Putin to discuss Karabakh with Armenian and Azerbaijani President in Saint Petersburg

June 14, 2016 By administrator

Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold separate meetings with the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents Serzh Sargsyan and Ilham Aliyev in Saint Petersburg on June 20, this being followed by a tripartite meeting on Karabakh, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov told RIA Novosti.

“On June 20, tripartite talks of Russian, Armenian and Azerbaijani Presidents on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement are scheduled. It is supposed that Putin will first have private meetings with Sargsyan and Aliyev, and then the three presidents will already hold talks together,” Ushakov said.

“Apparently, an active attempt to contribute to the sides in conflict settlement will be made from our side. We have already played – what I would even call – a decisive role in ceasing the military actions, which were going on,” the presidential aide noted.

“Now we are ready to continue our mediatory mission, obviously in full cooperation with the other OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing states, and based on the principles which were included in the joint statement of the Russian, U.S. and French Presidents in the period from 2009-2013. Our country will hold the most interested and active talks,” he noted.

In Ushakov’s words, Russia is going to continue its mediatory mission in line with the joint statements of the Russian, U.S. and French presidents, which mention about the unacceptability of the military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, urging the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders to solve the disputable issues on the basis of the principles of non-use of force or threat to use force, territorial integrity of states, equal rights and peoples’ right to self-determination.

The presidential aide also added that Russia considers that the sides to the conflict must strictly observe the ceasefire agreement of 1994. “We urge all the parties to the confrontation to exercise restraint, refrain from using force and take all possible measures to stabilize the situation,”he added.

Greece: ‘Welcomed Like Superstar’: Putin Most Popular Politician in Greece’s Athos

May 29, 2016 By administrator

May 28, 2016. Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Mount Athos

Nowhere in Greece do people love Russia and its President Vladimir Putin so much as in the Orthodox monastic community in Holy Mount Athos, German magazine Spiegel Online wrote.

At the end of his official visit to the country, the Russian leader made a pilgrimage to the holy place, where he was met with excitement and admiration.

“As Putin, completing his visit to Greece, reached Athos this Saturday, the monks welcomed him as a superstar, and even more: as the defender of their faith and a loyal ally of Greece,” Spiegel Online wrote.

The local residents were very happy to welcome the Russian leader, even if his arrival brought chaos to their otherwise peaceful lives. While port police boats patrolled the water, employees of the Russian Security Service wearing glasses and suits carefully watched every street in the area.

“Putin is the only true leader in the world,” says one of the monks, father Efraimos, cited by the magazine. “Whom should he be compared to? Obama? Merkel? There is simply no comparison,” he added.

An episode that occurred later during a liturgy serves as more proof of Putin’s popularity in the local community. The church where the worship took place had only one throne, and it was reserved for the “Russian guest of honor,” even despite the fact that Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos also attended the service.

“For the Greek President there was only a place in the “pew next to mere mortals,” the article said. “Pavlopoulos’ crew tried to persuade the monks to put a second throne next to Putin’s seat, but in vain: in the autonomous republic of Mount Athos these are monks who set the tone and they made it clear whom they consider their favorite guest,” the magazine concluded.

The Russian leader came to Athos for the second time. This time, he visited the holy place to commemorate the millennial anniversary since the first Russian settlement on the Holy Mount Athos.

Despite numerous posters critical of Putin that were seen on the streets of Athens, relations between Greece and Russia remain traditionally good. According to social surveys, the Russian president is far ahead of European politicians in terms of Greek citizens’ feelings towards him.

Putin visits Greece for energy, investment talks

May 27, 2016 By administrator

Putin in greece Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first trip to a European Union country this year Friday with a visit to Greece that will include a stop at a secluded Christian Orthodox monastic sanctuary in the country’s north.

Under heavy security, Putin arrived for a two-day visit expected to focus on energy cooperation and Russian investments during talks with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

Athens is keen to maintain its traditionally close ties with post-Soviet Russia, despite its participation in European Union sanctions against Moscow, and a gas pipeline project designed to limit Russia’s regional energy dominance.

Putin was met at Athens Airport by Defense Minister Panos Kammenos as air force F-16s buzzed overhead as part of a welcoming ceremony.

Russia is one of Greece’s main trading partners, but business has been hit by the sanctions and drop in commodity prices.

Greece is also keen to reverse a slump in tourist arrivals from Russia last year.

“This will be the first time Putin has visited an EU country in the past six months and Russia-EU relations will be definitely on the agenda,” said Alexander Kokcharov of the U.S.-based IHS Country Risk group.

“Putin is likely to offer investment projects in Greece, most likely in energy and transport sectors. However, we do not expect that Greece would go against the EU consensus.”

Some 2,500 police will provide security for Putin’s visit in Athens, and much of the city center will be blocked to motorists and public transport.

On Saturday, Putin will visit the Monastery of St. Panteleimon, which is inhabited by Russian monks. It’s set in the 1,000-year-old Mount Athos autonomous monastic community, from which women are banned.

He will be accompanied by the head of Russias Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, who arrived in northern Greece on Friday.

[AP]

Putin visits Greece ahead of Russia sanctions vote

May 27, 2016 By administrator

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras © Alexander Zemlianichenko / Reuters

The Russian President makes his first EU trip in seven months with a visit to Athens on Friday. It comes just a month before Brussels decides on whether to extend EU sanctions against Russia.

Before the visit, Putin published an article in Greece’s Kathimerini newspaper, where he spoke about the negative effect of mutual sanctions.

“These days, Greece is Russia’s important partner in Europe. Unfortunately, the decline in relations between Russia and the European Union stands in the way of further strengthening our cooperation, with an adverse effect on the dynamics of bilateral trade that fell by a third to $2.75 billion as compared to last year. Particularly affected were Greek agricultural producers,” Putin said.

In 2015 trade between the two countries fell by 33.7 percent to about $2.8 billion. Ninety percent of that loss was exports from Russia to Greece. Russian imports from Greece decreased by 54 percent and amounted to $229.4 million.

Putin’s visit to Greece breaks a long pause in his travels to Western countries. Last time he went to the EU was November 30 last year, when he took part in the UN climate conference in Paris.

Over the past year the Greek leadership has criticized the EU’s anti-Russian sanctions, but has never used its right to veto their extension. According to some analysts, Athens is playing the Russian card to persuade Brussels and international lenders towards a softer position on its €320 billion debt.

Experts have also said that historical ties with Greece could help Russia find an ally who could help to ease the sanctions.

“The extreme political and economic disruption Greece has experienced, in combination with existing cultural ties, make it a particularly attractive target for these kind of initiatives,” Daragh McDowell, a principal analyst for Europe and Central Asia at Verisk Maplecroft, told CNBC.

Putin calls for end to Nagorno-Karabakh clashes

April 2, 2016 By administrator

Azerbaijan atrocity Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for an end to fighting after clashes broke out in the disputed Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Azerbaijan said 12 of its soldiers and one civilian had been killed and a helicopter shot down. TV images showed a burned out vehicle and craters.

Azerbaijan and Armenia accused each other of starting the fighting.

Nagorno-Karabakh has been in the hands of ethnic Armenian separatists since a war that ended in 1994.

Azerbaijan said its armed forces had come under fire first from large-calibre artillery and grenade-launchers, and that it had taken over two strategic hills and a village.

The Armenian government said Azerbaijan had launched a “massive attack” with tanks, artillery and helicopters.

The Armenian-backed defence ministry in Karabakh said a 12-year-old boy was killed and two other children injured.

Putin lauds Russian military ops in Syria

March 17, 2016 By administrator

Russian President Vladimir Putin has hailed Russia’s military forces returning from Syria, saying their achievements in the militant-riddled Arab country has laid the ground for peace there.

Speaking on the occasion of Russia’s military pullout from Syria, Putin said his country succeeded in strengthening Syrian army through months of aerial campaign against militant groups in Syria.

Putin said despite Russia’s partial withdrawal, which he said was agreed with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, the battle against terrorism in Syria will continue.

The Russian president said his military forces created conditions for a peace process in Syria.

Putin further vowed that Russia will monitor Syria’s situation and will leave its advanced S-400 air defense missile system there as a means of precaution.

He also warned that Russia can ramp up its military presence in Syria within “several hours” if needed.

“If there’s a need, Russia literally within several hours can ramp up its presence in the region to the size required for the unfolding situation,” Putin said in the Kremlin on Thursday.

The comments came as he decorated officers who served in the war-torn country.

On Tuesday, President Putin announced that “the main part” of the Russian forces would start to withdraw from Syria, and that diplomats had been called upon to increase their efforts for a peaceful solution to the five-year-long conflict.

Russia launched its campaign against Daesh and other terrorist groups in Syria last September upon a request from the Damascus government. The air raids have expedited the advances of Syrian forces against militants.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. According to a February report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the country’s pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.

Breaking News: Putin Orders Start of Withdrawal From Syria Starting Tuesday

March 14, 2016 By administrator

sputniknews.com Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed that Moscow will begin withdrawal of Russian forces from Syria.

On Monday, President Putin indicated that the Kremlin will start withdrawing its main forces in Syria, saying that the military has largely achieved its objectives.

The withdrawal will begin on Tuesday.

According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has informed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of the decision.

Pope Francis Sees Putin as ‘Only Man’ to Defend Christians Around the World

February 9, 2016 By administrator

The upcoming meeting between Pope Francis and Russian Patriarch Kirill will not only be a historic religious event, but could also have major benefits to Christians around the world, the French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche reported.

In an attempt to defend Christians in the Middle East and other parts of the world where they’re being persecuted, Pope Francis wants to ask Russian President Vladimir Putin for help.

According to Pope Francis, Putin is “the only one with whom the Catholic Church can unite to defend Christians in the East.”

“It’s important to join efforts [with Russia] to save Christianity in all regions [of the world] where it’s oppressed,” Pope Francis said, as cited by Le Journal Du Dimanche.

With the help of Putin, Pope Francis hopes to reach out to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani and even the Chinese government elite and work out a plan to help Christians in these regions.

The Israelis have spoken – Putin is their person of the year for 2015 29% VS Netanyahu 3%

December 31, 2015 By administrator

Russian President Vladimir Putin makes a speech during the Victory Parade on Moscow’s Red Square. (photo credit:REUTERS

The poll of 527 respondents representing a statistical sample of the Jewish adult population, was taken Tuesday and has an error margin of ±4.3 percent.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is Israelis’ person of the year, according to a Panels Research poll taken for The Jerusalem Post and its Hebrew sister publication Ma’ariv Sof Hashavua.

The poll of 527 respondents representing a statistical sample of the Jewish adult population, was taken Tuesday and has an error margin of ±4.3 percent.

Twenty-nine percent of respondents chose Putin as their person of the year, 16% picked German Chancellor Angela Merkel, 15% Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, 3% Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, 2% Pope Francis, 2% US President Barack Obama and 33% said they did not know.

When asked what the country’s biggest problem was, 45% said the wave of terrorism, 33% said the cost of living and socioeconomic gaps, 8% said the diplomatic stalemate, 4% said Right-Left relations, 4% said international isolation, 2% said religious-secular relations and 4% said they did not know.

Asked if a diplomatic agreement could currently be reached with the Palestinians, 68% said no, 22% said yes and 10% did not know. Among respondents defining themselves as Center-Left, 43% said no, 41% said yes and 16% did not know.

Two-thirds of respondents said their feeling of security went down in the past year, nearly one-third said it stayed the same and just 2% said it rose. When asked what was currently the biggest danger to Israeli security, 47% said the Palestinians, 24% said Islamic State and radical Islam, 13% said Iran, 7% said Jewish terrorism, 6% Hezbollah and 3% said they did not know.

Two-thirds of respondents said they believed the terrorist wave could be stopped, 28% said it could not and 7% said they did not know.

Nearly 80% said they did not believe Iran would keep its commitments in the Iranian nuclear deal, 15% said they did not know and only 6% said they thought Iran would keep the deal.

When asked what they thought was the most important item on the international agenda in 2016, 50% said the struggle to stop Islamic State, 25% said the Syrian refugee crisis, 10% the US presidential election, 6% the war in Syria and Iraq, 5% the Iranian nuclear program and 4% said they did not know.

Asked if there would be elections in 2016: 5% said they were sure there would be, 27% said apparently yes, 46% said apparently no, 9% said they were sure there would not be elections and 13% said they did not know.

Source: jpost.com

German Newspaper Nominates Putin as ‘Political Winner’ of 2015

December 31, 2015 By administrator

According to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Moscow has proved to be an indispensable partner in the negotiations with Iran and Syria.

The German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung set up a list of politicians, who “won” and “lost” in 2015.

Among the winners, the newspaper named Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Russia proved to be a constructive partner in the negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program; moreover, the Russian involvement in the Syrian conflict led to the fact that its resolution became impossible without Putin,” the newspaper wrote.

At the beginning of 2015, Russia had strained relations with the West, but by the end of the year the situation had changed, the article said.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has even talked about the possibility of Russia’s return to G8, a move which was considered impossible a few months ago.

According to the newspaper, the year was successful for US President Barack Obama as well. The US Supreme Court backed up Obama’s health care reform, while the unemployment rate in the US decreased to 5%. Obama has also achieved a lot in the foreign policy, including an agreement with Iran as well as successful TPP negotiations, the article said.

For Angela Merkel this year was the most difficult time of all her chancellorship, and yet she was able to strengthen her positions as a European leader. However, the ongoing refugee crisis may weaken her image in the long-run and signify “the beginning of the end of Merkel’s era,” FAZ wrote.

Among “Winners 2015” the newspaper also named Turkish President Erdogan whose party received a majority of the seats in the Turkish parliament; Marine Le Pen, whose party showed good results in the regional elections in France; and US billionaire Donald Trump, who leads the rankings of the republican presidential candidates.

The “Losers 2015” turned out to be, Former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro and Former Argentine President Cristina Kirchner.