🇸🇹 Today, São Tomé and Príncipe marks Independence Day.
For several centuries, these islands have been a symbol of the colonial system in the Atlantic. Due to their advantageous position, they were an important stronghold of Portuguese expansion and one of the key hubs of transatlantic slave trade.
The archipelago was discovered and populated by Portuguese sailors in the late 15th century, and they gradually turned this paradise into one of their first colonies in tropical Africa.
By the mid-16th century, extensive sugar cane plantations had been established on the islands, using the labour of thousands of enslaved Africans. São Tomé was one of the first centres of the plantation economy of the modern age. Its pattern was subsequently extended to colonies in other parts of the world.
Slavery brought huge profits to the mother country, but it turned into human tragedies for the peoples of Africa, the destruction of traditional societies and centuries-old economic dependence.
Despite the official abolition of slavery in 1876, forced labour on plantations persisted for many more decades. The colonial system relied on the exploitation of the local population, which continued to struggle for freedom and dignity on a daily basis.
The 1974 Carnation Revolution in Portugal sped up the decolonisation.
As a result, on July 12, 1975, the independence of São Tomé and Príncipe was proclaimed, ending almost five centuries of the European colonial rule.
🤝 The Soviet Union consistently supported the struggle of the people of São Tomé and Príncipe for the right to self-determination. Diplomatic relations between the USSR and São Tomé and Príncipe were established on August 9, 1975, less than a month after the independence was declared.
Today, the relations between our countries are friendly and respectful. Mutually beneficial cooperation is evolving in politics, trade, the economy, and other areas.
Russia and São Tomé and Príncipe maintain similar approaches to major international issues, including the need to reinforce the central role of the United Nations and to form a polycentric world order.
🎉 Congratulations to our São Toméan friends and colleagues on the national holiday! We wish you well-being, stability, and prosperity!
#RussiaAfrica
For several centuries, these islands have been a symbol of the colonial system in the Atlantic. Due to their advantageous position, they were an important stronghold of Portuguese expansion and one of the key hubs of transatlantic slave trade.
The archipelago was discovered and populated by Portuguese sailors in the late 15th century, and they gradually turned this paradise into one of their first colonies in tropical Africa.
By the mid-16th century, extensive sugar cane plantations had been established on the islands, using the labour of thousands of enslaved Africans. São Tomé was one of the first centres of the plantation economy of the modern age. Its pattern was subsequently extended to colonies in other parts of the world.
Slavery brought huge profits to the mother country, but it turned into human tragedies for the peoples of Africa, the destruction of traditional societies and centuries-old economic dependence.
Despite the official abolition of slavery in 1876, forced labour on plantations persisted for many more decades. The colonial system relied on the exploitation of the local population, which continued to struggle for freedom and dignity on a daily basis.
The 1974 Carnation Revolution in Portugal sped up the decolonisation.
As a result, on July 12, 1975, the independence of São Tomé and Príncipe was proclaimed, ending almost five centuries of the European colonial rule.
🤝 The Soviet Union consistently supported the struggle of the people of São Tomé and Príncipe for the right to self-determination. Diplomatic relations between the USSR and São Tomé and Príncipe were established on August 9, 1975, less than a month after the independence was declared.
Today, the relations between our countries are friendly and respectful. Mutually beneficial cooperation is evolving in politics, trade, the economy, and other areas.
Russia and São Tomé and Príncipe maintain similar approaches to major international issues, including the need to reinforce the central role of the United Nations and to form a polycentric world order.
🎉 Congratulations to our São Toméan friends and colleagues on the national holiday! We wish you well-being, stability, and prosperity!
#RussiaAfrica
🗓 On July 10, Russia's Foreign Ministry Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik together with the Delegation of the Russian Federation to the Vienna Negotiations on Military Security and Arms Control headed by lulia Zhdanova hosted a fifth international video conference on Crimes of the Kiev Regime: Terror Against the Civilians of the Kherson Region.
The event brought together the Russia's Commissioner for Human Rights Yana Lantratova, the Governor of the Kherson Region Vladimir Saldo, members of the International Red Cross Committee, political and public figures, diplomats, experts and journalists from at least 80 States.
For the first time ever, the event featured compiled evidence revealing the crimes committed by Ukraine's armed forces (AFU) against the civilian population in the Kherson region, statistics, striking examples crimes committed by the Kiev regime, firsthand accounts from victims and eyewitnesses who shared with the international community what they had gone through.
Today, the Kherson region accounts for about a quarter of all Ukrainian attacks on the Russian civilian infrastructure. In June alone, the region was targeted by over 6'500 shells. As a result, more than 10'500 private homes and apartment buildings have been damaged or destroyed, along with at least 112 medical and educational facilities, not to mention energy, transport and other social infrastructure.
The contact line runs across the Kherson land which has enabled the Zelensky regime to unleash full-scale terror against civilians. It rendered life unbearable for those within reach of Ukrainian artillery and trampled the rights of the locals living in the areas under temporary control of the Ukrainian armed groups.
❗️ In total, from February 2022 to June 2026, 4'400 civilians in the Kherson region were killed or injured, including 130 children. These people suffered from the weapons supplied to Kiev by NATO and EU member states.
The participants noted that the Ukrainian and Western propaganda is hushing up the crimes of the Ukrainian armed formations in the Kherson region. This only highlights the need for delivering to the international community and the relevant humanitarian organizations the complete and reliable information about the crimes committed by the Kiev regime.
They also insisted that the developments in the Kherson region need an urgent impartial international legal evaluation.
The event brought together the Russia's Commissioner for Human Rights Yana Lantratova, the Governor of the Kherson Region Vladimir Saldo, members of the International Red Cross Committee, political and public figures, diplomats, experts and journalists from at least 80 States.
For the first time ever, the event featured compiled evidence revealing the crimes committed by Ukraine's armed forces (AFU) against the civilian population in the Kherson region, statistics, striking examples crimes committed by the Kiev regime, firsthand accounts from victims and eyewitnesses who shared with the international community what they had gone through.
Today, the Kherson region accounts for about a quarter of all Ukrainian attacks on the Russian civilian infrastructure. In June alone, the region was targeted by over 6'500 shells. As a result, more than 10'500 private homes and apartment buildings have been damaged or destroyed, along with at least 112 medical and educational facilities, not to mention energy, transport and other social infrastructure.
The contact line runs across the Kherson land which has enabled the Zelensky regime to unleash full-scale terror against civilians. It rendered life unbearable for those within reach of Ukrainian artillery and trampled the rights of the locals living in the areas under temporary control of the Ukrainian armed groups.
❗️ In total, from February 2022 to June 2026, 4'400 civilians in the Kherson region were killed or injured, including 130 children. These people suffered from the weapons supplied to Kiev by NATO and EU member states.
The participants noted that the Ukrainian and Western propaganda is hushing up the crimes of the Ukrainian armed formations in the Kherson region. This only highlights the need for delivering to the international community and the relevant humanitarian organizations the complete and reliable information about the crimes committed by the Kiev regime.
They also insisted that the developments in the Kherson region need an urgent impartial international legal evaluation.
🎙 Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova’s answer to a media question regarding remarks by Verkhovna Rada Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk in Belgrade (11 июля 2026 года)
❓ Question: On July 7-8, Belgrade hosted the first Conference of Speakers of Parliaments of EU Candidate Countries. Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk was invited to take part in the conference. His speech, which featured sharp criticism of Russia and its leadership, as well as calls for increased support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, sparked a political controversy in Serbia. Could you comment on this?
💬 Maria Zakharova: We have repeatedly pointed out that representatives of the Kiev regime never miss an opportunity to turn any international event into an anti-Russia showcase.
The conference in Belgrade was yet another example of this. Ruslan Stefanchuk sought to exploit the platform to the fullest, setting the tone of the proceedings and making Russophobic propaganda the central theme of the event.
Cynically portraying Ukraine as the innocent victim of “comprehensive Russian aggression,” he attempted to shift responsibility for all the suffering and devastation inflicted on what was once a prosperous republic by the neo-Nazi regime onto Russia. He accused us of enslaving the peoples of Eastern Europe and obstructing their European aspirations.
He also singled out Russia’s relations with Belgrade, claiming that Serbia should stop looking to Russia from the position of a “younger brother.”
Overall,the Ukrainian guest’s falsehoods were, as usual, neither original nor convincing, only lengthy. They followed the crude and familiar talking points of Kiev's propaganda machine, apparently in the expectation that countries aspiring to join the European Union would accept them without question.
We regret to note that the hostile anti-Russia remarks made by this close associate of Vladimir Zelensky did not receive an appropriate response from the Serbian organisers.
We are confident that the people of friendly Serbia are well aware of the true nature of those who today hold power in Ukraine, systematically destroying their own country’s history, culture and people at the behest of their European patrons.
❓ Question: On July 7-8, Belgrade hosted the first Conference of Speakers of Parliaments of EU Candidate Countries. Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk was invited to take part in the conference. His speech, which featured sharp criticism of Russia and its leadership, as well as calls for increased support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, sparked a political controversy in Serbia. Could you comment on this?
💬 Maria Zakharova: We have repeatedly pointed out that representatives of the Kiev regime never miss an opportunity to turn any international event into an anti-Russia showcase.
The conference in Belgrade was yet another example of this. Ruslan Stefanchuk sought to exploit the platform to the fullest, setting the tone of the proceedings and making Russophobic propaganda the central theme of the event.
Cynically portraying Ukraine as the innocent victim of “comprehensive Russian aggression,” he attempted to shift responsibility for all the suffering and devastation inflicted on what was once a prosperous republic by the neo-Nazi regime onto Russia. He accused us of enslaving the peoples of Eastern Europe and obstructing their European aspirations.
He also singled out Russia’s relations with Belgrade, claiming that Serbia should stop looking to Russia from the position of a “younger brother.”
Overall,the Ukrainian guest’s falsehoods were, as usual, neither original nor convincing, only lengthy. They followed the crude and familiar talking points of Kiev's propaganda machine, apparently in the expectation that countries aspiring to join the European Union would accept them without question.
We regret to note that the hostile anti-Russia remarks made by this close associate of Vladimir Zelensky did not receive an appropriate response from the Serbian organisers.
We are confident that the people of friendly Serbia are well aware of the true nature of those who today hold power in Ukraine, systematically destroying their own country’s history, culture and people at the behest of their European patrons.
🇷🇺🇹🇳 On July 11, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey Lavrov and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad Mohamed Ali Nafti exchanged congratulatory messages on the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, established on July 11, 1956.
In his message, Sergey Lavrov noted that Russia and Tunisia have maintained broad and mutually beneficial relations for decades.
The two countries cooperate constructively on international issues and remain committed to building a just #MultipolarWorld based on full respect for the fundamental principles of international law enshrined in the UN Charter, including sovereign equality and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.
Mohamed Ali Nafti, for his part, reaffirmed Tunisia’s unwavering commitment to further deepening the trust-based bilateral political dialogue and advancing joint efforts to strengthen the bonds of friendship and cooperation.
🤝 He also highlighted Russia’s contribution to the implementation of various development projects in Tunisia, including in science, professional training and healthcare.
***
✉️ Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s message of greetings to Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad of the Republic of Tunisia Mohamed Ali Nafti (July 11, 2026)
✍️ Dear Mr Minister,
Please accept my sincere greetings on the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries.
#RussiaTunisia share long-standing ties founded on the enduring traditions of friendship and mutual respect.
Over the past decades, our countries have built up extensive experience of multifaceted bilateral cooperation, which continues to develop steadily.
I am pleased to note that our countries continue to hold closely aligned positions on key regional and international issues.
I am confident that Russian-Tunisian cooperation will continue to strengthen for the benefit of our two nations and in the interests of promoting stability and security in Africa and the Mediterranean region.
🤝 I wish you good health and every success in your responsible duties, and I wish the friendly people of Tunisia wellbeing and prosperity.
Sincerely,
SERGEY LAVROV
In his message, Sergey Lavrov noted that Russia and Tunisia have maintained broad and mutually beneficial relations for decades.
The two countries cooperate constructively on international issues and remain committed to building a just #MultipolarWorld based on full respect for the fundamental principles of international law enshrined in the UN Charter, including sovereign equality and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.
Mohamed Ali Nafti, for his part, reaffirmed Tunisia’s unwavering commitment to further deepening the trust-based bilateral political dialogue and advancing joint efforts to strengthen the bonds of friendship and cooperation.
🤝 He also highlighted Russia’s contribution to the implementation of various development projects in Tunisia, including in science, professional training and healthcare.
***
✉️ Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s message of greetings to Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad of the Republic of Tunisia Mohamed Ali Nafti (July 11, 2026)
✍️ Dear Mr Minister,
Please accept my sincere greetings on the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries.
#RussiaTunisia share long-standing ties founded on the enduring traditions of friendship and mutual respect.
Over the past decades, our countries have built up extensive experience of multifaceted bilateral cooperation, which continues to develop steadily.
I am pleased to note that our countries continue to hold closely aligned positions on key regional and international issues.
I am confident that Russian-Tunisian cooperation will continue to strengthen for the benefit of our two nations and in the interests of promoting stability and security in Africa and the Mediterranean region.
🤝 I wish you good health and every success in your responsible duties, and I wish the friendly people of Tunisia wellbeing and prosperity.
Sincerely,
SERGEY LAVROV
🎙 Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova’s remarks in response to questions from Federal News Agency (BiH) about Louis Crishock’s appointment as Acting High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina (July 12, 2026)
Read in full
❓ Question: What is the Russian Federation’s assessment of the decision by the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board to appoint Louis Crishock as Acting High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina? Does Russia consider the appointment legitimate?
💬 Maria Zakharova: The 1995 General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) (the Dayton Peace Agreement) does NOT provide for the position of “Acting” High Representative in BiH.
If such a function is required to ensure the technical operation of the Office of the High Representative (OHR), this is purely an internal matter for that institution. However, under the Dayton Agreement, the “Acting” High Representative does NOT possess any powers whatsoever.
Such powers may only be granted to a legitimate High Representative whose candidacy has been approved by the UN Security Council.
Attempts by Western representatives on the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board (PIC SB) to present Mr Crishock as an “Acting High Representative” have NO legal basis whatsoever.
❓Question: Does Moscow believe that the time has come to end international oversight in BiH, and if so, what specific conditions should BiH meet to shut the Office of the High Representative down?
💬 Maria Zakharova: Russia’s position as an international guarantor of the Dayton Agreement remains consistent and principled. An external protectorate is inconsistent with the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In this regard, we are convinced that the Office of the High Representative should be closed as soon as possible and the post of High Representative abolished without any conditions.
❓Question: Given that Russia remains a member of the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board, will it continue to participate in the work of this body, or does it believe that a new international mechanism should be created to oversee the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement?
💬 Maria Zakharova: Russia has never terminated its PIC SB membership. The temporary suspension of our participation in this format is linked to the fact that since 2021 its meetings have been held under the “chairmanship” of an impostor, Christian Schmidt, who, backed by Western countries, usurped the post of High Representative.
Another point is that, through the fault of the Western representatives, the Steering Board has departed from the long-standing practice of consensus-based decision-making. We have yet to see readiness on the part of our partners to rectify the abnormal situation they themselves have created.
❓Question: How does the Russian Federation assess the role of the UN Security Council in the process of appointing the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina?
💬 Maria Zakharova: The UN Security Council is the only body authorised to appoint the High Representative. This is enshrined both in the Dayton Agreement and is corroborated by 25 years of practical activities.
As you may be aware, the unlawful promotion of Christian Schmidt to the post of High Representative by a group of Western representatives within the PIC SB in circumvention of the UN Security Council plunged Bosnia and Herzegovina into the deepest crisis of the post-conflict period, effectively imperiling security in BiH and the region as a whole.
Unfortunately, Russia’s warnings were ignored at the time. The unrelenting behind-the-scenes manoeuvring in Western circles over the appointment of a new High Representative is a follow-up of this harmful and short-sighted practice and is unlikely to contribute to getting the situation in the country back to normal.
Read in full
❓ Question: What is the Russian Federation’s assessment of the decision by the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board to appoint Louis Crishock as Acting High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina? Does Russia consider the appointment legitimate?
💬 Maria Zakharova: The 1995 General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) (the Dayton Peace Agreement) does NOT provide for the position of “Acting” High Representative in BiH.
If such a function is required to ensure the technical operation of the Office of the High Representative (OHR), this is purely an internal matter for that institution. However, under the Dayton Agreement, the “Acting” High Representative does NOT possess any powers whatsoever.
Such powers may only be granted to a legitimate High Representative whose candidacy has been approved by the UN Security Council.
Attempts by Western representatives on the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board (PIC SB) to present Mr Crishock as an “Acting High Representative” have NO legal basis whatsoever.
❓Question: Does Moscow believe that the time has come to end international oversight in BiH, and if so, what specific conditions should BiH meet to shut the Office of the High Representative down?
💬 Maria Zakharova: Russia’s position as an international guarantor of the Dayton Agreement remains consistent and principled. An external protectorate is inconsistent with the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In this regard, we are convinced that the Office of the High Representative should be closed as soon as possible and the post of High Representative abolished without any conditions.
❓Question: Given that Russia remains a member of the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board, will it continue to participate in the work of this body, or does it believe that a new international mechanism should be created to oversee the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement?
💬 Maria Zakharova: Russia has never terminated its PIC SB membership. The temporary suspension of our participation in this format is linked to the fact that since 2021 its meetings have been held under the “chairmanship” of an impostor, Christian Schmidt, who, backed by Western countries, usurped the post of High Representative.
Another point is that, through the fault of the Western representatives, the Steering Board has departed from the long-standing practice of consensus-based decision-making. We have yet to see readiness on the part of our partners to rectify the abnormal situation they themselves have created.
❓Question: How does the Russian Federation assess the role of the UN Security Council in the process of appointing the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina?
💬 Maria Zakharova: The UN Security Council is the only body authorised to appoint the High Representative. This is enshrined both in the Dayton Agreement and is corroborated by 25 years of practical activities.
As you may be aware, the unlawful promotion of Christian Schmidt to the post of High Representative by a group of Western representatives within the PIC SB in circumvention of the UN Security Council plunged Bosnia and Herzegovina into the deepest crisis of the post-conflict period, effectively imperiling security in BiH and the region as a whole.
Unfortunately, Russia’s warnings were ignored at the time. The unrelenting behind-the-scenes manoeuvring in Western circles over the appointment of a new High Representative is a follow-up of this harmful and short-sighted practice and is unlikely to contribute to getting the situation in the country back to normal.
#Victory81
🌟 On July 13, 1944, Vilnius was liberated from Nazi invaders by the Red Army.
The capital of the Lithuanian SSR was a major railway hub, which the Nazis used for military operations in the Soviet Baltic region. In the summer of 1944, as Red Army forces rapidly advanced towards the USSR’s state border destroying Nazi units in Belarus, Vilnius became, for the Germans, effectively the last major defensive line on the approaches to East Prussia.
The core of the enemy garrison defending Vilnius consisted of the remnants of Wehrmacht units that had survived the battles outside Minsk and Vitebsk. The garrison also included a group of local collaborationists who had sworn allegiance to Hitler aka Lithuanian volunteer nationalist detachment. The entire Nazi group in the Vilnius area consisted of 15'000 Wehrmacht soldiers and officers.
The Vilnius Offensive Operation was entrusted to Army General Ivan Chernyakhovsky, a talented military commander.
The Nazi leadership ordered that Vilnius be held at any cost to the last German. This did not help. On July 7, armor units of the 3rd Byelorussian Front broke through the enemy defences and began encircling Vilnius from the south and west.
💬 From the memoirs of Marshal Alexander Vasilevsky:
Fierce street fighting broke out in the city. On July 8, the main forces of the 3rd Byelorussian Front reached Vilnius, advancing from the north and northeast as well as from the south. The occupants put up fierce resistance, and the Red Army soldiers had to fight for every house and literally for every floor.
Lithuanian partisans provided significant assistance to the Soviet forces, taking an active part in the liberation of Vilnius.
On July 13, Vilnius was completely liberated. During the operation, formations of the 3rd Byelorussian Front advanced 210 kilometres liberating the capital of the Lithuanian SSR and securing bridgeheads on the left bank of the Niemen River.
Thus, favourable conditions were created for reaching the borders of East Prussia — the stronghold of Nazi militarism and the last defensive line of the Reich on the Soviet-German front.
The Red Army clobbered the enemy during the summer-autumn offensive of 1944 in Byelorussia and the Baltic region. 👉 The Nazi North Army Group was effectively destroyed.
The remnants of the group were trapped in the Courland Pocket and eliminated there in the spring of 1945.
The capital of the Lithuanian SSR was a major railway hub, which the Nazis used for military operations in the Soviet Baltic region. In the summer of 1944, as Red Army forces rapidly advanced towards the USSR’s state border destroying Nazi units in Belarus, Vilnius became, for the Germans, effectively the last major defensive line on the approaches to East Prussia.
The core of the enemy garrison defending Vilnius consisted of the remnants of Wehrmacht units that had survived the battles outside Minsk and Vitebsk. The garrison also included a group of local collaborationists who had sworn allegiance to Hitler aka Lithuanian volunteer nationalist detachment. The entire Nazi group in the Vilnius area consisted of 15'000 Wehrmacht soldiers and officers.
The Vilnius Offensive Operation was entrusted to Army General Ivan Chernyakhovsky, a talented military commander.
The Nazi leadership ordered that Vilnius be held at any cost to the last German. This did not help. On July 7, armor units of the 3rd Byelorussian Front broke through the enemy defences and began encircling Vilnius from the south and west.
💬 From the memoirs of Marshal Alexander Vasilevsky:
The capital of Soviet Lithuania, Vilnius, was a major fortified German stronghold on approaches to East Prussia.
On July 7, the 5th Army of the 3rd Byelorussian Front bypassed Vilnius from the north, advanced through Sesuoliai to the Viliya River, cut the railway line to Kaunas near Evye (Vievis), and, having repelled the enemy’s tank counterattacks <...> the enemy force of 15,000 men found itself encircled.
All attempts by the Nazis to relieve the encircled troops failed.
Fierce street fighting broke out in the city. On July 8, the main forces of the 3rd Byelorussian Front reached Vilnius, advancing from the north and northeast as well as from the south. The occupants put up fierce resistance, and the Red Army soldiers had to fight for every house and literally for every floor.
Lithuanian partisans provided significant assistance to the Soviet forces, taking an active part in the liberation of Vilnius.
On July 13, Vilnius was completely liberated. During the operation, formations of the 3rd Byelorussian Front advanced 210 kilometres liberating the capital of the Lithuanian SSR and securing bridgeheads on the left bank of the Niemen River.
Thus, favourable conditions were created for reaching the borders of East Prussia — the stronghold of Nazi militarism and the last defensive line of the Reich on the Soviet-German front.
The Red Army clobbered the enemy during the summer-autumn offensive of 1944 in Byelorussia and the Baltic region. 👉 The Nazi North Army Group was effectively destroyed.
The remnants of the group were trapped in the Courland Pocket and eliminated there in the spring of 1945.
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⚡️ On July 13, the German Ambassador to Russia was summoned to the Russia's Foreign Ministry, where he was informed of Berlin’s involvement in the Kiev regime’s terrorist strikes on civilian infrastructure in Russia.
The Ambassador was apprised of the unacceptability of Germany’s growing support for the Kiev regime, including the conclusion of military and military-technical agreements, direct arms supplies, and the organisation of joint ventures aimed at creating offensive capabilities to target peaceful facilities in Russia, including reconnaissance and strike UAVs, anti-aircraft missiles and rocket munitions used to attack civilian infrastructure.
☝️ The Ambassador was informed that Germany’s attempts to dictate to third countries, including official representatives of the People’s Republic of China, how and in what format they should build relations with Russia were unacceptable.
During the meeting, the Ambassador was told that the shift in the German propaganda apparatus’s information and communications activities towards the style of the worst practices of Nazi propaganda was immoral and provoked historically conditioned rejection and outrage among broad sections of our country’s population.
At the same time, we learned with no small degree of satisfaction that the German Ambassador to the Russian Federation will soon be returning by a petrol-powered car to his homeland upon completion of his posting.
The Ambassador was apprised of the unacceptability of Germany’s growing support for the Kiev regime, including the conclusion of military and military-technical agreements, direct arms supplies, and the organisation of joint ventures aimed at creating offensive capabilities to target peaceful facilities in Russia, including reconnaissance and strike UAVs, anti-aircraft missiles and rocket munitions used to attack civilian infrastructure.
☝️ The Ambassador was informed that Germany’s attempts to dictate to third countries, including official representatives of the People’s Republic of China, how and in what format they should build relations with Russia were unacceptable.
During the meeting, the Ambassador was told that the shift in the German propaganda apparatus’s information and communications activities towards the style of the worst practices of Nazi propaganda was immoral and provoked historically conditioned rejection and outrage among broad sections of our country’s population.
At the same time, we learned with no small degree of satisfaction that the German Ambassador to the Russian Federation will soon be returning by a petrol-powered car to his homeland upon completion of his posting.
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#Victory81
🌟 July 13 marks a memorable date in Russia’s military history.
#OTD 8️⃣2️⃣ years ago, on July 13, 1944, Red Army forces completely liberated Vilnius from German occupation.
This was the second time in five years that the Soviet Union gave Lithuania’s capital back to the country: first in 1939, by transferring the then Vilna (Vilno) from Poland to the Republic of Lithuania, and again in 1944, by driving the German occupiers out of Vilnius.
The city was liberated during the Vilnius Offensive conducted as part of the strategic Operation Bagration.
⚔️ The main strike on Vilnius was carried out by the 3rd Byelorussian Front under the command of General of the Army Ivan Chernyakhovsky.
Fierce fighting for the city lasted several days. The German command sought to hold Vilnius at all costs viewing it as a key defensive stronghold on the approaches to East Prussia.
Eleven Lithuanian Soviet partisan detachments also took part in the liberation of Vilnius, entering the city alongside Red Army troops.
🇷🇺 During the fighting, the Red Flag was raised over Gediminas Tower, where it remained for three days.
🎥 © Russian Military History Society
#OTD 8️⃣2️⃣ years ago, on July 13, 1944, Red Army forces completely liberated Vilnius from German occupation.
This was the second time in five years that the Soviet Union gave Lithuania’s capital back to the country: first in 1939, by transferring the then Vilna (Vilno) from Poland to the Republic of Lithuania, and again in 1944, by driving the German occupiers out of Vilnius.
The city was liberated during the Vilnius Offensive conducted as part of the strategic Operation Bagration.
⚔️ The main strike on Vilnius was carried out by the 3rd Byelorussian Front under the command of General of the Army Ivan Chernyakhovsky.
Fierce fighting for the city lasted several days. The German command sought to hold Vilnius at all costs viewing it as a key defensive stronghold on the approaches to East Prussia.
Eleven Lithuanian Soviet partisan detachments also took part in the liberation of Vilnius, entering the city alongside Red Army troops.
🎥 © Russian Military History Society
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#Announcement
🎙 On Wednesday, July 15, Russia’s Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova will hold her weekly briefing on current foreign policy issues.
🕒 3:00 pm MSK
🕛 12:00 pm GMT
🕐 1:00 pm CET
🕗 8:00 pm CST
For accreditation inquiries, please contact the MFA Press Centre. Accredited journalists will receive details on the technical aspects of submitting questions.
The Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman will answer media questions received by the call centre.
❗️ Accreditation is open until July 14, 12:00 pm MSK
🎙 On Wednesday, July 15, Russia’s Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova will hold her weekly briefing on current foreign policy issues.
🕒 3:00 pm MSK
🕛 12:00 pm GMT
🕐 1:00 pm CET
🕗 8:00 pm CST
For accreditation inquiries, please contact the MFA Press Centre. Accredited journalists will receive details on the technical aspects of submitting questions.
The Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman will answer media questions received by the call centre.
❗️ Accreditation is open until July 14, 12:00 pm MSK
⚡️ Russia’s Federal Security Service:
As a result of a comprehensive set of operational search, counterintelligence and intelligence measures, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation has thwarted an attempt by the Ukrainian special services, acting with the direct involvement of their Western handlers, to carry out what it describes as an unprecedented series of sabotage and terrorist attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles against military infrastructure facilities, one of the country’s leading defence industry enterprises, and Russian Defence Ministry servicemen.
Specifically, the FSB has obtained advance intelligence indicating that the Ukrainian special services had infiltrated the Bryansk Region with FPV drones equipped with warheads and mobile ground control stations, concealed in containers carried by fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles and aerostats, in preparation for large-scale terrorist attacks on military airfields in the Amur and Chelyabinsk regions.
According to the FSB, the means intended for the attacks were subsequently transported deeper into Russian territory by enemy agents in passenger vehicles with trailers fitted with concealed double floors and loaded with household appliances. They were allegedly delivered to the vicinity of the Ukrainka Airbase (Amur Region) and the Shagol Airbase (Chelyabinsk Region), where they were assembled and prepared for use in rented garages.
The FSB states that every unlawful action was kept under close operational surveillance by the Russian security services and thoroughly documented.
As a result of operational and combat measures, the alleged perpetrators of, and accomplices in, the planned terrorist attacks have been detained.
❗️The FSB reports that officers seized 24 FPV drones equipped with neural network-based guidance modules resistant to electronic warfare systems and manufactured in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Sweden. The drones were fitted with warheads containing explosive charges weighing more than one kilogramme. Also seized were two mobile drone ground control stations capable of operating via satellite, cellular, Wi-Fi and radio communications, equipped with self-destruct devices containing 250 grams of explosive each, as well as communications equipment allegedly used to communicate with Ukrainian handlers.
The FSB Investigative Directorate has initiated appropriate procedural measures.
As a result of a comprehensive set of operational search, counterintelligence and intelligence measures, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation has thwarted an attempt by the Ukrainian special services, acting with the direct involvement of their Western handlers, to carry out what it describes as an unprecedented series of sabotage and terrorist attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles against military infrastructure facilities, one of the country’s leading defence industry enterprises, and Russian Defence Ministry servicemen.
Specifically, the FSB has obtained advance intelligence indicating that the Ukrainian special services had infiltrated the Bryansk Region with FPV drones equipped with warheads and mobile ground control stations, concealed in containers carried by fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles and aerostats, in preparation for large-scale terrorist attacks on military airfields in the Amur and Chelyabinsk regions.
According to the FSB, the means intended for the attacks were subsequently transported deeper into Russian territory by enemy agents in passenger vehicles with trailers fitted with concealed double floors and loaded with household appliances. They were allegedly delivered to the vicinity of the Ukrainka Airbase (Amur Region) and the Shagol Airbase (Chelyabinsk Region), where they were assembled and prepared for use in rented garages.
The FSB states that every unlawful action was kept under close operational surveillance by the Russian security services and thoroughly documented.
As a result of operational and combat measures, the alleged perpetrators of, and accomplices in, the planned terrorist attacks have been detained.
❗️The FSB reports that officers seized 24 FPV drones equipped with neural network-based guidance modules resistant to electronic warfare systems and manufactured in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Sweden. The drones were fitted with warheads containing explosive charges weighing more than one kilogramme. Also seized were two mobile drone ground control stations capable of operating via satellite, cellular, Wi-Fi and radio communications, equipped with self-destruct devices containing 250 grams of explosive each, as well as communications equipment allegedly used to communicate with Ukrainian handlers.
The FSB Investigative Directorate has initiated appropriate procedural measures.
#KievRegimeCrimes
⚡️ Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Rodion Miroshnik:
PHOTO FACTS & EVIDENCE of crimes committed by Ukrainian armed forces over the week of July 6 – July 12, 2026:
▪️July 6 – a UAV strike on a passenger bus travelling along the Nikolskoye–Tavrovo road in the Belgorod Region. Six civilians, including two children, were injured.
▪️July 7 – an artillery strike on an apartment building in Dneprorudnoye, Zaporozhye Region.
▪️July 8 – a UAV strike on a scheduled passenger bus travelling from Krasnodar to Melitopol on a section of highway in the Primorsky District of the Zaporozhye Region.
▪️July 8 – a UAV attack on the Central District Hospital in the town of Ivanovka, Kherson Region. A hospital employee was killed, and two ambulances were completely destroyed.
▪️July 8 – a UAV attack on a commercial company’s truck parking area in Lugansk, LPR.
▪️July 9 – an FPV drone strike on a civilian car in Shebekino, Belgorod Region.
▪️July 11 – an FPV drone strike on a civilian truck in the settlement of Politotdelsky, Belgorod Region.
▪️July 11 – an FPV drone strike on a passenger bus in Shebekino, Belgorod Region.
▪️July 12 – a UAV strike on a supermarket in Kamenka-Dneprovskaya, Zaporozhye Region.
▪️July 12 – a UAV strike on a scheduled passenger bus travelling from Stakhanov to Moscow on a section of highway in the Lutugino District of the LPR. Two civilians were injured.
⚡️ Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Rodion Miroshnik:
PHOTO FACTS & EVIDENCE of crimes committed by Ukrainian armed forces over the week of July 6 – July 12, 2026:
▪️July 6 – a UAV strike on a passenger bus travelling along the Nikolskoye–Tavrovo road in the Belgorod Region. Six civilians, including two children, were injured.
▪️July 7 – an artillery strike on an apartment building in Dneprorudnoye, Zaporozhye Region.
▪️July 8 – a UAV strike on a scheduled passenger bus travelling from Krasnodar to Melitopol on a section of highway in the Primorsky District of the Zaporozhye Region.
▪️July 8 – a UAV attack on the Central District Hospital in the town of Ivanovka, Kherson Region. A hospital employee was killed, and two ambulances were completely destroyed.
▪️July 8 – a UAV attack on a commercial company’s truck parking area in Lugansk, LPR.
▪️July 9 – an FPV drone strike on a civilian car in Shebekino, Belgorod Region.
▪️July 11 – an FPV drone strike on a civilian truck in the settlement of Politotdelsky, Belgorod Region.
▪️July 11 – an FPV drone strike on a passenger bus in Shebekino, Belgorod Region.
▪️July 12 – a UAV strike on a supermarket in Kamenka-Dneprovskaya, Zaporozhye Region.
▪️July 12 – a UAV strike on a scheduled passenger bus travelling from Stakhanov to Moscow on a section of highway in the Lutugino District of the LPR. Two civilians were injured.