Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🚀 On July 15, 1975 the historic Soviet-American Apollo–Soyuz Test Project was launched.
For the first time in the history of space exploration, crews representing two different nations performed a joint spaceflight, with cosmonauts and astronauts meeting and two spacecraft docking while orbiting Earth.
🤝 The legendary handshake in space between Soyuz and Apollo captains, Alexei Leonov and Thomas Stafford, was broadcast live globally and became a symbol of détente between the two superpowers.
The main goals of the Soyuz-Apollo programme included creating an advanced universal rescue vehicle, testing technical systems and methods for joint spaceflight control, and conducing scientific research and experiments.
While Soyuz and Apollo were docked for a total of 46 hours 54 minutes, the two crews’ members made several transfers between their respective spacecraft, conducted tours, made numerous TV reports, captured video footage and photographs, and staged a joint press conference.
🛰️ The Soyuz-Apollo mission ushered in a new era of international cooperation in outer space, which would become essential for implementation of the ISS project.
🤝 Following this historic flight, its participants kept in touch with each other for a long time and met on a regular basis. Tom Stafford and Alexei Leonov became close friends and maintained their friendship throughout their lives.
#ApolloSoyuz #RussiaUSA
For the first time in the history of space exploration, crews representing two different nations performed a joint spaceflight, with cosmonauts and astronauts meeting and two spacecraft docking while orbiting Earth.
🤝 The legendary handshake in space between Soyuz and Apollo captains, Alexei Leonov and Thomas Stafford, was broadcast live globally and became a symbol of détente between the two superpowers.
The main goals of the Soyuz-Apollo programme included creating an advanced universal rescue vehicle, testing technical systems and methods for joint spaceflight control, and conducing scientific research and experiments.
While Soyuz and Apollo were docked for a total of 46 hours 54 minutes, the two crews’ members made several transfers between their respective spacecraft, conducted tours, made numerous TV reports, captured video footage and photographs, and staged a joint press conference.
🛰️ The Soyuz-Apollo mission ushered in a new era of international cooperation in outer space, which would become essential for implementation of the ISS project.
🤝 Following this historic flight, its participants kept in touch with each other for a long time and met on a regular basis. Tom Stafford and Alexei Leonov became close friends and maintained their friendship throughout their lives.
#ApolloSoyuz #RussiaUSA
👍3
Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s interview with TASS news agency (December 30, 2024)
Key points:
#Ukraine #USA
• We have not received any official signals [from the USA] regarding a settlement in Ukraine.
• We are not happy with the proposals made by members of the Trump team to postpone Ukraine’s admission to NATO for 20 years and to station British and European peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.
• What we need is reliable and legally binding agreements that would eliminate the root causes of the conflict and seal a mechanism precluding the possibility of their violation.
#RussiaUSA #NATO
• We are ready to renew the political dialogue which Washington terminated after the start of the special military operation, if the United States is ready for this. Since it was the Americans who cut it off, it is for them to make the first move.
• They [the West] have been long relying on efforts to interfere in the domestic affairs of other countries, including our closest neighbours, as their foreign policy tool. For many years, Washington and its satellites have been acting this way in an effort to deter and contain their geopolitical rivals and do away with any unwanted actors, as confirmed by what happened in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Ukraine.
#Georgia
• The developments in Georgia stem from the double standards when caring for democracy and human rights serves as a pretext for overturning election results after even the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights with its tainted reputation recognised the election as being free and fair. Why do they want to change the results? Just because the puppet masters in Washington and Brussels did not find the way people voted there to their liking.
• The United States and the European Union are trying to impose a distorted vision on Tbilisi which consists of dividing everyone into those who are with us and those who are against us. Meanwhile, it seems that Georgian authorities have opted for a sovereign policy which meets the country’s national interests. They refuse to act as pawns manipulated by the West in its effort to destabilise Georgia, undermine its economy and incite escalation in its relations with Russia.
#Syria #MiddleEast
• The Syrians’ hopes for improvements after a convincing defeat of international terrorism, including with the help of Russia’s Aerospace Forces, have not materialised.
• Washington, which has effectively occupied the resource-rich north-eastern part of Syria and is putting serious sanctions pressure on Damascus together with a coalition of its satellites, bears a great deal of blame for this. This line for strangling the Syrian economy stirred up social discontent.
• Trying to maintain its influence [in the Middle East and North Africa], Washington actively interfered in the internal affairs of Arab countries and aggressively drew new dividing lines there. Iraq and Libya are still trying to clear up the consequences of the Americans and their satellites’ reckless behaviour.
#China
• The Americans are taking inciting actions in the Taiwan Strait and supplying weapons to Taipei while forging a quasi-political dialogue with the local authorities.
• It is clear to us that this policy pursued by Washington in violation of its obligations to Beijing on Taiwan is part of their strategy to step up military and political pressure on the PRC and eventually undermine regional security at the eastern end of the Eurasian continent.
• Russia reaffirms its adherence to the #OneChina principle, recognises that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the People’s Republic of China, opposes any form of “Taiwan independence,” and firmly supports China’s measures to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity and achieve national reunification.
Read in full
Key points:
#Ukraine #USA
• We have not received any official signals [from the USA] regarding a settlement in Ukraine.
• We are not happy with the proposals made by members of the Trump team to postpone Ukraine’s admission to NATO for 20 years and to station British and European peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.
• What we need is reliable and legally binding agreements that would eliminate the root causes of the conflict and seal a mechanism precluding the possibility of their violation.
#RussiaUSA #NATO
• We are ready to renew the political dialogue which Washington terminated after the start of the special military operation, if the United States is ready for this. Since it was the Americans who cut it off, it is for them to make the first move.
• They [the West] have been long relying on efforts to interfere in the domestic affairs of other countries, including our closest neighbours, as their foreign policy tool. For many years, Washington and its satellites have been acting this way in an effort to deter and contain their geopolitical rivals and do away with any unwanted actors, as confirmed by what happened in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Ukraine.
#Georgia
• The developments in Georgia stem from the double standards when caring for democracy and human rights serves as a pretext for overturning election results after even the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights with its tainted reputation recognised the election as being free and fair. Why do they want to change the results? Just because the puppet masters in Washington and Brussels did not find the way people voted there to their liking.
• The United States and the European Union are trying to impose a distorted vision on Tbilisi which consists of dividing everyone into those who are with us and those who are against us. Meanwhile, it seems that Georgian authorities have opted for a sovereign policy which meets the country’s national interests. They refuse to act as pawns manipulated by the West in its effort to destabilise Georgia, undermine its economy and incite escalation in its relations with Russia.
#Syria #MiddleEast
• The Syrians’ hopes for improvements after a convincing defeat of international terrorism, including with the help of Russia’s Aerospace Forces, have not materialised.
• Washington, which has effectively occupied the resource-rich north-eastern part of Syria and is putting serious sanctions pressure on Damascus together with a coalition of its satellites, bears a great deal of blame for this. This line for strangling the Syrian economy stirred up social discontent.
• Trying to maintain its influence [in the Middle East and North Africa], Washington actively interfered in the internal affairs of Arab countries and aggressively drew new dividing lines there. Iraq and Libya are still trying to clear up the consequences of the Americans and their satellites’ reckless behaviour.
#China
• The Americans are taking inciting actions in the Taiwan Strait and supplying weapons to Taipei while forging a quasi-political dialogue with the local authorities.
• It is clear to us that this policy pursued by Washington in violation of its obligations to Beijing on Taiwan is part of their strategy to step up military and political pressure on the PRC and eventually undermine regional security at the eastern end of the Eurasian continent.
• Russia reaffirms its adherence to the #OneChina principle, recognises that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the People’s Republic of China, opposes any form of “Taiwan independence,” and firmly supports China’s measures to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity and achieve national reunification.
Read in full
Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🇷🇺🇺🇸📞 On April 17, 2025, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a telephone conversation.
Secretary Rubio, who is currently in Paris, informed the Russian side about the recent engagements that he and US President’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff had in the French capital. These discussions involved representatives from Ukraine, France, and several other European nations. It was underscored that these contacts were in alignment with the framework of ongoing consultations between Washington and Moscow, including the recent dialogue between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.
Sergey Lavrov reaffirmed Moscow’s readiness to continue collaborative efforts with American counterparts to comprehensively address the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis.
The Foreign Minister and Secretary of State concurred on the necessity to maintain prompt communication channels, particularly in light of forthcoming meetings scheduled by American and European officials with Ukrainian representatives next week.
#RussiaUSA
Secretary Rubio, who is currently in Paris, informed the Russian side about the recent engagements that he and US President’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff had in the French capital. These discussions involved representatives from Ukraine, France, and several other European nations. It was underscored that these contacts were in alignment with the framework of ongoing consultations between Washington and Moscow, including the recent dialogue between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.
Sergey Lavrov reaffirmed Moscow’s readiness to continue collaborative efforts with American counterparts to comprehensively address the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis.
The Foreign Minister and Secretary of State concurred on the necessity to maintain prompt communication channels, particularly in light of forthcoming meetings scheduled by American and European officials with Ukrainian representatives next week.
#RussiaUSA
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Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
⚡️ Comment by the Aide to the President of the Russian Federation Yury Ushakov on the outcomes of Russia's President Vladimir Putin’s telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump (June 4, 2025)
💬 About an hour ago, the fourth telephone conversation between our President and US President Donald Trump concluded. <...>
Vladimir Putin provided detailed information on the outcomes of the second round of direct Russian-Ukrainian talks in Istanbul.
It was emphasised that Ukraine tried to derail these talks by carrying out targeted attacks on purely civilian targets and civilian population on direct orders from the Kiev regime.
These attacks unequivocally constitute an act of terrorism under international law and, in our view, the Kiev regime has essentially degenerated into a terrorist organisation. The Russian side did not fall for the provocations and, as you know, the second round has effectively taken place in Istanbul.
To reiterate, our President extensively covered the content and the outcomes of the talks and emphasised that, overall, these talks were productive. The corresponding memorandums were exchanged and will be analysed in the capitals – Moscow and Kiev – and then, we hope, both sides can continue the talks.
Regarding the strikes on military airfields, this issue was also discussed. Donald Trump reiterated that Americans were not informed in advance about them.
Naturally, the Leaders agreed to continue contacts on the Ukraine issue, both at the highest level and through other channels as well.
In addition to Ukraine, a number of international issues were discussed, with a focus on the stalled talks between the United States and Iran on the Iranian nuclear programme.
☝️ Donald Trump believes that Russia’s assistance may be necessary, and he would appreciate it if Russia could work with the Iranian side accordingly.
Additionally, the Middle East was discussed, as well as the armed conflict between India and Pakistan, which has been halted with the personal involvement of President Trump.
Furthermore, the Presidents exchanged views on the prospects for restoring Russia-US cooperation in various areas, which, according to both Presidents, have enormous potential.
🤝 In conclusion, both Leaders characterised the exchange of views as positive and highly productive. President Trump and our President also confirmed their willingness to remain in constant communication.
I would also note that both Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin highly appreciated the efforts of President Trump’s Special Envoy Steven Witkoff.
Read in full
#RussiaUSA
💬 About an hour ago, the fourth telephone conversation between our President and US President Donald Trump concluded. <...>
Vladimir Putin provided detailed information on the outcomes of the second round of direct Russian-Ukrainian talks in Istanbul.
It was emphasised that Ukraine tried to derail these talks by carrying out targeted attacks on purely civilian targets and civilian population on direct orders from the Kiev regime.
These attacks unequivocally constitute an act of terrorism under international law and, in our view, the Kiev regime has essentially degenerated into a terrorist organisation. The Russian side did not fall for the provocations and, as you know, the second round has effectively taken place in Istanbul.
To reiterate, our President extensively covered the content and the outcomes of the talks and emphasised that, overall, these talks were productive. The corresponding memorandums were exchanged and will be analysed in the capitals – Moscow and Kiev – and then, we hope, both sides can continue the talks.
Regarding the strikes on military airfields, this issue was also discussed. Donald Trump reiterated that Americans were not informed in advance about them.
Naturally, the Leaders agreed to continue contacts on the Ukraine issue, both at the highest level and through other channels as well.
In addition to Ukraine, a number of international issues were discussed, with a focus on the stalled talks between the United States and Iran on the Iranian nuclear programme.
☝️ Donald Trump believes that Russia’s assistance may be necessary, and he would appreciate it if Russia could work with the Iranian side accordingly.
Additionally, the Middle East was discussed, as well as the armed conflict between India and Pakistan, which has been halted with the personal involvement of President Trump.
Furthermore, the Presidents exchanged views on the prospects for restoring Russia-US cooperation in various areas, which, according to both Presidents, have enormous potential.
🤝 In conclusion, both Leaders characterised the exchange of views as positive and highly productive. President Trump and our President also confirmed their willingness to remain in constant communication.
I would also note that both Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin highly appreciated the efforts of President Trump’s Special Envoy Steven Witkoff.
Read in full
#RussiaUSA