Cover photo: Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko on December 19 in Minsk. Pavel Bednyakov/AP
- Moscow says it doesn’t want to include Belarus. Russian President Vladimir Putin has asserted that Russia has “no interest” in welcoming Belarus, its closest ally, which is heavily dependent on Moscow for gas and oil supplies. Mr Putin addressed his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko at a press conference following their talks in Minsk. The Kremlin master insisted on the close ties between the two countries, “the closest allies and strategic partners” who are “effectively” defying Western sanctions.
- The two countries have agreed to strengthen their cooperation in “all areas”., also stated the head of the Kremlin, especially in the defense sphere. These are “joint measures to ensure security” between the two countries, “mutual arms deliveries” and the joint manufacture of weapons, said Putin. Russia will also continue to train Belarusian soldiers to fly Soviet-designed Belarusian aircraft capable of carrying nuclear bombs, according to the same source.
- The Russian military claims they shot down four American missiles near Ukraine. “Four American HARM radar missiles were shot down in the airspace of the Belgorod region,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in its daily report published on Telegram without further details. When asked by Agence France-Presse, the Pentagon said it was “unable to confirm this information”.
- Canada seizes assets of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. Canada’s government announced on Monday that it had launched proceedings to seize $26 million from a company owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich in retaliation for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Several Western countries have already confiscated yachts and frozen assets linked to Russian oligarchs to put pressure on Vladimir Putin and his entourage.
- EU ministers agree on gas price cap. The EU energy ministers have agreed to cap gas prices on twitter a spokesman for the Czech EU Council Presidency, Dmitrij Cernikov. According to a document seen by Portal, the cap is triggered when the price of monthly contracts on the TTF benchmark gas market exceeds €180 per megawatt hour (MWh) for three consecutive days. This upper limit applies from February 15 and initially does not affect purchases at the counter, according to the document.
- Moscow described this decision by the Twenty-Seven as “unacceptable”. “This is a violation of the market pricing process,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
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