Kommersant

KOMMERSANT

July 21, 2022

Amazon agrees to buy One Medical for $3.9 billion

Amazon has signed an agreement to buy American primary care service 1Life Healthcare (One Medical brand). The online retailer agreed to pay $18 per share of the service, up 77% from their value in Wednesday trading. In total, the purchase will cost Amazon $3.9 billion.

One Medical, based in San Francisco, provides medical services in 12 US cities. The company’s customers, as reported on its website, are about 8 thousand American enterprises. Their employees are served by One Medical specialists.

July 18, 2022

Ushakov: Russia and Iran are preparing a new interstate agreement

Russia plans to take bilateral relations with Iran to a new level – the level of strategic partnership, said Yury Ushakov, aide to the President of the Russian Federation. According to him, the presidents of Russia Vladimir Putin and Iran Ebrahim Raisi are preparing to sign a new interstate agreement, they will discuss it during a meeting in Tehran tomorrow, July 19.

July 16, 2022

Biden promised not to leave a “vacuum in the Middle East that will be filled by Russia”

US President Joe Biden said that the United States will not stop actively participating in the affairs of the countries of the Middle East in order to prevent Russia, China or Iran from dominating the region. According to him, the presence of the United States in the Middle East will help counter potential threats.

July 14, 2022

Netflix to launch new ad-supported version in partnership with Microsoft

Streaming service Netflix will join forces with Microsoft to launch a new, cheaper, ad-supported subscription option. Microsoft will become Netflix’s global ad technology and sales partner.

Microsoft has proven it can meet Netflix’s advertising needs and evolve with them, the company said. Together, the companies are working on a new ad-supported version of the app. Microsoft will also ensure the privacy of platform users.

July 13, 2022

World Bank sends another $1.7 billion in aid to Ukraine

Ukraine has received another package of financial assistance from the World Bank, said WB President David Malpas. According to him, these funds were allocated by the United States.

“What the World Bank is able to do and is doing is providing very large and timely support to the people of Ukraine. We continued yesterday with the allocation of $1.7 billion. It came from funds provided by the United States. This is an addition to the $1.3 billion provided at the end of June and also allocated by the United States,” said Mr. Malpas, speaking at a seminar at the Brookings Institution in Washington (  TASS quote ).

July 8, 2022

Estonian prime minister leaves office

Estonian Prime Minister Kaya Kallas intends to leave her post. This was reported by the publication Delfi . Ms. Kallas opposed Russia’s military operation in Ukraine and supported Ukraine’s accession to the EU.

July 3, 2022

Prime Minister of Ukraine: $4.4 billion is spent on the army every month

Ukraine’s budget has changed a lot since the start of the Russian military operation, said Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal. According to him, before the armed conflict, Kyiv annually spent about $5.3 billion to maintain the army. Now $4.4 billion is spent on these purposes, but monthly.

July 2, 2022

NATO summit in Madrid, Caspian summit in Ashgabat and new anti-Russian sanctions

The NATO summit adopted a new strategic concept for the alliance, in which Russia is called the main threat to security.

Representatives of the NATO countries officially invitedSweden and Finland to join the military alliance.

July 1, 2022

Minister of Sports of Poland: 33 countries demanded sanctions against athletes from Russia and Belarus

Minister of Sports and Tourism of Poland Kamil Bortnichuk said that the ministers of sports of 33 countries signed a joint statement demanding a ban on the broadcast of international sporting events in Russia and Belarus. They also demanded to suspend the membership of these two countries in sports organizations.

June 29, 2022

Mi-8 crashed in Yakutia

The Unified Duty Dispatching Service (EDDS) of Yakutia reported the crash of a Mi-8 helicopter in the region. According to the EDDS, there are victims. TASS reports that the helicopter belonged to Polar Airlines.

June 26, 2022

Blinken expects an increase in the effect of anti-Russian sanctions

The sanctions imposed by the West have a significant impact on the Russian economy, said US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. The effect of restrictive measures will increase, Mr. Blinken noted. Speaking about the planned abandonment of Russian gold, the Secretary of State said that the Russian Federation could lose $19 billion in revenue per year.

June 21, 2022

Britain sent a note to Russia in connection with the death sentence to Pinner and Aslin in the DPR

Russian Ambassador Andrey Kelin said that the UK sent a note to the Russian Federation in connection with the decision of the Supreme Court of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), which sentenced Britons Sean Pinner and Aiden Aslin to death. Mr. Kelin noted that the note was written in exceptionally arrogant terms.

June 20, 2022

Bloomberg: EU will allocate €9 billion in aid to Ukraine this week

In the coming days, the European Union (EU) will finalize the details of a €9 billion financial package for Ukraine, Bloomberg reports, citing three European officials. The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has previously announced that the EU will provide Ukraine with a €9 billion loan by the end of 2022.

The agency says the new aid package for Kyiv will consist of “25-year loans with a 10-year grace period to repay the principal.” Sources say interest payments will be covered from the EU budget.

June 19, 2022

EU Special Representative Arrives in Kyiv to Assess Human Rights Situation

EU Special Representative for Human Rights Eamon Gilmore has arrived in Kyiv. He stated that he intends to “see with his own eyes” cases of human rights violations and “communicate with ordinary people and government officials.”

“Today I am in Kyiv, Ukraine, to express my solidarity. Having met with refugees on the Polish border at the very beginning of the Russian aggression, now I intend to follow their lives,” wrote Mr. Gilmour on Twitter .

June 18, 2022

Zelensky visited Nikolaev

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in the city of Nikolaev and held a meeting with the head of the Nikolaev regional military administration Vitaliy Kim. They discussed “important issues in the region”, including the economy, the restoration of water supply and the situation in agriculture.

June 16, 2022

Macron, Scholz, Draghi and Johannis met with Zelensky in Kyiv

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv. Earlier, European politicians visited the city of Irpin.

June 14, 2022

Germany discusses arms supplies to Ukraine with Poland as part of an exchange

German Defense Minister Christina Lambrecht said that Ukraine has already received a lot of weapons from the reserves of the Bundeswehr. According to her, Germany is negotiating with Poland on the supply of weapons to Kyiv as part of a circular exchange. A similar agreement has already been reached with the Czech Republic.

“We have agreed on a circular exchange with the Czech Republic, on the transfer of systems from the Czech Republic, we are helping to compensate for this, we also want to do the same with Greece now. We are negotiating with Poland,” the minister said (quote from RIA Novosti). What kind of weapon is planned to be delivered in exchange, she did not specify.

June 11, 2022

The first German weapons will be delivered to Ukraine on June 22

Armaments from Germany, sent to Ukraine as military aid, will arrive in the country on June 22, Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Andriy Melnyk said. It is specified that Berlin will supply seven howitzers to Kyiv. Mr. Melnik also said that the promises of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to allocate military assistance to Kiev for 2 billion euros are “only a statement.”

“The seven self-propelled howitzers that will be handed over to us, we will receive these systems around June 22; and self-propelled anti-aircraft systems, the so-called “Cheetahs”. This is also an old weapon – 30 units: 15 Gepards – by the end of July, another 15 – by the end of August, ”Mr. Melnik said in an interview with the Ukrainian edition of NV (quoted by RIA Novosti ). According to him, of all the deliveries previously announced by the German government, only howitzers and self-propelled anti-aircraft guns (ZSU) will actually be sent.

June 10, 2022

US to provide Ukraine with $7.5 billion in budgetary support

The United States will provide Ukraine with direct budget support in the amount of $7.5 billion, US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said.

“I look forward to working with Denys Shmygal to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression and build Ukraine’s resilience and recovery. With $7.5 billion in direct budget support, we will ensure that Ukraine remains strong,” Bridget Brink wrote on Twitter.

June 8, 2022

RIA Novosti: Huawei closes stores in Russia

The Chinese manufacturer of equipment Huawei began to close retail outlets in Russia, RIA Novosti reported, citing a source close to the company. Of the 19 stores, 4 have already stopped working.

The first store was closed on February 28 at the Riviera shopping center in Moscow. Then stores were closed in Novokuznetsk, Ufa and Rostov-on-Don. According to the source, the main reason for the closure of stores is the lack of products in warehouses and the fall in demand for smartphones. “It is likely that Huawei will continue to close its stores in the coming months,” the source said.

June 5, 2022

Andriy Melnichenko’s wife will fight back against sanctions

The wife of Andrei Melnichenko will challenge the EU sanctions after the businessman. This was reported to Reuters by a representative of the couple. He called the measures taken against Alexandra Melnichenko “irrational.” As noted, she was born in Serbia, has Serbian and Croatian citizenship and has never been to Russia. Melnichenko himself was blacklisted by the EU in March. He automatically ceased to be the beneficiary of the trust that controls Eurochem and the coal producer SUEK. The shares were received by his wife Alexandra.

June 5, 2022

Andriy Melnichenko’s wife will fight back against sanctions

The wife of Andrei Melnichenko will challenge the EU sanctions after the businessman. This was reported to Reuters by a representative of the couple. He called the measures taken against Alexandra Melnichenko “irrational.” As noted, she was born in Serbia, has Serbian and Croatian citizenship and has never been to Russia. Melnichenko himself was blacklisted by the EU in March. He automatically ceased to be the beneficiary of the trust that controls Eurochem and the coal producer SUEK. The shares were received by his wife Alexandra.

June 3, 2022

The EU announced the non-recognition of Russian passports issued to residents of Kherson and Zaporozhye

Russian passports issued to residents of the Kherson region and Zaporozhye, which are under the control of Russian troops, will not be recognized in the European Union, the EU Foreign Service said. The decrees of the President of Russia on a simplified procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship for residents of these regions are condemned in the EU.

June 2, 2022

Zelensky: Russia has occupied a fifth of the territory of Ukraine

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russian troops occupied 20% of the territory of Ukraine. According to Mr. Zelensky, the length of the front line exceeds a thousand kilometers.

May 31, 2022

WSJ: US will give Ukraine MLRS with missiles with a range of 60 km

The United States is considering transferring multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) with missiles with a range of more than 64 km to Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) writes, citing sources. The publication emphasizes that the M777 howitzers , which the United States previously supplied to Ukraine, have a range two times less.

According to the WSJ, the United States can supply Ukraine with M31 GMLRS (Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System) installations, their range, depending on the ammunition, can reach 500 km. These installations will be equipped with missiles with a range of 64 km. As the newspaper notes, the supply of just such missiles will strengthen the Ukrainian army, but will not allow the transfer of hostilities to Russian territory.

May 28, 2022

Argentina confirms first two cases of monkeypox

In Argentina, two men who returned from Spain were diagnosed with monkeypox, AP reports. These are the first confirmed cases in Latin America. The Argentine Ministry of Health assesses the condition of both patients as satisfactory.

May 27, 2022

China bans two Russian airlines from operating flights on Boeing and Airbus that did not pass the “cleanliness” test

The Russian charter airline iFly and cargo Aviastar-TU are prohibited from flying to China on Boeing and Airbus aircraft, for which the carriers were unable to document the absence of dual registration on the aircraft. This is reported by Interfax and RBC .

In May, the Chinese aviation authorities asked all airlines to update their electronic dossiers. Russian carriers complied with the requirement, but subsequently supporting documents were requested for the aircraft.

May 26, 2022

The United States called China a long-term challenge to the world order

The State Department is ready to expand work with China on a number of issues and hopes that it will be able to achieve this. The US still sees China’s policies as the main long-term challenge to the world order. At the same time, the US does not want conflict or a “new cold war” with China, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said during a speech.

May 25, 2022

Poland proposes to introduce duties for EU countries importing Russian oil

EU countries that have not refused oil supplies from Russia should not be in a better position due to the purchase of cheap energy resources than the EU member states that have stopped importing Russian oil, said Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

May 23, 2022

UN: 6.5 million people have left Ukraine since February

After the start of the Russian military operation on the territory of Ukraine, more than 6.5 million Ukrainian citizens became refugees and arrived in neighboring countries, according to the UN High Commissioner (UNHCR) for Refugees. It is noted that 8 million Ukrainians were forced to move to the western regions of the country.

May 22, 2022

Duda: Poland will do everything possible for Ukraine’s accession to the EU

President of Poland Andrzej Duda spoke at the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine as part of his visit to Kyiv. He said that his country is ready to support Ukraine in its aspiration to join the European Union.

May 21, 2022

Zelensky estimated the number of Ukrainian troops at 700 thousand people

The strength of the Ukrainian army is 700 thousand people, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He said that last year he signed a decree on increasing the armed forces of Ukraine by 100,000 people.

May 20, 2022

Lithuania refused Russian electricity

The exchange operator of electricity Nord Pool has decided to suspend trading in Russian electricity from its only importer in the Baltic countries, the Inter RAO group of companies. From May 22, there will be no imports of Russian oil, electricity and natural gas in Lithuania.

Lithuania receives gas through the Klaipeda LNG terminal, where cargo is delivered from the United States. Electricity is generated by local enterprises, there is also import from the EU countries, according to the Lithuanian Ministry of Energy.

May 19, 2022

Biden announces new military aid package for Ukraine

US President Joe Biden said he would provide Ukraine with a new military aid package. It will include artillery, radar and “other equipment already effectively used on the battlefield.” His statement was published on the White House website. Earlier today, the US Senate approved a record $40 billion in aid to Ukraine. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the new package would cost $100 million.

May 18, 2022

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs closed the Russian point of the Canadian CBC

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the correspondent office of the Canadian broadcasting company CBC was closed in Russia. She added that the site was closed in response to the closure in Canada of RT.

“A decision was made to introduce retaliatory measures in connection with the actions of Canada, namely the closure of the Moscow office of the Canadian state broadcasting corporation CBC, including the cancellation of accreditation and Russian visas for journalists,” Ms. Zakharova said at a briefing. The broadcast was conducted on the YouTube channel of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Ottawa of censorship.

May 16, 2022

Macron appoints Elisabeth Born as new French prime minister

Emmanuel Macron today accepted the resignation of former Prime Minister Jean Castex and appointed the head of government with whom he will begin his next five-year period. This is the minister of labor in the Custex government, Elizabeth Bourne.

May 15, 2022

Blinken said that the United States will soon resume the work of the embassy in Kyiv

“The American diplomatic mission is returning to Ukraine after many weeks of work from the territory of Poland. We are reopening the embassy in Kyiv. We are taking all the necessary precautions, but such work is already underway. We will resume our activities very soon,” Mr. Blinken said at a press conference following an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Berlin.

American diplomats left Kyiv about two weeks before February 24, when Russia launched a military special operation in Ukraine. First, part of the embassy was moved to Lvov, and then its representatives moved to Poland.

May 13, 2022

Zelensky criticized Macron’s attempt to find a compromise between Ukraine and Russia

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky expressed dissatisfaction with the attempt of French President Emmanuel Macron to find a way out of the situation between Russia and Ukraine. Mr. Zelensky noted that it is “not very correct” to offer anything related to concessions regarding the sovereignty of Ukraine on the part of some leaders.

“We should not look for a way out for Russia, Macron is doing this in vain … Macron wanted to find certain results in mediation between us and did not find it. And not from our side, but from the side of the Russian Federation,” the President of Ukraine said on the air of the Italian channel Rai 1 (quote from RIA Novosti ). “And for me to offer some things related to concessions regarding our sovereignty in order to save Putin’s face, it seems to me that this is not very correct on the part of certain leaders,” Mr. Zelensky said, noting that Ukrainians “are not ready save something for someone and lose their territories for it.

May 12, 2022

US flags to half-mast in memory of one million COVID-19 deaths

US President Joe Biden said that a million Americans have died in the country since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. To honor the memory of the dead, the head of state will issue a directive according to which state flags will be flown at half mast throughout the country.

“Today we celebrate a tragic milestone: one million American lives lost due to COVID-19,” Joe Biden said in a statement posted on the White House website. “We must remain vigilant in the fight against this pandemic.<…> It is very important that Congress support these initiatives (initiatives of the administration. – “Kommersant”) in the coming months,” he added.

May 10, 2022

The WHO European Committee adopted a resolution proposing to close the office in Moscow

The Regional Committee for Europe of the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted a resolution proposing to explore the possibility of moving the WHO office for combating noncommunicable diseases outside Russia. This resolution was initiated by more than 35 WHO member countries. The Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation believes that the suspension of the work of the WHO office will cause direct damage to all countries.

The resolution was considered at a special session of the WHO committee. The EU countries, Ukraine, Georgia, Turkey, Moldova, and Israel voted in support of the initiative. The resolution was opposed by Russia, Belarus and Tajikistan. Armenia and Kazakhstan abstained from voting, RIA Novosti reports .

May 9, 2022

Medinsky: negotiations with Ukraine continue remotely

Assistant to the President of Russia and head of the Russian delegation at the talks with Ukraine, Vladimir Medinsky, said that the negotiations did not stop and are currently taking place “in a remote format.”

May 8, 2022

Croatian PM arrives in Kyiv for talks with Zelensky and Shmyhal

Croatian Prime Minister Andrei Plenkovic arrived in Kyiv on a visit. During the trip, he plans to meet with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal and Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk.

“On the eve of Europe Day (May 9 – “Kommersant” ), I visit Ukraine, which has become a victim of Russian aggression. In Kyiv, I met with Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk,” wrote Mr. Plenkovich on Twitter.

May 7, 2022

The Croatian Foreign Ministry confirmed the detention of its citizen by the Russian military in Mariupol

The Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that it “is aware of the detained citizen of Croatia” in Ukraine, Zagreb is in contact with Kyiv to resolve the situation. The Croatian ministry did not provide details due to the “delicacy of the situation,” AP reports. Earlier, the media reported about the detention in Mariupol by the Russian military of a Croatian citizen who fought together with the military of Ukraine.

May 6, 2022

FIFA and IFAB are exploring the possibility of reducing the time of a football match to 60 minutes

The International Football Federation (FIFA) and the International Football Association Board (IFAB) are exploring options to introduce “clean playing time” in football and reduce the match from 90 to 60 minutes. This was reported by former FIFA referee Mark Clattenburg in an opinion column in the Daily Mail .

According to Mark Clattenburg, during his time as a referee, he often received complaints from players due to the fact that he added too many or too few minutes to the main time of the match. Now, according to him, the head of the UEFA refereeing committee Pierluigi Collina, UEFA and IFAB (this organization has the right to change the rules of the game in football) are trying to solve this problem.

Peskov urged to filter reports that the Russian elite did not know about the start of the special operation

Commenting on the words of the Bellingcat investigative journalist (recognized as a foreign agent) Hristo Grozev, the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that such information “needs to be filtered.” At the same time, Mr. Peskov added that “a very, very limited circle” has access to information about the military operation. Earlier, Mr. Grozev said that the inner circle of Russian President Vladimir Putin did not know about the upcoming military operation in Ukraine.Bellingcat(recognized as a foreign agent) Hristo Grozeva, said that such information “needs to be filtered.” At the same time, Mr. Peskov added that “a very, very limited circle” has access to information about the military operation. Earlier, Mr. Grozev said that the inner circle of Russian President Vladimir Putin did not know about the upcoming military operation in Ukraine.

May 5, 2022

In Russia, the number of hospitalizations with coronavirus increased by 132.3% per day

Over the past day, 5,011 cases of coronavirus infection were recorded in Russia, which is 1.61% less than the previous figure (5,093). During the day, 3,248 patients were hospitalized, which is 132.3% more than in the previous day (1398).

May 4, 2022

Bloomberg: EU intends to ban Russians from conducting real estate transactions in Europe

The European Union included a ban on real estate transactions for Russian citizens in its sixth package of anti-Russian sanctions. This is reported by Bloomberg , citing an official document.

The proposal of the European Commission, according to the agency, provides for the termination of transactions with Russian citizens, residents and legal entities, prohibiting them from selling or transferring, directly or indirectly, “ownership rights to real estate located on the territory of the European Union, or shares in collective investment enterprises that provide access to such immovable property.

May 3, 2022

Johnson announces £300m military aid to Ukraine

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke via video link in the Verkhovna Rada. Mr. Johnson announced the provision of military assistance to Kyiv for £300 million, as well as weapons.

May 2, 2022

The Finnish Hockey Union will not allow KHL players to play for the national team

The Finnish Hockey Union will not allow players who play in Russia to play for the national team, said general manager of the Finnish national team Jere Lehtinen. We are talking about hockey players playing in the Continental Hockey League (KHL).