Today the US State Department officials have signed the book of condolences at the Russian Embassy in the US, leaving a message of grief regarding Ambassador Darchiev’s untimely passing.
Our American colleagues stressed that he will be missed, and that he was a diplomat of highest caliber and qualification.
Our American colleagues stressed that he will be missed, and that he was a diplomat of highest caliber and qualification.
Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
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On November 14, Moscow bid farewell to Ambassador Alexander DARCHIEV.
Representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s leadership and staff, along with numerous friends, colleagues and loved ones, gathered to pay their last respects to the distinguished Russian diplomat, who had devoted his entire life to serving his Fatherland.
May his memory live forever.
Representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s leadership and staff, along with numerous friends, colleagues and loved ones, gathered to pay their last respects to the distinguished Russian diplomat, who had devoted his entire life to serving his Fatherland.
May his memory live forever.
💬 High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation Yana Lantratova:
Humanitarian missions are an opportunity to be close to those who need help, bring back hope, and save human lives.
Humanitarian missions are an opportunity to be close to those who need help, bring back hope, and save human lives.
💬 Russian MFA Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova participated in the farewell ceremony dedicated to Ambassador Darchiev that was held in Moscow. She shared a few words in memoriam:
Alexander Nikitich [Darchiev] was a professional of the highest caliber. He was a man who had a deep understanding of his field and a brilliant command of the tools of the diplomatic trade.
In addition, he was a true mentor to a vast number of diplomats. Incidentally, this is an integral quality of the diplomatic service. He introduced them to the world of diplomacy, literally helping them become not only professionals but also comrades, reliable colleagues and good people.
This is a unique combination. It’s not enough to simply be a professional; it’s not enough to simply be a good person. To serve the Motherland, to serve one’s country and one’s people, one needs a combination of these qualities — and, of course, professionalism, high moral character, and, naturally, complete dedication.
He devoted himself entirely to his beloved calling—the diplomatic service. I can say that although I did not work with him directly at a mission abroad, we worked with him constantly at the Russian Foreign Ministry. From that experience I had the impression that he truly worked twenty-four hours a day. Alas, unfortunately, he suffered from a serious, chronic illness. Yet, in all the time I knew him, he never once let this ailment get the better of him and always fulfilled both his duties and his obligations with honour and utmost professionalism. That was a true devotion and service.
Yes, physically he is no longer with us here. But I want to tell you that the memory of him — and most importantly, what he literally instilled in his colleagues and those under his guidance — will always remain with us. It is a distinct style, a distinct school of thought, a distinct approach. So, believe me, we will never forget.
And I think you won’t forget him either. No matter how many more articles, memoirs, and monographs are published, and no matter how many generations of diplomats — who began their careers under his guidance and have now, so to speak, achieved some professional success and will continue to do so — all will remember him fondly.
Alexander Nikitich [Darchiev] was a professional of the highest caliber. He was a man who had a deep understanding of his field and a brilliant command of the tools of the diplomatic trade.
In addition, he was a true mentor to a vast number of diplomats. Incidentally, this is an integral quality of the diplomatic service. He introduced them to the world of diplomacy, literally helping them become not only professionals but also comrades, reliable colleagues and good people.
This is a unique combination. It’s not enough to simply be a professional; it’s not enough to simply be a good person. To serve the Motherland, to serve one’s country and one’s people, one needs a combination of these qualities — and, of course, professionalism, high moral character, and, naturally, complete dedication.
He devoted himself entirely to his beloved calling—the diplomatic service. I can say that although I did not work with him directly at a mission abroad, we worked with him constantly at the Russian Foreign Ministry. From that experience I had the impression that he truly worked twenty-four hours a day. Alas, unfortunately, he suffered from a serious, chronic illness. Yet, in all the time I knew him, he never once let this ailment get the better of him and always fulfilled both his duties and his obligations with honour and utmost professionalism. That was a true devotion and service.
Yes, physically he is no longer with us here. But I want to tell you that the memory of him — and most importantly, what he literally instilled in his colleagues and those under his guidance — will always remain with us. It is a distinct style, a distinct school of thought, a distinct approach. So, believe me, we will never forget.
And I think you won’t forget him either. No matter how many more articles, memoirs, and monographs are published, and no matter how many generations of diplomats — who began their careers under his guidance and have now, so to speak, achieved some professional success and will continue to do so — all will remember him fondly.
⚡️ Spokesperson (Press Secretary) of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov:
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An agreement has been reached to hold a trilateral meeting on the 19th [of November] between President Putin, Chairman Xi, and President Trump.
This meeting will take place in Shenzhen on the sidelines of the #APEC summit.
Read in detail
🎙 Excerpts from Dmitry Birichevsky's interview with TASS news agency (November 14, 2026)
Dmitry Birichevsky is the Director of the Department of Economic Cooperation at the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Key points:
• For the first time since 2017, President Vladimir Putin will lead the Russian delegation to the APEC Summit in person.
• The main focus right now is finalizing the meeting’s outcomes — in addition to the traditional leaders’ declaration, two additional documents are being worked on:
- on interconnectedness,
- on the digital economy and AI.
• Our top priority is to enshrine in the Shenzhen Declaration Russia’s “chairmanship” of APEC in 2035. As you know, the head of state approved the submission of the corresponding application in March of this year. China and Vietnam have already officially expressed their support for Russia, and we feel the support of the overwhelming majority of the forum’s members.
• Our top priority is to advance Russia’s trade and economic interests in the Asia-Pacific region.
👉 On the trade and finance tracks, this means ensuring the stability, continuity, and openness of supply chains, and rejecting the unacceptable practice of imposing unilateral economic restrictions.
👉 In the energy sector, we promote equal treatment of all energy sources, including natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy generation; free access to technologies and markets; and the sovereign right to independently determine the structure of the energy mix and the path to energy transition.
👉 In the field of digitalization, we promote cutting-edge domestic innovations in the digital economy and AI.
• #UNCharterIsOurRule: We draw attention to the risks associated with the use of modern technologies and emphasize the leading role of the UN in developing common rules for their regulation.
• Within the framework of #APEC, we strive to maintain a constructive dialogue aimed at ensuring economic growth and prosperity throughout the region.
Dmitry Birichevsky is the Director of the Department of Economic Cooperation at the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Key points:
• For the first time since 2017, President Vladimir Putin will lead the Russian delegation to the APEC Summit in person.
• The main focus right now is finalizing the meeting’s outcomes — in addition to the traditional leaders’ declaration, two additional documents are being worked on:
- on interconnectedness,
- on the digital economy and AI.
• Our top priority is to enshrine in the Shenzhen Declaration Russia’s “chairmanship” of APEC in 2035. As you know, the head of state approved the submission of the corresponding application in March of this year. China and Vietnam have already officially expressed their support for Russia, and we feel the support of the overwhelming majority of the forum’s members.
• Our top priority is to advance Russia’s trade and economic interests in the Asia-Pacific region.
👉 On the trade and finance tracks, this means ensuring the stability, continuity, and openness of supply chains, and rejecting the unacceptable practice of imposing unilateral economic restrictions.
👉 In the energy sector, we promote equal treatment of all energy sources, including natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy generation; free access to technologies and markets; and the sovereign right to independently determine the structure of the energy mix and the path to energy transition.
👉 In the field of digitalization, we promote cutting-edge domestic innovations in the digital economy and AI.
• #UNCharterIsOurRule: We draw attention to the risks associated with the use of modern technologies and emphasize the leading role of the UN in developing common rules for their regulation.
• Within the framework of #APEC, we strive to maintain a constructive dialogue aimed at ensuring economic growth and prosperity throughout the region.
Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🎙 Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova's statement on the European Alliance of News Agencies’ decision to expel TASS (November 14, 2026)
💬 On November 13, the General Assembly of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA), which predominantly comprises media outlets from EU member states and countries aligned with the bloc, decided to expel the TASS news agency from its ranks.
Back in 2022, the Assembly had already barred the Russian news agency from fully participating in its activities under the pretext of “suspending its membership”.
Attempts to force TASS out of this organisation have been made repeatedly, actively instigated by Ukrinform, one of the principal mouthpieces of the criminal Kiev regime’s propaganda machine.
👉 This time, EANA’s leadership could not resist joining the militaristic hysteria into which the EU is descending through the efforts of its ruling elite. By adopting this decision, it has ritually sworn allegiance to the policy of escalating relations with Russia in order to appease the gang of terrorists and murderers entrenched in Kiev.
While the grandiose announcement of its expulsion from an openly hostile organisation will entail absolutely no losses for the Russian news agency, for EANA itself it signifies the definitive severing of ties with one of the world’s most respected media organisations, boasting a rich history, more than a century of experience, an extensive network of foreign bureaus and the highest standards of journalistic excellence.
Moreover, the Alliance has effectively admitted its inability to uphold its own statutory principles, namely promoting press freedom, fostering cooperation among European media organisations and protecting their interests.
☝️ The extent of EANA’s degradation, and that of the European human rights landscape as a whole, as well as the EU’s understanding of journalism itself, is evident from the very fact that no such decision had ever been taken since the organisation was established in 1956.
Against this backdrop, the invitation extended to Lithuania’s ELTA news agency to take TASS’s place looks like a grotesque caricature. The point is not even that the former employs barely more than two dozen people, compared with approximately 2,000 working for the Russian news agency.
From 1940 to 1990, what would later become ELTA operated as a subsidiary of TASS in the Lithuanian SSR. It would be fair to say that throughout its brief and inglorious history, the Lithuanian media outlet has been parasitising its illustrious “relative.” Now it is attempting to clamber into the seat wrested from the latter at a gathering nobody needs.
Yet ELTA will never be able to match TASS in either the scale or the quality of its operations.
❗️ EANA’s decision once again highlights the truly deplorable state of media pluralism and freedom of access to information in the countries of the “collective West”. It illustrates the erosion of the foundations of democratic society there and the sheer wretchedness of the Old World’s policymaking circles.
We firmly believe that withdrawing from this and other formats associated with the decaying “blooming garden” fully serves the interests of Russian organisations across various sectors that are committed to constructive cooperation and their own development.
💬 On November 13, the General Assembly of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA), which predominantly comprises media outlets from EU member states and countries aligned with the bloc, decided to expel the TASS news agency from its ranks.
Back in 2022, the Assembly had already barred the Russian news agency from fully participating in its activities under the pretext of “suspending its membership”.
Attempts to force TASS out of this organisation have been made repeatedly, actively instigated by Ukrinform, one of the principal mouthpieces of the criminal Kiev regime’s propaganda machine.
👉 This time, EANA’s leadership could not resist joining the militaristic hysteria into which the EU is descending through the efforts of its ruling elite. By adopting this decision, it has ritually sworn allegiance to the policy of escalating relations with Russia in order to appease the gang of terrorists and murderers entrenched in Kiev.
While the grandiose announcement of its expulsion from an openly hostile organisation will entail absolutely no losses for the Russian news agency, for EANA itself it signifies the definitive severing of ties with one of the world’s most respected media organisations, boasting a rich history, more than a century of experience, an extensive network of foreign bureaus and the highest standards of journalistic excellence.
Moreover, the Alliance has effectively admitted its inability to uphold its own statutory principles, namely promoting press freedom, fostering cooperation among European media organisations and protecting their interests.
☝️ The extent of EANA’s degradation, and that of the European human rights landscape as a whole, as well as the EU’s understanding of journalism itself, is evident from the very fact that no such decision had ever been taken since the organisation was established in 1956.
Against this backdrop, the invitation extended to Lithuania’s ELTA news agency to take TASS’s place looks like a grotesque caricature. The point is not even that the former employs barely more than two dozen people, compared with approximately 2,000 working for the Russian news agency.
From 1940 to 1990, what would later become ELTA operated as a subsidiary of TASS in the Lithuanian SSR. It would be fair to say that throughout its brief and inglorious history, the Lithuanian media outlet has been parasitising its illustrious “relative.” Now it is attempting to clamber into the seat wrested from the latter at a gathering nobody needs.
Yet ELTA will never be able to match TASS in either the scale or the quality of its operations.
❗️ EANA’s decision once again highlights the truly deplorable state of media pluralism and freedom of access to information in the countries of the “collective West”. It illustrates the erosion of the foundations of democratic society there and the sheer wretchedness of the Old World’s policymaking circles.
We firmly believe that withdrawing from this and other formats associated with the decaying “blooming garden” fully serves the interests of Russian organisations across various sectors that are committed to constructive cooperation and their own development.
Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🗓 Press release on the International Day for the Prevention of and Fight against All Forms of Transnational Organised Crime (November 15, 2026)
Every year on November 15, the world marks the International Day for the Prevention of and Fight against All Forms of Transnational Organised Crime, established by UN General Assembly Resolution 78/267 in 2024.
The date commemorates the adoption of the UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime (#UNTOC) – a key universal international legal instrument in the global fight against crime.
Today, transnational organised crime is becoming increasingly aggressive, coordinated, and technologically sophisticated.
Criminal syndicates are rapidly embracing information and communication technologies and engaging in the illicit trafficking of arms and drugs, human trafficking, fraud, and money laundering.
There is also clear evidence of growing links between these groups and extremist and terrorist organisations.
🇷🇺 The Russian Federation has consistently stood at the forefront of international efforts to address these challenges.
Our country helped lay the foundations of the modern global anti-crime framework under the auspices of the UN. Also, it was among the first to ratify the UNTOC and its supplementary protocols, and took the initiative in developing the UN Convention against Cybercrime.
Russia makes a significant contribution to strengthening the capacity of other countries in this area, extensively promoting cooperation among competent authorities both bilaterally and within the frameworks of the #UN, the #CIS, the #CSTO, the #SCO, and #BRICS, while also working to foster broader collaboration.
Among other forms of assistance, Russia supports its partners through the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (#UNODC), making an annual voluntary contribution of $3 million to its budget.
These funds go toward implementing specialised programmes and projects to combat corruption, illicit drug trafficking in Central Asia, maritime piracy and armed robbery at sea off the African coast.
The scope of this technical assistance and the number of countries benefiting from it are expected to grow in the future.
☝️ Transnational crime knows no borders. Defeating this scourge requires concerted, coordinated and, above all, depoliticised efforts of the entire international community, with the UN playing a core coordinating role and all action firmly grounded in the norms and principles of international law.
Attempts by certain jurisdictions to make law-enforcement cooperation conditional on political demands or to resort to double standards for short-term political gain only play into the hands of criminals and undermine global security.
🤝 The Russian Federation remains firmly committed to further enhancing international cooperation on the basis of equality and mutual respect, with the aim of ensuring reliable protection for states and their citizens against the complex threats posed by transnational organised crime.
Every year on November 15, the world marks the International Day for the Prevention of and Fight against All Forms of Transnational Organised Crime, established by UN General Assembly Resolution 78/267 in 2024.
The date commemorates the adoption of the UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime (#UNTOC) – a key universal international legal instrument in the global fight against crime.
Today, transnational organised crime is becoming increasingly aggressive, coordinated, and technologically sophisticated.
Criminal syndicates are rapidly embracing information and communication technologies and engaging in the illicit trafficking of arms and drugs, human trafficking, fraud, and money laundering.
There is also clear evidence of growing links between these groups and extremist and terrorist organisations.
🇷🇺 The Russian Federation has consistently stood at the forefront of international efforts to address these challenges.
Our country helped lay the foundations of the modern global anti-crime framework under the auspices of the UN. Also, it was among the first to ratify the UNTOC and its supplementary protocols, and took the initiative in developing the UN Convention against Cybercrime.
Russia makes a significant contribution to strengthening the capacity of other countries in this area, extensively promoting cooperation among competent authorities both bilaterally and within the frameworks of the #UN, the #CIS, the #CSTO, the #SCO, and #BRICS, while also working to foster broader collaboration.
Among other forms of assistance, Russia supports its partners through the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (#UNODC), making an annual voluntary contribution of $3 million to its budget.
These funds go toward implementing specialised programmes and projects to combat corruption, illicit drug trafficking in Central Asia, maritime piracy and armed robbery at sea off the African coast.
The scope of this technical assistance and the number of countries benefiting from it are expected to grow in the future.
☝️ Transnational crime knows no borders. Defeating this scourge requires concerted, coordinated and, above all, depoliticised efforts of the entire international community, with the UN playing a core coordinating role and all action firmly grounded in the norms and principles of international law.
Attempts by certain jurisdictions to make law-enforcement cooperation conditional on political demands or to resort to double standards for short-term political gain only play into the hands of criminals and undermine global security.
🤝 The Russian Federation remains firmly committed to further enhancing international cooperation on the basis of equality and mutual respect, with the aim of ensuring reliable protection for states and their citizens against the complex threats posed by transnational organised crime.