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James Kilner

0710GMT//Putin cuts civilian spending; Russia to grow bananas for the first time

SPENDING CUTS: Putin signed a plan to cut government spending on civilian projects this year in Russia because of a drop in income linked to soft oil and gas prices. (COMMENT: The "war economy" has been protected, of course. Instead, the Russian government will cut spending on industrial

0645GMT//Putin meets Iran's foreign minister; anti-gov protests flare in Siberia; monogorods funding cut

IRAN: Vladimir Putin met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in the Kremlin on Monday. He condemned the Israeli and US bombing strikes against Iran as "unprovoked and unjustified". (COMMENT: These comments felt pro forma. More importantly, Putin didn't actually offer up any concrete actions to

0658GMT//Kremlin dodges helping 'ally' Iran after US strike; Taliban makes migrant worker deal with Russia

IRAN BOMBING REACTION: The Kremlin criticised the US bombing raid against Iran as "irresponsible and illegal" but didn't offer Tehran any actual support. (COMMENT: Other than speaking out against US and Israeli bombing runs against Iran, there is not much that Russia can do. There is

0715GMT//Business very gloomy at StP Econ Forum; 'Fake' Russian robot

ISRAEL-IRAN CONFLICT: Vladimir Putin held a telephone call with Chinese Pres. Xi Jinping to discuss the Israel-Iran conflict. The Kremlin said the conversion lasted around an hour. Unsurprisingly, Putin and Xi "condemned" Israel's bombing of Iran and called for dialogue. (COMMENT: This may have been the

0724GMT//Putin compares himself to Jesus; Kia plans to import cars to Russia

PUTIN INTERVIEW: Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia is developing "military-technical and military cooperation" with China. He said this in an interview with Western news agencies on the sidelines of the St Petersburg Economic Forum. (COMMENT: Russia doesn't yet have a military alliance with China.

0705GMT//Trumps says Russia not supplying Iran; EU diplomat attacked in Vladivostok

RUSSIA-IRAN: Donald Trump said Russia has not sent any military aid to Iran since the Israel-Iran conflict erupted last week. (COMMENT: This matches Russian reporting which has been consistently pro-Iran but has not suggested that the Kremlin has sent any military aid to Iran – a key Russian ally since its

0652GMT//Kremlin evacuates Russians from Iran; Shoigu returns to North Korea

EVACUATIONS FROM IRAN: The Kremlin continued to evacuate its citizens from Iran through Azerbaijan. On Monday it said that 225 Russians had fled from Iran, including families of Russian diplomats and the touring Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra. This followed a group of 88 Russians who fled Iran on Saturday. Russian media

0654//Putin criticises Israeli attacks on Iran; considers evacuating top Iran officials

ISRAEL-IRAN CONFLICT: The Kremlin has criticised Israel for striking Iran with missiles and drones. Iran has become a key ally for the Kremlin since its invasion of Ukraine. (COMMENT: The issue here is how deep the Kremlin gets dragged into the Israel-Iran conflict.) Vladimir Putin on Friday spoke to both

0635GMT//Russians 'celebrate' Russia Day; Businesses lobby against return of Western firms

RUSSIA DAY: The US congratulated Russians on Russia Day on Thursday for the first time since the Kremlin invaded Ukraine in 2022. In a statement, US Sec. of State Marco Rubio said that the US was "committed to supporting the Russian people as they continue to build on their

0615GMT//Putin orders a military modernisation

UPDATING THE MILITARY: Vladimir Putin on Wednesday ordered his officials to update the Russian military. This includes modernising the Russian Navy, the infantry, missile systems and Russia's nuclear arsenal. "The dominant force in modern military operations remains the ground forces and it is important to increase their