#Announcement

🎙 On April 24, Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova will hold a briefing on current foreign policy issues:

🕛 10.00 pm MSK
🕘 7.00 am GMT
🕙 8.00 am CEST
🕔 3.00 pm CST (Beijing)

For accreditation inquiries, please contact the MFA Press Centre. Accredited journalists will receive details on the technical aspects of submitting questions.

The Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman will answer media questions received by the call centre.

❗️ Accreditation is open until 03:00 p.m. on April 22.

🔴 #LIVE: Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks during the meeting of the Group of Strategic Vision "Russia – Islamic World" with the Ambassadors of the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation


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❗ Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva, Ambassador Gennady Gatilov:

☦️ This year, the Orthodox and Catholic worlds come together to celebrate the great and sacred holiday – the Resurrection of Christ. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to all believers on this joyous occasion!

🕯️ It is truly heartening to see churches filled on the night of April 20 with people of diverse nationalities, beliefs, and views. Today, we are united in Christ, bound by centuries-old traditions and strong spiritual ties.

🙏 May the joyful chimes of Easter bells bring peace, hope, and happiness to every home. I wish everyone sound health, love, and prosperity. May faith forever live in your hearts, and may your families be filled with mutual understanding, care and harmony.

Christ is Risen!

📹 Video: Easter service at the Cathedral of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Geneva, April 20, 2025.

💬Remarks by Ambassador of Russia to Egypt Georgy Borisenko, at the Inauguration Ceremony of the African Space Agency:

On behalf of the Russia, please allow me to extend heartfelt congratulations to the organizers and participants of the ceremony on the occasion of this truly historic achievement!

▪️Today, Africa is rapidly increasing its involvement in space exploration, successfully advancing towards implementation of the comprehensive space program that would benefit the social, economic, political, and environmental needs of the continent.

▪️As the pioneer in space exploration, Russia proudly carries on traditions of national cosmonautics – we construct new spaceports, rockets and satellites while expanding cooperation with all constructively minded partners.

▪️It is our deepest interest to see Africa joining space exploration efforts, and we are ready to offer comprehensive support.

Russia and Africa have a shared future, and we must ensure that it will be as bright as possible.

#RussiaAfrica

⚡️In accordance with the order of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, all the Groups of Forces deployed in the special military operation zone have been strictly observing the state of ceasefire since 18:00 of 19 April remaining in previously taken positions.

❗️ At night, despite the announcement of the Easter ceasefire, formations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine attempted to launch attacks against positions of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation near Sukhaya Balka and Bogatyr (Donetsk People's Republic). The attacks were repelled.

▪️ What is more, during the night, the enemy launched 48 fixed-wing UAVs, including one over Crimea. Ukrainian troops hit Russian positions with guns and mortars 444 times, carried out 900 quadcopter-type drone strikes, and dropped ammunition on border areas of Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod regions (12 fire attacks, 33 UAV strikes, and seven ammunition drops). As a result, enemy attacks caused deaths and injuries among the civilian population. The AFU damaged civilian facilities.

🔹 Russian Defence Ministry

Vladimir Putin congratulated Orthodox Christians and all citizens of Russia who celebrate Easter Sunday

The great feast of Easter brings us love and hope, faith in goodness and justice, and unites us around enduring spiritual and moral ideals. During these festive days, I would like to note with deep appreciation that today, as throughout history, the Russian Orthodox Church and other Christian denominations play an important and inspiring role in strengthening social accord and mutual understanding, in educating the younger generations, and in upholding family values.

Vladimir Putin and Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin attended the Easter vigil at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. The divine service was led by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.

See more on the Kremlin’s official website.

⚡️ President of Russia Vladimir Putin at a meeting with Chief of the General Staff of Russia’s Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov said the following:

💬 Today is the eve of Easter and I would like to congratulate on this bright holiday, first and foremost, servicemen who are Orthodox Christians and who have been fighting for Russia.

I would like to wish a happy Easter to everyone in our country and around the world who celebrates, observes and respects this holiday.

👉 Regarding the Easter ceasefire

We are well aware of the fact the Kiev regime, as you reported to me, violated agreements on refraining from targeting energy infrastructure facilities more than a hundred times. Therefore, I ask you to be extremely attentive and focused to be ready to strike back in full.

☝️ The decision to implement the Easter truce will show whether the Kiev regime is sincere, ready, willing and able to comply with the agreements, to participate in peace negotiations aimed at addressing the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis.

For our part, we have always been ready to move in this direction and strongly welcome the aspirations of the United States, President [of the United States] Trump, our Chinese friends, the President of the People's Republic of China, the BRICS countries and all supporters of a just and peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis.

#See4Yourself & #Think4Yourself

🎥 Toxic War — an RT Doc Film.

Synopsis: In this investigative documentary, military documentarians from RT provide evidence of the systematic and widespread use of chemical substances by the Kiev regime against civilians, which constitutes a gross violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.

In the zone of the special military operation, members of the Russian forces have recorded over 400 cases of Ukrainian armed formations using toxic substances and chemicals. At the abandoned AFU positions, laboratories, drones, and toxic agents intended for dispersal over residential areas were discovered.

Several surviving witnesses describe how they were paralyzed after being exposed to an unknown deadly substance and how Ukrainian soldiers arrived at the site of the "operation" not to offer help, but to confirm that the experiment on humans had been successful.

📺 Watch the documentary to learn more about the Kiev regime's use of banned chemical weapons, see who is covering up these crimes, and hear the stories of the victims of inhumane experiments by Ukrainian neo-Nazis.

#KievRegimeCrimes

⚡️ President of Russia Vladimir Putin announces Easter ceasefire

During a meeting at the Kremlin with the Chief of the General Staff of Russia's Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov President Vladimir Putin declared that the Russian Side is ceasing all military action starting April 19, 06:00 pm MSK to April 21, 00:00 am MSK

💬 President Putin: Guided by humanitarian motives, the Russian Side announces an Easter ceasefire from 06:00 pm today to 00:00 am Monday. I hereby order all military operations ceased for this period. We assume that the Ukrainian Side will follow our example. At the same time, our forces should be prepared to repel possible ceasefire violations and provocations by the enemy, as well as any aggressive acts on their part.

🗓 On April 19, 1783, Empress Catherine the Great signed a manifesto on the accession of Crimea, the Taman Island and Kuban region into the Russian Empire.

Prince Grigory Potemkin, Governor-General of Novorossiya, played one of the key roles in the accession and development of Crimea. In June 1783, on top of Mount Aq Qaya, he personally received the oath of allegiance to Russia from the Crimean nobility and the common people.

The results of the 2014 all-Crimean referendum once again confirmed the desire of Crimeans to remain part of our country and led to the long-awaited reunification of Crimea with Russia.

#CrimeaIsRussia

🎥 © Russian Military Historical Society

🇷🇺🇮🇷 On April 17-18, Foreign Minister the Islamic Republic of Iran Abbas Araghchi paid a working visit to Moscow. He was received by President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin, where the Iranian Minister handed him a message from the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ali Khamenei. Abbas Araghchi also had talks with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

The Ministers held a substantive discussion on the entire spectrum of multifaceted bilateral relations, which officially reached the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership level after the new fundamental inter-state treaty was signed in Moscow on January 17.

Sergey Lavrov and Abbas Araghchi commended the high level of political dialogue promoted primarily through trustful communication between the Russian and Iranian Presidents.

The Ministers agreed to further develop trade and economic cooperation, with a focus on the implementation of joint projects, in accordance with respective agreements reached during Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian’s visit to Moscow on January 17, and in light of the 18th meeting of the permanent Russian Iranian Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation scheduled for April 23-25.

The Parties had a thorough exchange of views on key issues on the global and regional agendas, including the situation in the Middle East, Syria, the South Caucasus and the Caspian region.

Special attention was given to the range of issues pertaining to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action regarding Iran’s nuclear programme.

🤝 The Ministers reaffirmed their mutual commitment to deepening comprehensive collaboration on major multilateral platforms, primarily within #SCO and #BRICS.

#RussiaIran

The Holy Fire is LIT — a sacred Orthodox Christian Easter tradition, flames are passed around crowd in Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The Holy Fire will travel nations and countries from here.

#HappyEaster

📹 © The Russian Embassy in Israel

⚡️ Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service:

Eurofascism is Moscow’s and Washington’s common enemy, just like 80 years ago.

Key points:

A study of Western states’ policies in hindsight attests to Europe’s “traditional propensity” for various forms of totalitarianism which regularly produces cataclysmic global conflicts👇

🇫🇷 Experts believe that the notion of Eurofascism was introduced by French author and columnist Pierre Drieu La Rochelle who collaborated with German occupational authorities during WWII, and justified it as an ideology inherent not only in Germans but also other “societies” in Europe.

▪️ In this context we can recall the French volunteer SS-Division Charlemagne which was named after Emperor of the Carolingian Empire, “Europe’s unifier.” The division’s soldiers were defending the Reichstag from the assaulting Red Army till the last hours of the German Nazi regime. Twelve of those fanatics were captured by the Americans and handed over to French General Phillipe Leclerc. As early as May 8, 1945, he ordered to shoot those war criminals without unnecessary judicial procrastination.

🇬🇧 Harvard professor Caroline Elkins provides evidence-based statements that it was from the British that Nazi Germany’s totalitarian regime borrowed the idea of concentration camps and genocide.

▪️ Lauren Young, a specialist in security and defence, writes about close ties between the British aristocracy, including the Royal family, and German Nazis. She points out that before WWII, would-be British Prime Minister Winston Churchill visited Italy and had a very positive impression of the local fascist regime.

▪️ In this connection, London’s destructive leading role in the Ukrainian conflict is unsurprising for experts. The British encourage the Kiev regime in every possible way, the regime that glorifies punishers who fought on Hitler’s side and Bandera henchmen and currently commits multiple crimes against humanity.

❗️ 80 years ago all the peoples of the USSR jointly fought in sacred battles against German and other European fascists.

There are monuments in Crimea to the servicemen of the military units formed in the former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia, who died during the storming of Sevastopol in 1944. All over Donbass there are similar memorials as well as graves of the Holocaust victims who were killed by Nazi perpetrators now held in esteem by Kiev while Israel is blissfully “unaware” of it.

▪️ Regarding Russian-US relations in the context of past and contemporary events, foreign experts express hope that a new joining of efforts by Moscow and Washington can prevent the world from sliding into a new global conflict and counter possible provocations by both Ukraine and “crazed” Europeans, who are traditionally being nudged by the UK.

Read in full

🎙 Russian Ambassador to Denmark Vladimir Barbin's interview to «RT» (April 17, 2025)

❓ Question: The commander of the Danish army has announced that Copenhagen is planning to send its soldiers to Ukraine to train with the Armed forces of Ukraine. Why do you think they are doing this?

💬 V.Barbin: The formal reason is to gain experience in the use of unmanned systems, since the Danish armed forces are currently being equipped with such types of weapons.

However, this intention is certainly dictated by other considerations. Denmark views Russia as an existential threat and advocates for the defeat of my country. Sending Danish troops to Ukraine is a result of such external political guidelines from Copenhagen.

❓Question: In your opinion, what guarantee can there be that they are actually being trained by the Armed forces of Ukraine and not taking part in hostilities and clashes with Russia?

💬 V.Barbin: There are no such guarantees. The close cooperation between Denmark and Ukraine on unmanned systems is well known. Denmark provides Ukraine with strike and reconnaissance drones. They are jointly deploying the production of such systems in Ukraine and moreover, Denmark is training Ukrainians in the combat use of drones.

In these circumstances, of course, there are no guarantees that Danish troops will not end up in the combat zone between Ukraine and Russia. It has been publicly stated that Denmark is not interested in a direct military clash between NATO countries and Russia.

❓Question: Has Denmark given any guarantees to the Russian side that Denmark will not participate in military operations against Russia? If not, why not?

💬 V.Barbin: Such guarantees are not being given now. There is no dialogue between our countries today. Denmark is against any restrictions as it advocates for the abolition of «red lines».

❓Question: The Danish government has been whipping up hysteria in recent months about a possible Russian attack on it and other European countries - for example, the country's prime minister even urged citizens to stock up on tinned food and kits for three days and said she had already done so... How is sending Danish soldiers to the Ukrainian armed forces supposed to reassure citizens and generally fit in with this rhetoric?

💬 V.Barbin: Anti-Russian hysteria is being deliberately whipped up in Denmark and amid these conditions, the population is easily subject to various kinds of manipulation, including supposed Russian threats to the security of Denmark. That manipulation is being done deliberately for the sake of continuing Denmark's hostile course towards Russia. Denmark is betting on continuing military actions in Ukraine and is opposed to achieving peace through negotiations and achieving a settlement through political and diplomatic means.

📖 Read in full

🎙 Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement and answers to media questions at a joint news conference following talks with Foreign Minister of Iran Sayyid Abbas Araghchi (Moscow, April 18, 2025)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: Russian-Iranian relations are of a distinctive nature, fully aligned with the spirit of comprehensive strategic partnership. These bonds continue to develop dynamically, despite the complex regional and global situation, as well as the attempts to exert pressure on our nations in order to hinder the development of both Iran and the Russian Federation, the goal overtly declared.

Our political dialogue remains highly active. Recently, our Presidents have met on three occasions.

We focused on a range of specific issues on the international agenda and discussed bilateral matters in greater detail, particularly in the realm of trade and economic cooperation.

📈Our trade turnover has demonstrated positive growth. By the end of last year, it increased by more than 13% (approximately $5 billion). This upward trend continues despite the aforementioned severe sanctions imposed by the West against the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran, in blatant violation of the United Nations Charter, WTO regulations, and other international legal agreements. <...>

We reviewed the preparations for the upcoming 18th meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation. Key topics for discussion include bilateral infrastructure, logistics, and investment cooperation, particularly the implementation of the flagship project to construct the Bushehr NPP and the Resht-Astra railway section, financed through a Russian loan as part of the International North-South Transport Corridor. <...>

We also endorsed the further intensification of business ties. We are confident that the Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union and the Islamic Republic of Iran, which will enter into force on May 15, 2025, will facilitate the expansion of trade turnover and the simplification of mutual trade procedures.. <...>

We engaged in a constructive discussion of pressing international issues. We are of one mind when it comes to the importance for all countries to respect international law. <...>

Countering illegal, destructive, unilateral, and coercive restrictions was among the priorities that we discussed today. These restrictions cause more harm to the countries that levy them, and international trade, than they do to the countries on the receiving end, because they sharply limit competition and all other principles underlying the WTO. <...>

We agreed to step up cooperation at the SCO and BRICS. We had a substantive discussion of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the nuclear programme of Iran. <...>

We welcomed the push to reach objective and mutually acceptable agreements, including the ones that have been and continue to be discussed by the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States. Russia is willing to facilitate this process and will support in every possible way the agreements that factor in the legitimate interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

We have coordinated our strategies with regard to other matters of international politics, including the situation in the Palestinian territories, which is a matter of deep concern, as well as the developments in Syria after the change of government in December 2024. <...>

Excerpts from the Q&A session:

• We are ready to help, to mediate, and to play any role that will be useful and acceptable to the United States from Iran’s point of view.

• We believe that an agreement focusing exclusively on nuclear matters is the way forward if we want to reach an agreement. Notably, the Islamic Republic of Iran is willing to look for an agreement as part of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. This is a matter of principle that must be taken into account by those who are trying to saddle the talks with non-nuclear issues and thus create a situation that is fraught with risks.

Read in full

#RussiaIran

🎥 Belarus: A Land Unbroken — an RT Doc Film.

Synopsis: During the Great Patriotic War Soviet Belarus, a part of the USSR, was under Nazi occupation from 1941 to 1944.

The fraternal Belarusian people, among the first to confront the Nazi invasion in June 1941, endured immense suffering and hardship. After seizing the territory of the Byelorussian SSR, the Hitlerites imposed a brutal and oppressive occupation regime.

🕯 The Nazis killed people of all nationalities through punitive operations, ghettos, and encircling concentration camps. During the Great Patriotic War, one in every three people in Belarus died.

But the citizens of the Soviet Union endured all the horrors of war and never lost faith in Victory. The resistance movement in Belarus was one of the largest. Even children and teenagers joined the partisans to fight for their homeland.

The occupation ended in 1944, when the Red Army, together with the partisans, launched Operation Bagration — the largest military operation in history. As a result of their combined efforts, Belarus was liberated.

📺 In this documentary, the filmmakers spoke to representatives from the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Belarus, leading experts, frontline veterans, home front workers, and descendants of the heroes who defended the Brest Fortress.

Historians featured in the film shed light on the Nazi war crimes committed on Belarusian soil and highlight the courage and sacrifice of the Soviet soldiers who liberated Belarus from occupation.

#Victory80

🔴 #LIVE: Joint news conference by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Foreign Minister of Iran Abbas Araghchi following bilateral talks in Moscow

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🎙 Russian Ambassador to Denmark Vladimir Barbin's interview to «RT» (April 17, 2025)

❓ Question: The commander of the Danish army has announced that Copenhagen is planning to send its soldiers to Ukraine to train with the Armed forces of Ukraine. Why do you think they are doing this?

💬 V.Barbin: The formal reason is to gain experience in the use of unmanned systems, since the Danish armed forces are currently being equipped with such types of weapons.

However, this intention is certainly dictated by other considerations. Denmark views Russia as an existential threat and advocates for the defeat of my country. Sending Danish troops to Ukraine is a result of such external political guidelines from Copenhagen.

❓Question: In your opinion, what guarantee can there be that they are actually being trained by the Armed forces of Ukraine and not taking part in hostilities and clashes with Russia?

💬 V.Barbin: There are no such guarantees. The close cooperation between Denmark and Ukraine on unmanned systems is well known. Denmark provides Ukraine with strike and reconnaissance drones. They are jointly deploying the production of such systems in Ukraine and moreover, Denmark is training Ukrainians in the combat use of drones.

In these circumstances, of course, there are no guarantees that Danish troops will not end up in the combat zone between Ukraine and Russia. It has been publicly stated that Denmark is not interested in a direct military clash between NATO countries and Russia.

❓Question: Has Denmark given any guarantees to the Russian side that Denmark will not participate in military operations against Russia? If not, why not?

💬 V.Barbin: Such guarantees are not being given now. There is no dialogue between our countries today. Denmark is against any restrictions as it advocates for the abolition of «red lines».

❓Question: The Danish government has been whipping up hysteria in recent months about a possible Russian attack on it and other European countries - for example, the country's prime minister even urged citizens to stock up on tinned food and kits for three days and said she had already done so... How is sending Danish soldiers to the Ukrainian armed forces supposed to reassure citizens and generally fit in with this rhetoric?

💬 V.Barbin: Anti-Russian hysteria is being deliberately whipped up in Denmark and amid these conditions, the population is easily subject to various kinds of manipulation, including supposed Russian threats to the security of Denmark. That manipulation is being done deliberately for the sake of continuing Denmark's hostile course towards Russia. Denmark is betting on continuing military actions in Ukraine and is opposed to achieving peace through negotiations and achieving a settlement through political and diplomatic means.

📖 Read in full

🔴 #LIVE: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Foreign Minister of Iran Abbas Araghchi commence talks in Moscow

🔴 Russia’s MFA website

🔴 Ruptly

🎙 Statement by Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN Vassily Nebenzia at a UNSC Briefing on Libya (New York, April 17, 2025).

💬 Vassily Nebenzia: The internal situation in Libya is prone to further deterioration, with persistent diarchy and no visible progress on the political track.

Inter-Libyan contradictions are deepening due to the entrenched mistrust of the key parties vis-a-vis one other. At the same time, the situation in both the west and the east of the former Jamahiriya is still quite fragile, which may engender a new wave of destabilization.

⚠️ The current situation of Libya is a grim example of a destructive external intervention that has plunged the country into chaos.

Fourteen years have elapsed since then, and a whole generation of young Libyans has come to age in a divided country. <...>

All previous experience shows that bringing stability back to Libya will not be easy. Despite all their efforts, a host of UN representatives – experienced diplomats and professional mediators – were unable to come closer to achieving that goal.

What is needed to break the impasse and generate momentum is not only the will on the part of the Libyans themselves, but also the coordinated work on the part of the Security Council and the international community as a whole.

❗️ Attempts by a number of external players to “privatize” certain aspects of the settlement process, which we’ve observed recently, will only exacerbate the crisis in the country. <...>

Libya is clearly in for an economic crisis given the significant deficit in the state budget and the falling rate of the Libyan dinar; this cannot be changed even by a consistent increase in oil production.

👉 The situation can be remedied only through effective cooperation between Libyan stakeholders, without interference from abroad.

Once again, we stress the need to protect the integrity of frozen Libyan assets for the benefit of the people of that country, as stipulated in the relevant Security Council documents. These assets have been blocked not to punish anyone, but rather to safeguard them.

☝️ At the same time, let us recall that sanctions measures – a potent and flexible tool of the Council – need to reflect present day realities in the country and be regularly revised and modified. It is important for them not to prevent the Libyans from working for the benefit of their country and its well-being.

Read in full

⚡️ On April 17, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation announced a decision on suspending the ban on the Taliban movement which is on the single federal list of organisation, including foreign and international ones, designated as terrorist under Russian law.

The verdict was delivered following court deliberations in accordance with Federal Law No. 513-FZ dated December 28, 2024, On Amending Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation.

The removal of terrorist status from the Taliban movement, which formed the Afghan government following the collapse of the pro-Western regime of Ashraf Ghani in 2021, opens the way to the establishment of a full-fledged partnership with Kabul in the interests of Russian and Afghan peoples.

Russia is set to build mutually advantageous ties with Afghanistan in all areas, including combatting drug trafficking and terrorism.

🤝 Russia appreciates the military and law enforcement operations conducted by Afghanistan’s authorities in its territory against Wilayat Khorasan, an Afghan wing of ISIS, which professes an ultra-radical ideology of a “global juhad.”

Moscow intends to put special emphasis on building up trade, business and investment relations with Kabul. Afghanistan, with its unique geostrategic location, might become a link in implementing large-scale energy and infrastructure projects.

The decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on suspending the terrorist status of the Taliban movement does not entail changes in the international commitments of the Russian Federation regarding compliance with the UN Security Council regime of sanctions against individuals and legal entities associated with Taliban, as well as other groups and entities.

🇷🇺🇺🇸📞 On April 17, 2025, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a telephone conversation.

Secretary Rubio, who is currently in Paris, informed the Russian side about the recent engagements that he and US President’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff had in the French capital. These discussions involved representatives from Ukraine, France, and several other European nations. It was underscored that these contacts were in alignment with the framework of ongoing consultations between Washington and Moscow, including the recent dialogue between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.

Sergey Lavrov reaffirmed Moscow’s readiness to continue collaborative efforts with American counterparts to comprehensively address the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis.

The Foreign Minister and Secretary of State concurred on the necessity to maintain prompt communication channels, particularly in light of forthcoming meetings scheduled by American and European officials with Ukrainian representatives next week.

#RussiaUSA

🗓️ On April 17, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met with Secretary-General of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) Imangali Tasmagambetov.

The high officials discussed the main areas of further joint work to enhance the CSTO’s potential, as well as preparations for the upcoming meeting of the #CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers to be held in June 2025.

🗓 On April 16, 2025, the 15th round of #RussiaPakistan Consultative Group on Strategic Stability was held in Islamabad, co-chaired by Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Ryabkov and Additional Foreign Secretary of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Tahir Andrabi.

The two Sides held detailed discussions on international security, regional and global stability and various aspects of arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation.

The Parties also exchanged views on issues related to the agenda of the First Committee of the UN General Assembly, the Conference on Disarmament, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the Biological Weapons Convention.

In addition, matters related to Space, International Information Security, and New & Emerging Technologies, including the military use of artificial intelligence, came under discussion.

The two Sides expressed satisfaction with the convergence of views on a wide range of issues discussed. In this regard, they decided to maintain close coordination both bilaterally and at relevant international platforms.

🤝 It was agreed to hold the 16th meeting of the Group next year in Moscow.

📹 On April 16, President of Russia Vladimir Putin met in the Kremlin with recently released Russia-Israeli hostage Alexander Trufanov, his mother Yelena, and his fiancée Sapir Cohen.

💬 Vladimir Putin: I will withhold political assessments or perspectives regarding the ongoing developments. That said, everything that happened to you was a great tragedy, while the fact that you can now walk free is a result of Russia’s years-long commitment to maintaining stable relations with the people of Palestine, its representatives and all kinds of structures and organisations.

I think we should express our gratitude to Hamas leaders and its political wing for accommodating our request and making this gesture. Setting you free was a humanitarian gesture on their part. I wanted to congratulate you on this occasion.

Of course, we will do everything to have as many cases like yours as possible and as frequently as possible so that all people who find themselves in a situation like the one you had to endure for so long can also be freed.

🇷🇺🇶🇦 The Russia-Qatar Business Forum is currently taking place in Moscow.

This platform serves as a discussion space for addressing and widely publicizing issues related to further strengthening trade and investment ties between Russia and Qatar across various sectors. Key topics include finance and investments, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, tourism, transportation, logistics, and more.

"Qatar is an important strategic partner for Russia and the Gulf states. As the country's economy grows, so does the demand for resources and goods, and Russian businesses are ready to meet this demand. To enhance cooperation, the joint Russian-Qatar commissions on trade, economic, and technical collaboration have resumed their work this year. Strategic priorities for cooperation have also been identified,"
said Russia’s Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov in his opening speech.

The event is organized by Qatar’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Roscongress Foundation, the Russian Ministry of Economic Development, and the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

@RoscongressDirect
#RoscongressInternational

🔴 #LIVE: Briefing by Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on topical foreign policy issues

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🎙 Statement by Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN Anna Evstigneeva at a UNSC Briefing on South Sudan (New York, April 16, 2025)

💬 We are concerned by the escalating situation in the Republic of South Sudan and by the instances of resumed hostilities between supporters of the opposition and Government troops, resulting in the loss of human life, including among civilians. <...>

We believe that the situation in South Sudan is under the control of the current Government. President Salva Kiir has delivered a statement to that effect, wherein he assured that he would not allow for the country to slide into a new civil war.

In the same vein, Juba is taking steps to bolster security in the capital.

We believe that the Council's overarching task at the moment is to facilitate the authorities’ efforts towards stabilization rather than stoke unnecessary pressure. It is important that further steps to find common ground between the antagonists be undertaken with the assistance and mediation of those parties who are trusted by the South Sudanese themselves. <...>

⚠️ We are gravely concerned by the reports that the territory of South Sudan can possibly be used as a staging ground to support one of the parties to the conflict in neighboring Sudan. We expect that the sovereignty of the Republic of South Sudan will not be called into question and that relations between the two brotherly countries will be built in a spirit of partnership and good-neighborliness. That is particularly necessary given the economic interdependence between the Sudan and South Sudan.

We have taken note of the decision by the Government of South Sudan to postpone general elections in the country until December 2026. We stand convinced that voting issues are internal matters of South Sudan.

We support international efforts to normalize the situation and reinforce peace and security in South Sudan. We pay tribute to the mediation efforts of the African Union and IGAD member States. <...>

At the current complicated juncture, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) continues to make a meaningful contribution to the implementation of specific provisions of the Revitalized Peace Agreement.

❗️ We would like to recall the inadmissibility of any acts of force targeting UN peacekeepers; we emphatically condemn any acts of violence against Blue Helmets, representatives of humanitarian organizations and civilians.

Read in full

#Opinion by Russia's MFA spokeswoman Maria #Zakharova

💬 The Ukrainian social media is packed with the obituaries of Ukrainian military personnel killed on April 13 in the strike on a venue in Sumy that brought together commanders from Ukrainian Seversk Tactical Group.

Here is an account of the death of Ukrainian fighter Vladimir Zherebtsov. Here’s an obituary for Ukrainian army colonel Yury Yula.

Here’s the statement by the mayor of the Ukrainian city Konotop Artyom Semenikhin containing direct accusation of Head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration Vladimir Artyukh who convened a meeting of Ukrainian combatants with the participation of women and children.

Semenikhin openly demanded resignation of General Artyukh, who uses terrorist “civilian human shield” tactics to protect his thugs.

This Kiev regime’s war crime was so obvious even to the Ukrainian people and the Kiev-controlled media that voices of outrage were heard among Zelensky’s inner circle as well. Verkhovnaya Rada Deputy Maryana Bezuglaya publicly demanded to find out who, fearing a Russian strike on a legitimate target, ordered to use women and children as human shields during the military event.

Zelensky confirmed every accusation coming his way by firing Head of the Sumy Military Administration Artyukh yesterday, thus shifting the responsibility for this hideous war crime, which this time was directed against his own citizens, onto him.

Does UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres know about all this? The day that followed the attack on a perfectly legitimate target, he was “deeply alarmed and shocked” by Russia’s Sunday missile strike on Sumy and accused our country of “attacking civilians.”

I also have a question for Kallas and Merz who deliberately went ahead with verbal manipulations and poured dirt over Russia on Sunday and Monday. How are you now going to justify what your underling did?

For some reason, representatives of our embassies in Sweden and Lithuania were summoned to the local foreign ministries. Apparently, poisoned by the fumes of competitive Russophobia, they were trying to take advantage of anything they could lay their hands on to further damage relations with our country which, as is, are unlikely to get revived for many years to come.

When the Ukrainians attacked civilians on the Crimean Bridge, when SBU terrorists blew up Russian journalists in the Moscow suburbs and in St Petersburg, when drones attacked the Moscow Kremlin, and when Ukrainian punishers committed genocide and mass murder in the Kursk Region and buried old people alive in the village of Russkoye Porechnoye, these Euro peacemakers kept silent, and all the UN Secretariat did was diplomatically “call for peace.”

When the gunmen get-together was liquidated, everyone started blaming Russia at once... When it became clear that the local authorities purposely used children as a shield to protect these ghouls, everyone went silent.

If you think of it, after these publications and dismissals, they should now kneel in repentance before the whole world.

The above facts not only prove, but demonstrate with disarming directness that the Kiev regime uses women and children as human shields, and then cast these staged performances as acts of alleged Russian aggression. The Ukrainian Nazi militants are, in fact, taking their own fellow citizens hostage. The blood of civilian victims is on the hands of Zelensky and his henchmen, as well as the conniving Western mob.

The hoax in Bucha and the unrelenting attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces on Russian energy facilities even during the negotiated moratorium demonstrably show that this hideous circus has quite a few bloody tricks up its sleeve.

https://t.me/MariaVladimirovnaZakharova/10208

#Victory80

🗓 80 years ago, on April 16, 1945, the Berlin Offensive — one of the Red Army’s key strategic operations during #WWII — commenced.

The operation resulted in the final defeat of the enemy’s Berlin group of forces and, with Hitler’s war machine being completely crushed. The Soviet forces took the capital of the Third Reich — #Berlin. The Instrument of Unconditional Surrender of Nazi Germany was signed — the document that heralded the Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War.

***

🌟 By spring 1945, the Red Army successfully carried out a series of offensive operations aimed at liberating the countries and peoples of Central and Eastern Europe from the Nazi invaders. Hitler’s troops and their henchmen were expelled from Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Poland; Vienna and the capital of modern Slovakia, Bratislava, saved from the Nazi plague.

Nevertheless, WWII was far from end. The final battle for the liberation of Europe from the Nazi plague, the Battle of Berlin, was coming.

***

By mid-April, 1945, the Soviet forces — having liberated Poland from the Nazis — consolidated positions along the Oder and Neisse rivers and started preparations to launch the offensive on Berlin. Mere dozens of kilometres separated the Red Army from the capital of Hitler’s Germany. The enemy installed deeply echeloned defences and deployed elite Wehrmacht units against the Soviet forces.

To attack Berlin, the Soviet Supreme High Command deployed forces from the 1st Belorussian Front (commanded by Marshal Georgy Zhukov); the 2nd Belorussian Front (Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky); and the 1st Ukrainian Front (Marshal Ivan Konev).

⚔️ The Berlin Offensive began at 5:00 AM on April 16 with a massive artillery fire. Following this, 143 powerful spotlights were activated to blind and disorient the enemy. Infantry and armoured units then launched their assault.

Enemy resistance intensified as Soviet forces advanced. Fierce fighting erupted at the Seelow Heights — a critical defensive point just 60 kilometres away from Berlin — where the Wehrmacht’s 9th Army, blocking the direct route to the Reich’s capital, was destroyed.

Within several days, the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts breached the Oder-Neisse defensive line of the Nazis, advanced 30 kilometres towards Berlin, and started encircling the city to destroy its garrison.

• April 20: Red Army units reached Berlin. Soviet long-range artillery started shelling, with brutal tank battles erupting on the city’s outskirts.

• April 25: The 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts linked up west of the city, completing the encirclement of the enemy’s Berlin group of Nazi troops.

• April 29: Fierce fighting started in the heart of Berlin, where Germany’s highest governmental and military authorities were located. During the storming of the Reichstag on the night of April 30 — May 1, the legendary #VictoryBanner was raised — a symbol of the Soviet Union’s triumph over Nazism.

• May 2: Berlin’s garrison surrendered. By May 5, the Nazi resistance was crushed. A total of 134,000 German soldiers and officers were captured.

✍️ On the night of May 8–9, Marshal Zhukov and the Allied representatives accepted Germany’s unconditional surrender at Karlshorst. So, WWII in Europe ended.

***

🎖 The Berlin Operation saw the Red Army not only crush the last major and most elite Wehrmacht force but also liberate approximately 200'000 prisoners from Nazi concentration camps within the combat zone. Over 600 Soviet soldiers were awarded the title #HeroOftheSovietUnion for their valour.

🎙️ Interview of the Ambassador of Russia in Norway Nikolay Korchunov to Professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway Glenn Diesen

Key points:

• The Northern Sea Route is one of the most promising, safe, short and economically advantageous sea corridors in the world. The demand for the NSR for global trade is growing. Cargo traffic is steadily increasing, which last year totalled 37.9 million tonnes. Transit along the NSR has increased by 44% - shippers have started to redirect some cargo to Asia via the NSR.

• Developing the Arctic's mineral resource potential is one of our key priorities and it requires an integrated approach. This includes both facilities at the fields and the entire network of logistics chains including offshore and onnshore transportation, and supply infrastructure.

• Russia is ready to work together not only with the Arctic states, but with all those who are interested in the sustainable and peaceful development of the region and focus on the long-term perspective.

• The main consequence of the selective approach of some states to the international law, including the issue of expanding the outer limits of the continental shelf, is the growing uncertainty and destabilizing of the region, which will affect the prospects for economic activity.

• The fact that seven out of eight Arctic states are members of NATO indicates that the «security formula» in high latitudes is becoming increasingly complicated. The Arctic countries are currently in a difficult situation, facing challenges in the areas of security, climate, frozen scientific cooperation, and the consequences of crises in other regions. The only thing that NATO's presence in the region contributes to is further escalation of tensions.

• Asia is the driver of global economic growth. China and India account for a significant share of global GDP. It is natural that these countries think globally and don’t exclude the Arctic from their area of interest.

• Norway is currently following the anti-Russian agenda of Western countries. Given the economic and geographical position of your country as well as taking into account long-term benefits, it is obvious that if Norway acted in its own interests, it would not miss the opportunity to implement joint projects related to the development of the Northern Sea Route. Instead, Norway has set on a course towards confrontation and breaking existing ties.

• The objective picture is that Russia and Norway are doomed to cooperate. Our countries are not just neighbors – as Arctic states, we bear special responsibility for the destiny of the region. Many existing problems in the Arctic can only be solved through joint efforts. Climate change, permafrost degradation, loss of biodiversity, natural or man-made disasters, well-being of Indigenous Peoples require searching for common solutions within the framework of existing intergovernmental formats and for the sake of developing international science.

Glenn Diesen is a professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway, contributor to the Valdai Discussion Club, and editor of the journal «Russia in Global Affairs».

Watch full interview on Glenn Diesen's website

Full text is available on the website of the Embassy of Russia in Norway

🇷🇺🇿🇦 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s opening remarks at the meeting with Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of the Republic of South Africa Ronald Lamola (Moscow, April 16, 2025)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: Esteemed Minister,

Welcome.

As far as I understand, you have already met with members of the Joint Russian-South African Commission on Scientific and Technological Cooperation.

Hopefully, its outcome will contribute additional positive results to our trade, economic and investment cooperation.

Thank you very much also for the opportunity to coordinate our approaches to the international agenda on the sidelines of your visit.

We are satisfied with our countries’ cooperation at the United Nations, BRICS and G20. I do remember our meeting in Johannesburg this February on the sidelines of the G20 Ministerial Council meeting.

I hope to see you soon at the BRICS Ministerial Meeting in Brazil.

***

On April 16, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met with South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola, who arrived in Moscow for the 18th meeting of the Mixed Intergovernmental Committee on Trade and Economic Cooperation as chair the South African part of the Committee.

The Parties discussed a range of issues related to further strengthening the traditionally friendly Russian-South African relations with a focus on promoting mutually beneficial cooperation in trade, the economy, science, and technology.

The Ministers also reaffirmed Moscow and Pretoria’s unwavering commitment to effectively coordinate actions at BRICS, the G20, the UN and in other multilateral formats in view to finding best solutions to current global and regional problems, in accordance with the principles of international law and the provisions of the UN Charter.

#RussiaSouthAfrica

❗️ On this day, 10 years ago, Ukrainian writer and opposition journalist Oles' Buzina was killed just outside his home in Kiev.

He became one of the countless victims of the criminal Kiev regime because he posed a threat to it by publicly criticising the neo-Nazi group that seized power as a result of the bloody coup in Ukraine and exposing its true essence.

Oles' Buzina called on the then leadership of Ukraine to establish a dialogue with Donbass residents and pointed out the need to secure the status of the Russian language.

His activism deeply annoyed official Kiev. He also received threats from radical nationalists for promoting an interpretation of Ukraine’s history that did not align with the hateful ideology and invented background of the Ukrainian Nazis. His active civic engagement and firm stance, his calls for respect for history and the Russian language proved unwanted in post-Maidan Ukraine and cost Oles' Buzina his life.

A few days before his death, the journalist’s personal data, including his home address, were posted on the extremist website Myrotvorets, which lists personal information about all public figures, journalists, writers, and reporters who are objectionable to the Kiev regime, a resource created literally as a practical guide for planning terrorist attacks.

Even though the UN Secretary-General, official representatives of the OSCE and the US State Department, along with many public organisations, condemned the murder, extended condolences to the victim’s family and insisted on a comprehensive inquiry, the masterminds of this crime were never found, and the suspects (who everybody knew was guilty of this crime, it's well documented) were eventually released.

⚡️ Ten years later, it is quite obvious that the situation with freedom of speech in Ukraine has degraded to a critical level.

All media outlets opposed to the Kiev regime are banned, and any manifestations of dissent are brutally suppressed and erased from the information landscape. The regime has launched a manhunt for unwanted journalists, primarily Russian, leveraging a variety of capabilities, including UAVs and high-precision weapons.

The most recent victims who died at the hands of the Kiev regime militants this year include Alexander Martemyanov, Alexander Fedorchak, Andrei Panov, and Anna Prokofyeva. Other victims – Anton Voloshin, Igor Kornelyuk, Anatoly Klyan, Andrey Stenin, Darya Dugina, Oleg Klokov, Vladlen Tatarsky (Maxim Fomin), Rostislav Zhuravlev, Boris Maksudov, Semyon Yeryomin, Valery Kozhin, Nikita Tsitsagi, and Yulia Kuznetsova – will also remain in our hearts forever. Ukraine uses terrorist methods to carry out its criminal plans, while its Western handlers and biased human rights organisations continue to deliberately ignore these atrocities.

🎙️ Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the 44th meeting of the Foreign Ministry’s Council of Heads of Constituent Entities of the Russian Federation (Moscow, April 16, 2025)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: Russian regions’ robust engagement has contributed to the progressive consolidation of our country’s standing in foreign agricultural markets, deepening our cooperation with Global Majority countries on a broader scale.

Russia has been performing its obligations under international contracts in good faith. We are among the key actors when it comes to guaranteeing food security. <…>

We are consistently guided by a belief that reliance on enduring values, common to all major world religions and cultures, as well as respect for other nations’ identities and their right to choose their own path of development are key to the formation of a more just multipolar international system, and consequently, the most favourable external conditions for the development of the Russian Federation and all other countries that share such approaches.

☝️ I would like to state with satisfaction that more and more people around the world not only sympathise with our country and want to learn more about our way of life, but also view Russia as the guardian and defender of traditional values. In particular, we see such sentiments filter through in Western countries. To make sure that these people do not feel neglected, President Vladimir Putin signed an Executive Order No 702 in August 2024 on providing humanitarian support to individuals sharing traditional Russian spiritual and moral values. <…>

Russia’s Foreign Ministry participates in the work of the centre that facilitates the relocation and adaptation of foreign nationals who decide to take advantage of the opportunity created by the Executive Order on Traditional Values to move to Russia and obtain Russian citizenship. <…>

❗️ Our main goal is to create transparent, understandable and convenient conditions for moving to our country and adapting for people from countries where unnatural models of behaviour, lifestyles and destructive neoliberal attitudes are being aggressively imposed, causing serious damage to people’s moral health.

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🎙 Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s interview with Kommersant newspaper (Moscow, April 14, 2025)

READ IN FULL

#RussiaUSA

• Restoring our dialogue with President of the United States Donald Trump is a natural step. Importantly, both Sides are willing to move in this direction despite the many challenges and the divergence of our national interests on several, if not most of the international matters. We need to hold meetings and treat each other as well-educated and polite people by listening and hearing each other.

• The sincere desire to transition to normality shown by President Donald Trump is met with resistance after recent political upheavals that have rocked the Washington-based elites. They are preparing some moves behind the scenes, using their lobbies and the media. Their aim is to prevent President Donald Trump from mending relations with Russia and putting them back on track as they should be between two great powers and between all countries, for that matter.

#NATO #Ukraine

• International humanitarian law explicitly prohibits placement of military facilities and weapons in or around civilian sites.

• Since the onset of the [Ukrainian] crisis, there have been countless instances of artillery and air defence systems deployed in [Ukrainian] city quarters next to kindergartens. The internet was full of videos showing Ukrainian women yelling at the military telling them to leave retail outlets and playgrounds, but they keep doing so to this day.

• We have verified information about who was inside the building that was struck in Sumy. It was yet another gathering of Ukrainian military commanders alongside their Western counterparts operating under the guise of mercenaries, or someone else.

• NATO military personnel are there and are directly in charge of the operations. Everyone is aware of that. Even The New York Times has reported that U.S. military staff have played a central role in orchestrating attacks on Russia from the outset. Without their involvement, the vast majority of long-range missile strikes would never have happened.

• President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that the decision by the Joe Biden administration to drag Ukraine into NATO was a major mistake. Among other things, it served as a trigger, or one of the triggers, in terms of what is happening today in Ukraine. President Trump has recognised in public several times that he viewed this as one of the root causes.

#UkraineCrisis

• Speaking at the Russia's Foreign Ministry on June 14, 2024, President Vladimir Putin laid out a clear framework for a lasting, reliable and just settlement [of the Ukraine crisis] which would primarily focus on fulfilling the interests of the people and ensuring that human rights are respected <...> as per the UN Charter.

• For us the future of the people is what matters most, and saying the territorial integrity of Ukraine cannot be violated means letting Russians, the Russian-speaking people who escaped from the Nazi regime end up at the mercy of these beasts.

• All peacekeeping “arrangements” painted by “macrons” and “starmers” seek to preserve at least a small piece of land as home to the blatantly Nazi and Russophobic regime designed to be used for preparing another war against Russia. This poses a major challenge for the West’s reputation and credibility.

🎙 Address of Federation Council of Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation to parliaments of foreign countries and peoples of the world on unacceptability of distorting the history of the Second World War and rehabilitating Nazism

💬 May 9, 2025 marks the 80th Anniversary of historic Victory of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War. The war unleashed by Nazi Germany and its satellites claimed the lives of 27 million Soviet citizens. Millions of people became prisoners of Nazi death camps, lost their homes, and were deported for forced labour to Germany and other countries under its control.

The Great Victory was achieved through the unwavering determination and bravery of the Soviet people and their strong resolve to defeat Nazism which presented a threat to humanity. The Allies of the Soviet Union made an important contribution to defeating the Third Reich.

The International Military Tribunal (Nuremberg Tribunal) tried and sentenced the main war criminals of the European Axis countries. It held the Nazi regime leaders accountable for crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, among others. The facts of forced displacement and extermination of the Soviet civilian population by Nazis and their accomplices, as established in the verdict of the Nuremberg Tribunal, must be regarded as genocide committed against the peoples of the Soviet Union.

The Victory of the Soviet Union and the other Allies over Nazism paved the way for the forming a modern system of international relations were created, and the United Nations (UN) was established.
 
The principles of international law recognised by the Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal and expressed in the verdict passed by the Nuremberg Tribunal were confirmed by UN General Assembly Resolution 95(I) of December 11, 1946.

The Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation supports the adoption, on an annual basis, by the UN General Assembly of the resolution titled «Combating glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance», as well as Resolution 79/272 of March 4, 2025 titled «Eightieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War», co-sponsored by 54 countries.

The Russian Federation senators express their concern over the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation to include non-aligned European countries, the militarisation of the European Union, and its support for the neo-Nazi regime in Ukraine. Europe was the starting point of both world wars. For this reason, it bears a unique responsibility to humanity in preventing another global conflict.

☝️ Denying the Soviet Union’s decisive role in Victory of the Anti-hitlerite Coalition over the Nazi Germany and its satellites, glorifying Nazi criminals and their accomplices, and demolishing and desecrating monuments to Soviet liberator soldiers are all immoral and blasphemous acts.

The Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation calls on the parliaments of foreign countries and the peoples of the world to counter any attempts to falsify history, to rehabilitate or glorify Nazism, fascism, or militarism, to condemn the encouragement of the neo-Nazi regime in Ukraine and the incitement of another world war, and to demand that those who dishonour the memory of the Soviet liberators and those who fought against Nazism be brought to justice.

❗️ Only our joint efforts can protect the truth about the Second World War, counter the rise of neo-Nazism, and avert the recurrence of brutal crimes against humanity.

⚡️ Comment by Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova regarding the recent large-scale Ukrainian drone strike in Russia's Kursk Region.

💬 The Nazi Kiev regime continues its barbaric attacks on civilians in Russia. In the early hours of April 15, the Kursk Region was subjected to an unprecedented large-scale Ukrainian drone strike. A total of 109 drones deliberately targeted the housing sector and civilian infrastructure.

▪️ The attack resulted in the death of an elderly woman, 24 blocks of flats were damaged, three of which sustained serious destruction, and the loss of more than 10 special-purpose vehicles at an ambulance station.

☝️ The never-ending crimes of Zelensky regime appear particularly cynical against the backdrop of official rhetoric from Bankovaya Street regarding a supposed desire for peace.

However, such declarations should not mislead anyone about the regime’s real goals and intentions. The criminal Kiev junta has no interest in resolving the conflict through diplomatic means and remains obsessed with the idea of inflicting a strategic defeat on our country.

❗️ Russia calls on the responsible members of the international community to condemn the crimes of Kiev’s Nazi regime against civilians and to demonstrate a resolute commitment to putting an end to the bloody actions of Zelensky’s gang.

#KievRegimeCrimes

🔴 #LIVE: Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the 44nd meeting of the Council of Regional Governors under the Russian MFA auspices


🔴 Russia's MFA Website

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🔴 #LIVE: Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the 44nd meeting of the Council of Regional Governors under the Russian MFA auspices

🔴 Russia's MFA Website

🔴 Ruptly

✍️ Comment by Ambassador of Russia to Indonesia Sergei Tolchenov published in Kompas (14 April 2025)

We have taken note of the editorial titled “Negotiations That Are Unfair to Ukraine” in the Tuesday edition (8/4/2025) of Kompas, which we greatly respect for its professionalism. The article explores the matter of achieving a just settlement to the conflict in Ukraine.

Key points:

• The impression conveyed is that the article appears to have been written as if it were following official directives from the Kiev side, considering how the article is based on a single perspective of the ongoing situation. <…> First and foremost, this relates to the allegation that Russia is allegedly stalling the negotiation process regarding a ceasefire.

• For the Russian side, the main priority is the establishment of legally binding international commitments to prevent the restoration and further strengthening of Ukraine’s armed forces, including the cessation of forced mobilization, the halting of arms supply and deliveries to Ukraine, and the stopping of intelligence data provision.

• The Kiev regime seems to have deliberately sabotaged the implementation of the [18 March] moratorium on mutual attacks on energy infrastructure for 30 days—or simply lacks control over paramilitary formations and foreign mercenaries.

• Just in the past week, as a result of attacks launched by Ukrainian paramilitary groups against Russian territories, at least 118 civilians became victims - 14 of them killed, 104 injured, three of whom were children.

• We reiterate our principled commitment to resolving the Ukrainian conflict through political and diplomatic means, which must be sustainable and long-term, taking into account the legitimate interests of the Russian Federation and based on addressing the root causes of the ongoing crisis.

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🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at a ceremony for opening the "Anniversary Year: From Mexico to Argentina" exhibition marking anniversaries of Russia’s diplomatic relations with several Latin American and Caribbean countries (Moscow, April 15, 2025)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: This year marks anniversaries of Russia’s diplomatic relations with a number of Latin American countries:

🇦🇷🇲🇽🇨🇴🇧🇴🇻🇪🇬🇹🇩🇴🇪🇨🇭🇳🇨🇺

Argentina (140 years), Mexico (135 years), Colombia (90 years), Bolivia, Venezuela, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, and Ecuador (80 years), and Honduras (35 years). That includes the 65th anniversary of reconstituting diplomatic relations with Cuba.

On this occasion, we have set up an all-encompassing exhibition in our building on Smolenskaya Square. I’m thrilled to welcome you to its opening.

I would like to begin by thanking our colleagues from our Ministry’s Department of History and Records and Department of Latin America. Thank you to the artists from the Creative Union Association for Promoting Culture and Art for their highly professional and creative efforts that made today’s event possible.

In addition to unique documents and photographs that describe the most outstanding events in our country’s relations with Latin America, the items on display here include exhibits that highlight the Latin American continent’s cultural identity.

Our relations go back to the Russian Empire. Many years have passed since then. I am pleased to note that despite changes in our country and around the world, we were able to ensure progress in cooperation with our partners from that region across a variety of areas. The outcomes of our joint work are presented at this exhibition.

We have always held in high regard the Latin American peoples’ aspirations to preserve their own civilisational identity, to acquire and strengthen genuine sovereignty, and to hold their future in their own hands. During the former Spanish colonies’ war of independence, the Russian Empire firmly adhered to the principle of non-interference.

Today, our country consistently advocates a greater role for the Latin American countries and integration associations in the emerging multipolar world order that is more equitable.

🤝 Just like our Latin American friends, we are firmly committed to democratising country-to-country relations and building them on the principles of international law, primarily the UN Charter, which enshrines the principle of the sovereign equality of states.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of Victory in World War II and related 80th anniversary of the United Nations. We will all celebrate these dates. A portion of the exhibition is dedicated to the Latin American and Caribbean States’ contribution to defeating Nazism. For example, the Brazilian Expeditionary Corps fought battles against German and Italian troops. The 201st Squadron of the Mexican Air Force, aka Aztec Eagles, fought in the Pacific theatre against Japan in 1945. People from many Latin American countries participated in the movement of solidarity with the Soviet Union and provided all kinds of help and assistance.

🌐 I would like to take this opportunity to once again express gratitude to our Latin American friends for standing with us on multilateral venues when it comes to the initiatives on combatting glorification of Nazism and falsification of history, and unacceptability, in general, of revising the outcomes of the Second World War and Great Victory. <...>

Russia-Latin America relations are steeped in a pragmatic, mutually beneficial, and ideology-free basis and boast an immense potential. We stand ready to work as a team to expand them in politics, trade and investment, scientific and technological research, culture, education, sports, and all other spheres.

☝️ The long-standing traditions of friendship, trust and mutual affection that bring our peoples together are the most important building blocks of success.

🗓 On April 15, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov opened a comprehensive exhibition "Anniversary Year: from Mexico to Argentina" at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation timed to coincide with the anniversaries of establishing diplomatic relations with a large group of Latin American states: Argentina (140 years), Mexico (135 years), Colombia (90 years), Bolivia, Venezuela, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Ecuador (80 years), Honduras (35 years), the 65th anniversary of re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba. The exhibition is also dedicated to the history and present of Russia - Latin America cooperation.

Representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Moscow, as well as academic, business and media circles were invited to attend the event.

📑 Exhibition visitors seized the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the copies of documents from the Foreign Policy Archive of the Russian Federation on the establishment of relations with the above-mentioned states, as well as with materials demonstrating the development of multifaceted cooperation with the countries of the region in the political, economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres.

An individual display was dedicated to the contribution of Latin American and Caribbean states to the fight against Nazism during the World War II.

Artists from the Association for the Promotion of Culture and Art called Creative Union contributed to the design of the exposition, whose picturesque exhibits suggest images of the celebrating countries through paintings of animals and plants.

#RussiaLatinAmerica

🔴 #LIVE: Sergey Lavrov's remarks at the opening ceremony of the exhibition dedicated to the anniversaries of the establishment of diplomatic relations with Latin American and Caribbean countries

📍 Moscow, April 15, 2025


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⚡️ Comment by Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Antonio Guterres’s statement regarding the developments in Sumy (April 15, 2025)

On April 13, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made another statement on Ukraine via his Spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric. It concerns the developments in Sumy.

❌ He has accused of the April 13 missile attack, which allegedly “continues a devastating pattern of similar assaults on Ukrainian cities and towns.” We are perplexed by such assessments by the UN Secretary-General.

We would like to remind everyone that since the beginning of the special military operation, Russia's Armed Forces have never deliberately delivered, are not delivering and will not deliver strikes on civilian population. As Russia's Defence Ministry invariably points out, our targets are always and exclusively military facilities.

The UN Secretary-General also reiterated the UN’s support to meaningful efforts towards peace that fully upholds Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, in line with the #UNCharter, international law, and relevant UN resolutions. As you can see, he never mentioned the right of nations to self-determination. This is yet another proof of Mr Guterres’s selective approach to the provisions of the UNCharter.

In this connection, we would like to point out that the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Cooperation among States, which was adopted by consensus by the UN General Assembly in 1970, sealed a connection between the principles of the UN Charter, which must be applied in their entirety and as a whole.

☝️ In addition, the Declaration states that the principle of territorial integrity shall be applied to all states who are conducting themselves in compliance with the principle of self-determination of peoples and are thus possessed of a government representing the whole people belonging to the territory. It is clear to everyone that the current Kiev regime does not comply with these criteria.

Zelensky’s gang has been systematically and flagrantly infringing on the fundamental freedoms of ethnic Russians and Russian-speaking citizens. We have to state that the UN Secretary-General, acting contrary to Article 1 of the UN Charter, which calls for promoting and encouraging respect for language, religious and other human rights, continues to shield the Kiev regime’s open disregard for the principles of self-determination of nations and human rights.

👉 Mr Guterres demonstrated a similar approach when he disregarded Russia’s appeals in the context of investigation into the provocation in Bucha, which Kiev orchestrated three years ago. We have publicly appealed to the UN Secretary-General on numerous occasions to at least help encourage Kiev to publish the lists of those whose bodies the Western media demonstrated to the world in early April 2022 to the accompaniment of hysterical accusations against Russia. In September 2024, a relevant official request, which was prepared by Russia’s Investigative Committee together with the Prosecutor General’s Office, was submitted to the UN Secretariat via the Permanent Mission of Russia in New York. In January and April 2025, we urged the UN Secretariat to speed up reply to our request. All our efforts were in vain; we have not received a substantive answer to our request.

❗️ We again call on Antonio Guterres and his Secretariat to take an honest stance, to stop giving biased comments in the context of the Ukrainian crisis, and to stop discrediting our country and covering up the Kiev regime’s crimes.

#Announcement

🎙 On April 17, Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova will hold a briefing on current foreign policy issues:

🕛 12.00 pm MSK
🕘 9.00 am GMT
🕙 10.00 am CEST
🕔 5.00 pm CST (Beijing)

For accreditation inquiries, please contact the MFA Press Centre. Accredited journalists will receive details on the technical aspects of submitting questions.

The Russia's Foreign Ministry’s Spokeswoman will answer media questions received by the call centre.

❗️ Accreditation is open until 15.00 pm on April 15.

🎙 Briefing by Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova (Moscow, April 9, 2025)

🔹 Russian-American consultations
🔹 AFU strikes on Russia’s energy infrastructure
🔹 Kiev regime crimes
🔹 Falsification of history in Ukraine
🔹 Militarisation of Europe
🔹 European Union’s economic self-destruction
🔹 The US trade tariffs
🔹 Algerian authorities’ initiative to criminalise French colonialism

📰 Read
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#KievRegimeCrimes

The Kiev regime cynically continues daily attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure despite its own vows to support the 30-day moratorium on firing at energy facilities, which was coordinated by the Presidents of Russia and the United States on March 18.

Russia, in this context, strictly observes the ban on such attacks.

Between April 4 and 7, the AFU launched 32 assaults on energy facilities in Russian regions.

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A priest from Sudzha told journalists that Ukrainian soldiers had sold “tickets for plundering the Sudzha District” to residents in the Sumy Region of Ukraine.

On presenting this “marauding ticket” at a Ukrainian checkpoint, they got a permission to drive to occupied settlements, where these hunters for other people’s property picked up houses for plunder. They plundered whatever they could carry away.

#Europe #Militarisation

On April 3-4, NATO foreign ministers gathered in Brussels showing once again that NATO is relentless in its efforts to militarise Europe and to concoct confrontational plans with regard to our country. The alliance continues to believe that Russia remains a long-term threat to it and will remain such after the Ukraine conflict is over.

🤷‍♀️ As they are getting prepared for an armed conflict with Russia, which NATO officials believe could break out within the next four to five years, NATO countries plan to dramatically increase military spending.

Brussels believes Zelensky’s position will get stronger with the laughable coalition of the willing on his side. The latter is a group of maniacs, the extremely radical part of the alliance’s member states, who are eager to directly participate in the Ukraine conflict on the side of the regime that is led by Bandera followers.

The ringleaders of this group of reckless adventurers — Britain and France — are convening summits and meetings of general staff chiefs, failing to realise that their reckless actions could lead to the largest armed conflict involving nuclear powers ever since World War II.

#EU #sanctions #Russophobia

Brussels assiduously obscures the true cost to the EU of massive anti-Russian sanctions introduced since the start of the special military operation, alongside other ill-considered measures — or conversely, “highly calculated” efforts to dismantle economic ties with our country.

Were one to assess the full extent of the European Union’s lost profit due to its anti-Russian energy stance, the magnitude of the issue would appear overwhelming. Expert estimates suggest that from 2022 to 2024, as a consequence of procuring more costly energy resources over Russian alternatives, the European Union incurred losses of approximately €50-60 billion, exclusive of indirect economic repercussions. Had the energy crisis not materialised – its root cause being the ill-judged manoeuvres of the European Union and the West collectively – and had the EU continued sourcing Russian energy at equitable prices, member states might have realised savings exceeding €500 billion.

This, however, is not the entirety of the predicament. Expert analyses have shown that by 2024, the cumulative GDP losses across EU nations attained 3.8%, with an average decline of 2.4% over the period spanning 2022 to 2024. Altogether, this translates to approximately €1.3 trillion in damages.

⚡Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation:

Yesterday, the Russian Armed Forces launched two Iskander-M operational-tactical missiles in conditions of heavy electronic warfare countermeasures and foreign-made air defence systems in action to hit the site in Sumy where commanding officers of the Seversk task force had a meeting. More than 60 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been eliminated.

▪️ The Kiev regime continues to use the Ukrainian population as a human shield by deploying military facilities and carrying out activities involving servicemen in the centre of the densely populated city.

#KievRegimeCrimes

🇷🇺 As part of his working visit to the Atlantic provinces, Ambassador Oleg Stepanov paid tribute to Canadian servicemen who fell during the Second World War by laying flowers at memorials in Moncton (NB) and Charlottetown (PEI).

🕯 Russia will always remember the contribution of Canada’s sons and daughters to the common Victory over Nazism and the brotherhood-in-arms forged within the anti-Hitler coalition.

#Victory80 #WeRemember

Ambassador of Russia to South Africa Roman Ambarov visited the community of #Soweto to honour the memory of the 1976 Soweto Uprising at the Museum of Hector Pieterson and delve into the life history of the world’s most renowned anti-apartheid fighter at Mandela House.

At the museum Roman Ambarov signed the book of honourable guests:

✍️ “From the Russian Embassy in South Africa let me thank the museum and its stuff for keeping alive the memories of these horrible days. I am proud that my country – Russia (back then the Soviet Union) was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the ANC and all South African freedom fighters in our common struggle for peace and freedom in South Africa.”

🇷🇺🤝🇿🇦 The Embassy of Russia extends sincerest gratitude to our South African friends who helped arrange this event.

#RussiaSouthAfrica

⚡️Statement by the Embassy of Russia in Ireland (April 14, 2025)

⚠️ There has been a coordinated anti-Russian propaganda outburst in the Western media about missile attack on the Ukrainian military target in the town of Sumy on April 13, 2025. The loud chorus of the Western European political leaders, – joined by the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste, – immediately launched hypocritical condemnation of “Russia’s attack on civilians” borrowed from Zelenskiy’s playbook.

‼️ According to the official information provided by the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation the Russian forces on April 13, 2025, have carried out a strike by two “Iskander” missiles against the location of the meeting of the Ukrainian “Seversk” Task Force commanders with their Western military “advisers”. The target has been successfully hit. The Ministry noted that Russian forces never target civilian population or sites and emphasized that Kiev continues, in contravention to the International humanitarian law, to use civilians as human shield by carrying out military actions in the midst of the densely populated areas.

☝️ We suggest that the West, whose military directly guides Kiev’s constant attacks against Russian people in the Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, Zaporozhye, Kursk, Belgorod, Bryansk regions and elsewhere in Russia, will be better off by using their moral fervor to stop this criminal activity. As to the Tánaiste’s point about “seeking peace” we believe that the Irish government along with its EU partners has long ago lost any credibility in the context of the political settlement in Ukraine by supporting proxy war against Russia.

#RussiaHelps

⚡️ Russia’s EMERCOM has sent another large package of humanitarian aid to Myanmar.

🛬 An Il-76 aircraft of the Emergencies Ministry delivered more than 30 tonnes of essential supplies, including canned goods, grains, sugar, and medical equipment.

#Victory80

🏅 8️⃣0️⃣ years ago, on April 13, 1945, the Soviet forces liberated the capital of Austria during the #Vienna Offensive.

🌟 By the spring of 1945, the Red Army drove the Nazi invaders out of Poland, Hungary and Slovakia and rapidly launched an offensive towards Germany. The Third Reich’s defeat was only a matter of time: the Soviet forces were preparing to attack Berlin.

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Austria, annexed by the Nazis as a result of anschluss in 1938, served as a shield for the Third Reich’s southern regions during #WWII. The capital of Austria — the city of Vienna — was a strategically important point of the Nazi defence, which the enemy was committed to hold at any cost.

⚔️ In March 1945, during the successful offensive along the Austrian line of advance, the Red Army broke the resistance of the Nazi units deployed between the Danube and Lake Balaton (Hungary) and defeated the troops of the Nazi army group 'South'. Having advanced by that time up to 80 kilometers to Vienna, the Soviet forces launched the operation to liberate the Austrian capital.

The enemy undertook extensive preprations to hold the city. The streets were barricaded and mine-strewn. Firing points were set up in residential buildings. Destroyed houses were used to camouflage tanks and artillery pieces. All bridges over the Danube were prepared by the Nazis for demolition. In the event of retreat, the Nazis were ready to tear down the Austrian capital to the ground, including by destroying (!) its historical architectural heritage.

On April 5, 1945, the Soviet forces attacked the Nazi garrison in Vienna. Intense fighting erupted on the city outskirts. The Red Army was confronted by the most prepared enemy units and formations, including SS tank divisions. Soviet soldiers fought to death against the Nazis for every quarter and every building of the city.

With a view to prevent victims among the city's population and protect Vienna from destruction by the Nazis, the Soviet command addressed local residents:

📢 The Red Army entered Austria not to occupy its territory but only to defeat the enemy Nazi troops and liberate the country from German occupation. It also called on the Vienna residents to help fight the Nazis — this call was answered by many Austrian patriots.

On April 13, the last enemy point of resistance in the city centre was crushed, with Vienna being completely liberated from the Nazis.

During the fierce and brutal fighting for Vienna, the Red Army crushed Wehrmacht's 11 armoured divisions, destroyed the 6th SS Tank Army, and captured more than 130,000 enemy soldiers and officers. The Soviet people paid a high price for the liberation of Vienna from the Nazis: 38,000 Red Army soldiers gave their lives for saving the city from fascists.

Having liberated Vienna, our country provided aid to the city residents. The population was supplied with food: hundreds of tonnes of grain, meat, sugar, salt and other products were given to the Austrians. After the war, the people of Vienna recalled how their “fear of hunger had disappeared” and spoke with gratitude about the generosity of the Soviet people, which “exceeded all expectations.”

🎙 An excerpt from the briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova (April 9, 2025):

💬 “By acting swiftly and selflessly, the Soviet forces prevented the destruction of Vienna.

It was thanks to the decision by the Soviet command not to use artillery that Vienna has preserved its historical outlook.”

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🌟 A monument to the Soviet soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the sake of the liberation of Austria from Nazism was unveiled on August 19, 1945, on #Schwarzenbergplatz in the centre of Vienna. The country has 217 monuments and war graves on its territory.

Tens of thousands Red Army soldiers, who saved Europe from the Nazi plague, are buried in Austria.

❗️ In 1955, under the State Treaty for the Re-establishment of Independent and Democratic Austria (Art.19), Vienna took the obligations to respect, preserve and maintain the graves of the soldiers on Austrian territory.

#KievRegimeCrimes

📓 A new report, which was prepared by The International Public Tribunal on the Crimes of Ukrainian Neo-Nazis chaired by Maxim Grigoriev, titled 'War Crimes of the Kiev Regime. Materials of the International Public Tribunal on the Crimes of Ukrainian Neo-Nazi (2024–2025)' has recently been published.

This edition presents direct testimonies of victims of Ukrainian war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Their words are direct accusations of the Ukrainian neo-Nazi regime, which, with the support of Western countries, systematically and purposefully organized mass shootings of Russian and Russian-speaking citizens in the territory temporarily under its control.

In the territory temporarily controlled by the Kiev regime, the Russian-speaking population has been subjected to constant terror since 2014.

❗️ Witness testimonies in this publication denounce the Ukrainian authorities for murder, torture, beatings, rape and disappearances of citizens.

The Kiev Neo-Nazi regime has systematically and flagrantly violated the Geneva Conventions and massively committed war crimes, which, according to international law, have #NoStatuteOfLimitations.

💬 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov:

The facts presented herein about the criminal acts of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are truly appalling. Deliberate killing of civilians, torture, beatings, looting, bombing, shelling and destruction of purely civilian objects — this is by no means a complete list of crimes committed by Ukrainian neo-Nazi.

This publication is especially valuable due to the fact that it is based on the testimonies of eyewitnesses and people who suffered directly at the hands of armed groups controlled by the Kiev regime.

The atrocities committed by the Ukro-Nazi are hard to read about. But it is necessary to know about them. It is necessary because they are the simplest, most direct and irrefutable proof of the correctness and timeliness of the decision to carry out a special military operation to save people of Russian culture and eliminate threats to the security of our country.

Today, Russian soldiers and officers protect the peaceful population of Russian regions, life, honour and dignity of our citizens and compatriots in Donbass and Novorossiya.

Our common task is to do everything necessary to ensure that all those responsible for crimes are punished inevitably. This is the sacred mission of the book you are about to read.

👉 Full report (pdf)

🇷🇺🇮🇳 On April 13, New Delhi hosted the 3rd annual Russian-Indian cycling rally dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 and the 78th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between the two countries.

🔹 The event was organized by the Russian Embassy in India jointly with the Confederation of Indian Cyclists.

👥 The ride around the central part of the Indian capital brought together more than 300 people — the Embassy’s staff, compatriots living in India, students of local and Russian universities, representatives of the diplomatic corps and the public, cultural figures and journalists — united by a passion for cycling.

☝🏻 Among its participants was Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov who underscored the significance of such events that are aimed at preserving the historical memory as well as confirm the strong friendship ties between the two countries.

🔸 @RusEmbIndia

#RussiaIndia
#DruzhbaDosti
#Victory80

🎙 From FM Sergey Lavrov’s answers to the media questions during his remarks at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (April 12, 2025)

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💬 We are not about territories. We are about the people who live on these lands, whose ancestors lived there for centuries, who founded cities like Odessa, Catherine the Great, who built factories, who built houses, ports, and these people, by twist of history, during the Soviet days, became not part of Russia, but part of Ukraine, because this was considered a consolidating factor to neutralize the ultra-radicals living in the Western part of Ukraine when it joined the Soviet Union after the war.

The people who live there, they are being deprived of all human rights. I quoted the UN Charter, which in Article 1 says everybody must respect the human rights of every individual, irrespective of race, gender, language, or religion.

Human rights and language rights of anybody who is ethnic Russian and lives on the territory which used to be Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, they were deprived of their basic rights. The Russian language has been prohibited at all stages of education, in the areas of culture, media.

Russian books have been thrown out of the libraries. The Nazis in Germany were burning them, but Ukrainians are much more smart. They utilize them and get money for this, you know, but everybody is happy. And recently, the canonic Ukrainian Orthodox Church was prohibited by law. They literally exterminate anything Russian.

When in September 2021, long before the operation which we had to launch, Zelensky was asked in an interview what he thought, and at that time the Minsk Agreement was still valid, though later Germans, the French, and the Ukrainian president before Zelensky admitted that they never intended to implement them, they needed more time to arm Ukraine, speaking of the ceasefire for 30 days, logic is the same.

In November 2021, Zelensky was asked what he thought about the people on the other side of the line of contact in Donbass. And he said, trying to sound clever, "You know, there are people and there are species”. Another time he gave his advice “to those who live in Ukraine but feel associated with the Russian culture, for the sake of your kids, for the sake of your grandchildren, get out to Russia”.

Just a couple of weeks ago, in another interview, when he was asked what is driving him, he said, "Hatred to Russia." The interviewer wanted to clarify, “To President Putin?”, he said, "No, to all Russians."

This is said by the person who during his artistic days was defending the right of Ukrainians to speak Russian, and he said, "Get lost, don't even think about touching the Russian language, it's our history." So, this is where we are.

Hatred is not the best guide. By the way, maybe somebody knows, Israel never prohibited Arab language, no? I don't think so.

❗️ I think Ukraine is the only country on Earth which is multinational, and the language of one huge ethnic group is prohibited.

If you read and listen to what the West is saying, EU, NATO, especially EU. Human rights is on top of everything. When they discuss Venezuela, Russia, Serbia, Türkiye, they never forget about human rights. Check what they're saying on the situation in Ukraine. They say Zelensky and his team defend European values. If your value is exterminating the language of those who founded the country, if your value is to glorify Nazis and their collaborators who were convicted by the Nuremberg Tribunal, to whom you put monuments, whose birthdays you celebrate as national holiday, while ruining, toppling the monuments to those who saved Europe from Nazism, toppling the monument in Odessa, which I mentioned already, to Catherine the Great, who founded that city.

Soon after this monument to Catherine the Great, the Empress, was toppled, UNESCO granted the Odessa central region where the monument was located the status of World Heritage. It's such a shame to the lady who happens to be French and happens, I think, by default to become director-general of this respected organization.

🇷🇺🇮🇳 April 13 marks 78 years since the diplomatic relations were established between our country and the Republic of India.

India is Russia’s long-standing and reliable partner.

Our relations are noted by a specially privileged strategic partnership and continue to evolve dynamically. They are guided by enhanced mutual trust, respect for each other’s national interests, and alignment of stances on core global and regional issues.

🤝 Russia-India relations are also marked by intensive political dialogue, with annual meetings and high-level negotiations serving as a platform for discussing key areas of cooperation as well as current international and regional issues.

In 2024, President of Russia Vladimir Putin met twice with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi: in July, during Modi’s state visit to Moscow, which was his first foreign trip following his reappointment as Prime Minister after winning the parliamentary election, and in October, on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan.

The two countries’ Foreign Ministers maintain regular contacts. Over the past year, Sergey Lavrov and Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar have had five bilateral meetings on the sidelines of major international forums and events (1, 2, 3, 4, 5).

📈 Trade and economic cooperation between our countries is making consistent progress. In 2024, Russia’s became one of India’s top four trading partners. The mutual trade soared by 12%, reaching a record high of over $60 billion. Following the July 2024 summit, both sides set a goal to achieve $100 billion by 2030.

⚛️ Nuclear energy remains an essential area of our collaboration. With Russia as the sole country engaged in constructing a nuclear power plant in India, the two countries have achieved tangible results in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in southern India being a flagship project.

Russia and India work together to efficiently implement major projects in various sectors, such as military-technical cooperation, agriculture, cultural and humanitarian initiatives, high technology, and space exploration.

🌐 Moscow and New Delhi are committed to developing a multipolar world order based on the principles of sovereign equality, adherence to international law, and democratisation of international relations. Both partners advocate for an enhanced role of the Global South in economic decision-making, as well as for the recognition and respect of the cultural and civilisational identity of all nations and their right to determine their own development paths.

Our countries make joint efforts to promote stability and security at both regional and global levels, and maintain close coordination within BRICS and the SCO. Russia consistently supports India’s candidacy for permanent membership in the UN Security Council.

🎉 We extend our heartfelt greetings to our Indian friends on this shared anniversary! We are confident that Russia-India friendly relations will further progressively advance while our ties will continue expanding.

#RussiaIndia #DruzhbaDosti

🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s answers to the media questions during his remarks at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (Antalya, April 12, 2025)

Key points:

• More and more countries want to determine their life themselves, to have fair treatment, to have fair competition in economy, trade, in other areas, just in line with the principles of globalization, which were promoted by our Western friends, especially by the United States, for so many decades.

• What we observe is fragmentation of the world economy. This is the time of uncertainty, I would say. Nobody knows how the situation with world trade and investment is going to end.

• The United States recognize that other countries also have their national interests, and those interests would never coincide fully, maybe even half of these interests would not be similar. But when the interests, especially the interests of big countries, coincide, it is essential for them to find ways to materialize them into mutually beneficial economic, logistical, and other projects, while when these interests contradict each other, it is the responsibility and duty of countries, especially if we speak about big powers, not to allow these differences to degenerate into confrontation, especially the hot confrontation.

• I will repeat again what I said then, and I repeated this publicly also, when we speak about eliminating root causes of any conflict, including Ukrainian conflict. This is the only way to resolve the problem and to establish long-lasting peace - remove root causes.

• If Ukrainian nazi regime, I cannot describe it otherwise, enjoys the cover from the European Union, which as I just mentioned, never dropped a word about the situation with human rights in Ukraine, then this is not our problem. We listen to those people who voted at the referendum to join Russia to restore all their rights which belong to them by international law and by history, by justice.

• The European Union is not happy. And instead of doing something about this situation for the sake of their citizens Brussels people threatened to stop importing any grain from Russia. They're very specific leaders. They say that Kaja Kallas, Annalena Baerbock, they were saying yes, when criticized by the people who saying, “We live worse than before”. Yes, we understand, but our electorate should suffer for the sake of Ukraine, while at the same time thousands and thousands of Ukrainians living there in European luxury, buying very expensive vehicles. But this is what the European elite calls European values, which they defend in the person of Zelensky regime.

• I gave to our colleagues from Türkiye, to Minister Hakan Fidan, what we give to Americans, to UN, to OSCE, the list of facts, listing the attacks by Ukraine during the last three weeks against Russian energy infrastructure.

• We understand that Zelensky hates all Russians, so he gives orders. Either he gives orders, and they are not taken, or he is lying, that he is giving these orders. It's a tragedy. It's a tragedy.

Read in full

🚀 Yuri Gagarin's 108-minute voyage around the Earth inspired generations to dream beyond the stars. With his boyish grin and boundless courage, he quickly became a global icon and his legacy has been immortalised in statues and monuments across the world.

Yet one of the most unexpected tributes to the first cosmonaut lies far from space museums or bustling capitals — on the windswept Orkney Islands, off the north coast of Scotland.

Here, just steps from the Neolithic village of Skara Brae – a UNESCO World Heritage Site inhabited over 5,000 years ago – stands a carved stone that simply reads: "First Man in Space, AD 1961". Nestled among markers of human milestones, it honours Gagarin's place in our shared journey — from ancient stargazers to modern explorers.

This is a quiet reminder that Gagarin's reach extends far beyond Earth's orbit — and even beyond the expected.

💐 Recently Russian Ambassador to the UK Andrei Kelin and Russian Consul General in Edinburgh Denis Moskalenko laid flowers at the site, paying tribute to the first man in space.

#CosmonauticsDay

On April 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin ushered humanity into space era

♥️ His big great heart, genuine smile and sincerity left a mark on millions of souls.

A true hero of the people. Not even time itself can break or lessen this connection.

#Gagarin1961 #ForeverFirst #DreamBig

💬 Russian MFA Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova:

Media reports: World Press Photo withdrew the invitation to TASS photo correspondent Mikhail Tereshchenko to the awards ceremony citing increased tension on the European continent.

It is such a disgrace that they had better never said anything at all.

It's only natural that a question arises whether only photos with neutral themes such as nature, flowers and butterflies will be allowed for the contest from now on?

As a reminder: Historically, the TASS news agency, one with a great historical pedigree, not only took part in the contest but also won main prizes. From 1956 to 1992, TASS entries took 25+ top places at this contest and contributed to building up its reputation.

This situation is akin World Press Photo shooting itself in the foot.

📆 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was on a working visit to Türkiye (Antalya) on April 11 and 12 at the invitation of Foreign Minister of the Republic of Türkiye Hakan Fidan. During the visit, Sergey Lavrov took part in the 4th Antalya Diplomacy Forum and held several bilateral meetings.

During the conversation with Foreign Minister of the Republic of Türkiye Hakan Fidan, the two Ministers had a detailed discussion on key matters on the international and regional agendas, including the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, South Caucasus and the Black Sea region.

They coordinated their approaches to the topical issues related to bilateral political dialogue, as well as trade, economic and energy cooperation.

In addition, Sergey Lavrov and Hakan Fidan discussed future contacts between Russia and Türkiye.