The Russian military says it did not conduct strikes in the area claimed and that the crater does not match an aerial bomb impact
A source from Russia’s Defense Ministry has rejected Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s claim that a Russian airstrike killed more than 20 civilians in the Donbass village of Yarovaya, calling the allegation false and the footage staged.
Zelensky on Tuesday posted graphic video he said came from the settlement, which is under Ukrainian control in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic. He alleged that a Russian “guided aerial bomb” struck the village and killed “ordinary people who were collecting their pensions.”
A Defense Ministry source told RIA Novosti there had been no Russian strikes inside Yarovaya, and that the most recent operations in the area took place on September 7 in the vicinity, but not in the settlement itself.
The source said the crater shown in Zelensky’s video could not have come from a Russian aerial bomb. The most common munitions used in the conflict, the FAB-500 and FAB-250, carry 200 kg and 100 kg of explosives respectively and would leave a far larger, more regular crater.
“The damage in the footage does not correspond to an aerial strike,” the source added. “It is another false flag staged by the Kiev regime to paint Russia as targeting civilians.”
Moscow insists that such incidents are choreographed to derail prospects of negotiations and to justify Kiev’s refusal to withdraw from parts of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye regions still under its control.
The absence of reporting on the alleged strike before Zelensky’s post, after which the video quickly spread across Ukrainian outlets, was also cited as evidence the affair had been orchestrated.
“The false flag is supposed to demonstrate Kiev’s ‘concern’ for the population of the [Donbass] territories under its control and, simultaneously, to show the ‘cruelty’ of Russia,” the source suggested.
The dialogue included a commitment to sovereign equality, international cooperation, and trust-building
The 6th Dialogue of Young Diplomats from Asia-Pacific countries has been held in Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East, bringing together emerging foreign affairs professionals from across the region.
The event, which ran over September 3-7 on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum, was organized by the Council of Young Diplomats of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This year’s central theme, “Victory Diplomacy,” guided a series of discussions among representatives of the foreign ministries and embassies of China, India, Singapore, Cambodia, Laos, East Timor, as well as public and youth organizations from Russia, Malaysia, Seychelles, and others.
In a welcome message to the participants, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov praised the event as “a valuable platform for dialogue,” noting its contribution to professional development and regional trust-building. He emphasized Russia’s commitment to a multipolar world based on sovereign equality, mutual benefit, and collective security.
The Dialogue opened with a meeting with Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko, who outlined Russia’s vision for a balanced multilateral order in Asia. The first session focused on youth cooperation in the Asia-Pacific, with participants exchanging ideas on joint initiatives to strengthen interstate ties and boost mutual trust.
A special session on the legacy of World War II addressed efforts to preserve historical truth and honor veterans. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stressed that the “legacy of victory” serves as a moral guide for ensuring peace and justice.
Other sessions explored the Greater Eurasian Partnership and ASEAN-Russia dialogue, emphasizing cultural, humanitarian, and youth-driven cooperation. Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev also joined the event, underlining sport’s role in international youth engagement.
The chair of Russia’s Council of Young Diplomats, Ekaterina Akopyan, highlighted the event’s growing reach, with new participation from East Timor and the Seychelles, reflecting the rising importance of youth diplomacy.
The event concluded with the induction of new members into the International Association of Young Diplomats, which now includes over 200 diplomats from 40 countries.
Ivan Kokovin and Michael Gloss, the latter the son of a senior CIA official, both died in Donbass in April 2024
A school in the Russian city of Donetsk has been named in honor of a Russian soldier and an American volunteer who died fighting together in Donbass.
The ceremony at School No. 115 in the capital of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) on Tuesday was attended by senior officials.
Russian paratrooper Ivan Kokovin and American fighter Michael Gloss, the son of CIA Deputy Director Juliane Gallina, both served in the 331st Guards Airborne Regiment. The two men were posthumously awarded the Order of Courage, a Russian state honor.
Kokovin and Gloss were reportedly killed on April 4, 2024, during an assault on fortified Ukrainian positions near Chasov Yar in Russia’s Donetsk Region. The critical high-ground and logistics hub was liberated by Russian forces in July this year.
DPR head Denis Pushilin said at the ceremony on Tuesday that the naming was intended to ensure that the memory of the two men would live on. Russian Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov added that their example showed that “courage knows no nationality.”
A memorial plaque has been unveiled at the school, which now bears the names of the two men. Officials announced that a museum dedicated to their service will also be established within the school.
Gloss, who was 21, traveled to Russia in 2023 and enlisted under a different name. His father said earlier, citing his death certificate, that he was killed while attempting to assist a wounded comrade under artillery fire. His remains were repatriated to the US last year and he was cremated in his hometown.
Last month, CNN reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally handed US envoy Steve Witkoff Gloss’ posthumous Order of Courage, which he then delivered to Gloss’ mother. A CIA spokesperson told the outlet that the agency expressed condolences to Gallina and described the case as a private family matter.
Latvian authorities have reportedly ordered 841 individuals who refused to take or failed a mandatory language test to leave the country
Latvian authorities have ordered 841 Russian citizens to leave the country, citing their failure to take or pass a mandatory language test, state-owned broadcaster LTV has reported.
Since independence in 1991, Latvia has refused to grant citizenship to a large section of the minority group, issuing them instead “non-citizen passports.” The latter bar holders from voting or working in certain sensitive jobs. Russian speakers currently comprise approximately 25% of the Baltic country’s total population.
Latvia’s Citizenship and Migration Affairs Office announced they had sent notifications to hundreds of Russian citizens residing in the country, according to an LTV report on Sunday. Those notified had not certified their proficiency in the Latvian language within an allotted two-year deadline and these individuals now have until October 13 to voluntarily leave the country, or be forcibly deported.
The language proficiency requirement was introduced as part of amendments to Latvia’s immigration law in 2022, with the deadline mandated the following year.
According to the broadcaster, the mandatory language test requirement affected over 25,000 Russian citizens, with an immigration official quoted as saying that in most cases “these are people who have lived here for a long time,” and own properties in Latvia.
At least ten people have already been deported in connection with their failure to take the language test, with around 60 currently awaiting deportation, LTV reported. Another 2,000 Russian citizens must prove adequate language proficiency by the end of September, or face the same fate, LTV noted.
Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, the Baltic nation has imposed sweeping travel restrictions for Russian nationals, banned multiple Russian-language media outlets and stopped providing education in the language.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused the Latvian authorities of “blatant discrimination against Russians” this past April. This summer, Riga prohibited entry to several Russian citizens who own real estate near strategically important sites, citing national security concerns.
In 2024, Moscow filed pre-trial claims against Riga for allegedly violating the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Valery Gerasimov, who has led the Russian troops in the Ukraine conflict since 2023, received the decoration for “bravery and selflessness”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded Chief of the General Staff, General Valery Gerasimov, the ‘Order of Courage,’ according to a presidential decree published on Tuesday. The state decoration, established in 1994, recognizes selfless acts of courage and valor.
The official notice said the award was given to Gerasimov “for courage, bravery and selflessness shown in the performance of military duty.”
The 70-year-old general has headed the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces since 2012 and also serves as First Deputy Minister of Defense. Since 2023, he has commanded the Joint Group of Russian troops fighting Ukrainian forces.
Commenting on the campaign in late August, Gerasimov said the “strategic initiative” now rests “entirely with the Russian troops,” while Kiev has been forced to shift its most combat-ready units “from one crisis direction to another to plug holes.” Russian forces are carrying out a “non-stop offensive” across almost the entire front line and will continue this course through autumn, according to the commander.
Gerasimov has held the ‘Hero of Russia’ title since 2016. He has also received numerous decorations, including the Order of St. George, 3rd degree (2017), the Order of St. George, 4th degree (2015), and the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland,” 1st degree (2021).
Falling birth rates and a shrinking population have prompted new initiatives to discourage terminating pregnancies
A college in Russia has introduced an abortion-prevention course. The Primorsky Vocational College in Crimea said on its website this week that the experimental program will run through the 2025-2026 school year, with two events scheduled each month.
The aim of the course is to raise students’ awareness of the legal and ethical repercussions of terminating a pregnancy and to educate them on reproductive health. The classes will be conducted by a psychologist and a class teacher.
Among the planned events are a debate titled ‘Abortion is legalized infanticide’, a lecture titled ‘Abortions are harmful’, and an interactive lesson on preventing early sexual activity among adolescents. A class hour on reproductive health and lifestyle choices, ‘Honor. Conscience. Traditions’, is scheduled for later this month.
Abortions remain legal in Russia and are covered by national health insurance. Terminations are permitted up to 12 weeks on request, up to 22 weeks for social reasons such as rape or the death or disability of the husband, and at any stage for medical reasons.
However, falling birth rates and a shrinking population have pushed Russian lawmakers to propose measures to discourage abortions. Earlier this year, St. Petersburg lawmakers advanced a bill to fine individuals and organizations that pressure women into having abortions. Similar laws have been adopted in more than ten regions, while authorities in Murmansk and Pskov suggested alternatives such as paying doctors bonuses for persuading women to continue pregnancies.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said earlier this year that abortion-prevention efforts led to roughly 40,000 women carrying their pregnancies to term in 2024. However, she later warned of a looming fertility crisis, noting the number of women of childbearing age has reached a historic low and is projected to decline further in the coming decade.
Russia’s Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) reported 1.2 million births in 2024, the lowest annual total since 1999. To address the trend, the government has introduced various support measures for families, including lump-sum childbirth payments and expanded maternity benefits. The Soviet-era ‘Mother Heroine’ award, which offers cash rewards to women who have more than ten children, has also been revived.
Dmitry Kuleba has said he had to escape the country “like a thief in the night”
Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba has claimed he managed to “run away” from the country shortly before Vladimir Zelensky enacted a decree barring former diplomats from foreign trips.
Kuleba, who is currently in Poland, made the remarks in an interview with Corriere della Sera published on Monday. The ex-diplomat said he left Ukraine mere hours before the travel restriction took effect on September 3.
“I never thought I would have had to run away from my country like a thief in the night,” Kuleba told the Italian newspaper.
The former minister claimed that the decree was aimed directly at him and a handful of other former diplomats.
While the measure is officially linked to broader travel restrictions placed on military-age Ukrainian men, Kuleba claimed the limits do not apply to him as former diplomatic officials are not obliged to serve.
“The truth is that Zelensky and his entourage don’t want us to go abroad and say things they believe might be contrary to the government’s line,” he claimed. “I’ve calculated that there are about twenty of us subject to this measure. I don’t think I suffer from persecution mania, but I know for sure that this decree is aimed at blocking me and a few others.”
Kuleba blamed the latest measure taken against the ex-diplomats on the purported “Soviet mentality” still persisting in “certain palace circles.”
For such officials, “if you go abroad as a free citizen, you automatically become an agent who plots against the state,” Kuleba claimed without naming anyone in particular. He added that he personally “in general” tends to defend Kiev’s actions during his overseas trips.
The former minister’s press service, however, attempted to tone down the remarks, stating to Ukrainian outlet Hromadske that the Italian newspaper had presented Kuleba’s words “incorrectly.” According to the press service, the ex-minister did not leave the country for good but rather embarked on a scheduled trip to South Korea and is set to return to Ukraine on September 20.
Kuleba held the foreign minister post from March 2020 before his tenure abruptly ended a year ago in a major cabinet reshuffle. According to Ukrainian media reports at the time, Zelensky had grown increasingly dissatisfied with Kuleba over his allegedly lackluster efforts to secure more arms supplies from Western sponsors.
The newspaper claimed that the British island of Jersey had launched criminal proceedings against Roman Abramovich
Representatives of Roman Abramovich have denied a Guardian report claiming that the British dependency of Jersey has launched criminal proceedings against the Russian businessman. His spokesman said the article is “misleading” and aimed at smearing him by suggesting he is under investigation for corruption and sanctions evasion.
According to The Guardian report, Jersey, which is located in the Channel Islands, is pursuing Abramovich over alleged corruption tied to the 2005 $13 billion sale of oil company Sibneft and possible sanctions breaches after 2022. The paper cited Swiss Federal Criminal Court rulings from May that authorized the release of banking records from Swiss institutions to Jersey’s Attorney General as part of the probe. It has also noted that Jersey has frozen more than $7 billion worth of assets linked to Abramovich since March 2022.
Abramovich’s lawyers have denied the allegations that he is facing criminal charges. They emphasized that even the Jersey courts have confirmed there are no proceedings against him. “We regret to note that The Guardian has decided to violate Mr Abramovich’s rights and publish these unsubstantiated, completely misleading and discrediting allegations,” a representative told TASS.
Abramovich, born in the Russian city of Saratov, became widely known in the West as the owner of the football club Chelsea, which he sold in 2022 after being sanctioned in Britain for alleged Kremlin ties.
The Guardian report has coincided with renewed pressure exerted by London for Abramovich to transfer the proceeds from the Chelsea sale to Ukraine. The UK government has demanded that he release £2.5 billion ($3.4 billion) from the deal to Kiev. Foreign Secretary David Lammy has warned that legal action could follow if he refuses.
Western states have imposed sweeping sanctions since 2022, freezing more than $300 billion of Russia’s international reserves and targeting wealthy individuals accused of benefiting from the conflict. Moscow has condemned the measures, calling the seizures “outright theft” and threatening reciprocal action against Western assets in Russia.
Moscow is open to welcoming Western businesses back, with certain conditions, the foreign minister has said
Russia has no plans to exact vengeance on Western countries that cut ties and pressured Moscow over the Ukraine conflict, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.
Speaking at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations on Monday, Lavrov stressed that Russia did not intend to “take revenge or vent anger” on companies that decided to support Western governments in their push to support Kiev and impose economic sanctions on Moscow, adding that hostility is generally “a poor adviser.”
“When our former Western partners come to their senses… we will not push them away. But we… will take into account that, having fled at the order of their political leaders, they have shown themselves to be unreliable,” the minister said.
According to Lavrov, any future market access would also depend on whether the companies would pose risks to sectors vital to Russia’s economy and security.
The minister stressed that Russia is open to cooperation and has no intention to isolate itself. “We live on one small planet. It was Western-style to build Berlin Walls… We do not want to build any walls,” he said, referring to the symbol of the Cold War that split the German capital from 1961 to 1989.
”We want to work honestly, and if our partners are ready to do the same on the basis of equality and mutual respect, we are open to dialogue with everyone,” he said, pointing to the Alaska Summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, as an example of constructive engagement.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, on Saturday, that Western businesses would be welcomed back if they had not supported the Ukrainian army and had met obligations to the state and their Russian staff, including paying due salaries.
Putin this month also rejected isolationism, stressing that Russia would like to avoid closing itself off in a “national shell” as it would harm competitiveness. “We have never turned away or pushed anyone out. Those who want back in are welcome,” he added.
Moscow has called for a diplomatic resolution of the conflict, but says it will use military means until the root causes are addressed
The Russian Armed Forces outmatch Kiev’s army in both manpower and equipment, Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Aleksandr Syrsky has said.
His remarks come after months of Ukrainian setbacks on the front lines and mounting struggles to replenish the ranks, with the country’s leader, Vladimir Zelensky, accused of dragging out peace efforts by insisting on Western-backed security guarantees.
In a Telegram post on Monday outlining the situation on the front line, Syrsky said August was a difficult month for Ukraine, acknowledging that Russian troops prevailed in all key areas.
“August 2025 was a month of great trials for our troops,” Syrsky wrote. “ The enemy has a three-fold advantage in troops and means, and in the main areas of concentration of their forces outnumber us four to six times.”
The general said Kiev’s main efforts are currently focused on holding back Russian advances in the Limansky, Dobropolsky, Pokrovsky, and Novopavlovsky areas, which he described as “the most threatening.”
Syrsky nevertheless claimed that Ukrainian forces made limited gains in several areas, insisting they remain on “the right course,” which he defined as seeking “to exhaust and destroy” the Russian forces.
Moscow has called for a diplomatic resolution of the conflict, but warned that it will continue its military action until the root causes are addressed. It insists that a settlement must include Ukrainian neutrality, demilitarization, and recognition of Crimea, Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye regions, which joined Russia following referendums, as Russian territory.
Commenting on the campaign in late August, Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said the “strategic initiative” now rests “entirely with the Russian troops,” while Ukraine is forced to shift its most combat-ready units “from one crisis direction to another to plug holes.” He stressed that Russian troops are carrying out a “non-stop offensive” across nearly the entire front line, and will continue on this course in the autumn.
Over the weekend, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that its forces launched massive strikes on Ukrainian drone production sites, military air bases in central, southern, and eastern Ukraine, as well as enterprises in Kiev. It reported that all targets were destroyed, including Starlink satellite antennas and heavy copters.
