0615GMT//Kremlin seizes gold mine and tinned food producer; Lavrov tours North Korean beach resort
SEIZING ASSETS, PART 1: A court on Friday in Chelyabinsk in the Urals confirmed the seizure of Yuzhuralzoloto, Russia's fourth biggest gold mine, from oligarch Konstantin Strukov. Government officials have claimed that safety standards have been undermined. Strukov was detained earlier in July on his private jet trying to flee Russia. (COMMENT: This is one of the largest companies that the Kremlin has gone after since invading Ukraine. Sturkov had also been considered an uncontroversial oligarch, loyal to the Kremlin. But Vladimir Putin appears to now need more and prosecutors have accused Strukov of sending billions of dollars out of the country to fund an extravagant lifestyle. By going after Yuzhuralzoloto and Strukov, the Kremlin is showing that nobody is safe and that the days of Russian billionaires' high-flying lifestyle are over.)
SIEZING ASSETS, PART 2: A Moscow arbitration court on Friday handed the state control of Russia's largest tinned food producer Glavprodukt. (COMMENT: The Kremlin has accelerated its nationalisation of businesses since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Glavprodukt was set up by Russian-Americans and was officially owned by a US company. It is the only US company that the Kremlin has seized. Documents seen by Reuters said that Glavprodukt wants to boost exports to China and North Korea to make up for a profit shortfall.)
RELATIONS WITH NORTH KOREA: Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, on Saturday met with North Korean dictator Kim Jung-un and toured a new seaside resort at Wonsan. Kim hopes to fill it with Russian tourists. Kim told Lavrov during a meeting on a yacht that he would continue to support Russia and promised another 10,000 soldiers and 6,000 engineers. (COMMENT: Russian ministers and senior officials appear to be turning up at Kim's court every fortnight or so to pay homage to him. The Kremlin needs South Korean soldiers for its frontlines in Ukraine and workers to man its industry. In return, it gives Kim tech support and other know-how. Kim has already pledged to send 15,000 workers to Far East Russia and 10,000 to help rebuild the Kursk region.)
After leaving North Korea, Lavrov travelled to Beijing to meet with his Chinese counterpart for talks. A foreign ministry spokesperson said that these were "standard talks".
RELATIONS WITH IRAN: The Kremlin on Sunday denied a report on the Axios website that alleged Putin had told Iran that it should abandon its uranium enrichment programme. (COMMENT: The insinuation here is that the Kremlin believes the West/Ukraine is/are trying to exploit perceived weakness in a "strategic alliance" between Russia and Iran.)
WAGNER MERCENARY FLEES: A former fighter in the Kremlin's Wagner mercenary group has fled across the Russian border into Finland to claim political asylum, Finnish media reported on Sunday.
POLISH CONSULTATE CLOSED: Russia on Friday ordered Poland to close its consulate in Kaliningrad from end-August, a response to Poland shutting the Russian consulate in Krakow. Poland closed Russia's consulate in Krakow after accusing Russian agents of an arson attack on a shopping centre in Warsaw.
ECONOMIC HEADACHES: Putin has ordered officials to stop industrial production from falling. At a government meeting, reported by media on Saturday, he said that industry "must be stimulated" and that output levels should not drop below a 2024 benchmark. (COMMENT: This is the classic top-down approach that Putin often takes. Details were light on what Putin actually wants officials to do but it does highlight how seriously he is taking Russia's economic downturn.)
NEWS MATRIX:l
The Kremlin's seizure of the Yuzhuralzoloto gold mine is not a surprise as it has been flagged up since the start of July, but it is important because it shows just how ruthless Putin is being with his nationalisation project. Strukov, the owner, had been seen as loyal to the Kremlin but his lifestyle was considered too extravagant. It's also a warning to the rest of the Russian elite.
It was surprising to see Lavrov touring a North Korean beach resort but this is the sort of assignment that he now has to take on.
Putin's order to stop manufacturing output from declining is only important because it shows just how seriously the Kremlin is taking the downturn.