Austria's Raiffeisen completes damages payment to Russia
VIENNA, June 5 (Reuters) - Raiffeisen Bank International (RBIV.VI), opens new tab said on Thursday that Russia's central bank had debited 174 million euros ($199 million) from the Austrian lender's account to complete the payment of damages imposed by Russia.
The payment of interests, which completes the transfer of the more than 2 billion euros in damages due, has previously been seen as a key step in the struggle for Russian regulatory clearance of Raiffeisen's plans to sell its Russian subsidiary.
Last year, the bank came under intense pressure from the United States as well as European regulators to pare its ties to Russia, something it is in the process of doing.
The lender has been working on a sale of its Russian subsidiary for more than three years since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Russia's central bank had previously taken almost 1.9 billion euros from the lender to settle a court dispute in Russia.
Earlier this year, a Russian court awarded more than 2 billion euros of damages against RBI in a dispute that erupted after an unsuccessful attempt to unlock some of the bank's frozen billions in Russia.
($1 = 0.8839 euros)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
32 minutes ago
- The Sun
Lidl's sell-out pizza oven is back in shops this week – it's a dupe for a much more expensive one
LIDL is bringing back its sell-out pizza oven in shops this coming week. The Grillmeister Gas Pizza Oven costs just £79.99 and it's back in stores next Thursday. The gadget is a whopping £170 cheaper than the Ninja version and it's sure to be popular with shoppers once again. You can use the oven to cook your own crispy pizzas or fresh baguettes, and you can eat them straight from the oven. That makes the gadget perfect for garden parties and entertaining. It has a removable pizza stone and a door with latch and viewing window so you can keep an eye on your pizzas while they're cooking. The oven can reach 400C in just 15 minutes. If you're wanting to save space it comes with foldable feet. The oven includes a gas bottle connection hose and pressure reducing valve, and it's suitable for 5 and 11kg gas bottles. It also comes with a three-year warranty. It looks to be a good dupe for the Ninja Artisan Electric Outdoor Pizza Oven & Air Fryer, which is currently £249.99 on the Ninja website. The Ninja version usually sells for an RRP of £299.99. Five Lidl rosés you need this summer, according to a wine expert - a £6.99 buy is as light & crispy as £22 Whispering Angel You should bear in mind that the Lidl version doesn't have an air fryer function, but if you're fine with this then you can make a huge saving. Lidl recently sold another pizza oven for the even cheaper price of £29.99. The Grillmeister Barbecue Pizza Oven can be used on charcoal or gas barbecues. How much are other pizza ovens selling for? It's always worth shopping around and comparing products to make sure you're getting the best deal. Another more affordable option is the Gas Tabletop Pizza Oven with Cover which is currently on clearance at Argos for £54. The portable black steel pizza oven also uses gas and runs on propane. Argos says the oven is "light enough to take on trips" and "fits neatly on a table". If you're looking to splash out more there's the Ooni Koda 12 Gas Fuel Portable Outdoor Pizza Oven. It's currently on offer at John Lewis but it still costs £239.20. Its description says it can cook Neapolitan-style pizzas "in 60 seconds flat". "No assembly, no mess, no fuss, just quick and simple cooking for friends and family gatherings," it says. How to save money on pizza TAKEAWAY pizzas taste great but they can hit you hard on your wallet. Here are some tips on how to save on pizza: Cashback websites - TopCashback and Quidco will pay you to order your pizza through them. They're paid by retailers for every click that comes to their website from the cashback site, which eventually trickles down to you. So you'll get cashback on orders placed through them. Discount codes - Check sites like VoucherCodes for any discount codes you can use to get money off your order. Make you own topping - One savvy customer noticed that Domino's charges up to 70p MORE for pizzas on its menu compared to ordering the same one through the "create your own" option. It's worth trying out to see if it makes a difference before you place your next order. Buy it from the shops - It might not taste exactly the same but you'll save the most money by picking up your favourite pizza from your local supermarket. Some Asda stores sell freshly made ones from the pizza counter where prices start at £2.
Daily Mail
34 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
French demand more money from Britain before they let their police try to stop migrants boarding small boats to cross the English Channel
The French are set to ask for more money before police start intercepting migrants trying to board small boats to cross the English Channel, it was revealed today. Britain already has a deal with France to try and prevent refugees and and migrants from crossing the Channel, but until now, authorities have resisted entering the water themselves and only prevent those they catch on the shoreline. The French government has now indicated its willingness to change tactic and turn back boats in the shallows, but says it needs more money to do so. The extra funds would be spent on deploying drones and more police officers to ensure that policing of the coastline can also be maintained. Representatives from both governments are currently negotiating a new deal aimed at cracking down on smuggling gangs which is said to be in the early stages. The UK's current deal with France was due to expire next year, but Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has now agreed to extend it into 2027 as long as France builds its own long-promised detention centre. Since 2015, British governments have spent £800 million to France to stop the crossings of people across the world's busiest shipping lane in small boats. An agreement made under Rishi Sunak's premiership in 2023 pledged £480 million, but not all of that has yet been spent. So far this year, almost 15,000 people have made the highly dangerous crossing, up 42 percent on this time last year. The government has blamed better and calmer weather for the increase. French officials are now expected to push for extra funding for the Compagnie de Marche, an elite policing unit with special public order powers and that was formed specifically to tackle an increase in violence on the nation's beaches. A government source told the Times that the French may be 'pitch-rolling for more money' but that talks were in the early stages. It is understood that President Macron is currently in the process of drafting the new strategy ahead of a planned state visit to the UK next month. It comes after last Saturday saw the highest number of people arrive by small boats this year. The home secretary described the fact that 1,195 people arrived in 19 boats on one day as 'disgraceful'. On the same day, French authorities rescued 184 people from the water, with current rules meaning they can only interfere in boats at sea if people are in distress. It has led to a change of tactics by people smugglers in recent years which has seen them blow up and put dinghies into the water in the shallows, before others wade out, sometimes to chest or neck height, to be pulled onboard. The Defence Secretary John Healey said this creates a 'big problem' for policing. Last week dozens of people were seen cramming themselves onto small boats, including entire families with multiple young children. Groups gathered in the early hours of the morning to make the perilous journey across the Channel last Saturday It was the first time in a week that anyone had made the crossing, perhaps contributing to the high figure. In the seven days since, no boats have landed from France on UK shores. The crossings last Saturday came just weeks after the Prime Minister announced plans for 'return hubs' to send migrants back to the country they came to the UK from more easily. The Prime Minister is eyeing up deals with Balkan countries, and some in Africa, to house failed asylum seekers. Labour is looking to strike deals with the likes of Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'We all want to end dangerous small boat crossings, which threaten lives and undermine our border security. 'The people-smuggling gangs do not care if the vulnerable people they exploit live or die, as long as they pay and we will stop at nothing to dismantle their business models and bring them to justice. 'That is why this government has put together a serious plan to take down these networks at every stage. 'Through international intelligence sharing under our Border Security Command, enhanced enforcement operations in Northern France and tougher legislation in the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, we are strengthening international partnerships and boosting our ability to identify, disrupt, and dismantle criminal gangs whilst strengthening the security of our borders.'
Daily Mail
34 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Amazing new footage from Ukraine's daring Operation Spiderweb shows drone's whole flight across flaming Russian airbase before it smashes into one of Putin's nuclear bombers
The Ukrainian military has released new footage of its devastating drone attack that left dozens of Vladimir Putin 's irreplaceable nuclear bombers up in flames. Ukraine's most daring attack of the war to date, dubbed Operation Spiderweb, saw more than 100 first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones smuggled into Russia in wooden containers disguised as modular homes. They were loaded onto civilian trucks and driven behind enemy lines by Russian lorry drivers seemingly unaware of what they were carrying. The vehicles were parked within range of five airfields stretching from northern Russia down to Siberia, at which point the hidden roofs of the wooden cabins were opened remotely and the FPV drones took to the skies. What happened next served as a devastating blow to Putin's forces, as 41 of his prized aircraft - worth some £1.5billion - were decimated in just a matter of minutes. Footage shared by the Ukrainian military earlier today shows the exact moment one kamikaze drone dramatically burst out of its wooden crate and sped across the Russian countryside towards an airbase. As it reaches it target, huge plumes of smoke can be seen rising from several nuclear bombers already alight, with one jet engulfed by a devastating fireball. Amid the destruction, the drone spots one jet still in tact, a TU-22 nuclear bomber, and immediately races towards it before inevitably self destructing. The devastating strikes took place on Sunday, with dramatic videos posted by pro-Kremlin military bloggers showing flames engulfing aircraft at multiple locations, including one deep inside Siberia. At least four more Russian strategic airbases were struck: Olenya in the Arctic region of Murmansk; Dyagilevo in western Russia; Ivanovo, northeast of Moscow; and Podmoskovye in Moscow. Sources inside Ukraine's SBU security service claimed the operation crippled 34 per cent of Russia's long-range strategic bombers often used to launch cruise missiles into Ukraine. In a statement, the SBU said at least 41 long-range bombers had been damaged or destroyed. These, they say, include the nuclear capable Tu-95 and Tu-22M as well as the surveillance A-50 'Mainstay' plane, worth an estimated £250,000,000 that is used as a radar and command centre, of which Russia is only believed to have around ten in operation. 'Mainstays' are critical to coordinating Russian fighter jets and air defences, meaning that this will have severely hampered Putin's war effort. Moscow has long stopped producing any of these aircraft meaning, if confirmed, these assets could not be replaced. There are only around 120 Tu-95s and Tu-22Ms in operation and they are vital for Putin's nightly bombing raids on Ukraine. They had been moved to bases thousands of miles away from Ukraine, out of reach of Western-donated Storm Shadows and ATACMS which have a range of up to 185 miles. As it reaches it target, huge plumes of smoke can be seen rising from several nuclear bombers already, with one jet engulfed by a devastating fireball In images released by the Ukrainian secret services, the wooden containers are seen packed with 117 FPV kamikaze drones – which allow pilots to control them remotely through a live feed. Dozens of black drones are lined side-by-side in the mobile wooden cabins. The roofs had hidden compartments into which the small flying weapons were stashed. With the help of front-positioned cameras, the missile-loaded drones headed straight for Russia's highly expensive bomber planes. Amid the drone blasts, one Russian man recalled to Mash Telegram channel throwing stones into the backs of the trucks in an attempt to stop the drones from taking off. Footage captured the moment dozens of other Russian locals launched rocks towards the trucks with some climbing on top of the vehicles to get a better shot. A video surfaced showing one of the trucks used to launch the Ukrainian (FPV) drones against Russian airbases, moments before it self-destructed. The footage captures a Russian man entering the cargo truck, unaware of the built-in self-destruction mechanism, which ignites seconds later, resulting in a massive explosion. The truck's self-destruct system activates to ensure that no evidence or technology can be recovered by Russian forces. This method prevents reverse engineering and eliminates any traceable Ukrainian assets left behind. The trucks are all linked to a mysterious man named Artem, 37, believed to be Ukrainian, and had reportedly been loaded in Chelyabinsk. All drivers reported receiving cryptic phone calls with instructions on exactly where to stop just hours before the drone launches. The trucks involved were seen in clips shared on social media with smoke billowing from the roofs as slabs of the wooden crates lay on the side of the road. In drone footage, several Russian planes were seen erupting in a blaze as they soared over the Russian aircrafts. As they continued their journey, the drones blasted the planes stationed ahead, sending them into a ball of fire. Separate images revealed the destruction as plumes of black clouds billowed into the sky behind buildings as the attack was carried out. Footage appeared to show black smoke at the scene on the Kola Peninsula following explosions at the secret base. According to Baza, Russian officials have launched a terrorism investigation and are now hunting Artem, who is believed to have fled. Putin has stayed out of sight since the attacks but an insider has warned: 'He will hit back at Ukraine, but also avenge his underlings who allowed this humiliation to happen'. Meanwhile, the SBU says all Ukrainian personnel involved in preparing and guiding the mission are already safely back in Ukraine, dismissing Moscow's response as a 'another staged performance for the domestic audience'. In a statement, President Zelensky hailed the 'perfectly prepared' operation, which he claimed was run out of a building located near an office of the Federal Security Service, Russia's principle security service. The sleeping FSB security service - headed by close ally Alexander Bortnikov, 73 - now faces blame over Ukraine using a warehouse next door to an intelligence HQ in Chelyabinsk to prepare the drone strikes on his airbases. Operation Spiderweb was 18 months in the making and under the control of Vasyl Malyuk, the head of the Ukrainian security service, the SBU. Zelensky also noted its symbolic timing as the operation came exactly 29 years after Ukraine handed over its own strategic bombers to Russia as part of the ill-fated Budapest Memorandum, under which Moscow promised never to attack its neighbour. 'We can say with confidence that this is an absolutely unique operation,' he said in statement on social media, revealing that 117 drones were used to target bombers 'used to fire at our cities.' 'What's most interesting, is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located directly next to FSB headquarters in one of their regions,' he added. 'In total, 117 drones were used in the operation, with a corresponding number of drone operators involved, and 34 per cent of the strategic cruise missile carriers stationed at air bases were hit. We will continue this work.' He assessed that the attack on Putin's irreplaceable bombers 'will undoubtedly be in [the] history books'. Military blogger Roman Alekhin said the incident will go down as 'Russia's Pearl Harbour' - a reference to the Japanese attack against the US in 1941 that prompted Washington to enter the Second World War. Pro-Russian Telegram channel Fighterbomb, believed to be run by Capt. Ilya Tumanov of the Russian Army, acknowledged that Sunday would 'later be called a black day for Russian long-range aviation,' adding: 'And the day is not over yet.' Former RAF pilot and military analyst Mikey Kay told the BBC: 'The Russians would never have expected something like this. I mean, it's genius, if you think about just the devastating effect that it's had on strategic assets of Putin.' Philip O'Brien, professor of strategic studies at St Andrews University, said the raid was 'the most remarkable and successful operation of the war.'
