Russia

MOSCOW, June 8. /TASS/: Russia is considering the possibility of creating a new system of clubs of mutual insurance and reinsurance of risks to third parties with friendly states to supply Russian oil to the world market, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak wrote in an article for the Energy Policy magazine.

June 8 (Reuters) - Taiwan-based computer manufacturer Acer (2353.TW) supplied at least $70.4 million worth of computer hardware to Russia between April 8, 2022 and March 31, 2023, according to customs data seen by Reuters, after saying it would suspend its business there.

While not illegal, Acer's actions contrast with those of key Western rivals such as Dell (DELL.N) and HP (HPE.N) which ceased shipments in February and April 2022, respectively, following Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, customs records drawn from a commercial trade data provider show.

MOSCOW, June 8 (Reuters) - For more than 15 months Russia has been fighting a war in Ukraine that the Kremlin refused to call a war - but that is changing: President Vladimir Putin is using the word "war" more often.

When Putin sent troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24 last year, he called it "a special military operation" - a euphemism the Kremlin, Russian ministers and state media mostly stuck to, even coining a new Russian acronym, the "SVO".

VLADIVOSTOK, June 8 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud discussed ensuring the stability of the global energy market during a phone conversation, according to a statement by the Kremlin's press service on Wednesday.

"Both sides highly appreciated the level of cooperation within the framework of the OPEC+ (the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies), which allows for timely and effective measures to maintain the balance of oil supply and demand," the statement said.

07 June 2023; MEMO: The Russian Defence Ministry claimed, on Wednesday, that Ukraine's armed forces intentionally blasted the Tolyatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline in the Kharkiv region, which is mentioned in the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

Speaking at a press briefing in Moscow, the Ministry's spokesman, Igor Konashenkov, said several people were injured in the blast.

MOSCOW, June 7. /TASS/: Moscow will make efforts to find out the circumstances of the explosion of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline, but it is already obvious that it was never Kiev that was interested in resuming its operation, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

"We will, of course, make efforts to find out the circumstances of the accident, but we can already say that the only country that was never interested in reviving the pipeline was, of course, [Ukraine and] the Kiev regime," she said.

MOSCOW, June 7. /TASS/: An air task force of Russian Tu-95MS strategic missile-carrying aircraft and Chinese H-6K strategic bombers conducted a joint aerial patrol over the waters of the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea and the western Pacific, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Wednesday.

MOSCOW, June 7. /TASS/: Moscow is grateful to its African partners for refusing to join the anti-Russian campaign, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a reception at the Foreign Ministry on the occasion of Africa Day on Wednesday.

"I would like to express my gratitude to our African partners who have not let themselves be dragged into the anti-Russian campaign and who have taken a balanced position on the European security crisis," Lavrov said.

MOSCOW, June 7. /TASS/: The US authorities must give a concrete answer as to whether or not they know how American weapons are being used on the territory of Ukraine, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing in comments on the attack on the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant.

June 7 (Reuters) - A pipeline used to transport ammonia fertilizer from Russia via Ukraine that may be central to the future of the Black Sea grain deal has been damaged, according to both Kyiv and Moscow, potentially complicating talks around the accord.

Russia's defence ministry said a "Ukrainian sabotage group" had blown up a section of the pipeline on Monday night near the village of Masyutivka in Kharkiv region. The village is on the frontline between Russian and Ukrainian troops.