• Putin: Russia supports both Al-Assad’s forces and Free Syrian Army

    Vladimir Putin stated that Russia supports not only Al-Assad’s forces in Syria, but also a leading group in the Syrian opposition, the Free Syrian Army. The fighters of the Western-backed moderate group have at times cooperated with Syrian government forces during operations against militants of the so-called Islamic State. At a meeting with the leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry, Putin said that Russia had provided air support for the Free Syrian Army for the first time. At the same …

  • U.S. Treasury: ISIS Sells Most of Its Oil to the Assad Regime

    The "Islamic State" organization has received approximately half a billion dollars from the oil trade.  Most of this amount is directed to the Syrian authorities and some part goes to Kurdish areas and Turkey.

    According to the Treasury of the United States, about one third of the capital of the terrorist organization Islamic State (ISIS) comes from trading black market oil.  The IS’s holdings are estimated at about $1.5 billion, said a senior official of the U.S. Treasurer on Thursday, …

  • Bordeaux City Hall Refused to Show Russian Propaganda Film about Crimea

    The Ukrainian Embassy in France reported that at least one Russian propaganda film won’t be seen by the French.

    In the French City of Bordeaux the film “Crimea - Path to the Motherland” was scheduled for screening in one of the city municipal halls on December 11th. Shot by TV channel “Russia-1”, the film tells about the annexation of Crimea by Russia and purports to justify the events that led to the war in Donbass.

    The Ukrainian Ambassador asked the mayor of Bordeaux to cancel the screening …

  • Polish apples and Turkish oranges: the Kremlin's response to Ankara

     

    The Kremlin has not yet decided what measures will be taken to punish Turkey for the downed Su-24.  For now, the Russian government had decided to strike Turkey financially.  Turkish imports were banned and a one-sided visa regime for Turkish citizens entering Russia was introduced.  In Turkey, the visa-free regime for Russian citizens was never cancelled.Putin, and more precisely the Russian government, is trying to kill two birds with one stone. In situations in which the Russian budget …

  • Khodorkovsky: Revolution in Russia Is Inevitable

    Revolution in Russia is inevitable and necessary.  Former Yukos Oil Company CEO, Mikhail Khodorkovsky stated it unequivocally during an interview from London that was broadcast on the "Open Russia" website.

    “Russian society needs to admit that there was an anti-constitutional coup in the country, and that Parliament has adopted illegitimate, repressive laws,” Khodorkovsky said.  “In the absence of the institution of fair elections and other mechanisms of legitimate power change, the only …