetmanate under “his royal hand.”
On January 8, 1654, Pereyaslav Rada officially declared the acceptance of the Zaporozhian Cossacks into the Russian state. On April 5, Tsar Alexey I signed the royal charter, where the Russian monarch’s title “Tsar of all Russia Great and Little” was used for the first time.
👉 Read more about the Pereyaslav Agreement
🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the ambassadorial roundtable discussion to settle the situation around Ukraine (Moscow, April 4, 2024)
Key talking points:
• April 14 marks the 10th anniversary of the Nazis that came to power in Ukraine declaring an “anti-terrorist operation” against the people of Donbass. They designated them as terrorists who must be destroyed.
• Throughout these years, we knew and said publicly that the accusations of terrorism against Donbass were baseless. Now it was confirmed by the UN International Court of Justice in its decision dated January 31, 2024, regarding the claim filed by Kiev and its masters against the Russian Federation.
• The International Court of Justice has effectively confirmed that Kiev's aggressive actions against Donetsk and Lugansk were initially based on lies.
• Today, Ukraine, if we return to its arguments about terrorism as justification for its actions, has clearly become a terrorist state. Over the past 10 years it has been terrorising citizens in its own country and beyond.
• The Foreign Ministry has recently issued official demands to the Ukrainian authorities, urging them to promptly cease any support for terrorist activities, extradite those responsible, and provide compensation for damages incurred.
• Alongside the appeal made through the Foreign Ministry, the Russian Prosecutor-General’s Office has dispatched relevant documents to the US and several other Western countries, documents based on appeals from citizens and parliamentarians and detailing the actions we expect from them in connection with the newly discovered evidence exposing the support for the Ukrainian regime’s terrorist activities and preparations from its patrons.
• We all know that Kiev is not independent, but is following instructions from its bosses and handlers implementing their anti-Russia project.
• We honestly told the Westerners that they were pushing Ukraine towards a disaster. No one wanted to listen.
Read in full
Key talking points:
• April 14 marks the 10th anniversary of the Nazis that came to power in Ukraine declaring an “anti-terrorist operation” against the people of Donbass. They designated them as terrorists who must be destroyed.
• Throughout these years, we knew and said publicly that the accusations of terrorism against Donbass were baseless. Now it was confirmed by the UN International Court of Justice in its decision dated January 31, 2024, regarding the claim filed by Kiev and its masters against the Russian Federation.
• The International Court of Justice has effectively confirmed that Kiev's aggressive actions against Donetsk and Lugansk were initially based on lies.
• Today, Ukraine, if we return to its arguments about terrorism as justification for its actions, has clearly become a terrorist state. Over the past 10 years it has been terrorising citizens in its own country and beyond.
• The Foreign Ministry has recently issued official demands to the Ukrainian authorities, urging them to promptly cease any support for terrorist activities, extradite those responsible, and provide compensation for damages incurred.
• Alongside the appeal made through the Foreign Ministry, the Russian Prosecutor-General’s Office has dispatched relevant documents to the US and several other Western countries, documents based on appeals from citizens and parliamentarians and detailing the actions we expect from them in connection with the newly discovered evidence exposing the support for the Ukrainian regime’s terrorist activities and preparations from its patrons.
• We all know that Kiev is not independent, but is following instructions from its bosses and handlers implementing their anti-Russia project.
• We honestly told the Westerners that they were pushing Ukraine towards a disaster. No one wanted to listen.
Read in full
🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement and answers to media questions following at the ambassadorial roundtable discussion to settle the situation around Ukraine (Moscow, April 4, 2024)
Read in full
Zelensky's 'peace formula'
• This scheme is widely known and it is effectively an ultimatum that forces Russia to surrender, capitulate, and retreat to the borders of 1991. Recently, Mr Zelensky “kindly suggested” that “we start” with the borders as of February 2022. It doesn’t hurt to dream of things.
• We stand for our truth and the interests of our people <...>. If they want to reach a fair, realistic deal and strike a balance between us in terms of our security interests, we are ready to move in this direction any moment. But for that, we do not need a foundation or a liner of any kind such as the Zelensky formula, no matter how you describe it, in order to move from stating the readiness to launch talks to actually starting the negotiation.
Regarding the West's cynical attitude towards Ukraine
• What the West has been saying about Ukraine and putting its bets on defeating Russia is also quite telling. In his interview with CNN, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said: “We cannot afford Russia to win this war. Otherwise, the US and European interests will be very damaged. It’s not a matter of generosity alone, it’s not a matter of supporting Ukraine because we love Ukrainian people. It is in our own interests and it is also in the interests of the US as a global player <...>».
👉 Europe recognised that it has no aspirations and all it wants is for the United States not to lose its dominant role in global affairs, no matter the cost.
The situation in the Gaza Strip
• We reiterated our position where we condemned the terrorist attack of October 7, 2023 and the untenable methods Israel is using now. In fact, Tel Aviv has resorted to collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
Read in full
Zelensky's 'peace formula'
• This scheme is widely known and it is effectively an ultimatum that forces Russia to surrender, capitulate, and retreat to the borders of 1991. Recently, Mr Zelensky “kindly suggested” that “we start” with the borders as of February 2022. It doesn’t hurt to dream of things.
• We stand for our truth and the interests of our people <...>. If they want to reach a fair, realistic deal and strike a balance between us in terms of our security interests, we are ready to move in this direction any moment. But for that, we do not need a foundation or a liner of any kind such as the Zelensky formula, no matter how you describe it, in order to move from stating the readiness to launch talks to actually starting the negotiation.
Regarding the West's cynical attitude towards Ukraine
• What the West has been saying about Ukraine and putting its bets on defeating Russia is also quite telling. In his interview with CNN, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said: “We cannot afford Russia to win this war. Otherwise, the US and European interests will be very damaged. It’s not a matter of generosity alone, it’s not a matter of supporting Ukraine because we love Ukrainian people. It is in our own interests and it is also in the interests of the US as a global player <...>».
👉 Europe recognised that it has no aspirations and all it wants is for the United States not to lose its dominant role in global affairs, no matter the cost.
The situation in the Gaza Strip
• We reiterated our position where we condemned the terrorist attack of October 7, 2023 and the untenable methods Israel is using now. In fact, Tel Aviv has resorted to collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
#Opinion by Maria Zakharova
💬 Zelensky said that Kiev was hostage to the election process in the US.
So... were there no elections in the United States before 2024? Or is that the absent Ukrainian presidential elections have been moved to the US?
I get it. Zelensky wants to believe he’s one of a kind and everything revolves around him, but this is not the case. He is just a line in a long list of victims of US “elections,” or, to be precise, the American system. He is one of those who were 100 percent sure the United States was their ally.
South Vietnamese got it back in the 1960s.
There was a girl once upon a time, who was South Vietnam’s greatest beauty, Tran Le Xuan. She was popularly called Madame Nhu because she was married to Ngo Dinh Nhu, the younger brother and chief advisor of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem.
Ngo Dinh Nhu and Ngo Dinh Diem, the two South Vietnamese leaders, were supported by the Americans.
Even at the height of the Vietnam War, a bloody and ugly child of the French colonial system, Washington promised Ngo Dinh Nhu and Ngo Dinh Diem its full assistance. The Americans were working hard to ensure the tragic split into the South Vietnam and North Vietnam seeking to benefit from a war in the former French colonies.
Can’t Zelensky see parallels?
The US was so delicate with South Vietnamese leaders that US Vice President Lyndon Johnson visited Saigon in 1961. Later, he, then the US President, would send hundreds of thousands of Americans to die in Vietnam. During his visit, Johnson called Diem the “Churchill of Asia.” In much the same way, the US has promoted an ambitious drug addict crowning him “the leader of a Free Ukraine”.
So, what happened to the Washington allies, Ngo Dinh Nhu and Ngo Dinh Diem? They were killed. General Duong Van Minh, considered one of the most loyal military commanders, led a coup on November 1, 1963 in which South Vietnam’s top brass were arrested and shot on the putschists’ orders.
It was only by chance that Ngo Dinh Nhu’s wife, Tran Le Xuan, wasn’t killed, because she was abroad. It was then that Madame Nhu uttered the much-remembered phrase: "Those who have the United States as an ally need have no enemies". And that phrase turned out to be prophetic. In 1975, it turned out that the Americans knew of the impending coup. They could have warned their allies, saved the South Vietnamese president and his team, but just as the French did not prevent the genocide in Rwanda, the Americans "found it inexpedient" to stop the military putsch. Some sources claim that the degree of involvement of the Americans was even greater in that they inspired the coup and used the military to remove the president.
But let’s return to the American elections. Here are just a few quotations from comments, statements and interviews by the Russian Foreign Ministry leadership on this subject.
Sergey Lavrov: “This is not the first time that serious international issues that concern many members of the world community are being held hostage to US electoral cycles. However, this is a short-sighted approach.” (September 21, 2018)
Sergey Lavrov: “It is sad when these endless election cycles are starting to make virtually everything else a hostage to the domestic US political struggle. Elections take place every two years, and it is necessary to do something during them, so that the enemy will feel defeated.” (December 22, 2019)
Sergey Lavrov: “When the issue concerns a country that boasts the most powerful military and economy, and is the most influential country in the world, which holds political elections every two years, it very often occurs that the most important international issues become hostage to electoral motives of the existing US authorities, which want to ensure that their every move in the international arena scores big for their party candidates.” (December 30, 2015)
We warned them. It’s just that Mr Nhu refused to realise this or was simply unable to. Reread the first sentence of the post: now it started dawning on him.
💬 Zelensky said that Kiev was hostage to the election process in the US.
So... were there no elections in the United States before 2024? Or is that the absent Ukrainian presidential elections have been moved to the US?
I get it. Zelensky wants to believe he’s one of a kind and everything revolves around him, but this is not the case. He is just a line in a long list of victims of US “elections,” or, to be precise, the American system. He is one of those who were 100 percent sure the United States was their ally.
South Vietnamese got it back in the 1960s.
There was a girl once upon a time, who was South Vietnam’s greatest beauty, Tran Le Xuan. She was popularly called Madame Nhu because she was married to Ngo Dinh Nhu, the younger brother and chief advisor of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem.
Ngo Dinh Nhu and Ngo Dinh Diem, the two South Vietnamese leaders, were supported by the Americans.
Even at the height of the Vietnam War, a bloody and ugly child of the French colonial system, Washington promised Ngo Dinh Nhu and Ngo Dinh Diem its full assistance. The Americans were working hard to ensure the tragic split into the South Vietnam and North Vietnam seeking to benefit from a war in the former French colonies.
Can’t Zelensky see parallels?
The US was so delicate with South Vietnamese leaders that US Vice President Lyndon Johnson visited Saigon in 1961. Later, he, then the US President, would send hundreds of thousands of Americans to die in Vietnam. During his visit, Johnson called Diem the “Churchill of Asia.” In much the same way, the US has promoted an ambitious drug addict crowning him “the leader of a Free Ukraine”.
So, what happened to the Washington allies, Ngo Dinh Nhu and Ngo Dinh Diem? They were killed. General Duong Van Minh, considered one of the most loyal military commanders, led a coup on November 1, 1963 in which South Vietnam’s top brass were arrested and shot on the putschists’ orders.
It was only by chance that Ngo Dinh Nhu’s wife, Tran Le Xuan, wasn’t killed, because she was abroad. It was then that Madame Nhu uttered the much-remembered phrase: "Those who have the United States as an ally need have no enemies". And that phrase turned out to be prophetic. In 1975, it turned out that the Americans knew of the impending coup. They could have warned their allies, saved the South Vietnamese president and his team, but just as the French did not prevent the genocide in Rwanda, the Americans "found it inexpedient" to stop the military putsch. Some sources claim that the degree of involvement of the Americans was even greater in that they inspired the coup and used the military to remove the president.
But let’s return to the American elections. Here are just a few quotations from comments, statements and interviews by the Russian Foreign Ministry leadership on this subject.
Sergey Lavrov: “This is not the first time that serious international issues that concern many members of the world community are being held hostage to US electoral cycles. However, this is a short-sighted approach.” (September 21, 2018)
Sergey Lavrov: “It is sad when these endless election cycles are starting to make virtually everything else a hostage to the domestic US political struggle. Elections take place every two years, and it is necessary to do something during them, so that the enemy will feel defeated.” (December 22, 2019)
Sergey Lavrov: “When the issue concerns a country that boasts the most powerful military and economy, and is the most influential country in the world, which holds political elections every two years, it very often occurs that the most important international issues become hostage to electoral motives of the existing US authorities, which want to ensure that their every move in the international arena scores big for their party candidates.” (December 30, 2015)
We warned them. It’s just that Mr Nhu refused to realise this or was simply unable to. Reread the first sentence of the post: now it started dawning on him.
🇷🇺 State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom:
The Zaporozhskaya Nuclear Power Plant has faced an unprecedented series of drone attacks posing a direct threat to the plant’s safety.
The Rosatom State Corporation urges the leadership of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the European Union countries to promptly address the escalating situation at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe.
On April 7, 2024, the Ukrainian Armed Forces initiated an unprecedented series of attacks on the Zaporozhskaya Nuclear Power Plant.
At 11.38 am, a drone struck the vicinity of the canteen, injuring three people.
Thirty minutes later, another drone targeted the cargo port area. Subsequently, a strike at the sixth power unit of the power plant impacted its dome.
No critical damage or casualties occurred; the radiation levels at the plant and its surroundings remain unchanged and do not surpass natural background levels.
Prior to this incident, the Ukrainian Armed Forces conducted an assault on the plant’s premises on April 5. Incursions by Ukrainian Armed Forces drones were detected in the vicinity of the cargo port and the nitrogen-oxygen station.
The Rosatom State Corporation strongly condemns the unprecedented assault on the nuclear power plant facilities and its infrastructure. It urges the leadership of the IAEA, specifically Director General Rafael Grossi, and the leaders of the EU nations to promptly address the immediate threat to the safety of the Zaporozhskaya NPP. Furthermore, it calls for a categorical condemnation of the escalation of tensions surrounding the plant.
The Zaporozhskaya Nuclear Power Plant has faced an unprecedented series of drone attacks posing a direct threat to the plant’s safety.
The Rosatom State Corporation urges the leadership of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the European Union countries to promptly address the escalating situation at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe.
On April 7, 2024, the Ukrainian Armed Forces initiated an unprecedented series of attacks on the Zaporozhskaya Nuclear Power Plant.
At 11.38 am, a drone struck the vicinity of the canteen, injuring three people.
Thirty minutes later, another drone targeted the cargo port area. Subsequently, a strike at the sixth power unit of the power plant impacted its dome.
No critical damage or casualties occurred; the radiation levels at the plant and its surroundings remain unchanged and do not surpass natural background levels.
Prior to this incident, the Ukrainian Armed Forces conducted an assault on the plant’s premises on April 5. Incursions by Ukrainian Armed Forces drones were detected in the vicinity of the cargo port and the nitrogen-oxygen station.
The Rosatom State Corporation strongly condemns the unprecedented assault on the nuclear power plant facilities and its infrastructure. It urges the leadership of the IAEA, specifically Director General Rafael Grossi, and the leaders of the EU nations to promptly address the immediate threat to the safety of the Zaporozhskaya NPP. Furthermore, it calls for a categorical condemnation of the escalation of tensions surrounding the plant.
Forwarded from Генеральное консульство России в Эдинбурге
On April 7, 2024, Consul General of the Russian Federation in Edinburgh Denis Moskalenko honored the memory of Russian Navy sailors Fedor Likhachev and Yakov Grigoriev as well as Naval chaplain Sergiy buried in the Craigton cemetery in Glasgow. They were crew members of the battleship "Peter the Great" which underwent modernization in Scotland in 1881. Information about the burial was recently discovered thanks to the research of the Russian Memorials online project, aimed at finding and mapping burial places of Russian and Soviet soldiers abroad.
Forwarded from Embassy of Russia in the USA / Посольство России в США
We took notice of another batch of statements discrediting our country made by representatives of the US Department of Defense. This time, during a meeting with Defense Writers Group in Washington, the Russian-Chinese initiative promoting the signing of a treaty on the prevention of the placement of weapons in outer space was called a political trick.
☝️We remind that it is Washington, with the support of its allies, who has been blocking the development of a full-fledged legally binding international document for many years. While Russia and China have been leading global efforts for years to develop comprehensive measures that would be designed to prevent outer space from turning into arena of military confrontation and include a ban on the placement of weapons of any kind in outer space.
👉 We consider the Pentagon’s manipulations in the information domain as yet another confirmation of the United States’ attempts to use Russophobic statements to justify its own plans for military space exploration.
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🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s interview on the occasion of Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko’s birthday (Moscow, April 7, 2024)
❓ Question: What is Valentina Matvienko like? If you were to describe her, which qualities would you highlight?
💬 Sergey Lavrov: Valentina Matvienko is a prominent public figure. She has come a long way through various levels of power in the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation.
<...>
I am pleased to express hope that Ms Matvienko is also using her extensive diplomatic experience in her work. Before joining the Government led by Prime Minister Primakov, she served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Malta and Greece. She showed herself as a tough negotiator who, at the same time, understands the need to find a balance of interests. We do not impose our interests on the rest of the world. Others have taken this niche, but this time will go away soon.
With this kind of experience under the belt, in addition to addressing important tasks related to developing the state and improving living standards in the country, Ms Matvienko pays much attention to foreign policy issues.
Parliamentary diplomacy is making strides. The International Parliamentary Conference, Russia - Latin America, was held in the autumn of 2023. There are parliamentary dimensions to Russia-Africa cooperation, as well as #BRICS, #SCO, #CIS, and #CSTO. There remains much to be done.
☝️ Our parliamentarians are effectively exploring this area and contributing to the common efforts to fulfil the foreign policy goals set by President Vladimir Putin, which were updated on March 31, 2023 in the wake of the latest international developments and included in the new edition of Russia’s Foreign Policy Concept.
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❓ Question: What is Valentina Matvienko like? If you were to describe her, which qualities would you highlight?
💬 Sergey Lavrov: Valentina Matvienko is a prominent public figure. She has come a long way through various levels of power in the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation.
<...>
I am pleased to express hope that Ms Matvienko is also using her extensive diplomatic experience in her work. Before joining the Government led by Prime Minister Primakov, she served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Malta and Greece. She showed herself as a tough negotiator who, at the same time, understands the need to find a balance of interests. We do not impose our interests on the rest of the world. Others have taken this niche, but this time will go away soon.
With this kind of experience under the belt, in addition to addressing important tasks related to developing the state and improving living standards in the country, Ms Matvienko pays much attention to foreign policy issues.
Parliamentary diplomacy is making strides. The International Parliamentary Conference, Russia - Latin America, was held in the autumn of 2023. There are parliamentary dimensions to Russia-Africa cooperation, as well as #BRICS, #SCO, #CIS, and #CSTO. There remains much to be done.
☝️ Our parliamentarians are effectively exploring this area and contributing to the common efforts to fulfil the foreign policy goals set by President Vladimir Putin, which were updated on March 31, 2023 in the wake of the latest international developments and included in the new edition of Russia’s Foreign Policy Concept.
Read in full
🇷🇺🇨🇳 On April 8-9, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will pay an official visit to China, where he will hold talks with Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
🤝 The Foreign Ministers will discuss a wide range of issues related to bilateral cooperation, as well as interaction at the international arena with a focus on joint efforts at the #UN, #BRICS, the #SCO, the #G20, #APEC and other multilateral mechanisms and forums.
The Sides will have a thorough exchange of views on a number of pressing matters and regional issues, including the Ukrainian crisis and the situation in the Asia-Pacific region.
🤝 The Foreign Ministers will discuss a wide range of issues related to bilateral cooperation, as well as interaction at the international arena with a focus on joint efforts at the #UN, #BRICS, the #SCO, the #G20, #APEC and other multilateral mechanisms and forums.
The Sides will have a thorough exchange of views on a number of pressing matters and regional issues, including the Ukrainian crisis and the situation in the Asia-Pacific region.
🇷🇺🇨🇳 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held a working meeting in Beijing.
📸 Photo by Russian MFA Spox Maria Zakharova
#RussiaChina
📸 Photo by Russian MFA Spox Maria Zakharova
#RussiaChina
#Announcement
🎙 Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova will hold a briefing on current foreign policy issues at approximately 10:00 am MSK (8:00 am GMT) on April 10.
Accreditation is open until 10:00 am on April 9.
🎙 Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova will hold a briefing on current foreign policy issues at approximately 10:00 am MSK (8:00 am GMT) on April 10.
Accreditation is open until 10:00 am on April 9.
⚡️ Comment by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on US statements regarding the space agenda
💬 On April 5, US Assistant Secretary of Defence for Space Policy John Plumb addressed the Defense Writers Group on the Russian-Chinese draft Treaty on the Prevention of the Placement of Weapons in Outer Space, the Threat or Use of Force against Outer Space Objects (PPWT). It will be recalled that Russia and China submitted the draft treaty to the Conference on Disarmament in February 2008. Mr Plumb dismissed this initiative as a mere “political ploy,” claiming that adherence to the deal would not be verifiable.
☝️ The US is an ardent opponent of the Russian initiatives on the prevention of an arms race in space (PARS). Its strong opposition to the above Russian-Chinese draft treaty has long been an integral part of US foreign policy. In this context, Mr Plumb’s statements are hardly surprising.
Generally, comments on PARS by US representatives, as well as Washington’s ongoing activities at the UN Security Council with regard to nuclear weapons in space, are elements of its long-standing policy to subvert multilateral efforts to maintain international peace and strengthen global security through upgrading the existing and developing new legally binding arms control instruments. Instead, the US has been promoting a set of norms of “responsible” behaviour within the framework of their concept of a “rules-based world order,” which is untenable both in technical and international legal terms.
🇷🇺 The Russian Federation is prepared for an equitable dialogue with all states, aimed at keeping outer space free of weapons of any type as one of the conditions for ensuring international peace and security. As is to be regretted, far from all countries are committed to a responsible discussion on this matter.
💬 On April 5, US Assistant Secretary of Defence for Space Policy John Plumb addressed the Defense Writers Group on the Russian-Chinese draft Treaty on the Prevention of the Placement of Weapons in Outer Space, the Threat or Use of Force against Outer Space Objects (PPWT). It will be recalled that Russia and China submitted the draft treaty to the Conference on Disarmament in February 2008. Mr Plumb dismissed this initiative as a mere “political ploy,” claiming that adherence to the deal would not be verifiable.
☝️ The US is an ardent opponent of the Russian initiatives on the prevention of an arms race in space (PARS). Its strong opposition to the above Russian-Chinese draft treaty has long been an integral part of US foreign policy. In this context, Mr Plumb’s statements are hardly surprising.
Generally, comments on PARS by US representatives, as well as Washington’s ongoing activities at the UN Security Council with regard to nuclear weapons in space, are elements of its long-standing policy to subvert multilateral efforts to maintain international peace and strengthen global security through upgrading the existing and developing new legally binding arms control instruments. Instead, the US has been promoting a set of norms of “responsible” behaviour within the framework of their concept of a “rules-based world order,” which is untenable both in technical and international legal terms.
🇷🇺 The Russian Federation is prepared for an equitable dialogue with all states, aimed at keeping outer space free of weapons of any type as one of the conditions for ensuring international peace and security. As is to be regretted, far from all countries are committed to a responsible discussion on this matter.
Forwarded from Russian Mission Vienna
🇷🇺 Comment by Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov to TASS news agency
❓Is Russia going to raise the issue of Ukrainian attacks against the Zaporozhskaya NPP in the IAEA?
💬 Without a doubt. Actually, we did this yesterday, distributing an information circular to all Agency’s member states outlining the actual state of affairs and calling on them to condemn the extremely dangerous actions of the Ukrainian side against nuclear facilities. Attached to this circular were photographs showing the consequences of attacks by Ukrainian kamikaze drones. Another circular is about to be released due to the fact that Ukrainians are turning such attacks into everyday practice. Today, another Ukrainian drone was shot down over the sixth nuclear reactor. Fortunately, there were no casualties or damage
💬 The most important thing is that we requested an extraordinary session of the IAEA Board of Governors to discuss this burning topic. We believe that such a meeting will take place in the near future, at least before the end of this week
❓Is Russia going to raise the issue of Ukrainian attacks against the Zaporozhskaya NPP in the IAEA?
💬 Without a doubt. Actually, we did this yesterday, distributing an information circular to all Agency’s member states outlining the actual state of affairs and calling on them to condemn the extremely dangerous actions of the Ukrainian side against nuclear facilities. Attached to this circular were photographs showing the consequences of attacks by Ukrainian kamikaze drones. Another circular is about to be released due to the fact that Ukrainians are turning such attacks into everyday practice. Today, another Ukrainian drone was shot down over the sixth nuclear reactor. Fortunately, there were no casualties or damage
💬 The most important thing is that we requested an extraordinary session of the IAEA Board of Governors to discuss this burning topic. We believe that such a meeting will take place in the near future, at least before the end of this week
Forwarded from Russian Mission Vienna
Media is too big
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🇷🇺 Interview by Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov to «Rossiya 24» (with English subtitles)
🔴 Main topics:
🔵 Situation around the Zaporozhskaya NPP
🔵 IAEA
🔵 Drug trafficking
🔴 Main topics:
🔵 Situation around the Zaporozhskaya NPP
🔵 IAEA
🔵 Drug trafficking
🇷🇺🇨🇳 Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov holds talks with Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi.
📍 Beijing, April 9
#RussiaChina
📍 Beijing, April 9
#RussiaChina
🔴 #LIVE: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi hold a joint news conference following talks in Beijing 🇷🇺🇨🇳
🔴 Ruptly
🔴 Russia's MFA website
#RussiaChina
#RussiaChina
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Forwarded from Embassy of Russia in the USA / Посольство России в США
❓: Dear Ambassador Antonov, how could you comment on the statements by U.S. officials that Ukraine’s accession to NATO can only occur when the conflict is over?
💬 Anatoly Antonov: Washington absolutely refuses to listen to the statements about our firm opposition to Kiev’s membership in the North Atlantic Alliance. And all this - despite concrete proposals from the Russian side on security guarantees conveyed to Western capitals in December 2021.
❗️Ukraine's entry into NATO is unacceptable to us under any circumstances. This is a threat to Russia’s national security. Only politicians ignorant of the fundamental interests of the Russian Federation can expect that we could accept Kiev’s accession into a bloc which is hostile to us.
👉 Dissemination by U.S. officials of statements about Ukraine’s membership in the alliance only confirm that unconditional victory of the Russian Armed Forces on the battlefield is the only right option for us.
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⚡️ Foreign Ministry Statement in connection with Ukraine’s attacks on Zaporozhskaya NPP
On April 7, Ukraine launched mass strikes at the Zaporozhskaya NPP (ZNPP).
Using UAVs, the Ukrainian forces launched a series of attacks on the ZNPP critical infrastructure facilities and its grounds. Power Generation Unit No. 6, the ZNPP training centre and the cafeteria, as well as the cargo port grounds, came under attack. Three ZNPP employees were wounded. ZNPP guards repelled the Ukrainian attack on Power Generation Unit No. 5.
❗️Having perpetrated these criminal actions, Ukraine, with the support of the US and its Western satellites, has, in fact, made it clear that it had embarked on a path of nuclear terror.
At the request of the IAEA Director General, Russia agreed to have IAEA Secretariat experts stationed at the plant. They have been present on the premises on a rotating basis since September 1, 2022. The only rationale for their presence at ZNPP was our expectation that the presence of IAEA Secretariat experts would stop Ukraine from attacking the plant, or the IAEA officials would, at least, publicly identify the Kiev regime as the source of attacks on the ZNPP.
☝️We expect the IAEA Director General to provide a public and exhaustively truthful response. <...>
The blame for the attacks on the ZNPP and their potential consequences also lies fully with the leadership of the countries that supply the Kiev regime with weapons and intelligence, provide it with funds, train Ukrainian soldiers and provide information support for Ukrainian crimes.
🇷🇺 Russia is doing everything necessary to ensure the safety of the ZNPP in accordance with national legislation and international legal obligations.
We will identify and prosecute those who are responsible for launching the attacks on the Russian nuclear facilities regardless of where these individuals may be located, even if, after we achieve the goals of the special military operation, they manage to flee the territory controlled by the Kiev regime.
Read in full
On April 7, Ukraine launched mass strikes at the Zaporozhskaya NPP (ZNPP).
Using UAVs, the Ukrainian forces launched a series of attacks on the ZNPP critical infrastructure facilities and its grounds. Power Generation Unit No. 6, the ZNPP training centre and the cafeteria, as well as the cargo port grounds, came under attack. Three ZNPP employees were wounded. ZNPP guards repelled the Ukrainian attack on Power Generation Unit No. 5.
❗️Having perpetrated these criminal actions, Ukraine, with the support of the US and its Western satellites, has, in fact, made it clear that it had embarked on a path of nuclear terror.
At the request of the IAEA Director General, Russia agreed to have IAEA Secretariat experts stationed at the plant. They have been present on the premises on a rotating basis since September 1, 2022. The only rationale for their presence at ZNPP was our expectation that the presence of IAEA Secretariat experts would stop Ukraine from attacking the plant, or the IAEA officials would, at least, publicly identify the Kiev regime as the source of attacks on the ZNPP.
☝️We expect the IAEA Director General to provide a public and exhaustively truthful response. <...>
The blame for the attacks on the ZNPP and their potential consequences also lies fully with the leadership of the countries that supply the Kiev regime with weapons and intelligence, provide it with funds, train Ukrainian soldiers and provide information support for Ukrainian crimes.
🇷🇺 Russia is doing everything necessary to ensure the safety of the ZNPP in accordance with national legislation and international legal obligations.
We will identify and prosecute those who are responsible for launching the attacks on the Russian nuclear facilities regardless of where these individuals may be located, even if, after we achieve the goals of the special military operation, they manage to flee the territory controlled by the Kiev regime.
Read in full