Latest news with #Kommersant
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Russia cuts key projects in aviation, tech, auto industries as oil revenues plummet
The Russian government is slashing budgets for major projects across a number of sectors in response to plummeting revenues from oil and gas, the pro-Kremlin news outlet Kommersant reported on May 22. Earlier this month, oil prices in Russia dropped to a two-year low. Prices fell below $50 per barrel — about 40% lower than what was planned in the Russian budget, Reuters reported on May 6. In response to the price collapse, the Kremlin has introduced sweeping budget cuts to several state programs, Kommersant reports. These include programs to develop Russia's aviation, automotive, tech, shipping, and robotics industries. The state will cut an aviation development program by 22%, reducing the original budget of 101.2 billion rubles to 78.8 billion. The aim of the program was to replace Western aircraft with Russian planes. Read also: Ukraine's new drone strategy — cripple Moscow's airports, make Russian population 'pay' A program aiming to increase the output of Russia's civilian goods by 40% by the year 2030 has also been targeted for funding cuts and is set to lose 66.9 rubles in 2025. Funds for the nation's "high-tech industries" will lose 46 billion rubles, the automotive industry will be slashed by 35 billion rubles, and support for "the production of innovative transport" will drop by 25 billion rubles. Funds for the production of ships and ship equipment will lose out on 12.6 billion rubles. A program to boost the production of industrial robots will lose nearly a third of its budget (1.7 billion out of 5.6 billion rubles). The Russian state statistics agency Rosstat reported on May 16 that the country is experiencing a significant downturn in economic growth, exacerbated by oil prices, Western sanctions, and inflation. Oil and gas revenues accounted for nearly 30% of Russia's budget in January and February, according to government data cited by Bloomberg. Moreover, income from fossil fuel exports is a key funding source for Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. Soaring military expenditures have strained the Kremlin's budget even as Western sanctions increasingly target Russia's "shadow fleet" of oil tankers and the nation's gas exports. Read also: Editorial: Russia just said it doesn't want peace. This is what you need to do We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Image of Crimea explosion falsely linked to India-Pakistan conflict
The image of a fireball and thick black smoke was shared on Facebook on May 8, 2025, as India and Pakistan exchanged tit-for-tat jet fighter, drone, missile and artillery attacks across their shared frontier. "Indian S-400 air defense system site in Adampur hit by unknown missiles and drones," reads both the Urdu and English-language captions of the image. The violence, the worst between the neighbours in decades, erupted after New Delhi launched missiles at sites in Pakistan it said were hosting militants responsible for an attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir (archived link). India had accused Pakistan of backing the "terrorists" behind the April 22 attack -- a charge Islamabad denies. Four days of intense fighting that killed at least 70 people followed, before the arch-rivals agreed to a ceasefire on May 10 that US President Donald Trump said was brokered by Washington. The same image also circulated in similar X posts that were shared hundreds of times. While Pakistan's military claimed on May 10 that its air force had destroyed the defence system, Indian media reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi "debunked Pakistan's claim" by posing in front of it during a visit to the Adampur airbase on May 13 (archived here and here). The circulating image also predates the current conflict by almost two years. A reverse image search led to the same photo published in several articles, including from American magazine Newsweek, about explosions in July 2023 in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula which Russia annexed a decade earlier (archived here). The photo in the Newsweek article is credited to photographer Viktor Korotayev of Russian media Kommersant and to AFP which also distributed the photo. "A picture shows detonation of ammunition caused by a fire at a military training field in the Kirovsky district of Crimea on July 19, 2023," reads its caption in AFP's archives. An AFP report from July 19, 2023 said the fire prompted authorities to order the evacuation of more than 2,000 civilians (archived link). "Authorities did not specify the cause of the blaze, but some Russian media reported that detonations were heard in the area and footage showed columns of black smoke in the sky," the report added. The conflict between India and Pakistan has triggered a flurry of misinformation, some of which AFP has debunked here.
AFP
15-05-2025
- Politics
- AFP
Image of Crimea explosion falsely linked to India-Pakistan conflict
The image of a fireball and thick black smoke was shared on Facebook on May 8, 2025, as India and Pakistan exchanged tit-for-tat jet fighter, drone, missile and artillery attacks across their shared frontier. "Indian S-400 air defense system site in Adampur hit by unknown missiles and drones," reads both the Urdu and English-language captions of the image. The violence, the worst between the neighbours in decades, erupted after New Delhi launched missiles at sites in Pakistan it said were hosting militants responsible for an attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir (archived link). India had accused Pakistan of backing the "terrorists" behind the April 22 attack -- a charge Islamabad denies. Four days of intense fighting that killed at least 70 people followed, before the arch-rivals agreed to a ceasefire on May 10 that US President Donald Trump said was brokered by Washington. Image Screenshot of the false Facebook post, captured on May 15, 2025 The same image also circulated in similar X posts that were shared hundreds of times. While Pakistan's military claimed on May 10 that its air force had destroyed the defence system, Indian media reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi "debunked Pakistan's claim" by posing in front of it during a visit to the Adampur airbase on May 13 (archived here and here). The circulating image also predates the current conflict by almost two years. Crimea explosion A reverse image search led to the same photo published in several articles, including from American magazine Newsweek, about explosions in July 2023 in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula which Russia annexed a decade earlier (archived here). The photo in the Newsweek article is credited to photographer Viktor Korotayev of Russian media Kommersant and to AFP which also distributed the photo. "A picture shows detonation of ammunition caused by a fire at a military training field in the Kirovsky district of Crimea on July 19, 2023," reads its caption in AFP's archives. An AFP report from July 19, 2023 said the fire prompted authorities to order the evacuation of more than 2,000 civilians (archived link). "Authorities did not specify the cause of the blaze, but some Russian media reported that detonations were heard in the area and footage showed columns of black smoke in the sky," the report added. Image Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared image (left) and the same photo in AFP's archives (right) The conflict between India and Pakistan has triggered a flurry of misinformation, some of which AFP has debunked here.
The Advertiser
15-05-2025
- Business
- The Advertiser
Putin, Trump still 'maybes' for Ukraine peace talks
US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are still "maybes" for what could be the first direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years, after the Kremlin held off disclosing who would represent Russia. Putin on Sunday proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday "without any preconditions". But he did not say who would be attending from Moscow's side and his spokesman was unable to give further details on the matter on Wednesday. Trump earlier this week urged Ukraine to attend the talks and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly said he would be there, but only if Putin showed up, setting up a diplomatic standoff as part of an apparent contest to show Trump who wants peace more. Trump on Wednesday said he himself was still considering whether to attend the talks in Turkey but did not know whether Putin would go, something that Zelenskiy has challenged the Kremlin leader to do "if he's not afraid". "(Putin) would like me to be there, and that's a possibility ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Qatar. Trump wants the two sides to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire in what is Europe's biggest land war since World War II, and a Russian lawmaker on Wednesday said there could also be discussions about a huge prisoner of war exchange. Zelenskiy backs an immediate 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has said he first wants to start talks at which the details of such a ceasefire could be discussed. Trump, who is growing increasingly frustrated with both Russia and Ukraine as he tries to push them towards a peace settlement, said he was "always considering" secondary sanctions against Moscow if he thought it was blocking the process. US officials have spoken about possible financial sanctions as well as potential secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil. A Ukrainian diplomatic source told Reuters on Wednesday that Ukraine's leadership would decide on its next steps for peace talks in Turkey once there was clarity on Putin's participation. "Everything will depend on whether Putin is scared of coming to Istanbul or not. Based on his response, the Ukrainian leadership will decide on the next steps," the source said. If Putin agrees to join, it would be the first meeting between the leaders of the two warring countries since December 2019. Direct talks between negotiators from Ukraine and Russia last took place in Istanbul in March 2022, a month after Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Some unconfirmed Russian and US media reports had said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, would be in Istanbul and ready to meet their Ukrainian counterparts. But Russia's Kommersant newspaper, which is regarded as having good sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin, said on Wednesday evening that Lavrov would not attend. Asked earlier by reporters during a daily briefing if the Kremlin could reveal the make-up of the Russian delegation, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We will do that when we get an instruction to do so from the president." "The Russian delegation will be waiting for the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul on May 15." Trump has said he will send Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg to Turkey, while also offering to attend himself. US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are still "maybes" for what could be the first direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years, after the Kremlin held off disclosing who would represent Russia. Putin on Sunday proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday "without any preconditions". But he did not say who would be attending from Moscow's side and his spokesman was unable to give further details on the matter on Wednesday. Trump earlier this week urged Ukraine to attend the talks and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly said he would be there, but only if Putin showed up, setting up a diplomatic standoff as part of an apparent contest to show Trump who wants peace more. Trump on Wednesday said he himself was still considering whether to attend the talks in Turkey but did not know whether Putin would go, something that Zelenskiy has challenged the Kremlin leader to do "if he's not afraid". "(Putin) would like me to be there, and that's a possibility ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Qatar. Trump wants the two sides to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire in what is Europe's biggest land war since World War II, and a Russian lawmaker on Wednesday said there could also be discussions about a huge prisoner of war exchange. Zelenskiy backs an immediate 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has said he first wants to start talks at which the details of such a ceasefire could be discussed. Trump, who is growing increasingly frustrated with both Russia and Ukraine as he tries to push them towards a peace settlement, said he was "always considering" secondary sanctions against Moscow if he thought it was blocking the process. US officials have spoken about possible financial sanctions as well as potential secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil. A Ukrainian diplomatic source told Reuters on Wednesday that Ukraine's leadership would decide on its next steps for peace talks in Turkey once there was clarity on Putin's participation. "Everything will depend on whether Putin is scared of coming to Istanbul or not. Based on his response, the Ukrainian leadership will decide on the next steps," the source said. If Putin agrees to join, it would be the first meeting between the leaders of the two warring countries since December 2019. Direct talks between negotiators from Ukraine and Russia last took place in Istanbul in March 2022, a month after Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Some unconfirmed Russian and US media reports had said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, would be in Istanbul and ready to meet their Ukrainian counterparts. But Russia's Kommersant newspaper, which is regarded as having good sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin, said on Wednesday evening that Lavrov would not attend. Asked earlier by reporters during a daily briefing if the Kremlin could reveal the make-up of the Russian delegation, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We will do that when we get an instruction to do so from the president." "The Russian delegation will be waiting for the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul on May 15." Trump has said he will send Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg to Turkey, while also offering to attend himself. US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are still "maybes" for what could be the first direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years, after the Kremlin held off disclosing who would represent Russia. Putin on Sunday proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday "without any preconditions". But he did not say who would be attending from Moscow's side and his spokesman was unable to give further details on the matter on Wednesday. Trump earlier this week urged Ukraine to attend the talks and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly said he would be there, but only if Putin showed up, setting up a diplomatic standoff as part of an apparent contest to show Trump who wants peace more. Trump on Wednesday said he himself was still considering whether to attend the talks in Turkey but did not know whether Putin would go, something that Zelenskiy has challenged the Kremlin leader to do "if he's not afraid". "(Putin) would like me to be there, and that's a possibility ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Qatar. Trump wants the two sides to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire in what is Europe's biggest land war since World War II, and a Russian lawmaker on Wednesday said there could also be discussions about a huge prisoner of war exchange. Zelenskiy backs an immediate 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has said he first wants to start talks at which the details of such a ceasefire could be discussed. Trump, who is growing increasingly frustrated with both Russia and Ukraine as he tries to push them towards a peace settlement, said he was "always considering" secondary sanctions against Moscow if he thought it was blocking the process. US officials have spoken about possible financial sanctions as well as potential secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil. A Ukrainian diplomatic source told Reuters on Wednesday that Ukraine's leadership would decide on its next steps for peace talks in Turkey once there was clarity on Putin's participation. "Everything will depend on whether Putin is scared of coming to Istanbul or not. Based on his response, the Ukrainian leadership will decide on the next steps," the source said. If Putin agrees to join, it would be the first meeting between the leaders of the two warring countries since December 2019. Direct talks between negotiators from Ukraine and Russia last took place in Istanbul in March 2022, a month after Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Some unconfirmed Russian and US media reports had said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, would be in Istanbul and ready to meet their Ukrainian counterparts. But Russia's Kommersant newspaper, which is regarded as having good sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin, said on Wednesday evening that Lavrov would not attend. Asked earlier by reporters during a daily briefing if the Kremlin could reveal the make-up of the Russian delegation, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We will do that when we get an instruction to do so from the president." "The Russian delegation will be waiting for the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul on May 15." Trump has said he will send Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg to Turkey, while also offering to attend himself. US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are still "maybes" for what could be the first direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years, after the Kremlin held off disclosing who would represent Russia. Putin on Sunday proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday "without any preconditions". But he did not say who would be attending from Moscow's side and his spokesman was unable to give further details on the matter on Wednesday. Trump earlier this week urged Ukraine to attend the talks and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly said he would be there, but only if Putin showed up, setting up a diplomatic standoff as part of an apparent contest to show Trump who wants peace more. Trump on Wednesday said he himself was still considering whether to attend the talks in Turkey but did not know whether Putin would go, something that Zelenskiy has challenged the Kremlin leader to do "if he's not afraid". "(Putin) would like me to be there, and that's a possibility ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Qatar. Trump wants the two sides to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire in what is Europe's biggest land war since World War II, and a Russian lawmaker on Wednesday said there could also be discussions about a huge prisoner of war exchange. Zelenskiy backs an immediate 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has said he first wants to start talks at which the details of such a ceasefire could be discussed. Trump, who is growing increasingly frustrated with both Russia and Ukraine as he tries to push them towards a peace settlement, said he was "always considering" secondary sanctions against Moscow if he thought it was blocking the process. US officials have spoken about possible financial sanctions as well as potential secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil. A Ukrainian diplomatic source told Reuters on Wednesday that Ukraine's leadership would decide on its next steps for peace talks in Turkey once there was clarity on Putin's participation. "Everything will depend on whether Putin is scared of coming to Istanbul or not. Based on his response, the Ukrainian leadership will decide on the next steps," the source said. If Putin agrees to join, it would be the first meeting between the leaders of the two warring countries since December 2019. Direct talks between negotiators from Ukraine and Russia last took place in Istanbul in March 2022, a month after Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Some unconfirmed Russian and US media reports had said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, would be in Istanbul and ready to meet their Ukrainian counterparts. But Russia's Kommersant newspaper, which is regarded as having good sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin, said on Wednesday evening that Lavrov would not attend. Asked earlier by reporters during a daily briefing if the Kremlin could reveal the make-up of the Russian delegation, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We will do that when we get an instruction to do so from the president." "The Russian delegation will be waiting for the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul on May 15." Trump has said he will send Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg to Turkey, while also offering to attend himself.
West Australian
14-05-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Putin, Trump still 'maybes' for Ukraine peace talks
US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are still "maybes" for what could be the first direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years, after the Kremlin held off disclosing who would represent Russia. Putin on Sunday proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday "without any preconditions". But he did not say who would be attending from Moscow's side and his spokesman was unable to give further details on the matter on Wednesday. Trump earlier this week urged Ukraine to attend the talks and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly said he would be there, but only if Putin showed up, setting up a diplomatic standoff as part of an apparent contest to show Trump who wants peace more. Trump on Wednesday said he himself was still considering whether to attend the talks in Turkey but did not know whether Putin would go, something that Zelenskiy has challenged the Kremlin leader to do "if he's not afraid". "(Putin) would like me to be there, and that's a possibility ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Qatar. Trump wants the two sides to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire in what is Europe's biggest land war since World War II, and a Russian lawmaker on Wednesday said there could also be discussions about a huge prisoner of war exchange. Zelenskiy backs an immediate 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has said he first wants to start talks at which the details of such a ceasefire could be discussed. Trump, who is growing increasingly frustrated with both Russia and Ukraine as he tries to push them towards a peace settlement, said he was "always considering" secondary sanctions against Moscow if he thought it was blocking the process. US officials have spoken about possible financial sanctions as well as potential secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil. A Ukrainian diplomatic source told Reuters on Wednesday that Ukraine's leadership would decide on its next steps for peace talks in Turkey once there was clarity on Putin's participation. "Everything will depend on whether Putin is scared of coming to Istanbul or not. Based on his response, the Ukrainian leadership will decide on the next steps," the source said. If Putin agrees to join, it would be the first meeting between the leaders of the two warring countries since December 2019. Direct talks between negotiators from Ukraine and Russia last took place in Istanbul in March 2022, a month after Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Some unconfirmed Russian and US media reports had said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, would be in Istanbul and ready to meet their Ukrainian counterparts. But Russia's Kommersant newspaper, which is regarded as having good sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin, said on Wednesday evening that Lavrov would not attend. Asked earlier by reporters during a daily briefing if the Kremlin could reveal the make-up of the Russian delegation, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We will do that when we get an instruction to do so from the president." "The Russian delegation will be waiting for the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul on May 15." Trump has said he will send Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg to Turkey, while also offering to attend himself.
