Lavrov and Guterres touch on Ukraine, Mideast & grain deal at UNSC meeting

Russian FM Lavrov discussed Ukraine, Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan with UN SG Guterres, as well as the Black Sea grain deal and Russia's cooperation with the UN. They also talked about visa issues and the US failure to fulfill its obligations.

Both sides emphasized the importance of strengthening the UN's central coordinating role in global politics and promoting multilateralism.

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Switzerland imported over ten tonnes of Russian gold in March

Switzerland imported more than ten tonnes of Russian gold via the United Kingdom in March, for a total sum of 565 million Swiss francs ($638 million), in compliance with all the trade restrictions, the Swiss Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS) said on Tuesday.

"The imports from Russia reached 569 million francs in March, of which 565 million francs fall on gold, produced in Russia (10,117 kilograms [22,304 pounds]), that was imported to Switzerland via the UK," the FOCBS said in a statement.

The gold imports comply with the current rules of trade, the FOCBS added.

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Equipped with a powerful cannon and fitted with a wide assortment of active and passive defensive measures, the T-14 Armata may well be one of the deadliest tools at Russia's disposal.

So what is the T-14 Armata, Russia's newest main battle tank?

What Are Klub Missiles That India Reportedly Seeks to Purchase From Russia?

🇮🇳🚀 The Navy has been using the Klub missile for decades, and the weapon system serves as one of the key components of the country's blue water force's ships, including frigates and destroyers, and submarines.

👉 FIND OUT MORE

📹 Russian strike brigades hit Ukrainian manpower

Attack drone operators strike at enemy manpower in positions.

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🇯🇵🚀 Japan's first private lunar mission fails to confirm successful landing

💬 "Our HAKUTO-R Mission 1 Lunar Lander was expected to land on the surface of the moon at 1:40 am JST on April 26, 2023 [16:40 GMT April 25]. At this time, our Mission Control Center in Tokyo has not been able to confirm the success of the lander," the company said.

An earlier livestream of the landing event captured the immediate reaction of individuals involved in the project, capturing many officials sporting somber faces.

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🇺🇸 Joe Biden goes on bizarre rant about “gradpop” same day he launches presidential campaign

Biden tells a story about being born in the same hospital as that in which his grandfather died just two weeks earlier. Which is poignant, but for the fact that Joe Biden was born in Pennsylvania, and the grandfather to whom he is probably referring died in Maryland a year earlier.

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🇸🇪🚀🇳🇴 Swedish rocket tumbles down in Norway, rattling Oslo

A research rocket launched from northern Sweden has plunged into Norwegian mountainside the far north, resulting in a rare case of discord between the neighbors, as bickering Oslo was clearly irked by Stockholm's failure to immediately inform about the crash.

Norway's Civil Aviation Authority said that it had only learned about the crash from the Swedish Space Corporation's belated press release, with no direct contact.

💬 "The rocket took a slightly longer and more westerly trajectory than calculated and landed after a completed flight 15 kilometers into Norway," the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) said in a subsequent statement, adding that work to retrieve its payload was underway.

However, Norway's Foreign Ministry also noted that retrieval work was not supposed to begin without Norwegian authorization. It also stressed that wreckage from such rockets may be contaminated with rocket fuel or other toxic materials.

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🇺🇸 Carlson ouster marks Fox News' transition into 'graveyard of conservative media titans'

💬 “First Bill O'Reilly was ousted, then Megyn Kelly, and now Tucker Carlson. Whether Fox can survive this latest bout of self-harm is an open question,” Dr. Nicholas Waddy, a political analyst and associate professor of history at SUNY Alfred, told Sputnik.

Carlson, Waddy points out, was one of television’s biggest critics of US foreign policy, particularly when it comes to the Ukraine conflict. Without him at the network, Waddy expects his removal will “solidify the neo-conservative, hawkish orientation of Fox News,” but that Carlson may become more powerful than before.

Waddy speculated Carlson’s ousting could have grave consequences for debate in the country.

💬 “The more important question, though, is whether oppositional media and journalism, and thus democratic pluralism, can survive in an environment in which ‘misinformation’ and ‘libel’ are so opportunistically defined,” Waddy continued, “and in which a media organization can be buried in litigation, as well as abandoned by skittish advertisers, and thus stifled financially if it strays from political orthodoxy.”

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🇷🇺✈️ Two Russian Tu-160 strategic missile carrying bombers performed a scheduled flight mission over the Barents and Norwegian Seas lasting 14 hours.

The crews carried out midair, night and day refueling. A fighter escort was provided by MiG-31 aircraft crews.

Long-range aviation pilots regularly fly over the neutral waters of the Arctic, the North Atlantic, the Black and Baltic Seas, and the Pacific Ocean. All flights by the Russian Aerospace Forces are carried out in strict accordance with international law on airspace.

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🇺🇸💵 Yellen warns US debt default risks mass unemployment, broad economic weakness

US Treasury secretary predicted the fallout would likely see the US government miss critical military and social security payments, as well as undergo a mass firing of government employees in a worst-case scenario. The devastating setback would also cause thousands of households to miss payments on their houses, cars and credit cards, causing a collapse of the US credit market.

💬 “This economic catastrophe is preventable and the solution is simple,” she pleaded. "Congress must vote to raise or suspend the debt limit and it should do so without conditions, and it should not wait until the last minute."

The US government hit its self-imposed debt ceiling earlier this year in January. The Treasury Department has since been taking “extraordinary measures” to prevent a debt default.

At the time, Yellen warned measures could only hold off default for a few months. She warned that without Congress authorizing another raise of the debt ceiling, the government could default sometime this summer.

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🇺🇸 “Good riddance”: Pentagon brass welcome Tucker Carlson’s ouster

Carlson’s criticism of the Biden administration was well liked among rank-and-file staff, but top-level Pentagon brass greeted his departure from Fox News with glee, American media has reported.

When asked to respond to the news, Carlson said in a text message: “Ha! I’m sure.”

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🇷🇺 Putin signs decree on response measures if Russian assets abroad seized

According to the decree, German energy company Uniper’s shares in its Russian subsidiary Unipro and shares in Russian subsidiaries of Finnish energy company Fortum are among foreign assets that can be transferred to Russia’s state property management agency (Rosimushchestvo).

The preamble to the decree states it is caused by "the need to take urgent measures" in response to illegal US actions and those of other countries aimed at the deprivation or restriction of property rights of the Russian Federation, its companies and citizens.

Movable and immovable property, securities, shares in authorized capitals, and property rights may fall under temporary administration. The Rosimushchestvo is appointed temporary manager of such assets, but another entity can be appointed by the president's decision. The interim manager exercises the powers of the owner of these assets, with the exception of the power to dispose of property.

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🎥 37th anniversary of Chernobyl tragedy

On April 26, 1986, one of the largest manmade disasters of the 20th century occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

☝️Here’s how it happened

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🇮🇳 India is probably most famous for two things: its large population — which is expected to overtake China’s by the end of April — and memes.

But surely, there are many other things why you should pay attention to developments in India — from its tech advances and growing economy, to breathtaking landscapes and Bollywood movies.

📲 Luckily, Sputnik India carefully picks up all the most interesting stories and latest updates on its Telegram channel in Hindi.

👉 Subscribe, and let's explore India together: @SputnikHindi

❗️Moscow looking into crimes by French mercenaries against Russian POWs

💬 “The Investigative Committee of Russia will establish all the circumstances of the incident in order to bring those to justice involved in committing the crimes,” the committee stated.

The French mercenaries in question participated in the hostilities in Ukraine within the ranks of the Azov regiment (banned in Russia) and brigades of the Ukrainian military. One of the mercenaries published a photo, depicting him shooting three Russian prisoners of war at point-blank range.

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❗️ Latest statements by Russian envoy to UN in Geneva:

▪️ Russia never limited export of Ukrainian grain under Black Sea initiative;

▪️ Conflict in Ukraine concerns not so much Ukraine as future of international relations;

▪️ Decision on extending the grain deal after May 18 has not yet been made;

▪️ It is not yet clear whether significant progress will be made on the implementation of the Russian part of the grain deal.

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📹🇷🇺 Russia's T-90M tanks in combat in Donbass

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Catch our Fault Lines show, where we provide updates and analysis on all the most vital stories! Here's our line-up for today:

🔺To kick things off, we’ll be discussing Biden’s re-election bid
🔺Next, we’ll talk about South Africa’s decision to leave the International Criminal Court
🔺Finally, we’ll speak about the US debt ceiling and the lowering of Americans’ consumer confidence

More trending stories coming your way! Tune in to Radio Sputnik at 7am EST|4am PST|1pm CET via the website or app!

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