[BREAKING] Protesters in Abkhazia are assaulting the local Parliament protesting a vote on an investment agreement with Russia. Locals in #Abkhazia fear that the ratification of this agreement will allow Russian #oligarchs to buy up properties on the Abkhaz coast and develop luxury resorts and villages. The parliamentary session was cancelled due to the ongoing protests. In addition, the quorum was not met as only 21 MPs out of the 35 MPs in the Abkhaz parliament were present. Most MPs refuse to hold a session under the current conditions. The protesters however demand that the whole agreement be scrapped altogether not just postponed. Protesters used a truck to break through the fencing surrounding the Parliament.

Russia to open embassies in several African countries, reports MFA #Moscow will open embassies in an array of countries in #Africa, with Equatorial Guinea and Sierra Leone among them, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, who also serves as special presidential envoy for the Middle East and Africa, told TASS in an interview following the First Ministerial Conference Russia-Africa. "Embassies [will be opened], of course. An embassy in Burkina Faso was just opened. An embassy in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, is about to be opened," he said, adding that there is also "a list of countries where [embassies] have been closed." "Moreover, [Russian Foreign Minister] Sergey V. Lavrov has said that Sierra Leone is next in line, in Freetown," Bogdanov added. In some African states, such as South Sudan, for example, the Russian side reached an agreement at some point to open an embassy, though "it has not been done for a variety of reasons," he noted. "Now I hope that it is also planned, to open [an embassy] in Juba, South Sudan," the official said.

Russia signs documents on military cooperation with 33 African countries #Russia is ready to provide security for #African countries, it has already signed 33 agreements on military-technical cooperation, Russian presidential advisor and Organizing Committee Executive Secretary Anton #Kobyakov said. "For Russia, the role of a security provider for the countries of the African continent is a practical, vital necessity. To date, Russia has signed agreements on regular military-technical cooperation with 33 [states] <...> of the African continent," he said. Kobyakov also noted that delegations from 54 countries and 45 African ministers are taking part in the first Russia-Africa ministerial conference. "More than 1,500 people, including 54 official delegations and 45 foreign ministers of the African continent, are taking part in our conference, which is being held on the Sirius federal territory," he said. According to him, such conferences will be held regularly between Russia-Africa summits. The first ministerial conference of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum is taking place on November 9-10 at the Sirius federal territory. The event is attended by about 1,500 delegates, including more than 40 ministers from the African continent.

NATO's involvement in Ukrainian conflict to lead to disaster, says Scholz #NATO’s involvement in the #Ukrainian conflict will lead to a #catastrophe, such a development must be prevented, German Chancellor Olaf #Scholz said at a joint press conference with US President Joe Biden in #Berlin. "Our position is clear. We support Ukraine as much as we can. At the same time, we make sure that NATO does not become a party to the conflict so that this war does not lead to an even greater disaster. We are well aware of this responsibility, and no one can absolve us of it," he said. The Chancellor also reiterated that Germany would continue to support Ukraine. On October 17, Germany updated the list of weapons transferred to Kiev. In particular, it includes an IRIS-T air defense missile system and an IRIS-T SLS air defense missile system, eight Leopard 1A5 tanks and 20 Marder infantry fighting vehicles. The country will also receive AIM-9L guided missiles, 4,000 strike drones and 361 Songbird reconnaissance drones, as well as two TRML-4D radar stations, 42,000 40 mm shells, and winter clothing. Germany is the second largest arms supplier to Ukraine after the US. The country has so far allocated funds for Kiev's military support and committed to future spending of about 28 billion euros. Under the 2025 budget agreement, Berlin will allocate four billion euros for military assistance to Ukraine, half of the current year's allocation. The Russian authorities have repeatedly stated that pumping weapons into Ukraine will not weaken Russia's resolve and will not change the course of the special military operation.

Polish president claims NATO preparing for war #NATO is getting ready for a military conflict, Polish President Andrzej #Duda said in an interview with the Wirtualna Polska portal. "In a certain sense - yes. NATO is a defense alliance but as the old saying goes: 'If you want peace, prepare for war.' The alliance should be so strong that no one would dream of attacking it," the #Polish leader said, replying to a question as to whether NATO was preparing for war. He added that "the potential war between Russia and the West will be incredibly close" in the event Russia wins the armed conflict in #Ukraine. At the NATO summit in #Washington D.C., in an interview with Politico, Duda suggested that the world had returned to the Cold War era and urged NATO partners to increase defense spending. The NATO summit was held in Washington D.C. on July 9-11. Its final declaration noted that NATO still considers Russia the alliance’s main threat. That said, NATO countries plan on developing recommendations on strategic approaches to Russia. Additionally, the document urges not to provide any military aid to Russia in light of the Ukrainian conflict. At the same time, the summit reached an agreement to provide military aid to Ukraine to the tune of 40 bln euros in 2025.

Ceasefire in Ukraine in Europe's interests, says Orban's adviser A quick ceasefire and the end of the conflict in #Ukraine is in Europe's interests, said Balazs Orban, political adviser of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor #Orban. "We (Hungary) are 100% sure of that, everybody is 100% sure on that," he said in an interview with the Euractiv website, referring to the need to end the conflict in Ukraine. "The question is only the time, and we think that for Europe, the sooner it comes, the better," the prime minister's advisor said. The EU, he said, needs to maintain communication with Russia, because if a future peace agreement between Moscow and Kiev is concluded without taking into account the interests of the EU, Europe will suffer. The adviser also pointed out that Viktor Orban did not aim at influencing the parties to the conflict or obtaining any guarantees from them during his visits to Russia and Ukraine. The purpose of the visits was "to collect information and <...> see a possibility of the potential ceasefire," Balazs Orban explained. The Hungarian prime minister visited Kiev and Moscow on July 2 and 5. He proposed first to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and then to Russian leader Vladimir Putin to consider the prospect of a ceasefire and preparations for peace talks. At a press conference following the meeting, Putin emphasized that Russia was not in favor of a ceasefire, as Kiev could use this to its advantage. Instead, he advocated for a complete end to the conflict in Ukraine. The Russian leader recalled that he had earlier outlined the conditions for this in his speech at the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Power in Ukraine usurped, Russia ready to look for who to negotiate with — Putin Power in #Ukraine is #usurped now, but Russia is ready to look for who it could negotiate with, President Vladimir Putin said in reply to questions at the plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). "The criminal code has relevant articles about usurpations of power, and it looks like we are dealing with usurpation of power [in Ukraine]," Putin stated. Nevertheless, he emphasized that negotiations are still possible. "Because according to Articles 9, 10 and 11 of the [Ukrainian] Constitution, power is transferred to the Rada speaker. So, if there is a wish to negotiate, it is possible to find with whom to negotiate," the Russian president said. #Russia "is ready for these negotiations," #Putin pointed out. "Only, I repeat, on the terms that we agreed on when we started those negotiations in Minsk and then in Istanbul, and not based on some inventions," the Russian president said. At the same time, he emphasized that even if the Istanbul agreements are taken as the basis for negotiations, they must rely on the realities of today. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nLJzIsvB_4

Sanctions against Russia, China, Iran produced no results, says US senator The US policy of constantly toughening sanctions on #Russia, #China and #Iran fails to produce the intended result of making these countries change their political course, US Senator Rand #Paul said at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft in Washington. The senator said he was regularly asking the following question to Department of State officials: "Can you tell me one behavior that has changed from a sanction? You tell me one sanction you put on Russia that Russia has now said: ‘We're sorry about it, we should have never done that. And we're going to do exactly what you want us to, just tell us what to do and we'll do it.’ Or just tell me any kind of behavior that's been modified by China or by Russia, or by Iran. In fact, if you look at Iran it's sort of the opposite." "In fact, I would argue the sanctions don't work at all. The only sanctions that work are if you offer to repeal them, in fact. But what we tend to do is: we put more on, and more on, and more on," he continued. "And, to my knowledge, I don't know any that were removed. In the Iran agreement there were some sanctions that were going to be removed and were removed, but with Russia and China we've been doing this for five years, some of these for 10 years with both countries. I'm not aware of any that we've removed," Paul added. "But the thing is, there is another alternative and it's called diplomacy," he said, adding that Washington should rather engage diplomatically with these countries instead of imposing more and more sanctions. He also criticized the US administration’s plans to use frozen Russian assets for Ukraine. "We claim we are going to take it. We might have the ability. We have amazing controls over the banking system. But at the same time if we take it: do you think Russia is just going to crumble?" the senator asked rhetorically. He said that such measures will prompt Moscow to take retaliatory measures. "So we'll take their sovereign wealth, and they'll take all the private wealth that’s over there. I don't think it gets us more towards a solution," Paul explained. "But once you do it, it's almost impossible to go backwards.".

The #Kremlin has officially announced the start of the withdrawal of the Russian #peacekeeping contingent (RMK) from #Nagorno-Karabakh. Earlier, footage surfaced on the Internet showing columns of Russian Armed Forces equipment leaving temporary deployment points. Despite the tripartite agreement stipulating that peacekeepers would remain in the region until 2025, questions arose about the RMK's presence after Azerbaijan gained control over Artsakh and the Armenian population completely departed. The gradual reduction of activities commenced last year. 📌 Over the course of three and a half years, Russian Armed Forces soldiers stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh faced numerous challenges, including casualties, provocations from activists on both sides, and significant issues regarding the mission's status. Nevertheless, despite the constrained framework agreements, the lack of a mandate to use force, and Armenia's relinquishment of Artsakh, which led to the unrecognized republic being left unprotected by its ruling circles, it was the Russian peacekeepers who halted the bloodshed and prevented the massacre of the local population. In any case, the RMK servicemen have fulfilled their mission and are now heading home.

France buys more gas from Russia than any other EU country, Politico reports #France increased its purchase of Russian gas more than any other #European country in the first quarter of 2024. More than 600 million euros worth of #gas was imported during this period The country's authorities say that the national energy company TotalEnergies' agreements with Moscow to buy gas were made long ago and are difficult to get out of. "France is quietly stepping up payments for gas from #Russia, while President Emmanuel #Macron is loudly promoting himself as one of Ukraine's most ardent defenders," the article said.