Russia To Keep former newspaper journalist Accused of Treason Behind Bars: Court

Moscow: A Russian court on Wednesday ordered former newspaper journalist Ivan Safronov to be kept in custody for another three months pending trial on charges of state treason that have sent a chill through Russia’s media landscape.

Safronov, who left journalism and began working at Russia’s space agency in May, was detained by security agents outside his flat on July 7 and accused of passing military secrets to the Czech Republic in 2017, a charge he denies. He could face up to two decades in jail if found guilty at a trial that is likely to be held behind closed doors because of the sensitive nature of the charges.

Some Russian journalists and rights advocates fear he is the victim of a crackdown on the media and that the secrecy surrounding the case is being used to conceal bogus charges. 

Safronov committed the alleged crime when working as a journalist covering military affairs for the Kommersant newspaper.

Belarus Cracks Down On Journalists, Two Moscow-based Associated Press correspondent Deported

Belarus, shaken by three weeks of massive protests against its authoritarian president, on Saturday cracked down hard on the news media, deporting some foreign journalists reporting in the country and revoking the accreditation of many Belarusian journalists.

Two Moscow-based Associated Press journalists who were covering the recent protests in Belarus were deported to Russia on Saturday. In addition, the APs Belarusian staff were told by the government that their press credentials had been revoked.

The Associated Press decries in the strongest terms this blatant attack on press freedom in Belarus. AP calls on the Belarusian government to reinstate the credentials of independent journalists and allow them to continue reporting the facts of what is happening in Belarus to the world, said Lauren Easton, the APs director of media relations.

The Belarusian Association of Journalists said accreditation was also taken away from Belarusians working for several other media. Germanys ARD television said two of its Moscow-based journalists also were deported to Russia, a Belarusian producer faces trial on Monday and their accreditation to work in Belarus was revoked. The BBC said that two of its journalists working for the BBC Russian service in Minsk also had their accreditation revoked.


The program director for ARDs biggest regional affiliate, WDR, which oversees coverage of Belarus, called the treatment of its camera team absolutely unacceptable. This shows once again that independent reporting in Belarus continues to be hindered and is made almost impossible, Joerg Schoeneborn said.

Protests in Belarus began after the Aug. 9 election that officials said gave President Alexander Lukashenko a sixth term in office with 80% support. Protesters say the election results were rigged and are calling for Lukashenko, who has run the country since 1994, to resign.

The protests, some of which drew enormous crowds estimated at 200,000 or more, are the largest and most sustained challenge of Lukashenko’s 26 years in office, during which he consistently repressed opposition and independent news media.

The hard-line leader has cast about for a strategy to end the wave of protests, with little success. In the first days of demonstrations, around 7,000 people were arrested. Some protesters were killed and many of the detainees were beaten by police. The violence didn’t deter the protests and may have galvanized the opposition. Strikes have broken out in several state-owned factories, which are the backbone of Belarus’ economy.

The U.S. Embassy in Belarus on Saturday issued a statement saying we are concerned by the continued targeting of journalists, the blocking of independent media and opposition websites, intermittent internet blackouts and random detentions of peaceful citizens exercising their rights of freedom of assembly and speech.

Fight against Corona: Russia to begin COVID-19 vaccine trials on 40,000 people next week

Moscow, Russia: Mass testing of Russia's first potential COVID-19 vaccine to get domestic regulatory approval will involve more than 40,000 people and will be overseen by a foreign research body when it starts next week, backers of the project said on Thursday.

These were the first details on the shape and size of the upcoming late-stage trial of the vaccine given by its developers, who are aiming to allay concerns among some scientists about the lack of data provided by Russia so far. The vaccine, called "Sputnik V" in homage to the world's first satellite launched by the Soviet Union, has been hailed as safe and effective by Russian authorities and scientists following two months of small-scale human trials, the results of which have not been made public yet.

But Western experts have been more sceptical, warning against its use until all internationally approved testing and regulatory steps have been seen to be taken and proved a success. "A range of countries is running an information war against the Russian vaccine," Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) that is backing the vaccine, told a briefing. The vaccine data will be published in an academic journal later this month, he said.

Russia has received requests for up to a billion doses of the vaccine from around the world and has capacity to produce 500 million doses per year via manufacturing partnerships, he said.

A director at Moscow's Gamaleya Institute, which developed the vaccine, said 40,000 people would be involved in the mass testing at more than 45 medical centres around Russia.

The data is being provided to the World Health Organization (WHO), Dmitriev said, and to several countries that are considering participating in the late-stage trial, including the United Arab Emirates, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and the Philippines. Sputnik V has already received approval from domestic regulators, leading President Vladimir Putin and other officials to name Russia the first country to license a COVID-19 vaccine.

The registration took place, however, ahead of the start of the large-scale trial, commonly known as a Phase III trial, considered by many as a necessary precursor to registration. At least four other potential COVID-19 vaccines are currently in Phase III trials globally, according to WHO records.

Brazilian state agrees to produce Russian COVID-19 vaccine

Curitiba: A Brazilian technology institute said on Wednesday it expects to produce a controversial coronavirus Russian vaccine by the second half of 2021, shortly after the state of Parana signed a memorandum of understanding with Moscow.

Russia has touted it as the world's first registered coronavirus vaccine, although experts have also raised safety concerns for going to market while other pharmaceutical companies are still carrying out mass testing. Parana's Technology Institute, known as Tecpar, said it may import the vaccine earlier than the production date, if Brazil's federal health regulator Anvisa approves the vaccine.

Tecpar signed the cooperation agreement with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which said in a statement from Moscow that its goal was to "organise the production of the Sputnik V vaccine and its distribution in Brazil and other Latin American countries."

Brazilian public health experts and former senior regulatory officials said on Tuesday they had safety concerns about the vaccine, which has not passed the usual mass testing required of vaccinations. At a press conference, Tecpar Director Jorge Callado said they were still waiting for Russia to send in its phase 1 and 2 vaccine test results, and that their understanding is they are still conducting phase 3 trials. He added that Parana would likely participate in the phase 3 testing, subject to Anvisa authorisation.

Brazil has the world's worse coronavirus outbreak after the United States, with over 3 million confirmed cases and 100,000 deaths, making it a global hub for testing coronavirus vaccines, including British and Chinese candidates.

'Seriously doubt' Russia coronavirus vaccine was proven safe - Dr. Anthony Fauci

Top U.S. infectious disease official Dr. Anthony Fauci said he doubts that Russia has proven a newly announced COVID-19 vaccine as safe and effective.

"Having a vaccine... and proving that a vaccine is safe and effective are two different things," said Fauci. "I hope, but I haven't heard any evidence to make me feel that's the case, I hope that the Russians have actually definitively proven that the vaccine is safe and effective. I seriously doubt that they've done that." Fauci's comments were released as a preview of an exclusive conversation with National Geographic as part of their event, 'Stopping Pandemics,' airing Thursday, August 13 at 1pm ET (1700gmt).

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russia had become the first country in the world to grant regulatory approval to a COVID-19 vaccine after less than two months of human testing, a move hailed by Moscow as evidence of its scientific prowess.

The vaccine still has to complete final trials, raising concerns among some experts at the speed of its approval, but the Russian business conglomerate Sistema has said it expects to put it into mass production by the end of the year.

Russia supported China, Russian foreign ministry said- "US TikTok move unfair"

Russia: U.S. efforts to clamp down on popular short video-sharing app TikTok are an "egregious" example of unfair economic competition for U.S. dominance in the international information space, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Saturday.

"The actions of the U.S. authorities run counter to the basic principles of a free market economy and violate rules of the World Trade Organization," Zakharova said in a commentary posted on the foreign ministry's website. U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday issued an executive order banning any U.S. transactions with Chinese tech firm ByteDance, owner of TikTok, starting 45 days from then.

Washington has also threatened to ban TikTok's business in the United States if it is not sold to a U.S. company before Sept. 15.

These restrictions have violated a wide range of Washington's international obligations to ensure the free and wide distribution of information, the free choice of its sources, and to encourage cooperation in this area, Zakharova said.

She said that Moscow is calling on Washington to reconsider its methods to preserve the monopoly of U.S. IT giants in international social networks and ensure they meet generally accepted values and international legal norms.

"We hope that specialized international structures and human rights organizations will react appropriately and give an impartial assessment of these actions," she added.

Opposition floods Belarus capital as president hits out at foreign 'dirty tricks'

Minsk, Belarus: Thousands of opposition supporters clapped, cheered and chanted at a rally in Minsk on Thursday evening, defying a crackdown by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko's government ahead of a presidential election this weekend.

Lukashenko, a 65-year-old former Soviet collective farm manager, is facing the biggest challenge in years to his rule and accuses protesters of being in cahoots with foreign backers to destabilize the country. Protests have swelled in support of his main challenger Svetlana Tikhanouskaya, a former English teacher who launched her bid after her husband, who planned to run, was jailed. Her campaign was forbidden from staging a planned rally on Thursday evening, so her supporters gathered at a government-sanctioned outdoor concert at a separate venue.

Riot police arrested DJs after they played a song called "Changes" favored by the opposition. "This is an amazing atmosphere, amazing people, I want to be with them. And I want changes," said Irina, a 47-year-old teacher who gave only her first name. Lukashenko earlier announced that a number of U.S. nationals had been detained but did not say when or why.

Belarus has sought to mend fences with Washington as ties fray with traditional ally Moscow, and in February hosted Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the most senior U.S. official to visit in more than two decades. "Some people were detained with American passports, married to Americans, working in the State Department," the Belta news agency quoted Lukashenko as saying.

The U.S. embassy in the capital Minsk did not reply to a request for comment. Belarus and Russia also traded barbs again over a group of suspected Russian mercenaries who were detained in Belarus in July and accused of plotting to foment unrest. 

Russia has said the men were employees of a private security firm and were passing through Belarus on their way to Latin America. Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman said the men should be returned to Russia. Lukashenko said they had broken the law. "A hybrid war is going on against Belarus and we should expect dirty tricks from any side," he said.

Runners told to observe social distancing in Moscow half-marathon

Moscow, Russia: More than 9,500 runners competing in Moscow's annual half-marathon on Sunday, August 2 wore masks and gloves in the starting area, had their temperature checked and were told to observe social distancing rules because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 21.1-km race had been postponed from May, when the Russian capital was in lockdown because of the new coronavirus. Participants in a separate 5-km (3.11 miles) run were also asked to follow social distancing rules, though this can be challenging when racing. Russia reported 5,427 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours on Sunday, more than 660 of them in Moscow, bringing the nationwide tally to 850,870. The death toll in Russia rose to 14,128.

Despite the new cases, Sports Minister Oleg Matytsin, who wore a medical mask and gloves when presenting awards, said the event was a celebration of Russia's success in combating the virus. "We overcame the difficult period that was the pandemic and the fact that we are together today... is our common victory," Matytsin said.

He later told reporters: "We will show the whole world how to carry on with a normal life in these very difficult conditions while respecting all (safety) requirements." The half-marathon provided a chance for some runners finally to compete again. Moscow, a city of nearly 13 million, lifted its more than two-month lockdown in June. "I'm filled with happiness and emotion because there haven't been any competitions in almost a year," said Luiza Dmitrieva, who finished fourth among women and 33rd overall.

Thousands protest against Kremlin in Russia's far east for fourth weekend

Khabarovsk, Russia: Thousands of people marched in the Russian far eastern city of Khabarovsk on Saturday, August 1 for the fourth weekend in a row, protesting at President Vladimir Putin's handling of a local political crisis.

Residents of Khabarovsk, around 3,800 miles (6,110 km) and seven time zones east of Moscow, are unhappy about the July 9 detention of the wider region's popular regional governor, Sergei Furgal, who was arrested on murder charges he denies. His detention, which his supporters say was politically motivated, has triggered weeks of street protests, creating a headache for the Kremlin which is trying to troubleshoot a sharp COVID-19-induced drop in real incomes and keep a lid on unrest as the economy stutters.

Sheltering from sporadic and heavy rain beneath umbrellas, protesters chanted "Freedom!" and "We came here of our own will." One banner read "Russia without Putin" and protesters chanted "Putin resign!" Many held up placards in solidarity with the arrested governor, reading "I am/We are Sergei Furgal." Some marchers wore face masks with the same slogan.

City authorities estimated around 3,500 people had taken part. Some local media put the number at around 10,000 or higher, but said the crowds were smaller than one week ago. The protests have highlighted anger among some in the far east over what they see as policies emanating from detached Moscow-based authorities on the other side of the country.

Supporters of Furgal, the arrested governor and a member of the nationalist LDPR party, feel he is being belatedly punished for defeating a candidate from the ruling pro-Putin United Russia party in 2018. The Kremlin says Furgal has serious charges to answer. Such sustained demonstrations are unusual for Russia's regions, as is the fact that the authorities have not yet moved to break them up. Putin has named a new acting governor, but protesters say he has no connection with the region and have called on him to step down too.

Russia expects Gamaleya coronavirus vaccine to be registered in August

Moscow, Russia: Russia's first potential COVID-19 vaccine will win local regulatory approval in August, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister said during the online meeting with Putin on Wednesday, July 29, 2020.

The production of the vaccine developed by Gamaleya Centre would begin in September, Golikova said. A state research facility in Moscow - the Gamaleya Institute - completed early human trials of the adenovirus-based vaccine this month and expects to begin large-scale trials in August. The vaccine will win regulatory approval from authorities in Russia while that large-scale trial continues, Golikova said.

The speed at which Russia is moving to roll out the vaccine has prompted some Western media to question whether Moscow is putting national prestige before solid science and safety. More than 100 possible vaccines are being developed around the world to try to stop the COVID-19 pandemic. At least four are in final Phase III human trials, according to WHO data, including three developed in China and another in Britain.

Woolly mammoth skeleton found in lake in Russia's Arctic

Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous: Russian scientists are poring over the stunningly well-preserved bones of an adult wooly mammoth that roamed the earth at least 10,000 years ago, after local inhabitants discovered its remains in the shallows of a north Siberian lake.

Part of its skull, several ribs and foreleg bones, some with soft tissue still attached to them, were retrieved from Russia's remote Yamal peninsula above the Arctic circle on July 23. Scientists are still searching the site for other bones. Similar finds in Russia's vast Siberian region have happened with increasing regularity as climate change warming the Arctic at a faster pace than the rest of the world has thawed the ground in some areas long locked in permafrost.

Scientists circulated images in December of a prehistoric puppy, thought to be 18,000 years old, that was found in the permafrost region of Russia's Far East in 2018. The mammoth remains are at least 10,000 years old, although researchers don't yet know exactly when it walked the earth or how old it was when it died, said Dmitry Frolov, director of the Scientific Centre for Arctic studies.

Researchers have found mammoth fossils dating from up to 30,000 years ago in Russia, he said. Yevgeniya Khozyainova, a scientist from a local museum, said it was unusual to find so many bones belonging to a single species and to know where they came from. "Of course, we'd like to find the remaining parts, to understand how complete a find it is. Whenever there is soft tissue left behind, it is valuable material to study," she said.

Russia: Putin says Russian Navy to get hypersonic nuclear strike weapons

St. Petersburg:  Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday, July 26 the country's navy would be armed with hypersonic nuclear strike weapons and underwater nuclear drones, which the defense ministry said were in their final phase of testing.

Putin, who says he does not want an arms race, has often spoken of a new generation of Russian nuclear weapons that he says are unequaled and can hit almost anywhere in the world. Some Western experts have questioned how advanced they are. The weapons, some of which have yet to be deployed, include the Poseidon underwater nuclear drone, designed to be carried by submarines, and the Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic cruise missile, which can be deployed on surface ships.

The combination of speed, maneuverability and altitude of hypersonic missiles, capable of traveling at more than five times the speed of sound, makes them difficult to track and intercept. Speaking in St Petersburg at an annual naval parade that showcases Russia's best ships, nuclear submarines and naval aviation, Putin said the navy's capabilities were growing and it would get 40 new vessels this year. He did not specify when it would receive new hypersonic weapons, but suggested that day was drawing closer.

Russia: Thousands protest against Kremlin in Russian far east for third weekend

Khabarovsk, Russia: Thousands of people marched in the Russian far eastern city of Khabarovsk on Saturday, July 25 for the third weekend in a row, protesting at President Vladimir Putin's handling of a regional political crisis that has sparked demonstrations.

Residents of Khabarovsk, around 3,800 miles (6,110 km) and seven time zones east of Moscow, are unhappy about the July 9 detention of the wider region's popular regional governor, Sergei Furgal, who was arrested on murder charges he denies. His detention, which his supporters say was politically motivated, has triggered more than two weeks of street protests, creating a headache for the Kremlin which is trying to troubleshoot a sharp COVID-19-induced drop in real incomes and keep a lid on unrest as the economy stutters.

Footage of the protest showed people chanting "Disgrace!" and slogans demanding Putin to resign because of a loss of trust among local residents. City authorities estimated around 6,500 people had taken part. Local media put the number at up to 20,000 people. The protests have highlighted anger among some in the far east over what they see as policies emanating from detached Moscow-based authorities on the other side of the country.

Supporters of Furgal, the arrested governor and a member of the nationalist LDPR party, feel he is being belatedly punished for defeating a candidate from the ruling pro-Putin United Russia party in 2018. The Kremlin says Furgal has serious charges to answer. Such sustained demonstrations are unusual for Russia's regions, as is the fact that the authorities have not yet moved to break them up.

In an apparent move to defuse tensions, Putin on Monday named a new acting governor to head the region. But protesters said they felt insulted by the choice of Mikhail Degtyaryov, who has no connection with the region, and have called on him to step down too.

All-female crew embarks on Black Sea patrol in first for Russian Navy

Sevastopol: In a first for the Russian Navy, an all-female navy crew carried out patrols on the Black Sea on Friday in preparation for Russia's Navy Day celebrations later this month.

The crew, on board a patrol boat, fulfilled a broad array of drills on their maiden voyage, simulating how they would react to an incursion by saboteurs including by tossing RGD-5 hand grenades into the sea. "I decided to become a member of the crew because it's very interesting," said Olga Chelkova, a senior engine mechanic. "It's promising and, most of all, it's an experiment that women have never taken part in before." The voyage marks a symbolic step in Russian women's quest to play a more active role in the armed forces, an institution dominated by men.

Russia's Black Sea Fleet is based in Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Kyiv wants Russia to hand it back. The navy still holds barriers to entry for women. A decree signed by President Vladimir Putin in 2000 lists 456 jobs in 38 industries which women are barred from doing because they would entail "heavy work and work in harmful working conditions".

The role of captain is not on the list but seaman is, and serving a seaman's apprenticeship is standard practice for male cadets and a necessary step to take on a command role. The Russian government plans next year to shorten the list of jobs women are barred from holding.

Libyan GNA fighters head for front as battle for Sirte looms

Tawergha, Libya: Libya's internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) on Saturday, July 18 moved fighters closer to Sirte, a gateway to Libya's main oil terminals that the GNA says it plans to recapture from the eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA).

Witnesses and GNA military commanders said a column of about 200 vehicles moved eastwards from Misrata along the Mediterranean coast towards the town of Tawergha, about a third of the way to Sirte. The GNA recently recaptured most of the territory held by the LNA in northwest Libya, ending eastern commander Khalifa Haftar's 14-month campaign to take the capital, Tripoli, before the new front line solidified between Misrata and Sirte. Backed by Turkey, the GNA has said it will recapture Sirte and an LNA airbase at Jufra.

But Egypt, which backs the LNA alongside the United Arab Emirates and Russia, has threatened to send troops into Libya if the GNA and Turkish forces try to seize Sirte. The United States has said Moscow has sent warplanes to Jufra via Syria to act in support of Russian mercenaries who are fighting alongside the LNA. Moscow and the LNA both deny this.

"As part of our preparations to complete the second stage of liberating Sirte and Jufra region, our forces are preparing for this stage and these troops are part of the forces as you see now. They are getting ready to go to the fighting points and you will hear the good news in the upcoming days." said Colonel Omar Bin Rashed, Military Commander with government of national accord (GNA) Forces.

The LNA has itself sent fighters and weapons to bolster its defence of Sirte, already badly battered from earlier phases of warfare and chaos since the 2011 revolution against long-time autocrat Muammar Gaddafi.

Despite theft allegations, Russia hails deal to make UK-developed COVID-19 vaccine

Moscow: Russian drugmaker R-Pharm has signed a deal with AstraZeneca for it to manufacture a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by the British pharmaceuticals giant and Oxford University, it said on Friday, July 17.

Following allegations from Britain, Canada and the United States that hackers backed by Russia were trying to steal COVID-19 vaccine and treatment research, the head of Russia's wealth fund said the deal showed that Moscow has no need to steal anything."We don't need to take anything from the UK, everything is given to R-Pharm by AstraZeneca and AstraZeneca will be the one of core producers of Oxford vaccine in the world," fund head Kirill Dmitriev told Reuters.

Dmitriev, who has been injected himself with the Russian vaccine, said he believed it was superior to others. He said its effect lasted longer, it was based on proven virus technology, and had so far shown no side effects including on female fertility. Reuters could not verify those assertions.

Britain, Canada and the United States said on Thursday, July 18 that hackers backed by the Russian state were trying to steal COVID-19 vaccine and treatment research from academic and pharmaceutical institutions around the world - allegations the Kremlin denied.

AstraZeneca declined to comment. It said last month it was in talks with Russia and other countries about supply deals for its potential coronavirus vaccine. The global vaccine race was about scientific prestige, international cooperation, and Russia's desire to vaccinate its own population as quickly as possible in order to resume full economic activity, Dmitriev said.

Rolling out a vaccine would not be a big money-spinner, said Dmitriev, because the Russian-made vaccine would be sold at not-for-profit prices and be free at point of delivery inside Russia.

Russia's interest in the Oxford vaccine, which he described as "pretty good", stemmed from a desire to help international efforts to roll out a vaccine. Moscow will deliver the British-developed vaccine to other countries who want it, he said.

Russia to mass produce experimental COVID-19 vaccine, said wealth fund head

Moscow: Russia plans to produce 30 million doses of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine domestically this year, with the potential to manufacture a further 170 million abroad, the head of the country's sovereign wealth fund told Reuters.

The first human trial of the vaccine, a month-long test on 38 people, ended this week. Researchers concluded that it is safe for use and induces an immune response, though the strength of that response is as yet unclear. A larger Phase III trial involving several thousand people is expected to begin in August, said Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) head Kirill Dmitriev.

More than 100 possible vaccines are being developed to try to stop the pandemic. At least two are in final Phase III human trials, according to World Health Organization data - one being developed by China's Sinopharm and the other by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford. Producers are also grappling with the question of how to massively scale up production to meet global needs.

Dmitriev said the Russian Phase III trial will be conducted at home and in two Middle Eastern countries, and will begin after a 100-person Phase II trial wraps up on August 3. Russia was in talks with Saudi Arabia on being a trial site as well as a manufacturing partner, he told a separate news conference.

Moscow's Gamaleya Institute, which developed the Russian candidate vaccine, is producing doses for clinical trials, while private pharmaceutical firms Alium - part of the Sistema conglomerate- R-Pharm and are handling bottling.

Both are updating their lab setup to be able to take over production within the next couple of months, Dmitriev said.

Russia had also struck manufacturing deals with five other countries and could be producing up to 170 million doses abroad this year, Dmitriev said. He declined to say where or give any details on pricing, but said countries in Latin America, the Middle East and elsewhere had expressed interest in importing the vaccine.