❗️ Three people were killed and seven were rescued from under the rubble of a residential building in Lugansk after a missile attack by Ukrainian forces, the Russian Emergencies Ministry said.

The number of victims of the Ukrainian strike has risen to 35, including three children, authorities said.

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🇮🇷🇷🇺 "Iranians are very pragmatic partners and see direct benefits in cooperation with the EAEU"

Speaking to Sputnik on the sidelines of the SPIEF, Dmitry Volvach, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, commented on Iran's application for observer status in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

💬 "Our Iranian colleagues understand that there is indeed a great, primarily economic, potential in this cooperation,” Volvach noted. “I emphasize that they are very pragmatic partners, which means that they see direct benefits.”

“The temporary agreement with Iran has allowed us to double our mutual trade. This is also a way out for us, and a good way out with good conditions, with comfortable tariffs to new markets. This is also obvious and that is why all countries have supported the conclusion of such agreements with the free trade zone,” he added.

💬 “Let's see what will be the results of the consultations on Iran's accession to the EAEU as an observer. I hope that everyone will express their support,” Volvach said. “The perimeter of our Eurasian Economic Union will soon become a very serious economic and strategic partner. And not only in terms of trade in goods, but also in terms of logistics. I think this is quite logical.”

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⚡️ A strike on Lugansk on Friday morning was carried out using five ATACMS missiles supplied to Ukraine by the West, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Four of the missiles managed to be shot down, but one struck two apartment buildings, the ministry added.

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📹 People gather in queues waiting for the plenary session of the 27th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum with Vladimir Putin

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🚨 Putin’s speech at #SPIEF2024 coming up soon

Jackson Hinkle shares his expectations for the speech, and makes a prediction about Biden’s likely response.

Tune in to Sputnik News for live updates and stream of Putin’s speech.

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Russian FM Lavrov is heading for the plenary session of the 27th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (#SPIEF) with Vladimir Putin

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‘We're looking at World War III’ if Biden is reelected - Tara Reade

If Biden is reelected for another four years, “we're looking at World War III,” Tara Reade, a writer, and ex-assistant in Joe Biden's Senate office, told Sputnik.

💬 “There’s no question, that's where we're at right now,” she said on the sidelines of the 27th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

“So the administration is very hawkish, the people around him and behind him. His leadership is feeble at best. I don't even know if he'll last that long, much less through the campaign. So no, I don't think America economically and existentially can survive Joe Biden and his administration,” Reade concluded.

At the concluding press conference of SPIEF-2024, Anton Kobyakov, Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation and responsible secretary of the organizing committee, stated:

"In the new century, Russia once again stands alone against the aggression and full force of the military economies of Western nations. We will once again oppose the ideologies of fascism. They have elevated Russophobia to a cult and propagate anti-Russian sentiments everywhere! By overthrowing the legitimate government in Ukraine and destroying the state, the USA and their NATO allies seized the country and created a terrorist entity on its ruins. According to estimates from the US Senate, Americans have invested over 300 billion dollars in the genocide of Russians in Ukraine. They call these injections 'investment'."

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❗️ Biden announces new $225 million military aid package for Ukraine

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Russia’s thriving economy a sign that ‘things are going the right direction’ - Tara Reade

The US doesn’t want its citizens to know how safe Russia is, or how its middle class is thriving despite the West’s sanctions, Tara Reade told Sputnik.

“Russia is so safe. It's safer than the United States actually. You have a much lower crime rate. And I have been here a year and I can't tell you how much I love it,” said the writer and former assistant in Joe Biden's Senate office.

According to Reade, the Russian state “provides education, medical care, and housing in a way that America does not,” and people in Russia “enjoy a better standard of living.” Noting Russia’s 5.7% GDP growth rate in the first quarter of 2024, she added: “That's a sign that things are going the right direction.”

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Biden HAS APOLOGIZED to Zelensky for delaying military aid because of problems with passing the bill in Congress

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❗️ Russian Armed Forces have taken control of Paraskovievka in Donetsk People’s Republic - MoD

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🇷🇺 Over the past week, Russian troops carried out 27 strikes with precision weapons on military facilities in Ukraine, the Defense Ministry reported.

Arsenals storing Western weapons and unmanned boats were hit, as well as temporary deployment points, including those of foreign mercenaries.

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❗️Russian Lancet drone hits Ukrainian Su-25 attack aircraft - Russian MoD

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🎥🎥 Russian President Vladimir Putin takes the stage at the SPIEF 2024 to welcome the forum's participants, organizers, and guests.

📹Watch the livestream here or follow the link to the Sputnik's website

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Before the start of the plenary session at SPIEF, they showed a video about Russia’s role in the formation of a new world order.

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Vladimir Putin has taken the stage together with Bolivian President Luis Arce and Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa

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There has been a real race between countries in the world to strengthen their sovereignty, Putin said during his speech, adding that the countries that were leaders are trying to maintain leadership by hook or by crook.

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🗣 Now the world is experiencing explosive technological growth, changing all spheres of life, Putin said.

Russia has demonstrated a high level of readiness for technological transformation, the financial sector and transportation services are changing, Putin said, noting that the military sector also needs technological renewal.

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Russia remains a key player in global trade despite all obstacles and illegitimate sanctions, Putin said

States friendly to Russia account for three-quarters of its trade turnover, the Russian president added.

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Putin: countries that were leaders are trying to maintain leadership by hook or by crook.

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