Europe

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: Chechnya’s head Ramzan Kadyrov lives in constant danger, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at his annual news conference in Moscow on Thursday.

"The incumbent [Chechen] president’s life is in danger every day," Putin noted. "Besides, he personally takes part in various combat operations," he added.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: Moscow is ready to prolong the Treaty on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (the New START Treaty) at any moment, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at his annual news conference on Thursday.

"You have mentioned one of the fundamentals, on which we should build our relations [with the United States]: these are the issues of global security, including the New START Treaty. We have made our proposals," the Russian leader pointed out.

MOSCOW, December 19./TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin believes it would be inappropriate to give an assessment of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky or other world leaders.

MOSCOW, December 19. / TASS /: Russia will reciprocate the new US sanctions that are introduced against the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at his traditional annual news conference on Thursday, when commenting on reports that US Congress approved a large package of anti-Russian sanctions on December 18.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: A unipolar world does not exist anymore, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during his annual news conference on Thursday, adding that global economic development has led to the appearance of a multipolar world order.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: The European Parliament’s decision to equate Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union is unacceptable, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at his annual news conference in Moscow on Thursday.

"I am aware of the European Parliament’s decision and I consider it to be unacceptable and incorrect. One may condemn the Stalin regime and totalitarianism in general, and not without a reason. Undoubtedly, our people had fallen victim to totalitarianism and we have condemned it, as well as Stalin's cult of personality," Putin pointed out.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: The Russian armed forces has received the first batch of ADS amphibious assault rifles, which are effective both under water and on the ground, the press service of the High Precision Systems holding (part of the State Corporation Rostec) told TASS.

"Regarding the ADS amphibious assault rifles, production has been set up. Last week, the delivery of first batch of the assault rifles under the state procurement order has been completed," the source said.

MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/: An Ilyuzhin-76 transport plane has made a safe landing at Zhukovsky Airport near Moscow after one of its four engines failed, emergency services said.

The plane belongs to the flight research institute.

"After burning off the fuel the Ilyushin-76 made a normal landing. Nobody was hurt. Assistance of emergency services was not necessary," the source said.

There were 13 people on board. The plane had 50 tonnes of fuel in its tanks.

LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - A Catalan leader jailed for his role in an independence referendum deemed illegal by Spain was entitled to immunity as member of the European Parliament despite not having being able to take up his seat, the EU’s highest court ruled on Thursday.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruling in respect of Oriol Junqueras marks a likely boost for the Catalan separatist movement and potentially puts judicial authorities in Brussels and Madrid at loggerheads.

PEZINOK, Slovakia (Reuters) - A Slovak businessman and three others appeared in court for the first time on Thursday to face charges over the murder of an investigative journalist and his fiancée, a case that triggered mass protests against corruption.

Jan Kuciak and Martina Kusnirova, both 27, were gunned down in their house outside the capital Bratislava in 2018.

As she arrived in court, Kusnirova’s mother demanded that Kuciak’s unfinished investigations be resolved.