🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s answer to a question from RT (Moscow, November 16, 2023)

❓ What is your assessment of Egypt’s role in resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict?

💬 Sergey Lavrov: The summit convened by Cairo was the first such event after October 7 and the subsequent developments. It was crucial to demonstrate that the international community will not stand idly by amidst the crisis, but is interested in halting any military action, releasing all hostages, allowing civilians from other countries to leave the area and in ensuring peace and security for the residents of Gaza.

It is essential to recall the situation in the West Bank, where formal war has not been declared, yet it faces Israeli army raids. This does nothing to improve the conditions for the start of a peace process and eventually (after all humanitarian problems have been resolved), direct talks on the creation of a Palestinian state.

🇪🇬 Cairo plays an important role in these processes. Its capabilities as a state and a global player extend beyond the Middle East and the African continent. Egypt is a global player already.

In response to 🇨🇦GAC's post:

TOTAL #FAKE

⚡️ Russia's EMERCOM delivers yet another batch of humanitarian aid to those in need in the Gaza Strip.

Aboard the latest plane were 30 tonnes of food supplies and personal care products. The aid was handed over to the Egyptian Red Crescent Society, which will deliver it to the people in the conflict zone.

In total Russia has already shared 190 tonnes of humanitarian aid. More to come.

📹 @mchs_official

#RussiaHelps

📄 The 2023 APEC Leaders’ Golden Gate Declaration

Following APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, the participants adopted the 2023 APEC Leaders’ Golden Gate Declaration.

💬 4. We reaffirm our determination to deliver a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive, and
predictable trade and investment environment.

<...>

6. We will continue to work to ensure a level playing field to foster a favorable trade and investment environment.

<...>

13. We reaffirm our commitment to create an enabling, inclusive, open, fair and non-discriminatory digital
ecosystem for business and consumers

Read in full

🇷🇺🇮🇷📞 On November 19, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke over the phone with Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

The discussion focused on the current situation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict zone. The Ministers expressed general concern about the ongoing armed confrontation in the Gaza Strip and stressed the imperative for an early ceasefire, alongside urgent assistance to the affected civilian population.

🗓 Additionally, the Ministers touched upon the schedule for their upcoming engagements and delved into a number of other topical issues on the bilateral and international agenda of mutual interest.

🎙 President Vladimir Putin sent greetings to participants in the 10th Anniversary session of the United Russia Party – Communist Party of China Dialogue (November 20, 2023)

💬 Russian-Chinese relations of comprehensive strategic partnership have attained an unprecedentedly high level. We implement large-scale joint economic, transport, energy, humanitarian and other projects. Moscow and Beijing coordinate their efforts both at the bilateral level and at the #SCO, #BRICS and other multilateral organisations, while addressing highly important international issues and facilitating the creation of a more just and democratic world order.

The fine-tuned and constructive interaction between leading political parties of both countries, specifically, United Russia and the Communist Party of China, facilitates the sustainable development of diverse ties between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China. Regular contacts involving central agencies, as well as regional institutions, provide a useful exchange of experience in the field of party development as well as parliamentary and public activities, making it possible to discuss in detail a wide range of topical issues on the bilateral and international agenda.

I am confident that your discussions will once again prove meaningful and constructive, and that your opinions and ideas will serve to further expand fruitful Russian-Chinese cooperation still further.

🇷🇺🇨🇳 #RussiaChina

#See4Yourself & #Think4Yourself

🎬 Maidan: Road to War. The story behind Maidan - an RT Doc Film.

Synopsis: The film presents events that took place from 2014 to 2022, as The Donetsk People's Republic and The Lugansk People's Republic were subjected to the Kiev regime's reign of terror and shelling on daily basis. "Maidan: Road to War" delves into the 2014 situation in Ukraine and pieces together the course of events. The film wants to draw the attention of the international community to the shelling and the deaths of civilians in the Donbass.

Maidan movement gained momentum in Kiev in 2013. Protests were prompted by the government’s decision to suspend the signing of the association agreement with the European Union. At first, the protests looked like a rock festival, but soon signs of hostility started to creep in from politicians and nationalists.

The protests were deliberately provocative from outside of Ukraine, namely - the US and the EU. Leaders of nationalist organisations admit they have been preparing for violent street riots long before the protests engulfed Kiev, as well as confirmed that they planned a revolution and the deposition of the government from the start.

Against the backdrop of the Western disinformation and attempts to rewrite history we refresh the true sequence of events and facts.

#NoStatuteOfLimitations
#LeastWeForget

🔻 On November 20, 1942, a strike group of the Red Army’s Stalingrad Front, commanded by Colonel-General Andrey Yeryomenko, attacked the enemy and breached the defences of the 4th Romanian Army. Three days later, Soviet forces encircled 22 Nazi divisions, as well as over 160 other separate units.

👉 This November, we are recalling the heroic Soviet counteroffensive near Stalingrad that marked a turning point in World War II.

The 200-day Battle of Stalingrad lasted from July 17, 1942 until February 2, 1945, and raged over a huge territory of about 100,000 square kilometres. At various stages, it involved over 2.1 million officers and soldiers on both sides, dwarfing all previous WWII military engagements in terms of scale and intensity.

During the first stage (July 17 - November 18, 1942), the Red Army had to defend its positions and wage intense urban combat. The Wehrmacht’s 6th Army, commanded by Lieutenant General Friedrich von Paulus, faced elements of the 62nd and 64th Soviet armies. Vassily Chuikov, the Commander of the 62nd Soviet Army, is considered the architect of the victory in Stalingrad. He perfected the tactics of assault teams that helped secure a Soviet victory in the battle.

By mid-November, favourable conditions shaped up for a Soviet counteroffensive. Army General Georgy Zhukov and Colonel General Alexander Vasilevsky coordinated efforts to draft a plan for an offensive operation codenamed Uranus. The operation lasted from November 19, 1942, through February 2, 1943. During that period, Soviet forces encircled and defeated units of the 4th German Panzer Army and the 6th German Field Army. They also destroyed military units from other Axis states that had sided with Germany.

☝️ During the Battle of Stalingrad, the Axis bloc lost 25 percent of its forces on the Soviet-German Front. The Soviet high command seized the initiative and gained favourable conditions for launching an all-out Red Army offensive, which allowed them to expel the invaders from the Soviet territory.

🎙 Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova’s comment on the 10th anniversary of the beginning of Ukrainian Euromaidan

💬 Anti-government riots started on Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) ten years ago, on November 21, 2013. They triggered the current disaster in Ukraine and, at the same time, took it to the point of no return.

Skilled US and European-trained provocateurs brought crowds of people into the streets under the attractive slogans of “a better European life,” visa-free travel to the EU countries, democracy, freedom of speech, human rights and an anti-corruption struggle. <...>

In January and February of 2014, artificially encouraged riots developed into an armed mutiny and ended in an anti-constitutional coup that was rejected by residents of many districts of the country.

The November 2013 events were triggered by the government’s decision to suspend the planned signing of the EU Association Agreement.

☝️I’d like to emphasise that it was only about the suspension of the signing of the agreement, not its cancellation. The problem was that the new commitments Kiev was to assume under the EU Association Agreement were at odds with its obligations to the CIS free trade zone. <...>

❗️In November 2013, the West and the radical neo-Nazi Ukrainian opposition went all-out to finally change Ukraine’s multi-vector course and put its economy and politics into the neocolonialist Western coordinate system. <...>

It is appropriate to ask today what the events on Euromaidan have given Ukraine?

👉 The answer is obvious. The self-sufficient, industrial and populous republic of the former USSR has turned into a poor, dying territory. Ukraine has lost its state independence. It is on the Western colonialists’ payroll who now determine its domestic and foreign policy. <...>

Read in full

🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the 41st meeting of the Council of the Heads of Constituent Entities of the Russian Federation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Moscow, November 20, 2023)

💬 We are for culture remaining outside any political processes, conflicts, or crises. It should know no boundaries.

We are ready to develop cooperation in this sphere with all countries, especially those whose leaders support promoting contacts in this area, but we are not closing the door to cultural and artistic figures from the countries that are currently led by unfriendly governments.

👉 It is important to pursue Russia’s scientific and academic potential. Many regional centres accommodate unique higher education institutions, research organisations, and research infrastructure.

👉 We are interested in seeing the number of foreign students studying at Russian universities grow. We would like to encourage regional education institutions to maintain ties with their graduates.

👉 We are interested in promoting the status of the Russian language, especially in the countries that border Russia, as well as expanding educational programmes in Russian, including for migrant workers.

👉 International relations in sports, youth exchanges, and the volunteer movement deserve special mention.

👉 You are aware of our focus on tourism. We want foreign tourists to increasingly see Russia as a preferred destination.

The cultural potential of the regions can and should be used to strengthen cooperation within new types of multilateral associations involving Russia. I am talking about #BRICS, in which we will assume chairmanship next year.

Read in full

🇷🇺 Russia's EMERCOM delivered another batch of humanitarian aid to the people of the Gaza Strip

✅ Food products;
✅ Baby food;
✅ Clothing;
✅ Footwear;
✅ Hygiene items.

The humanitarian assistance is organised on the instructions of Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

The EMERCOM's IL-76 aircraft has arrived in Egypt's El-Arish airport.

🤝 The humanitarian cargo will be distributed by the Egyptian Red Crescent Society.

📹 EMERCOM of Russia

#RussiaHelps

📄 Russian MFA Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova regarding Joe Biden's article “Joe Biden: The U.S. won’t back down from the challenge of Putin and Hamas” (November 21, 2023)

One’s own terrorism is not that bad?

✍️ Joe Biden’s article published on Saturday in The Washington Post addresses the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, presenting three conclusions. Read in full.

<...>

Washington's stance on the conflict is framed through the lens of American exceptionalism: “Joe Biden” asserts that “the US is the essential nation.” In the context of the Middle Eastern developments, this self-perception is not uncommon.

“Joe Biden” repeatedly refers to Hamas' “terrorist strategy” forgetting that Hamas came to power democratically in 2006, with the US playing a significant role in bringing the movement to prominence. At that time, Washington insisted on free elections in the enclave, but later boycotted the legitimately elected political force.

<...>

“Joe Biden” repeatedly emphasised the importance of international efforts, yet the last effective and working mechanism for the Middle East settlement, the so-called Middle East Quartet, which in addition to the US, includes the EU, the UN and the Russian Federation, was blocked largely due to the actions of Western countries, primarily the US.

<...>

One cannot help but question why, while accusing one side of the conflict of resorting to terrorist methods, the author overlooks the terrorist actions in the policies of the neo-Nazi Kiev regime.

“Joe Biden” talks about shelling hospitals, which is precisely what the Ukrainian armed forces are doing, using Western weapons to shell hospitals in the DPR and the LPR.

“Joe Biden” talks about atrocities against civilians, but these are precisely the actions of neo-Nazi thugs - Kiev's militants.

<...>

This is why we refer to the Kiev administration as a criminal regime resorting to terrorist methods. Why doesn't “Joe Biden” see or acknowledge this? Or one’s own terrorism is not that bad?

Read in full

🕯 #Today marks the 10th anniversary of the beginning of the so-called "Euromaidan" in Ukraine, which became the starting point of the catastrophe that we are witnessing in Ukraine today. To remind: facts and the real sequence of events 👉 in our video.

#Opinion by Maria Zakharova

💬 Honestly, I meant to feel sorry for Borrell. But then I decided to hold on to my sympathy and keep it for later.

I love these spectacularly stupid columns and articles written by a group or collective and signed by those... who have long lost the ability to write let alone read.

All the works by Borrells and Bidens are not even edited by them. And they should have.

In addition to an article attributed to the US president, another imperishable work by Borrell has come to light.

And again, it is about Ukraine. I have already commented on the garish passages published on behalf of Joe Biden. I left the review of the EU speechwriters’ fantasies for dessert. This time, instead of the cherry there is a juicy strawberry on the top of this cake. 🍓

If there is anything in the article written by Borrell himself, it is the title: In the Eye of the Hurricane.

No, it is not about a desert storm or something like that.

The thing is that In the Eye of the Hurricane is the English title of an 1970s erotic film El ojo del huracán filmed in Borrell’s home country, Spain (joint Spanish-Italian production).

When the film was released, Spanish-born Josep was 24. I understand that he saw it, but I do not understand why he was so impressed.

What is the film about?

The story is about young and rich woman Ruth who decides to divorce her caring husband Michel because she is infatuated with sex addict Paul. After this someone is trying to kill Ruth, who repeatedly becomes subject to sexual assault. One could wonder, what does it have to do with Ukraine?...

Happy viewing reading 🔞