Russia & CIS

The appearance of Russia's state-of-the-art Armata tank at Victory Parade on May 9 in Moscow produced a bombshell effect. Indeed, the T-14 Armata has no analogue in the world. Moreover, Armata is the only tank to date that corresponds to the military principle of six zones. Why did the new tank get so much attention?

It is now thirty years after the launch of his notorious anti-alcohol campaign, and the first and only President of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev admits that it was a mistake the way it was implemented: you can’t make a person give up the bottle "in one fell swoop," they must be taken off it gradually.

Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its alleged role in the escalation of the Ukrainian conflict only served as an impetus for Moscow to take more efficient steps to develop its own economy, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko told Sputnik Serbia on Thursday.

The Russian economy must reach average global growth rates by 2018, according to a major outline of the government's activities until 2018 adopted on Thursday.

In the past visitors could leave the Kremlin only via Kutafya Tower and had to walk around the entire Kremlin to get to Red Square.

Battle robots capable of destroying both tanks and human soldiers have successfully passed military trials in southern Russia.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has accused Russia of increasing its military presence in his country, something Moscow firmly denies, and said that Ukraine would fight “Russian aggression” “until the last drop of blood."

Russia advanced to 26th place in the Human Capital Report 2015 index, beating out South Korea overall and Japan among 15-25 year olds.

The Ukrainian Parliament has renamed the Russian airport "Simferopol" after Amet-Khan Sultan, a national hero for the Crimean Tatars. The decision was supported by 240 MPs, with the minimum of 226 required votes.

About 80 percent of citizens of Crimea and Sevastopol are satisfied with the current situation on the peninsula, according to a recent poll conducted by the Moscow-based pollster Public Opinion Foundation (FOM).

Begun shortly before his death and later completed and released by Russian opposition figures, the “Putin. War” report of Boris Nemtsov alleges Russian involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine. Speaking to Radio Sputnik, author Stephen Lendman explains how the West has seized on the report to strengthen its propaganda war against Moscow.

The Russian ambassador to Germany, Vladimir Grinin, proposed the establishment of a common economic space between the EU and the Eurasian Economic Union. Moscow has no interest in the establishment of a "Russian Empire," but wants to strengthen relations with the EU, he said.

A Moscow court turned down Wednesday a request to replace Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny’s suspended sentence for stealing timber from state-run company KirovLes with a real prison term, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported from the courtroom.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday praised the new defense equipment shown during the Victory Day parade in Moscow.

In the first quarter of 2015, the growth of the German economy was slower than predicted. The reasons for this are the anti-Russian sanctions and euro crisis, DWN reported.

US Secretary of State John Kerry shared his impressions of yesterday's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The May 9 parade showed a very high degree of consolidation of the Russian society around Vladimir Putin as the national leader. Russia is ready for any development of the scenario

France has offered to supply Poland with submarines and missiles that were requested by the country’s Defense Ministry.

More than 350 American soldiers and 80 US Army vehicles will begin a 400 kilometer "cavalry march" across Romania, with cover from US Air Force, on their way to multinational exercises, the Pentagon announced on Tuesday.

Russia proposed Greece to become a member of the New Development Bank founded by the BRICS countries. Prime Minister Tsipras, whose country is in need of financial support, finds the idea appealing, Der Spiegel reported.

A subsidiary of the Russian state technologies corporation Rostec is developing a universal tracked robotic platform that could be used in both combat and rescue operations, the company's deputy CEO said Tuesday.