Russia

MOSCOW, December 5. /TASS/: A military base belonging to the US and the Western coalition located near Syria’s Al-Tanf was attacked on Sunday, Al Arabiya news channel reports.

According to the TV channel, several strikes were launched on the area near the coalition base in Al-Tanf in Homs Province near the border with Iraq.

According to Syria’s television, several explosions were heard inside the base.

There were no reports on possible damages or injuries as a result of the incident.

MOSCOW, December 5. /TASS/: Russia has registered 32,602 new confirmed COVID-19 infections over the past 24 hours, with the total number of infections reaching 9,801,613 cases, the anti-coronavirus crisis center told reporters on Sunday.

According to the crisis center, in absolute terms, the increase is the lowest since October 15. The relative increase of new infections is at the level of 0.33%.

MOSCOW, December 5. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday he supports the initiatives geared to promote the development of the volunteer movement, including on insuring volunteers.

MOSCOW, December 5. /TASS/: Russia’s authorities are opting for persuasion rather than compulsion in what concerns vaccination against the novel coronavirus infection, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday.

"Indeed, the most important task is to vaccinate the population," he said during his video link with Francesco Rocca, President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). "And we are trying to follow a path of persuasion rather than of compulsion. We are trying to combat biased views and prejudices against vaccination as such."

MOSCOW (AP) — Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin will speak in a video call Tuesday, the White House and Kremlin said, as tensions between the United States and Russia escalate over a Russian troop buildup on the Ukrainian border that’s seen as a sign of a potential invasion.

Biden will press U.S. concerns about Russian military activities on the border and “reaffirm the United States’ support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Saturday, confirming the planned call after first word came from Moscow.

PARIOS, December 4. /TASS/: The launch of a Soyuz-ST-B carrier rocket with Galileo satellites from the Kourou space center in French Guiana was delayed again on Saturday due to adverse weather conditions, according to the live broadcast by launch operator Arianespace.

"No launch attempt today," reads a message that appeared during the broadcast.

Russian state-run space corporation Roscosmos said in its Telegram channel that another launch attempt is scheduled for 03:19 Moscow time on December 5.

MOSCOW, December 4. /TASS/: The Board of Founders of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) has approved Veronika Loginova as Director General of the organization, a source in the press service of the Association of Russian Lawyers, which is one of the founders of the agency, told TASS.

MOSCOW, December 4. /TASS/: Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev has been re-elected as Chairman of the ruling United Russia Party. A respective decision was made by the party’s congress on Saturday.

The term of powers of United Russia Chairman is five years, according to party rules.

MOSCOW, Dec 4 (Reuters) - The Belarusian state border service has accused a Ukrainian military helicopter of flouting its border during drills and flying up to one kilometre (0.62 miles) into Belarusian territory, the RIA news agency reported on Saturday.

There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.

The accusation comes amid tensions in the region with Ukraine and the West accusing Russia of a military buildup that has sparked fears of a possible attack. Russia denies any such plans and accuses Ukraine of a buildup.

Belarus is a close Russian ally.

MOSCOW, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Russia has dismissed new U.S. media reports about a possible Russian attack on Ukraine, accusing Washington of trying to aggravate the situation while blaming Moscow, the Kommersant newspaper said on Saturday, citing the Foreign Ministry.

The Washington Post cited officials and an intelligence document on Saturday as saying U.S. intelligence thought Russia could be planning a multi-front offensive on Ukraine as early as next year involving up to 175,000 troops.