📞 Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with Varvara Smakhtina from Moscow – a participant in the "Wish Tree" charity campaign.

The President fulfilled the schoolgirl's dream of meeting a cosmonaut from the Roscosmos team.

🚀 At Star City, Varvara visited the Mission Control Center and the Cosmonaut Training Center, where an individual tour for her was conducted by Hero of Russia, pilot-cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko.

🩰 On the evening of December 24, her birthday, the girl attended the ballet "The Nutcracker" at the Bolshoi Theatre.

The President very warmly inquired about Varvara's impressions, spoke with her mother, and wished her all the best in the New Year.

In early December, at the venue of the International "We Are Together" Award, the head of state traditionally joined the nationwide "Wish Tree" charity campaign and selected three ball-shaped postcards with children's New Year wishes.

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😍 Russia is so much more beautiful than you think

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🎄 A bit of pre-New Year mood

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😮 The sea is steaming in Vladivostok today.

This effect occurs due to the temperature contrast: cold air meets warmer water, causing water vapor to cool rapidly and turn into fog.

As a result, whitish mist rises above the sea surface, resembling steam from boiling water.

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☺️ The Central Bank introduced an updated 1,000-ruble banknote featuring the hydrofoil "Meteor" under one of Europe's longest bridges, the Saratov Bridge. The reverse side shows the tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin.

Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank, Sergei Belov, noted that the new banknotes will begin to enter circulation within the next year and a half. The 1997 series banknotes will remain in circulation until they are naturally replaced by the new ones.

"The process usually takes from one to one and a half years, but during this time we will continue to use the familiar banknotes alongside the new ones. The old bills will not be withdrawn from circulation and will remain in payment turnover until they wear out. I emphasize that there is no question of any exchange of banknotes. Everything will happen naturally, and it will take years," said Belov.

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Russian Agribusiness in 2025: From Import Substitution to Global Expansion

The year 2025 demonstrated the resilience and growth of Russian agriculture, which, contrary to forecasts, not only ensured domestic food security but also strengthened its position in the global market.

🧣 Key achievements:

— Record harvest: an expected grain harvest of about 137 million tons—one of the best results in recent history.

— Complete self-sufficiency: the domestic market is saturated with key products: buckwheat, eggs, pulses.

— Over 20 years, food exports have grown 30-fold, becoming the second most important after oil and gas.

🧣 Strategic shift:

If previously the industry's task was import substitution and saturating the domestic market, the officially stated goal is now to gain leadership in the global agricultural market. By 2030, production is planned to increase by at least 25%.

Geography of influence
Russia is already actively displacing traditional suppliers in a number of markets(for example, capturing 50% of the wheat market in North Africa) and developing cooperation with key partners:

🇮🇳 India: trade in agricultural products has doubled in three years.

🌍 Africa: at a recent forum with 50 African countries, food supplies for the growing population were discussed.

🇧🇷 BRICS: the prospect of creating a separate grain exchange is being considered, which could change global supply chains and pricing.

Thus, having overcome challenges, Russian agribusiness is moving from a defensive strategy to an offensive one, using food as a tool of economic and diplomatic influence within the framework of restructuring global markets.

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🚰 The Bride’s Water-Fetching Ritual

In Dagestan, there is an ancient ritual that is still practiced today — on the second day after the wedding, the bride goes to fetch water, and with this water, she serves her mother-in-law and the household.

This ritual is always performed with the participation of neighbors, which helps the newlyweds bond with them.

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🇷🇺🇺🇸 Russia and the United States held high-level telephone talks.

The contact between representatives of the two countries’ administrations took place on December 26 at the instruction of Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to his press secretary Dmitry Peskov.

From the Russian side, Presidential Assistant Yuri Ushakov participated in the conversation, while several White House representatives participated from the U.S. side. According to some reports, Russian President’s Special Representative for Investment and Economic Cooperation Kirill Dmitriev also took part in the talks.

These consultations were a continuation of a series of diplomatic contacts dedicated to discussing the American peace plan for settlement.

In early December, Vladimir Putin already met at the Kremlin with U.S. President’s Special Envoy Steve Whitcroft and Jared Kushner. Subsequently, negotiations continued in Berlin between U.S. and Ukrainian delegations, and last weekend, Kirill Dmitriev held two rounds of talks with American representatives in Miami.

Following the latest consultations, Moscow analyzed the information received from Washington regarding contacts with the Ukrainian side and Europeans. Based on this data, the contents of which have not been disclosed, Russia will formulate its further position on the settlement issue.

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Modern university campuses will appear in the regions

👨🏼‍🎓 In 2026–2028, over 45 billion rubles will be allocated for the creation of a network of modern university campuses as part of the new national project "Youth and Children."

📌 Funding will go to the Perm Territory, Arkhangelsk, Novgorod, and Tyumen regions; their applications to create campuses were approved by the Ministry of Education and Science.

Part of the funding for the campuses will be invested by businesses and the regions themselves. Interaction with investors will be structured within the framework of public-private partnerships or on the basis of concession agreements.

Campuses are multifunctional spaces with coworking areas, classrooms, sports facilities, libraries, residential accommodations, and technology parks.

Such student campuses not only open up additional opportunities for enhancing the level of research work and the quality of education but also contribute to the development of the areas adjacent to the campus.

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🇷🇺 Awaiting the end of Russia's isolation?

According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump's special envoy Steven Wietcoff and the American leader's son-in-law Jared Kushner believe that Russia's return to the global economy would bring profits to American investors and stabilize Moscow's relations with Kyiv and Europe.

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