🇷🇺🇲🇳 President Vladimir Putin held a meeting with Prime Minister of Mongolia Gombojavyn Zandanshatar (November 18, 2025, Moscow)
💬 Vladimir Putin: Overall, we are very pleased that the situation regarding the development of our cooperation is highly positive. 2025 marked the 104th anniversary of our diplomatic relations, which was very recently – on November 5.
I would like to reiterate our gratitude to the President of Mongolia for joining us in celebrating the May 9 holiday and attending the Victory Day festivities in Moscow commemorating the Great Patriotic War.
Russia-Mongolia relations are developing progressively. The first eight months of 2025 demonstrated positive trends in trade, which increased by 7.9%. It should be noted that nearly 8% growth in trade is a very good indicator in the current situation.
In June 2025, Mongolia signed a provisional trade agreement with the EAEU member states. I believe that this will not only serve as a positive sign, but will also create favorable conditions for expanding our trade and economic ties.
We hope to hold a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation in Ulaanbaatar by the end of 2025. Alexander Kozlov, who chairs the Russian part of the Commission, regularly briefs me on our joint work. Our Government actively supports everything that is being done in this sphere.
We pay special attention to our interaction in the trilateral Russia-Mongolia-China format. Today, I had the pleasure to meet with your colleague, the Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Li Qiang. We discussed the possibility of expanding our cooperation in the trilateral format.
I have no doubt that your visit to Moscow is an invaluable opportunity to discuss current issues on the bilateral agenda and to coordinate our goals for the near future.
Read in full
#RussiaMongolia
💬 Vladimir Putin: Overall, we are very pleased that the situation regarding the development of our cooperation is highly positive. 2025 marked the 104th anniversary of our diplomatic relations, which was very recently – on November 5.
I would like to reiterate our gratitude to the President of Mongolia for joining us in celebrating the May 9 holiday and attending the Victory Day festivities in Moscow commemorating the Great Patriotic War.
Russia-Mongolia relations are developing progressively. The first eight months of 2025 demonstrated positive trends in trade, which increased by 7.9%. It should be noted that nearly 8% growth in trade is a very good indicator in the current situation.
In June 2025, Mongolia signed a provisional trade agreement with the EAEU member states. I believe that this will not only serve as a positive sign, but will also create favorable conditions for expanding our trade and economic ties.
We hope to hold a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation in Ulaanbaatar by the end of 2025. Alexander Kozlov, who chairs the Russian part of the Commission, regularly briefs me on our joint work. Our Government actively supports everything that is being done in this sphere.
We pay special attention to our interaction in the trilateral Russia-Mongolia-China format. Today, I had the pleasure to meet with your colleague, the Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Li Qiang. We discussed the possibility of expanding our cooperation in the trilateral format.
I have no doubt that your visit to Moscow is an invaluable opportunity to discuss current issues on the bilateral agenda and to coordinate our goals for the near future.
Read in full
#RussiaMongolia
⚛️ President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, together with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, participated via videoconference in a ceremony marking the installation of the reactor vessel for the first unit of Egypt’s El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant (November 19, 2025)
The construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant is being carried out by the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom under a Russian-Egyptian intergovernmental agreement signed in 2015. The plant will consist of four power units with a total capacity of 4'800 megawatts.
International Atomic Energy Agency (#IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi addressed the ceremony participants with a video message.
***
💬 Remarks by President Vladimir Putin at the ceremony:
Mr President, friends,
I warmheartedly welcome all participants of the ceremony marking the installation of the reactor pressure vessel for Unit 1 of the El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant.
The presentations by our colleagues, as well as the video we have just seen, clearly demonstrate that the construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant with Russian participation is progressing confidently and successfully.
In fact, we are now entering a crucial stage in the technological outfitting of the future plant. In the foreseeable future, it will begin generating the electricity required to meet the needs of Egypt’s growing economy.
The implementation of the El Dabaa project became possible largely thanks to the personal initiative and support of our friend, President of Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who, as has already been noted, celebrates his birthday today.
Happy birthday, Mr President, I wish you good health, prosperity, and continued success in your public service.
We are grateful for the consistent attention you devote not only to this flagship project in the field of the peaceful atom, but also to the overall expansion of diverse contacts with Russia. We fully share this approach and remain committed to a comprehensive strengthening and deepening of our partnership with friendly Egypt.
It is important that Russian-Egyptian relations are steadily developing on the basis of the Strategic Cooperation Agreement, in the spirit of equality, mutual respect, and consideration for each other’s interests.
Let me also recall that in the second half of the twentieth century, Soviet specialists actively contributed to the development of Egypt’s economy, helping to build major industrial, energy, and infrastructure facilities throughout the country.
<...>
It is gratifying that our bilateral cooperation continues to develop consistently. Our trade is growing steadily. It increased by slightly more than one third last year. Our industrial cooperation is growing stronger. We are working to create a Russian industrial zone in the Suez Canal area. <...>
Rosatom, which is a recognised leader in the field of peaceful nuclear energy, is using cutting-edge engineering solutions and economically effective and reliable technologies for building the nuclear power plant in Egypt. At the same time, it complies with all necessary standards and environmental requirements. <...> Russia is training nuclear engineering personnel for Egypt. Over 100 Egyptian students have received relevant education at Russian universities.
Russia will continue to provide assistance to its Egyptian partners at all vital stages of the nuclear project. This includes long-term supplies of reactor fuel, the technical maintenance of the plant, and spent nuclear fuel management. Rosatom is ready to share its unique technologies with Egypt, in particular, regarding the assembly of small modular reactors and the use of nuclear energy in medicine and agriculture.
In conclusion, I would like to thank the Russian and Egyptian engineers employed in the construction of the El Dabaa NPP for their diligence and hard work. <...>
I would like to congratulate our Egyptian colleagues on Egyptian Nuclear Energy Day.
Thank you very much. I wish you success, and all the best.
Read the President's remarks in full
#RussiaEgypt
The construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant is being carried out by the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom under a Russian-Egyptian intergovernmental agreement signed in 2015. The plant will consist of four power units with a total capacity of 4'800 megawatts.
International Atomic Energy Agency (#IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi addressed the ceremony participants with a video message.
***
💬 Remarks by President Vladimir Putin at the ceremony:
Mr President, friends,
I warmheartedly welcome all participants of the ceremony marking the installation of the reactor pressure vessel for Unit 1 of the El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant.
The presentations by our colleagues, as well as the video we have just seen, clearly demonstrate that the construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant with Russian participation is progressing confidently and successfully.
In fact, we are now entering a crucial stage in the technological outfitting of the future plant. In the foreseeable future, it will begin generating the electricity required to meet the needs of Egypt’s growing economy.
The implementation of the El Dabaa project became possible largely thanks to the personal initiative and support of our friend, President of Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who, as has already been noted, celebrates his birthday today.
Happy birthday, Mr President, I wish you good health, prosperity, and continued success in your public service.
We are grateful for the consistent attention you devote not only to this flagship project in the field of the peaceful atom, but also to the overall expansion of diverse contacts with Russia. We fully share this approach and remain committed to a comprehensive strengthening and deepening of our partnership with friendly Egypt.
It is important that Russian-Egyptian relations are steadily developing on the basis of the Strategic Cooperation Agreement, in the spirit of equality, mutual respect, and consideration for each other’s interests.
Let me also recall that in the second half of the twentieth century, Soviet specialists actively contributed to the development of Egypt’s economy, helping to build major industrial, energy, and infrastructure facilities throughout the country.
<...>
It is gratifying that our bilateral cooperation continues to develop consistently. Our trade is growing steadily. It increased by slightly more than one third last year. Our industrial cooperation is growing stronger. We are working to create a Russian industrial zone in the Suez Canal area. <...>
Rosatom, which is a recognised leader in the field of peaceful nuclear energy, is using cutting-edge engineering solutions and economically effective and reliable technologies for building the nuclear power plant in Egypt. At the same time, it complies with all necessary standards and environmental requirements. <...> Russia is training nuclear engineering personnel for Egypt. Over 100 Egyptian students have received relevant education at Russian universities.
Russia will continue to provide assistance to its Egyptian partners at all vital stages of the nuclear project. This includes long-term supplies of reactor fuel, the technical maintenance of the plant, and spent nuclear fuel management. Rosatom is ready to share its unique technologies with Egypt, in particular, regarding the assembly of small modular reactors and the use of nuclear energy in medicine and agriculture.
In conclusion, I would like to thank the Russian and Egyptian engineers employed in the construction of the El Dabaa NPP for their diligence and hard work. <...>
I would like to congratulate our Egyptian colleagues on Egyptian Nuclear Energy Day.
Thank you very much. I wish you success, and all the best.
Read the President's remarks in full
#RussiaEgypt
🗓 November 19 marks the 103rd anniversary of the birth of Yury Knorozov, one of the most renowned Russian linguists and ethnographers, who managed to decipher Maya script.
In the first half of the XX century, the prevailing opinion in the global scientific community was that the language of this ancient civilization was impossible to decipher. Both prominent German ethnographer Paul Schellhas and leading English Mesoamerican archaeologist Eric Thompson held the same view. However, the Soviet scientist succeeded in solving this task in a library and his own study.
While translating into Russian the essential historical book by monk Diego de Landa titled in Spanish "Relación de las cosas de Yucatán" ("Account of the Things of Yucatán") of 1566, dedicated to the Mayan civilisation and its Spanish colonisation era, Yury Knorozov compared Landa’s data with available Mayan codices as well as inscriptions on monuments and ceramics. He realized that the Mayan glyphs corresponded to syllables rather than individual letters or ideograms, as many Western researchers before him believed, including Thompson.
Yury Knorozov’s discovery became a genuine scientific sensation and quickly gained international attention. In 1956, the world-famous scholar was even allowed to attend the International Congress of Americanists in Copenhagen. Eric Thompson himself was present at the gathering. It is said that when Yury Knorozov was delivering his speech on his work, Thompson’s blood pressure rose so dramatically that he became unwell. Subsequently, Thompson became Knorozov's uncompromising opponent, accusing him of promoting Marxism–Leninist propaganda and disputing his theory.
It seemed an unlikely success story: a young Soviet scholar, who had never seen Mayan cultural artifacts and worked only with ancient manuscripts managed to solve the unsolvable where an entire school of thought failed to achieve. When asked how such a thing was possible, Yury Knorozov answered ironically:
Yury Knorozov’s discovery resonated deeply in the region inhabited by the Maya and later received worldwide recognition. In 1990, at the President of Guatemala's personal invitation, he visited this Central American country, and also traveled to Mexico in 1992, 1995 and 1997. During these trips, he toured the major archaeological sites, spoke with archaeologists and delivered lectures.
Today, the legendary Soviet linguist and ethnographer is widely honored in Russia and Latin America. A department at the University of San Carlos in Guatemala was named after him, where he was also posthumously awarded an honorary doctorate. The Mesoamerican Studies Center at the Russian State University for the Humanities (RSUH) named after Yury Knorozov maintains research departments in Mexico and Guatemala.
In 2022, Galina Ershova, director of the Mesoamerican Studies Center at RSUH, published the book “The Last Genius of the XX Century. Yuri Knorozov: The Researcher’s Fate.”
In 2018, a monument to Yury Knorozov was erected in the Mexican city of Merida, and in the year of his centennial birth anniversary, the scholar's bust was unveiled at the Mexico’s National Museum of Anthropology.
Yury Knorozov’s discovery had an immense significance for world science, providing a foundation for future studies and deciphering of ancient languages. Not only did it become an important breakthrough in linguistics, but also contributed to fostering cultural ties between our country and the peoples of Latin America.
In the first half of the XX century, the prevailing opinion in the global scientific community was that the language of this ancient civilization was impossible to decipher. Both prominent German ethnographer Paul Schellhas and leading English Mesoamerican archaeologist Eric Thompson held the same view. However, the Soviet scientist succeeded in solving this task in a library and his own study.
While translating into Russian the essential historical book by monk Diego de Landa titled in Spanish "Relación de las cosas de Yucatán" ("Account of the Things of Yucatán") of 1566, dedicated to the Mayan civilisation and its Spanish colonisation era, Yury Knorozov compared Landa’s data with available Mayan codices as well as inscriptions on monuments and ceramics. He realized that the Mayan glyphs corresponded to syllables rather than individual letters or ideograms, as many Western researchers before him believed, including Thompson.
Yury Knorozov’s discovery became a genuine scientific sensation and quickly gained international attention. In 1956, the world-famous scholar was even allowed to attend the International Congress of Americanists in Copenhagen. Eric Thompson himself was present at the gathering. It is said that when Yury Knorozov was delivering his speech on his work, Thompson’s blood pressure rose so dramatically that he became unwell. Subsequently, Thompson became Knorozov's uncompromising opponent, accusing him of promoting Marxism–Leninist propaganda and disputing his theory.
It seemed an unlikely success story: a young Soviet scholar, who had never seen Mayan cultural artifacts and worked only with ancient manuscripts managed to solve the unsolvable where an entire school of thought failed to achieve. When asked how such a thing was possible, Yury Knorozov answered ironically:
“I am a desk-bound scientist. You don't need to climb pyramids to work with texts."
Yury Knorozov’s discovery resonated deeply in the region inhabited by the Maya and later received worldwide recognition. In 1990, at the President of Guatemala's personal invitation, he visited this Central American country, and also traveled to Mexico in 1992, 1995 and 1997. During these trips, he toured the major archaeological sites, spoke with archaeologists and delivered lectures.
Today, the legendary Soviet linguist and ethnographer is widely honored in Russia and Latin America. A department at the University of San Carlos in Guatemala was named after him, where he was also posthumously awarded an honorary doctorate. The Mesoamerican Studies Center at the Russian State University for the Humanities (RSUH) named after Yury Knorozov maintains research departments in Mexico and Guatemala.
In 2022, Galina Ershova, director of the Mesoamerican Studies Center at RSUH, published the book “The Last Genius of the XX Century. Yuri Knorozov: The Researcher’s Fate.”
In 2018, a monument to Yury Knorozov was erected in the Mexican city of Merida, and in the year of his centennial birth anniversary, the scholar's bust was unveiled at the Mexico’s National Museum of Anthropology.
Yury Knorozov’s discovery had an immense significance for world science, providing a foundation for future studies and deciphering of ancient languages. Not only did it become an important breakthrough in linguistics, but also contributed to fostering cultural ties between our country and the peoples of Latin America.
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#Victory80
🏅 On November 19, 1942, the Red Army launched a large-scale counteroffensive against the Nazi invaders at #Stalingrad, preceded by a devastating artillery barrage.
The operation (codenamed Uranus) was carried out by the forces of the South-Western, Don and Stalingrad Fronts, with the support of the Volga Military Flotilla.
In the first days of the offensive, the Soviet troops inflicted heavy losses on the Romanian 3rd and 4th Armies. By November 30, the encirclement and blockade of the German grouping had been fully completed.
By the end of December 1942, the enemy had exhausted its reserves and abandoned attempts to break through to the encircled forces at Stalingrad.
By January 26, Red Army units had split the enemy grouping into two parts; on January 31, the southern contingent under Field Marshal Paulus capitulated, and on 2 February the northern group also laid down its arms.
🌟 The Stalingrad counteroffensive became yet another powerful testament to the unbreakable resolve of the Soviet people.
🎥 © Russian Military Historical Society
The operation (codenamed Uranus) was carried out by the forces of the South-Western, Don and Stalingrad Fronts, with the support of the Volga Military Flotilla.
In the first days of the offensive, the Soviet troops inflicted heavy losses on the Romanian 3rd and 4th Armies. By November 30, the encirclement and blockade of the German grouping had been fully completed.
By the end of December 1942, the enemy had exhausted its reserves and abandoned attempts to break through to the encircled forces at Stalingrad.
By January 26, Red Army units had split the enemy grouping into two parts; on January 31, the southern contingent under Field Marshal Paulus capitulated, and on 2 February the northern group also laid down its arms.
🎥 © Russian Military Historical Society
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Forwarded from Russia in Canada
🎙Comment by the Ambassador of Russia to Canada Oleg Stepanov to the TASS News Agency regarding the Confrontational References to Russia in the Joint Statement on Strategic Partnership between Canada and Sweden (November 18, 2025)
✍️ We have taken note of the recently adopted Joint Statement on Strategic Partnership between Canada and Sweden. Reading through the anti-Russian passages it contains, one doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The authors of this text appear to inhabit a parallel universe.
📍 In the real world, it is abundantly clear that Ukraine has no future within NATO or the Euro-Atlantic framework. Nor is anyone aware of any genuine diplomatic peace efforts by the Kiev regime. On the contrary, we see that war is regarded by them as the sole means of political and physical survival. Moreover, judging by the endless corruption scandals in Kiev, war is being used by Zelenskyy and his junta as a tool for shameless personal enrichment, including at the expense of Canadian and Swedish taxpayers.
🇨🇦🇸🇪As for the incessant anti-Russian rhetoric coming from the political elites of Canada and Sweden, few take it seriously. It stems from impotence.
❗️Yet in this context, one valid question arises: what benefit do Canada and Sweden’s current governments hope to gain from such behavior? They stand to gain nothing from provoking a confrontation with Russia, the world’s largest nuclear power and their most influential Arctic neighbor. All they are doing is eroding their own security and undermining the well-being of their own people.
☝️We do not have an answer to that question. Perhaps it says something about the quality of the current generation of Western politicians. In that case, it is up to Western voters to make that assessment.
✍️ We have taken note of the recently adopted Joint Statement on Strategic Partnership between Canada and Sweden. Reading through the anti-Russian passages it contains, one doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The authors of this text appear to inhabit a parallel universe.
🇨🇦🇸🇪As for the incessant anti-Russian rhetoric coming from the political elites of Canada and Sweden, few take it seriously. It stems from impotence.
❗️Yet in this context, one valid question arises: what benefit do Canada and Sweden’s current governments hope to gain from such behavior? They stand to gain nothing from provoking a confrontation with Russia, the world’s largest nuclear power and their most influential Arctic neighbor. All they are doing is eroding their own security and undermining the well-being of their own people.
☝️We do not have an answer to that question. Perhaps it says something about the quality of the current generation of Western politicians. In that case, it is up to Western voters to make that assessment.
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📰 Article by Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for Lao media 🇷🇺🇱🇦 “Russia and Laos: 65 Years of Time-Tested Friendship” (November 20, 2025)
Full article (Telegraph)
✍️ On October 7, 2025, Russia and Laos marked the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Over the past decades, much has changed in our countries and in the world at large. What has remained immutable are the unifying traditions of friendship, mutual assistance, and camaraderie, rooted in the years of the national liberation struggle of the Lao people against French colonialists and American aggressors.
***
Key points:
• The USSR took active part in the 1954 Geneva Conference, which put an end to French colonial rule in Indochina, and acted as a guarantor of Laos’s neutrality. During the “undeclared war”, extensive material support from the Soviet Union was an important factor in the victory of the Lao patriotic forces.
• #RussiaLaos: Today, Russian-Lao cooperation is dynamically advancing in accordance with the spirit and letter of the Treaty on the Principles of Friendly Relations between Russia and the Lao PDR of March 9, 1994, and the Declaration on bilateral Strategic Partnership in the Asia-Pacific Region of October 13, 2011.
• We attach great importance to the development of Russian-Lao practical cooperation, the volume of which continues to grow. The primary tasks in this area are the creation of new effective transport and logistics routes, the implementation of large joint investment projects, primarily in the fields of energy, exploration and mining, as well as support for the activities of small and medium-sized businesses. <…> We see good prospects in the project to construct a small modular reactor nuclear power plant in the Lao PDR with the participation of the Rosatom State Corporation.
❗️ The strengthening strategic partnership between Russia and Laos allows us to look to the future with hope and optimism.
• The priorities for joint work are determined by the leaders of our countries during their intensive and trust-based dialogue. On July 31, 2025, talks were held between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of the Lao PDR Thongloun Sisoulith during his official visit to Russia. In 2024, two meetings of the Heads of State took place – on May 9 in Moscow and on October 24 on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan.
• Our countries’ approaches to a wide range of international issues coincide or are very close. We advocate for the unconditional observance of the principles of the UN Charter in their entirety, fullness, and interconnectedness. We are firmly committed to the formation of a just multipolar world order.
• We appreciate the desire of our Lao partners to establish contacts with the leading associations of the World Majority, including #BRICS and the #SCO, to “build bridges” with the #EAEU, and to participate in the processes of creating the Greater Eurasian Partnership and the Eurasian security architecture.
• We welcome Laos’s independent foreign policy, including its balanced position in the context of the Ukrainian crisis. Obviously, a lasting settlement of the conflict is only possible through eliminating its root causes
• The strengthening strategic partnership between our countries allows us to look to the future with hope and optimism. The 65 years of cooperation is evidence that we can solve the most complex issues for the benefit of our countries and peoples, in the interests of ensuring universal peace and prosperity.
Full article (Telegraph)
✍️ On October 7, 2025, Russia and Laos marked the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Over the past decades, much has changed in our countries and in the world at large. What has remained immutable are the unifying traditions of friendship, mutual assistance, and camaraderie, rooted in the years of the national liberation struggle of the Lao people against French colonialists and American aggressors.
***
Key points:
• The USSR took active part in the 1954 Geneva Conference, which put an end to French colonial rule in Indochina, and acted as a guarantor of Laos’s neutrality. During the “undeclared war”, extensive material support from the Soviet Union was an important factor in the victory of the Lao patriotic forces.
• #RussiaLaos: Today, Russian-Lao cooperation is dynamically advancing in accordance with the spirit and letter of the Treaty on the Principles of Friendly Relations between Russia and the Lao PDR of March 9, 1994, and the Declaration on bilateral Strategic Partnership in the Asia-Pacific Region of October 13, 2011.
• We attach great importance to the development of Russian-Lao practical cooperation, the volume of which continues to grow. The primary tasks in this area are the creation of new effective transport and logistics routes, the implementation of large joint investment projects, primarily in the fields of energy, exploration and mining, as well as support for the activities of small and medium-sized businesses. <…> We see good prospects in the project to construct a small modular reactor nuclear power plant in the Lao PDR with the participation of the Rosatom State Corporation.
❗️ The strengthening strategic partnership between Russia and Laos allows us to look to the future with hope and optimism.
• The priorities for joint work are determined by the leaders of our countries during their intensive and trust-based dialogue. On July 31, 2025, talks were held between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of the Lao PDR Thongloun Sisoulith during his official visit to Russia. In 2024, two meetings of the Heads of State took place – on May 9 in Moscow and on October 24 on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan.
• Our countries’ approaches to a wide range of international issues coincide or are very close. We advocate for the unconditional observance of the principles of the UN Charter in their entirety, fullness, and interconnectedness. We are firmly committed to the formation of a just multipolar world order.
• We appreciate the desire of our Lao partners to establish contacts with the leading associations of the World Majority, including #BRICS and the #SCO, to “build bridges” with the #EAEU, and to participate in the processes of creating the Greater Eurasian Partnership and the Eurasian security architecture.
• We welcome Laos’s independent foreign policy, including its balanced position in the context of the Ukrainian crisis. Obviously, a lasting settlement of the conflict is only possible through eliminating its root causes
• The strengthening strategic partnership between our countries allows us to look to the future with hope and optimism. The 65 years of cooperation is evidence that we can solve the most complex issues for the benefit of our countries and peoples, in the interests of ensuring universal peace and prosperity.
🇴🇲 On November 20, the Sultanate of #Oman is celebrating National Day.
📆 The date is linked with founding the Al Bu Said dynasty whose members have been governing the state since the mid-18th century. In 1744, Sultan Ahmad ibn Said Al Busaidi gained power, expelled foreign invaders from the country and launched a large-scale economic and military modernisation programme. During his reign, Oman regained its regional influence, and the foundations of a state, which continues to develop successfully today, were also laid.
Almost 300 years on, the Sultanate has achieved impressive successes in its socio-economic development. The country has implemented a comprehensive economic modernisation programme and has become one of the most stable and safest Middle East states. The Oman Vision 2040 national strategy, implemented under the guidance of Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq, provides for further economic diversification, the development of the green energy sector and expanded international cooperation.
🤝 The Soviet Union and the Sultanate of Oman established diplomatic relations on September 26, 1985. In 1987, the Soviet Embassy opened in Muscat (for two years, the Soviet Ambassador to Jordan represented our country in Oman).
#RussiaOman: Bilateral cooperation is developing most actively in the field of education, culture and tourism. Russian artistic groups regularly perform in the Sultanate. In 2025, Muscat is hosting the large-scale Russian Seasons festival of Russian culture and art.
🎉 We wholeheartedly congratulate our friends and colleagues in Oman on their national holiday, and we wish them well-being and prosperity!
📆 The date is linked with founding the Al Bu Said dynasty whose members have been governing the state since the mid-18th century. In 1744, Sultan Ahmad ibn Said Al Busaidi gained power, expelled foreign invaders from the country and launched a large-scale economic and military modernisation programme. During his reign, Oman regained its regional influence, and the foundations of a state, which continues to develop successfully today, were also laid.
Almost 300 years on, the Sultanate has achieved impressive successes in its socio-economic development. The country has implemented a comprehensive economic modernisation programme and has become one of the most stable and safest Middle East states. The Oman Vision 2040 national strategy, implemented under the guidance of Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq, provides for further economic diversification, the development of the green energy sector and expanded international cooperation.
🤝 The Soviet Union and the Sultanate of Oman established diplomatic relations on September 26, 1985. In 1987, the Soviet Embassy opened in Muscat (for two years, the Soviet Ambassador to Jordan represented our country in Oman).
#RussiaOman: Bilateral cooperation is developing most actively in the field of education, culture and tourism. Russian artistic groups regularly perform in the Sultanate. In 2025, Muscat is hosting the large-scale Russian Seasons festival of Russian culture and art.
🎉 We wholeheartedly congratulate our friends and colleagues in Oman on their national holiday, and we wish them well-being and prosperity!
🇷🇺🇨🇳 President Vladimir Putin held a meeting with Li Qiang, Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China (November 18, 2025, Moscow)
💬 Vladimir Putin: Close Russia-China cooperation within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (#SCO) is helping to shape the SCO into one of the pillars of a multipolar international order, to draw the countries of the Global South into its orbit, and to help advance an open and non-discriminatory global trading system.
I believe that, at the level of the SCO Council of Heads of Government this year, we were able to organically complement the efforts undertaken by our Chinese friends during their chairmanship, which successfully culminated in the Summit in Tianjin.
I warmly recall my visit to that remarkable, beautiful and modern Chinese city, as well as my extensive conversations with my friend President Xi Jinping in Tianjin and later in Beijing during the commemorative events marking the 80th anniversary of China’s victory over militarist Japan and the end of the Second World War.
🤝 Please convey my very best wishes and warm greetings to the President of the People’s Republic of China.
The comprehensive Russian-Chinese relations of partnership and strategic interaction, having entered a new era, are truly experiencing the best period in their history. They are built upon the principles of equality, mutual benefit, and mutual support on issues affecting each other’s core interests, and are not directed against anyone. <…>
In 2024, we achieved record figures in bilateral trade – the highest in the history of our relations. We will continue to strengthen trade cooperation in line with our approved long-term plans. It is important to ensure the reliable protection of our trade and economic cooperation from negative external influences.
Taking our partnership to a new qualitative level and reinforcing its technological foundation will be facilitated by a broad range of joint sectoral projects in energy, industry, space and agriculture. The training of qualified personnel also requires close attention. In this regard, the Russia-China Years of Education in 2026-2027, which we have already planned, will be particularly useful. In my view, this is a very timely and positive initiative.
Our humanitarian exchanges are also developing dynamically. The Cross Years of Culture are drawing to a successful close.
Further expansion of contacts between our peoples will certainly be promoted by the decision of our Chinese friends to introduce a visa-free regime for Russian citizens. We are grateful for this goodwill gesture.
On our side, reciprocal measures for citizens of the People’s Republic of China visiting Russia will enter into force in the very near future. I am confident that this will have very substantial effects both economically and in humanitarian terms. In my opinion, it will serve as a distinctly positive boost to the advancement of our relations.
Read in full
#RussiaChina
💬 Vladimir Putin: Close Russia-China cooperation within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (#SCO) is helping to shape the SCO into one of the pillars of a multipolar international order, to draw the countries of the Global South into its orbit, and to help advance an open and non-discriminatory global trading system.
I believe that, at the level of the SCO Council of Heads of Government this year, we were able to organically complement the efforts undertaken by our Chinese friends during their chairmanship, which successfully culminated in the Summit in Tianjin.
I warmly recall my visit to that remarkable, beautiful and modern Chinese city, as well as my extensive conversations with my friend President Xi Jinping in Tianjin and later in Beijing during the commemorative events marking the 80th anniversary of China’s victory over militarist Japan and the end of the Second World War.
🤝 Please convey my very best wishes and warm greetings to the President of the People’s Republic of China.
The comprehensive Russian-Chinese relations of partnership and strategic interaction, having entered a new era, are truly experiencing the best period in their history. They are built upon the principles of equality, mutual benefit, and mutual support on issues affecting each other’s core interests, and are not directed against anyone. <…>
In 2024, we achieved record figures in bilateral trade – the highest in the history of our relations. We will continue to strengthen trade cooperation in line with our approved long-term plans. It is important to ensure the reliable protection of our trade and economic cooperation from negative external influences.
Taking our partnership to a new qualitative level and reinforcing its technological foundation will be facilitated by a broad range of joint sectoral projects in energy, industry, space and agriculture. The training of qualified personnel also requires close attention. In this regard, the Russia-China Years of Education in 2026-2027, which we have already planned, will be particularly useful. In my view, this is a very timely and positive initiative.
Our humanitarian exchanges are also developing dynamically. The Cross Years of Culture are drawing to a successful close.
Further expansion of contacts between our peoples will certainly be promoted by the decision of our Chinese friends to introduce a visa-free regime for Russian citizens. We are grateful for this goodwill gesture.
On our side, reciprocal measures for citizens of the People’s Republic of China visiting Russia will enter into force in the very near future. I am confident that this will have very substantial effects both economically and in humanitarian terms. In my opinion, it will serve as a distinctly positive boost to the advancement of our relations.
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#RussiaChina
👏 A round of applause to the winners of the 11th Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest!
🏆 Grand Prix (Series)
The international jury unanimously selected Yekaterina Yakel's (Russia) series “Russian Will: Steeplechase” – a powerful story about veterans who, despite severe injuries and trauma, continue to embody resilience and courage in their everyday lives.
🌍 Nomination “My Planet”:
• Best Single Work – “Fruit Trees Growing in Tents” by Mengdan Zhu (China), portraying farmers who shield their plum trees from extreme weather, creating striking “landscapes under domes”.
• Best Series – “Ashura” by Mustafa AbdulHadi (Bahrain), a vivid chronicle of the mourning procession in Karbala held on Ashura Day, commemorated annually by Shia Muslims in Iraq.
📸 Nomination “Portrait: A Hero of Our Time”:
• “Fishing Family” by Nyein Nyein Htwe (Myanmar) – a tender moment of a fisherman handing his catch to his wife.
• Series “Whisper in the Silence” by Pelagia Tikhonova (Russia), depicting the lives of girls at the Nikolo-Solbinsky Convent and how their surroundings shape their character.
✈️ Nomination “Top View: Single Photograph”:
A striking image, “Aircraft on the Tarmac of the Flooded Airport”, by Anselmo Cunha dos Santos (Brazil), taken in Rio Grande do Sul, – a powerful symbol of nature's force and human vulnerability.
***
The International Photo Contest was established on December 22, 2014. It is named in honor of Andrei Stenin, a special photojournalist for Rossiya Segodnya who was killed in southeastern Ukraine in August 2014 while carrying out his professional duty.
The contest is the only international platform in Russia dedicated to discovering emerging talents in photojournalism, promoting high professional standards and defining benchmarks for the quality of documentary photography. Its mission is to support young photojournalists aged 18 to 33 in their pursuit of professional excellence.
The awards ceremony held on 18 November in Moscow marked the start of the traditional exhibition tour showcasing the winning works. The international programme already includes gallery stops in Ethiopia, Serbia and Argentina, with more destinations to be added.
📷 ALL WINNERS OF THE 2025 CONTEST
🏆 Grand Prix (Series)
The international jury unanimously selected Yekaterina Yakel's (Russia) series “Russian Will: Steeplechase” – a powerful story about veterans who, despite severe injuries and trauma, continue to embody resilience and courage in their everyday lives.
🌍 Nomination “My Planet”:
• Best Single Work – “Fruit Trees Growing in Tents” by Mengdan Zhu (China), portraying farmers who shield their plum trees from extreme weather, creating striking “landscapes under domes”.
• Best Series – “Ashura” by Mustafa AbdulHadi (Bahrain), a vivid chronicle of the mourning procession in Karbala held on Ashura Day, commemorated annually by Shia Muslims in Iraq.
📸 Nomination “Portrait: A Hero of Our Time”:
• “Fishing Family” by Nyein Nyein Htwe (Myanmar) – a tender moment of a fisherman handing his catch to his wife.
• Series “Whisper in the Silence” by Pelagia Tikhonova (Russia), depicting the lives of girls at the Nikolo-Solbinsky Convent and how their surroundings shape their character.
✈️ Nomination “Top View: Single Photograph”:
A striking image, “Aircraft on the Tarmac of the Flooded Airport”, by Anselmo Cunha dos Santos (Brazil), taken in Rio Grande do Sul, – a powerful symbol of nature's force and human vulnerability.
***
The International Photo Contest was established on December 22, 2014. It is named in honor of Andrei Stenin, a special photojournalist for Rossiya Segodnya who was killed in southeastern Ukraine in August 2014 while carrying out his professional duty.
The contest is the only international platform in Russia dedicated to discovering emerging talents in photojournalism, promoting high professional standards and defining benchmarks for the quality of documentary photography. Its mission is to support young photojournalists aged 18 to 33 in their pursuit of professional excellence.
The awards ceremony held on 18 November in Moscow marked the start of the traditional exhibition tour showcasing the winning works. The international programme already includes gallery stops in Ethiopia, Serbia and Argentina, with more destinations to be added.
📷 ALL WINNERS OF THE 2025 CONTEST
📄 Statement of the Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation on the US threats against #Venezuela (November 12, 2025)
The Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation expresses serious concern over the deployment of a US naval group in the southern part of the Caribbean Sea, close to the territorial waters of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, under the pretext of combating drug cartels.
The provocative US actions contradict universally recogniяed principles and norms of international law, including those enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, and lead to a dangerous increase in tensions in the Caribbean basin and Latin America.
The Council of the Federation expresses its firm support for the leadership of Venezuela in defending its national sovereignty.
The Senators of the Russian Federation advocate stable and independent development for the Latin American and Caribbean region, and consider it essential to refrain from escalation and threats. Any emerging cross-border issues must be resolved through cooperation among states within the framework of international legal norms.
The Senators of the Russian Federation underline that Russia and Venezuela are bound by relations of strategic partnership and cooperation, and reaffirm their readiness to continue strengthening and expanding bilateral interaction with the National Assembly of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
❗️ The Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation calls on the Inter-Parliamentary Union, other international parliamentary organizations, as well as the parliaments of foreign states, to resolutely condemn threats of force against Venezuela and to speak out in favor of preserving peace in the Latin American and Caribbean region.
The Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation expresses serious concern over the deployment of a US naval group in the southern part of the Caribbean Sea, close to the territorial waters of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, under the pretext of combating drug cartels.
The provocative US actions contradict universally recogniяed principles and norms of international law, including those enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, and lead to a dangerous increase in tensions in the Caribbean basin and Latin America.
The Council of the Federation expresses its firm support for the leadership of Venezuela in defending its national sovereignty.
The Senators of the Russian Federation advocate stable and independent development for the Latin American and Caribbean region, and consider it essential to refrain from escalation and threats. Any emerging cross-border issues must be resolved through cooperation among states within the framework of international legal norms.
The Senators of the Russian Federation underline that Russia and Venezuela are bound by relations of strategic partnership and cooperation, and reaffirm their readiness to continue strengthening and expanding bilateral interaction with the National Assembly of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
❗️ The Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation calls on the Inter-Parliamentary Union, other international parliamentary organizations, as well as the parliaments of foreign states, to resolutely condemn threats of force against Venezuela and to speak out in favor of preserving peace in the Latin American and Caribbean region.
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🇷🇺🇮🇷 On November 20, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran Abbas Araghchi.
The conversation focused on regional security.
#RussiaIran
The conversation focused on regional security.
#RussiaIran
🇷🇺🇪🇬 On November 20, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko received Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt in Moscow Hamdy Shaaban at his request.
During their conversation, the officials conducted a substantive exchange of opinions regarding issues of European security, including the Eastern Mediterranean region.
The Russian Side assessed the current situation and the causes of the crisis in the sphere of European security.
🤝 The officials also touched upon certain aspects of the bilateral agenda of mutual interest.
#RussiaEgypt
During their conversation, the officials conducted a substantive exchange of opinions regarding issues of European security, including the Eastern Mediterranean region.
The Russian Side assessed the current situation and the causes of the crisis in the sphere of European security.
🤝 The officials also touched upon certain aspects of the bilateral agenda of mutual interest.
#RussiaEgypt