0745GMT//Azerbaijan releases Russian reporter after Putin apology; US helps Ukriane hit Russian refineries, says FT; Medvedev flies in to North Korea
RUSSIAN JOURNALIST RELEASED: Azerbaijan released a Russian journalist from prison in Baku the day after Vladimir Putin apologised for the shooting down of an Azerbaijani Airlines passenger plane on Christmas Day. Igor Kartavykh, a director at the Kremlin-financed Spunik news agency, had been arrested in June with another Russian journalist as Azerbaijan-Russia relations worsened. (COMMENT: The Russian journalists and tech workers arrested in Baku in June were always taken as bargaining chips, a tactic that has clearly paid off for Azerbaijan. His release is also a sign that Azerbaijan may be willing to repair relations. The Kremlin wants to repair relations with Azerbaijan to protect an important trade route it has developed to India, and also because Azerbaijan has become important for gas sales.)
US HELPING UKRAINE HIT REFINERIES: US intelligence has been helping Ukraine strike oil refineries in Russia, according to the FT. It said that the plan had been devised to "weaken the Russian economy and bring Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table". (COMMENT: This will alarm the Kremlin, which increasingly suspects that Trump has swung back round to giving full-scale military support to Ukraine because peace negotiations with Russia have stalled. Trump is also considering giving Ukraine long-range Tomahawk missiles.)
MIDEAST SUMMIT CANCELLED: The Kremlin cancelled a summit in Moscow for Middle Eastern leaders because of a lack of interest in the project, the Bloomberg news agency reported. It said that the key Middle Eastern leaders were now more interested in strengthening ties with Donald Trump, not Vladimir Putin. (COMMENT: This is a blow to the Kremlin, which has always counted on strong diplomatic support from allies in the Middle East. It had planned the Middle East leaders' summit in April as a showcase of support in the region for Putin. The Trump factor appears to be wiping out Russian kudos in the region.)
MEDVEDEV VISITS NORTH KOREA: Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia's Security Council and a former Russian president, travelled to Pyongyang to meet with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and to take part in 80th anniversary celebrations for the founding of the local Workers' Party. (COMMENT: Top Kremlin officials have become regular visitors to Pyongyang since North Korea sent soldiers to help fight Ukraine.)
PROTEST AGAINST CAR IMPORT FEES: Around 500 people reportedly protested in Vladivostok against a rise in fees for imported cars. According to media reports, the protesters carried placards saying: "They get Mercedes, we get Zhiguli" and "A car isn't a mortgage, it's a means of transportation". (COMMENT: The Kremlin is raising taxes on importing cars from Nov. 1. It says that the increase is necessary to protect the domestic car industry and raise revenues to plug gaps in its budget. But this is a risky move for the Kremlin. Russians are attached to their cars and they feel that the import fee increases are unfair. It's important to point out that this was a sanctioned rally in Vladivostok, but it is still rare. Some of the slogans also veered towards criticism of the Kremlin.)
VOTING CANCELLED FOR NEW BANKNOTE DESIGN: Russia's Central Bank suspended public voting for a new symbol on its 500 rouble note after accusations that Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin-backed Chechen warlord, was manipulating it in favour of Grozny City complex. He promised to give away 10 iPhone 17s if Grozny won. The new 500-rouble note was supposed to feature a landmark from Pyatigorsk on the front and one from the North Caucasus on the back. The public was asked to vote on whether Mount Elbrus or Grozny City should feature on the back. (COMMENT: The failed vote again shows up the vanity and contempt that Kadyrov has for the rest of Russia. Reports said that state employees, students and school children had been forced to take part in the online vote.)