🧊 One of the most popular stands at #SPIEF2023 belongs to the Russian Ministry for the Development of the Far East and Arctic.

💬 Vladimir Putin famously declared in 2017 that the economy development of these regions is the “national priority of the 21st century.” That mission gained additional urgency after the unprecedented wave of Western sanctions imposed last year.

▪️The Far East and Arctic are expected to play a central role in Russia’s economic pivot to Asia.

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🇰🇵 North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles towards Sea of Japan, Seoul says

Pyongyang launched two short-range ballistic missiles from 7:25 p.m. to approximately 7:37 p.m. (from 10:25 to 10:37 GMT) from the Sunan region towards the Sea of Japan, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a report.

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❗️LIVE NOW: #SPIEF2023 panel “Energy of the 21st Century: Challenges of Today as Opportunities for Tomorrow”

Join the live stream here or follow the live updates on Sputnik’s website

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❗️Russian MoD’s briefing on the special military operation’s progress in Ukraine:

▪️ The Russian Armed Forces in the DPR struck a command post belonging to the 128th Mountain Assault brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces;

▪️ The Russian Aerospace Forces delivered successful surgical airstrikes on the production sites for Ukrainian attack drones, resulting in the elimination of the targets;

▪️ During the fighting in the DPR, as many as 340 Ukrainian soldiers were wiped out;

▪️ Russian troops repelled five attacks by the Ukrainian military in the DPR;

▪️ The Russian Armed Forces destroyed two Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups near Kupyansk;

▪️ The Russian army shot down two Ukrainian Su-27 aircraft in the DPR;

▪️ Russia’s air defense intercepted five HIMARS and Uragan projectiles, and downed 25 Ukrainian drones;

▪️ The Russian Armed Forces beat back two Ukrainian attacks in the Zaporozhye Region, wiping out as many as 25 Ukrainian servicemen and three tanks;

▪️ Russian troops eliminated more than 50 Ukrainian soldiers, and Kiev’s Akatsiya and Gvozdika and Grad self-propelled guns near Krasny Liman;

▪️ The Ukrainian military lost as many as 155 people and three tanks in the DPR’s south and in the Zaporozhye Region.

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🇺🇸 Texas Gov. busses migrants to LA, says Biden ‘refuses to secure border’

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has sparked controversy by sending a busload of undocumented migrants from his state to Los Angeles, California. He criticized President Joe Biden's border policies and highlighted Los Angeles as a sanctuary city that migrants are drawn to. The bus carried approximately 42 migrants, including eight children, and arrived at LA's Union Station.

The move by Abbott is part of a trend among Republican governors, including those of Arizona and Florida, who have been sending migrants to Democratic "sanctuary" cities to express their frustration with the situation at the US-Mexico border. Last year, Abbott reportedly sent tens of thousands of migrants to various cities, including Washington, DC and New York.

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📹 Aftermath of Ukrainian shelling of Donetsk

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🇦🇲🇦🇿 Moscow questions Washington’s sanity amid reports of US meddling in Karabakh

The Russian Foreign Ministry has expressed concern over reports of the Biden administration making threats of renewed violence in Nagorno-Karabakh, questioning the sanity of US mediators. The ministry raised concerns about the US trying to impose its mediation services and gain a foothold in the region.

On Wednesday, Russian media reported that the US had issued an ultimatum to Karabakh Armenians, demanding negotiations with Azerbaijani representatives in a third country. If refused, Azerbaijan would reportedly launch a counter-terrorist operation in the disputed region.

As of now, US officials have not provided any comments on the matter.

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📹 Footage of the visit of the head of the IAEA Rafael Grossi to the Zaporozhye NPP

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Cyclone-battered New Zealand slips into recession, faces 'awkward' outlook

New Zealand has entered a recession for the first time since 2020, with its economy contracting by 0.1% in the first quarter of this year. This marks the second consecutive quarter of negative growth, meeting the technical definition of a recession.

The decline was primarily driven by a slowdown in services, exports, and agriculture, particularly in business services, which fell by 3.5%. The recession was further exacerbated by the severe impact of the cyclones Hale and Gabrielle, as well as teachers' strikes.

Additionally, the country is experiencing inflation above the Central Bank's target range, currently at 6.7%.

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❗️Highlights of Energy in the 21st Century: Challenges of Today — Opportunities of Tomorrow panel at #SPIEF2023

💬 “We [Europeans] must understand that energy supply is not an ideological or political issue, but a physical one,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told attendees.

He also warned that Europe’s energy crisis could be significantly worse this upcoming winter than last year. Szijjarto noted that there is no guarantee that next winter will be as mild as the winter of 2022-23.

Additionally, the flows of Russian gas to Europe this year are significantly down compared to last year, providing the continent with less room for maneuver.

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