U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
| Photo Credit: AFP

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his visit to the Lomonosov Moscow State University in Moscow on January 24, 2025. Photo: Sputnik via Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday (January 24, 2025) echoed U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim the conflict in Ukraine could have been prevented had he been in the White House in 2022. He also said Moscow is ready for talks with the U.S. on a broad range of issues.

In an interview with Russian state television, Mr. Putin praised Mr. Trump as a “clever and pragmatic man” who is focused on U.S. interests.

“We always had a business-like, pragmatic but also trusting relationship with the current U.S. president,” Mr. Putin said. “I couldn’t disagree with him that if he had been President, if they hadn’t stolen victory from him in 2020, the crisis that emerged in Ukraine in 2022 could have been avoided.”

Mr. Putin’s statement was his bluntest endorsement yet of Mr. Trump’s refusal to accept his defeat in the 2020 election.

Mr. Trump also has said repeatedly he wouldn’t have allowed the conflict to start if he had been in office, even though he was president as fighting grew in the east of the country between Kyiv’s forces and separatists aligned with Moscow, ahead of Mr. Putin sending in tens of thousands of troops in 2022.

On Thursday (January 23, 2025), Mr. Trump told Fox News that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should have made a deal with Mr. Putin to avoid the conflict.

Mr. Putin emphasised on Friday (January 24, 2025) that he’s open to talks but pointed to Mr. Zelenskyy’s 2022 decision to rule out negotiations with Moscow.

“How is it possible to conduct talks if they are banned?” Mr. Putin said. “If the talks start in the existing legal framework, they would be illegitimate and the results of those talks could also be declared illegitimate.”

He also said the U.S. and Russia have many other items on their agenda, including nuclear arms control and economic issues.

“We can have quite a lot of points of contact with the current administration and search for solutions to key issues of today,” Mr. Putin said.

He said the sanctions against Russia introduced during Mr. Trump’s first term and under Joe Biden’s administration had hurt U.S. interests, undermining the dollar’s role in global financial system.

Mr. Putin described Mr. Trump as “not only clever, but a pragmatic man”, adding. “I find it hard to imagine that he would make decisions that would hurt the American economy”.

“We’d better meet and have a calm conversation on all issues of interest to both the United States and Russia based on today’s realities,” Mr. Putin said.

He noted that as top oil producers and major industrial powers, Russia and the U.S. aren’t interested in global oil prices being either too low or too high. “We have things to talk about,” Mr. Putin said.

Speaking by video from the White House to the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday (January 23, 2025), Mr. Trump said the OPEC+ alliance of oil exporting countries shares responsibility for the nearly 3-year-old conflict in Ukraine because it has kept oil prices too high.

“If the price came down, the Russia-Ukraine war would end immediately,” he said. Energy sales form a large part of Russia’s earnings.

Asked about Mr. Trump’s comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov affirmed Moscow’s view that the conflict was triggered by the West’s refusal to take into account Russian security interests.

“The conflict doesn’t depend on oil prices,” Mr. Peskov said in a conference call with reporters. “The conflict is ongoing because of the threat to Russia’s national security, the threat to Russians living on those territories and the refusal by the Americans and the Europeans to listen to Russia’s security concerns. It’s not linked to oil prices.”

Mr. Peskov’s comments echoed Putin’s statements that he had to send troops into Ukraine to fend off a threat to Russia’s security resulting from plans for Ukraine to join NATO and to protect Russian speakers living there. Ukraine and the West have denounced Moscow’s action as an unprovoked act of aggression.

On Wednesday (January 22, 2025), Mr. Trump threatened to impose stiff tariffs and sanctions on Russia if an agreement isn’t reached to end the fighting in Ukraine.

Mr. Peskov said the Kremlin was closely following Mr. Trump’s statements and noted he imposed a slew of sanctions in his first term. He said Moscow “remains ready for an equal dialogue, for a mutually respectful dialogue”.

“This dialogue took place between the two presidents during Trump’s first presidency. And we are waiting for signals that we have not received yet,” Mr. Peskov said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his visit to the Lomonosov Moscow State University in Moscow on January 24, 2025. Photo: Sputnik via Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday (January 24, 2025) echoed U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim the conflict in Ukraine could have been prevented had he been in the White House in 2022. He also said Moscow is ready for talks with the U.S. on a broad range of issues.

In an interview with Russian state television, Mr. Putin praised Mr. Trump as a “clever and pragmatic man” who is focused on U.S. interests.

“We always had a business-like, pragmatic but also trusting relationship with the current U.S. president,” Mr. Putin said. “I couldn’t disagree with him that if he had been President, if they hadn’t stolen victory from him in 2020, the crisis that emerged in Ukraine in 2022 could have been avoided.”

Mr. Putin’s statement was his bluntest endorsement yet of Mr. Trump’s refusal to accept his defeat in the 2020 election.

Mr. Trump also has said repeatedly he wouldn’t have allowed the conflict to start if he had been in office, even though he was president as fighting grew in the east of the country between Kyiv’s forces and separatists aligned with Moscow, ahead of Mr. Putin sending in tens of thousands of troops in 2022.

On Thursday (January 23, 2025), Mr. Trump told Fox News that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should have made a deal with Mr. Putin to avoid the conflict.

Mr. Putin emphasised on Friday (January 24, 2025) that he’s open to talks but pointed to Mr. Zelenskyy’s 2022 decision to rule out negotiations with Moscow.

“How is it possible to conduct talks if they are banned?” Mr. Putin said. “If the talks start in the existing legal framework, they would be illegitimate and the results of those talks could also be declared illegitimate.”

He also said the U.S. and Russia have many other items on their agenda, including nuclear arms control and economic issues.

“We can have quite a lot of points of contact with the current administration and search for solutions to key issues of today,” Mr. Putin said.

He said the sanctions against Russia introduced during Mr. Trump’s first term and under Joe Biden’s administration had hurt U.S. interests, undermining the dollar’s role in global financial system.

Mr. Putin described Mr. Trump as “not only clever, but a pragmatic man”, adding. “I find it hard to imagine that he would make decisions that would hurt the American economy”.

“We’d better meet and have a calm conversation on all issues of interest to both the United States and Russia based on today’s realities,” Mr. Putin said.

He noted that as top oil producers and major industrial powers, Russia and the U.S. aren’t interested in global oil prices being either too low or too high. “We have things to talk about,” Mr. Putin said.

Speaking by video from the White House to the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday (January 23, 2025), Mr. Trump said the OPEC+ alliance of oil exporting countries shares responsibility for the nearly 3-year-old conflict in Ukraine because it has kept oil prices too high.

“If the price came down, the Russia-Ukraine war would end immediately,” he said. Energy sales form a large part of Russia’s earnings.

Asked about Mr. Trump’s comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov affirmed Moscow’s view that the conflict was triggered by the West’s refusal to take into account Russian security interests.

“The conflict doesn’t depend on oil prices,” Mr. Peskov said in a conference call with reporters. “The conflict is ongoing because of the threat to Russia’s national security, the threat to Russians living on those territories and the refusal by the Americans and the Europeans to listen to Russia’s security concerns. It’s not linked to oil prices.”

Mr. Peskov’s comments echoed Putin’s statements that he had to send troops into Ukraine to fend off a threat to Russia’s security resulting from plans for Ukraine to join NATO and to protect Russian speakers living there. Ukraine and the West have denounced Moscow’s action as an unprovoked act of aggression.

On Wednesday (January 22, 2025), Mr. Trump threatened to impose stiff tariffs and sanctions on Russia if an agreement isn’t reached to end the fighting in Ukraine.

Mr. Peskov said the Kremlin was closely following Mr. Trump’s statements and noted he imposed a slew of sanctions in his first term. He said Moscow “remains ready for an equal dialogue, for a mutually respectful dialogue”.

“This dialogue took place between the two presidents during Trump’s first presidency. And we are waiting for signals that we have not received yet,” Mr. Peskov said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the Security Council of Russia via video link at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia on January 20, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on taking office hours before Trump’s inauguration in Washington and said he was open to dialogue with the new U.S. administration on Ukraine and nuclear arms.

Mr. Putin, who said he wanted to secure a long-lasting peace in Ukraine rather than a short ceasefire, made the comments during a meeting of Russia’s Security Council that was shown on state TV.

“We see the statements by the newly elected president of the United States and members of his team about the desire to restore direct contacts with Russia,” said Mr. Putin.

“We also hear his statement about the need to do everything possible to prevent World War Three. We of course welcome this attitude and congratulate the elected president of the United States of America on taking office.”

Mr. Putin’s statement reflects cautious hopes in Russia that Mr. Trump may be able to begin to repair ties between Washington and Moscow, which have fallen to their lowest level since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, even as many Russian government officials publicly say they realise that such hopes may come to nothing.

Mr. Putin, who usually holds Security Council meetings on Fridays rather than Mondays, said Russia was open to talks with the new administration on a range of what he called key international issues, including on nuclear arms and security and on the Ukraine conflict.

Mr. Trump has promised to swiftly end the war in Ukraine though he has not explained exactly how he would do that.

Mr. Putin has said before that he is ready for talks but that Russia’s territorial gains and claims must be accepted, something the Ukrainian leadership has rejected as an unacceptable capitulation.

‘LONG-TERM PEACE’

“As for the resolution of the situation (in Ukraine) itself, I would like to emphasise that the goal should not be a brief ceasefire, not some kind of period of respite that would allow a regrouping and rearmament of forces, but a long-term peace based on respect for the legitimate interests of all people and all peoples who live in the region,” Mr. Putin said on Monday (January 20, 2025).

He also indicated that Moscow was ready to discuss nuclear arms control and wider security issues.

The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, which caps the number of strategic nuclear warheads that the United States and Russia can deploy, and the deployment of land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them, is due to run out on Feb. 5, 2026.

It is the last remaining pillar of nuclear arms control between the world’s two biggest nuclear powers.

In the event of an escalation, Putin said Russia will respond just as ‘decisively’.

Poland’s President Andrzej Duda. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Poland’s President Andrzej Duda is in China on a visit that brings the leader of a NATO member to a country that has backed Russia in its full-on invasion of Ukraine.

“I am trying to maintain friendly relations with China, Poland has always had decent relations with China and I would like that to be continued,” Mr. Duda said in an interview on private Radio Zet on June 21.

He was scheduled to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on June 24 and has said peace in Ukraine will be discussed.

Asked if he believes that China is holding a key to peace in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Mr. Duda said: “I think that to a large degree, yes.” While China says it is neutral in the fighting, it has blamed NATO’s expansion for provoking Russian President Vladimir Putin into launching the invasion and has maintained robust trade and diplomatic relations with Moscow. Poland borders Ukraine and has provided refuge for those fleeing the fighting and maintained a hard line against further expansion of Russian aggression.

Mr. Duda said he will also talk to Mr. Xi about Belarus exerting migration pressure on the border with Poland, as a form of hybrid war that also includes cyberattacks. Mr. Duda will also seek a visa waiver for Poles traveling to China and will seek possibilities of increasing Poland’s exports there, to balance their trade relations.

State Statistics Poland said 13.9% of the nation’s imports last year were from China, while Polish exports to China were just a fraction of that amount. Some trade agreements are to be signed during the visit.

On Wednesday, Mr. Duda will fly to the financial hub of Shanghai to attend a Poland-China economic forum.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to North Korea on June 18 for a “friendly” visit, the Kremlin announced, as the West suspects Pyongyang of supplying Moscow with weapons for its Ukraine offensive.

The visit to the world’s most reclusive state comes as Mr. Putin seeks ammunition to continue his military campaign launched in February 2022, which has thrown Moscow into unprecedented global isolation.

It also comes nine months after Mr. Putin hosted North Korea’s Kim Jong Un on a rare foreign trip to the Russian Far East, where the pair lavished each other with praise.

“President Vladimir Putin on June 18-19 will go to the North Korean Democratic Republic on a friendly state visit,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

Moscow said Mr. Putin will then travel to Vietnam.

Western countries, South Korea and Kyiv have accused Pyongyang of sending weapons to Moscow for use in Ukraine, in violation of UN sanctions on North Korea.

Washington and Seoul say Russia has in return provided Pyongyang with technical help for its satellite program and sent aid to the food-strapped state.

Mr. Putin has scaled down trips abroad since launching the Ukraine offensive, but has paid some high-profile visits to Moscow’s few key allies such as China.

Pyongyang rarely hosts foreign guests, isolated diplomatically and having shut itself off even more since the COVID pandemic.

Russia and North Korea, which share a small land border, have historic links since the Soviet Union helped found the tiny state after the Korean War in the 1950s.

Since the fall of the USSR, Russia was one of the few countries to have working relations with Pyongyang.

‘Comrades-in-arms’

It will be Mr. Putin’s second visit to the country in his time in power, after a trip 24 years ago, shortly after becoming president, to meet Kim Jung Un’s father Kim Jong Il.

Back then, Mr. Putin was a frequent traveller, regularly touring the United States and Europe.

Now Russia finds itself under heavy international sanctions and the Kremlin leader is a persona non grata in most of the Western world, officially wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Mr. Kim said last week that ties with Russia had “developed into an unbreakable relationship of comrades-in-arms”.

When the leaders saw each other in September, Mr. Putin said he saw “possibilities” for military cooperation with North Korea, while Kim wished the Kremlin chief “victory” in Ukraine.

They symbolically gifted each other rifles and the Kremlin promised that Putin would visit in turn.

A string of Russian officials, including Moscow’s spy chief, have since visited North Korea in preparation for the visit.

In March, Russia also used its UN Security Council veto to effectively end UN monitoring of North Korean sanctions violations, a move seen as a victory for Pyongyang.

Both Russia and North Korea have denied that Pyongyang’s weapons are being used in Ukraine.

Mr. Kim’s powerful sister, Kim Yo Jon, accused Seoul and Washington last month of “misleading public opinion” on the issue.

North Korean shells

Ukraine, however, has reported finding North Korean shells on the battlefield.

In May, South Korea said its northern rival fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles, with some experts saying they could be tests for weapons destined for use against Ukraine.

As the Kremlin and Pyongyang have publicly deepened their ties, Moscow’s relationship with South Korea — a Ukraine backer — has been hugely strained.

Seoul is a major weapons exporter to Kyiv. Its President Yoon Suk Yeol last month promised to maintain its support in a phone call with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.

South Korea last month announced separate sanctions on Russian and North Korean individuals and companies allegedly trading military supplies.

For its part, Russia earlier this year detained a South Korean man, Baek Won-soon, on spy charges. He is believed to be the first South Korean detained on espionage charges in Russia for decades.

According to media reports, he may have been a missionary helping North Korean workers in Russia escape the country.

Vladimir Putin began his fifth term on May 7 as Russian leader at a glittering Kremlin inauguration, setting out on another six years in office after destroying his political opponents, launching a devastating war in Ukraine and concentrating all power in his hands.

Already in office for nearly a quarter-century and the longest-serving Kremlin leader since Josef Stalin, Putin’s new term doesn’t expire until 2030, when he will be constitutionally eligible to run again.

At the ceremony inside the gilded Grand Kremlin Palace, Putin placed his hand on the Russian Constitution and vowed to defend it as a crowd of hand-picked dignitaries looked on.

Since succeeding President Boris Yeltsin in the waning hours of 1999, Putin has transformed Russia from a country emerging from economic collapse to a pariah state that threatens global security. Following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine that has become Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II, Russia has been heavily sanctioned by the West and is turning to other regimes like China, Iran and North Korea for support.

The question now is what the 71-year-old Putin will do over the course of another six years, both at home and abroad.

Significant dates in Vladimir Putin’s 24 years in power in Russia

Dec 31, 1999 – In a surprise address to the nation, Russian President Boris Yeltsin announces his resignation and makes Mr. Putin, the Prime Minister he appointed four months earlier, the acting President.

May 7, 2000 – After winning election with about 53% of the vote, Mr. Putin is inaugurated for his first four-year term.

May 11, 2000 – Tax police raid the offices of NTV, a popular independent broadcaster noted for critical coverage of the Kremlin. It is the first salvo in moves against prominent independent media that have characterized the Putin era.

Aug 12, 2000 – The submarine Kursk sinks in the Barents Sea with 118 people aboard, setting off the first widespread criticism of Putin, who stayed on vacation early in the crisis and waited five days before accepting Western offers of help.

Oct 23, 2002 – Militants from Russia’s region of Chechnya take about 850 people hostage at a Moscow theater. Three days later, Russian special forces pump an unidentified gas into the theater to end the crisis, killing at least 130 hostages along with the militants. Putin defends the operation as having saved hundreds of lives.

Oct 25, 2003 – Oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who is Russia’s richest man and seen as a potential challenger to Putin, is arrested and later sentenced to 10 years in prison for tax evasion and fraud. His oil company is dismantled, most of it acquired by state oil company Rosneft. He has since become an opposition figure in exile.

March 14, 2004 – Mr. Putin is elected to a second term as president.

Sept 1, 2004 – Islamic militants seize a school in the southern city of Beslan, and more than 300 people die in the chaotic explosions and shootout ending the siege two days later. Putin blames regional leaders’ incompetence and announces that governors will be appointed figures rather than elected.

April 25, 2005 – Putin alarms international observers by describing the collapse of the Soviet Union as “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.”

Feb 10, 2007 – In a speech at a conference in Munich, Putin turns away radically from earlier attempts to develop closer ties with the United States.

May 8, 2008 – Barred by the constitution from running for a third consecutive term, Putin is appointed prime minister by new President Dmitry Medvedev but effectively remains Russia’s political leader.

Aug 8-12, 2008 – Russia fights a short war with Georgia, gaining full control of the separatist Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions.

March 4, 2012 – Putin is elected to a new presidential term, which is now six years long under constitutional changes he engineered. Protests by tens of thousands before the vote and on the eve of his inauguration lead to laws toughening penalties for unauthorised political protests.

June 6, 2013 – Putin announces on state television that he and his wife, Lyudmila, are divorcing.

Feb 7, 2014 – Putin opens the Winter Olympics in Sochi, a costly prestige project that he was instrumental in winning for Russia.

March 18, 2014 – Following the ouster of Ukraine’s Russia-friendly president amid protests in Kyiv, Moscow annexes Crimea after the Kremlin sends in troops wearing uniforms without insignia. A quick referendum is staged on the peninsula, splitting it from Ukraine. Putin admits a year later that he planned the annexation weeks ahead of time.

April 2014 – Fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatist rebels begins in eastern Ukraine.

Feb 27, 2015 – Boris Nemtsov, a top figure of Russia’s beleaguered political opposition, is gunned down on a bridge next to the Kremlin. Nemtsov was working on a report about Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine.

Sept 30, 2015 – Russia begins airstrikes in Syria that Putin calls necessary to destroy terrorist groups. The action helps Syrian President Bashar Assad, a longtime ally, remain in power.

May 15, 2018 – Putin opens the 18-km (12-mile) bridge from Russia to Crimea, solidifying Moscow’s annexation. The bridge later becomes a target of attacks during the war with Ukraine.

July 16, 2018 – Putin and US President Donald Trump meet at a summit in Helsinki, where Trump is asked about allegations that Russia had interfered in the 2016 election that brought him to power. He dismissed the claims and said Putin was “extremely strong and powerful in his denial”.

July 1, 2020 – A referendum approves constitutional changes proposed by Putin, allowing him to run for two more terms starting in 2024.

Aug. 20, 2020 – Opposition leader Alexei Navalny falls severely ill while organizing political opposition to Putin in Siberia and is later flown to Germany, where he is diagnosed with nerve-agent poisoning. Navalny blames the Kremlin, which denies it.

Dec 22, 2020 – Putin signs a bill granting lifetime immunity to former presidents.

Jan 17, 2021 – Navalny is arrested at a Moscow airport upon returning from Germany. He is later convicted on several charges and sentenced to 19 years in prison.

July 2021 – Putin publishes an article declaring the “historical unity” of Russia and Ukraine, an ideological precursor to Moscow’s invasion.

Feb 24, 2022 – The invasion of Ukraine begins, and Putin characterises it as a “special military operation” needed for Russia’s security.

March 4, 2022 – Putin signs a law that calls for up to 15 years in prison for spreading false or defamatory information about the military.

Sept 30, 2023 – The International Criminal Court issues a war-crimes indictment for Putin, accusing him of the unlawful deportation and transportation of children from Ukraine’s war zone into Russia.

June 23, 2023 – Mercenary force leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, who accused officials of denying ammunition and support to his fighters in Ukraine, mounts a rebellion in which his troops take control of Russia’s southern military headquarters and head for Moscow. The uprising ends the next day, but undermines Putin’s image of power. Prigozhin is killed exactly two months after the uprising in a mysterious plane crash.

Feb 16, 2024 – Navalny dies at an Arctic prison colony of unspecified causes. “There is no doubt that the death of Navalny was a consequence of something that Putin and his thugs did,” said US President Joe Biden. More than 350 people were arrested paying tribute to Navalny at ad-hoc memorials and monuments to victims of political repression.

March 17, 2024 – Putin wins a fifth term in an election that reportedly gave him 87% of the vote. His victory had never been in doubt; the other three candidates on the ballot were low-profile politicians from token opposition parties that support the Kremlin’s line.

March 22, 2024 – Gunmen storm a concert hall on Moscow’s outskirts, killing people coming to hear a rock group and setting the building on fire. The attack, which killed 144 people, was claimed by an offshoot of the Islamic State group and Russia arrested 11 citizens of Tajikistan as suspects, but Putin and other officials claimed without presenting evidence that the attack was carried out under Ukraine’s direction.

May 7, 2024 – Putin begins a fifth term in office.

Centre releases disaster relief funds for Karnataka and Tamil Nadu

The Union government has ordered the release of ₹3,730.32 crore towards “relief assistance for natural calamity” from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) weeks after the governments of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka moved the Supreme Court seeking relief funds for calamities such as Cyclone Michaung, floods and drought in 2023. 

Over 140 hectares gutted in Uttarakhand forest fires

Massive forest fires sweeping through the dense foliage in the mountains of Uttarakhand for the past 72 hours have gutted over 142 hectares of forest land in the State. With a fire reaching the vicinity of an Air Force Station near the Nanda range, the Indian Air Force on Saturday deployed a Mi-17 V5 helicopter to douse the flames using a ‘Bambi Bucket’.

INDIA bloc plans five Prime Ministers in five years, says PM Modi

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Rahul, Priyanka urged to contest polls from Amethi and Rae Bareli

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2024 polls an opportunity to teach divisive forces a lesson: Yogi

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Congress accuses Anurag Thakur of violating Model Code of Conduct, seeks EC action

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Lok Sabha 2024: Ujjwal Nikam replaces Poonam Mahajan as BJP’s Mumbai North Central candidate

The BJP announced on Saturday its decision to replace incumbent Lok Sabha MP Poonam Mahajan, daughter of former Union Minister late Pramod Mahajan, with lawyer Ujjwal Deorai Nikam for the Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha seat. Mr. Nikam, a known figure in the legal circles, has served as a government counsel in the Mumbai terror attacks case.

20 Cambodian soldiers killed in ammunition explosion at a military base

Twenty soldiers were killed and several others injured in an ammunition explosion at a base in the west of Cambodia on April 27 afternoon, Prime Minister Hun Manet said. Mr. Hun Manet said in a Facebook post that he was “deeply shocked” when he received the news of the explosion at the base in Kampong Speu province.

Russia renews attacks on the Ukrainian energy sector as Kyiv launches drones at southern Russia

Russia launched a barrage of missiles against Ukraine overnight, in attacks that appeared to target the country’s energy infrastructure. Meanwhile, Russia said its air defence systems had intercepted more than 60 Ukrainian drones over the southern Krasnodar region.

U.S. intelligence believes Putin probably didn’t order Navalny to be killed: Report

U.S. intelligence agencies have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably didn’t order opposition politician Alexei Navalny killed at an Arctic prison camp in February, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. Mr. Navalny, 47 when he died, was Mr. Putin’s fiercest domestic critic. 

Centre allows 99.5k tons of onion exports to 6 neighbouring nations

The Centre said it has allowed exports of 99,500 tonnes of onions, mainly sourced from Maharashtra, to six neighbouring countries despite the ban on shipments. The Centre has also allowed exports of 2,000 tonnes of white onion cultivated, especially, for export markets in the Middle East and some European countries.

U.S. food regulator gathering information on MDH, Everest spices after alleged contamination

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is gathering information on products of Indian spice makers MDH and Everest after Hong Kong halted sales of some of their products for allegedly containing high levels of a cancer-causing pesticide.”The FDA is aware of the reports and is gathering additional information about the situation,” an FDA spokesperson told Reuters.

India set to sign trade deal with Oman to expand its Middle East ties

India and Oman will sign a trade deal in the coming months, two Indian government officials said, as New Delhi seeks to expand its ties in the Middle East, where rising tensions are putting major shipping routes at risk. “It will help India with a strategic partner and access to key trade routes in a volatile region,” one official told Reuters.

IPL-17: LSG vs RR | Samson, Jurel ace the chase as Royals pull further away

Sanju Samson (71 n.o., 33b, 7×4, 4×6) and Dhruv Jurel (52 n.o., 34b, 5×4, 2×6) scripted Rajasthan Royals’ umpteenth turn of the plot this Indian Premier League, and took the table topper to a seven-wicket victory over Lucknow Super Giants at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Stadium in Lucknow on Sunday.

IPL-17: DC vs MI | Fraser-McGurk’s blistering knock helps Delhi Capitals see off Mumbai Indians in a runfest

The trend of gargantuan totals — in Indian Premier League in general and at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in particular — continued. So did that of Delhi Capitals winning at home. Riding on Jake Fraser-McGurk’s pyrotechnics up front and Tristan Stubbs’ strong finish, DC posted 257 for four against Mumbai Indians. Despite the MI power-hitters clearing boundaries frequently, the Capitals pace troika of Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, and Rasikh Salam Dar picked wickets at regular intervals to control the game.

General view of the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God, where service for Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who died in a prison camp, is expected to be held in Moscow, Russia on February 29, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The funeral of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is scheduled to be held in Moscow on Friday, with mourners braving the risk of arrest to come and pay their respects.

The ceremony will take place two weeks after Navalny died in an Arctic prison, amid pressures denounced by his team who accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of murdering his top critic.

Mr. Putin, who famously never said Navalny’s name in public, has not commented on the death, which sparked outrage among Western leaders and the Russian opposition.

The religious service will be held at the Mother of God Quench My Sorrows church in Maryino at 2 p.m. (1100 GMT) on the outskirts of Moscow.

In line with Orthodox practices, the body of Navalny — who had embraced Christianity — will be displayed in an open casket.

Two hours later, the burial is set to take place at the Borisovo cemetery, a short walk from the banks of the river Moskva.

Details of the funeral and how many mourners will be allowed to attend are still unclear.

Authorities have not commented on how they will handle the event, which could turn into an embarrassing show of support for Navalny.

Around a dozen police officers already patrolled the cemetery on the eve of the burial, which supporters fear may be disturbed by the Kremlin.

Hopes for peaceful ceremony

They have reasons for concern: 400 mourners have been detained at memorials for Navalny since his death, rights organisation OVD-Info said.

The dissident’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, feared the funeral could be disrupted by further arrests.

“I’m not sure yet whether it will be peaceful or whether the police will arrest those who have come to say goodbye to my husband,” Ms. Navalnaya told the European Parliament.

She has directly blamed Putin for his death.

Mr. Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, has criticised statements by Navalny’s wife and Western leaders blaming the Russian leader for the death as “vulgar”.

Navalny had shot to prominence through his anti-corruption campaigning, exposing what he said was rampant graft at the top of Putin’s administration.

He was arrested in January 2021 when he returned to Russia after being treated in Germany for a poisoning attack.

“Alexei was tortured for three years,” Navalnaya told lawmakers in Brussels.

“He was starved in a tiny stone cell, cut off from the outside world and denied visits, phone calls, and then even letters.”

“And then they killed him. Even after that, they abused his body,” she said.

‘Chance to say goodbye’

His body was held for eight days, which his team believed to be a bid to cover up responsibility for his death.

Navalny’s family and his team have also accused authorities of trying to prevent him from having a dignified public burial due to fears it could turn into a flashpoint for dissent.

The team alleged local investigators had threatened to bury him on the prison grounds if his mother did not agree to a “secret” funeral.

Once the body was released, allies struggled to find a funeral place that would agree to hold the ceremony.

And on Thursday they said hearse drivers were refusing to take the body from the morgue.

“What a disgrace. Now the hearse drivers refuse to take Alexei from the morgue,” said Ivan Zhdanov, an exiled ally who managed Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation.

Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said funeral directors had received threatening calls from “unknown people” warning them not to transport Navalny’s body anywhere.

And a civil ceremony allowing the general public to pay their respects to the body — common in Russia — has not been allowed.

Navalnaya said the family “did not want a special treatment — just to give people the chance to say goodbye”.

She has vowed to continue his life’s work.

“The most important thing we can do for Alexei and for ourselves is to continue to fight more desperately, more fiercely than before,” she said.