Russia

MOSCOW, October 17. /TASS/: The reentry module of Russia’s Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft, carrying cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky, actress Yulia Peresild and film director Klim Shipenko, landed in Kazakhstan on Sunday, according to a live broadcast by Russia’s state-run space corporation Roscosmos.

Rescuers helped the crew members out. The actress and the film director arrived to the ISS on October 5 and spent 12 days in orbit. Novitsky’s space mission began on April 9.

MOSCOW, October 17. / TASS /: The Nobel Peace Prize has been discredited by the fact that it was awarded to the politicians, who allowed their countries to collapse and unleashed conflicts and wars, Chairman of the State Duma (lower house) Vyacheslav Volodin stated on his Telegram channel, noting that the trust could be regained after introducing a procedure for withdrawing the award.

The Russian lawmaker noted that "the credibility of the Nobel Prize in the field of fundamental sciences was beyond the question" since it was awarded for real achievements.

MOSCOW, October 17. / TASS /: The Russian Mikoyan MiG-31 was scrambled to escort the US B-1B Lancer bomber over the Sea of Japan, Russia’s National Defense Management Center reported on Sunday.

According to the Center, Russian airspace control system detected an aerial target over the neutral waters of the Sea of Japan approaching the state border. The Russian Mikoyan MiG-31 from the Eastern Military District’s air defense quick reaction alert forces was scrambled to identify it.

MOSCOW, October 17. /TASS/: Russia’s COVID-19 cases climbed by 34,303 in the last 24 hours to 7,992,687, the anti-coronavirus crisis center said on Sunday.

MOSCOW, October 17. /TASS/: There are yet no prospects for a meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, Vladimir Putin and Vladimir Zelensky, since Kiev seeks to withdraw from the Minsk agreements, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Rossiya-1 TV channel.

"So far, no prospects for these talks are seen because of the Ukrainian leadership’s actions. It is the Kiev authorities that do not fulfill the Minsk agreements," Peskov said.

MOSCOW (AP) — A Soyuz space capsule carrying a cosmonaut and two Russian filmmakers has landed after a 3 1/2-hour trip from the International Space Station.

The capsule, descending under a red-and-white striped parachute after entering Earth’s atmosphere, landed upright in the steppes of Kazakhstan on schedule at 0435 GMT Sunday with Oleg Novitskiy, Yulia Peresild and Klim Shipenko aboard.

MOSCOW, October 16. /TASS/: Ukraine’s wish to continue buying Russian gas through reverse-flow supplies instead of direct deliveries surprises Moscow, Russia Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in an interview aired by Sergey Brilev’s news show on Rossiya-1 on Saturday, adding that Kiev’s payments for gas are 20-30% higher due to that.

"A question arises, why don’t you take gas directly from the Russian Federation instead of the gas that you take off in transit and, consequently, pay 20-30% higher for it. Well, it causes surprise," he said.

MOSCOW, October 16. /TASS/: Russia has recorded a quite high number of coronavirus deaths in recent months, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said on Rossiya-24 news channel on Saturday.

"We have been recording quite high mortality rates in recent months. And I would like to remind everyone that, as of today, the main preventive measure that helps protect an individual and helps avoid a fatal outcome is vaccination," she said.

YEKATERINBURG, October 16. /TASS/: Police have detained two suspects after 18 people died from methanol-tainted liquor in Yekaterinburg, Russia’s fourth-biggest city located in the Urals, Valery Gorelykh, the spokesman for the Russian Interior Ministry’s branch for the Sverdlovsk Region, told reporters on Saturday.

ST. PETERSBURG, October 15. /TASS/: Non-resource non-energy exports from Russia by the end of 2021 may set a new historical record - $180 bln, Head of the Russian Export Center Veronika Nikishina said on Friday.

"This month, Russia's non-resource non-energy exports will surpass $141 bln - the figure for the entire 2020. By the end of the year, Russia's non-resource non-energy exports will set a new historical record - it may reach $180 bln," Nikishina said.