Free Republic

Japan was the first country to break its silence after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. Tokyo said of the Kuril Islands that it was “completely unacceptable that the Northern Territories have yet to be returned since the Soviet Union’s illegal occupation of them 77 years ago”. That annexation saw the expulsion of Japanese people from the southern islands, and since then, the countries have failed to reach a compromise. Talks broke down when Putin showed he was not willing to share lands but only to gain new ones. Then China started drawing maps marking part of Siberia and...

As more details about Chinese activities in and around Lake Baikal have surfaced, commentaries attacking them and complaining about the Russian government’s cooperation with them have appeared. But most indicative of Russian attitudes is the result of an effort by film and television stars in Russia to block Chinese plans to build a water bottling plant on Russia’s most famous lake. They have already collected more than 800,000 signatures on an online petition. This petition provides the strongest indication yet of just how angry Russians are about Chinese overreach in Russia east of the Urals. Unless Moscow limits Chinese activities...

Investigative journalist Michael Isikoff said Friday that he was surprised to find out that an article he wrote about Carter Page prior to the election was used to obtain a spy warrant against the former Trump campaign adviser.The revelation, which was made in a memo released by the House Intelligence Committee on Friday, “stuns me,” Isikoff said in an episode of his podcast, “Skullduggery.”The four-page memo alleges that the DOJ and FBI submitted inaccurate and incomplete information in a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant against Page. The spy warrant was granted on Oct. 21, 2016.One “essential” part of the...

BAIKAL, August 1 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has made a dive to the bottom of the world's deepest lake, Baikal, in the Mir-1 mini-submarine. Putin, clad in overalls for a 4-hour plunge, spoke to journalists on a radio linkup from the deepest point of the lake's southern part 1,395 meters below the surface, saying he was surprised that the water was not transparent and calling it "a plankton soup." In his Saturday's dive, the premier, who on Friday set up a satellite transmitter on a white whale during a visit to Russia's Far East Khabarovsk Territory,...

Last year appeared to be turning for oil&gas industry of Russia – construction of the export pipeline towards the countries of the Asia-Pacific Region was commenced at last. At that all the country witnessed how easy the pipeline route was carried 40km, which later transformed into 400km, from the original one. The far-reaching decision was made at the meeting held in Tomsk on 26th of April: that is when Russian president declared the Eastern pipeline must go beyond the water supply protective zone of the Baikal, as the lake, which is the world biggest fresh water reservoir, is 800 metres...

MOSCOW, March 19 (Reuters) - French adventurer Nicolas Vanier drove his team of dogs on to Moscow's Red Square on Sunday at the end of an 8,000-km (5,000-mile) odyssey through the world's biggest country. He said the hardest part was not the freezing Siberian wilderness, but early spring weather in the last few days, which melted the snow and forced him to fit wheels to his sled to reach Moscow. Vanier's journey, from Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia to Moscow, was the equivalent of travelling just under a quarter of the distance around the globe. It took place in temperatures...