Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, Moscow, July 12, 2024

Table of contents

1. Outcomes of NATO summit in Washington, D.C.
2. US President’s remarks at the NATO summit
3. Euro-Atlantic allies and their satellites scale up the supply of arms, military equipment and ammunition to the Kiev regime
4. Ukraine crisis
5. Reports in the Western press about the killing of Russian POWs by Ukrainian armed forces militants
6. Developments in Moldova
7. Resumption of live-fire exercises by the Republic of Korea in areas bordering the DPRK
8. Japan’s new anti-Russia steps
9. The establishment of the Alliance of Sahel States
10. The activity of the Emergency Youth Aid public organization

Answers to media questions:

1. Results of parliamentary elections in France
2. Upcoming Armenian-US military exercises
3. The West’s double standards regarding foreign agents
4. NATO’s anti-Russia activities
5. Growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula
6. Russia’s opinion of the NATO summit
7. Results of the SCO summit
8. Russia’s mediation in Turkish-Syrian relations
9. Armenia’s decision to improve relations with the US
10. Israel escalating tensions in the region
11. Russian-Armenian diplomatic relations
12. Presidential election in Iran

Outcomes of NATO summit in Washington, D.C.

The meeting of NATO countries’ heads of state and government in Washington, D.C. on July 9-11 was designed to showcase the collective West’s transatlantic unity in the year that marks the 75th anniversary of the alliance. Allegedly, inviting a large number of participants was supposed to show approval and firm support for NATO’s activities which are steeped in Cold War approaches.

However, something went wrong. For some reason, the atmosphere was not festive. Russia was once again declared a threat to the bloc in “all operational environments.” Considering that our country has been targeted this time again, the alliance’s regional plans to counter Russia on the eastern, northern and southern flanks continue to be acted upon. The United States and its allies have endorsed further steps to militarise Europe, to build up the defence industry capacity, and to mass military capabilities next to Russia’s borders. Washington wasted no time announcing on the sidelines of the summit the deployment in Germany of intermediate- and shorter-range missiles which had been banned under the INF Treaty.

Inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia remains the long-term objective of the alliance which declared that the future of democracy was being decided on the Ukrainian battlefield. What democracy are they talking about? What we see in the West has long since become a dictatorship of liberalism, and in Ukraine has degraded into unbridled nationalist rhetoric.

The NATO summit made it clear that its outcome will determine the future of global security. Russia emerging victorious is the biggest risk NATO is facing, and the alliance cannot let it happen. Clearly, they fear consequences for NATO’s future if the special military operation’s outcome is unfavourable for the West.

NATO continues to use Ukraine as an expendable material in the geopolitical face-off with Russia. The decisions adopted at the summit are designed to encourage Ukrainians to continue fighting. The Ukrainians within Ukraine who have not yet been corralled are likely to suffer the same fate.

The unity flaunted by NATO members regarding Kiev’s accession to the alliance was bursting at the seams. Media reported specific disagreements between the alliance members over the amounts and timeframe of providing financial help to Ukraine and the process of its accession to NATO. A public address by 60 reputable American political scientists urging not to bring Kiev closer to NATO membership was released ahead of the summit.

Ultimately, Kiev was promised an irreversible path to the alliance. I’m not sure what they have in mind when they say irreversible path. The only image this term conjures up is a road that leads to a precipice. Now, in order to make sense of what they are talking about, they have come up with another term for the irreversible path to the alliance and call it a bridge to the alliance. Truth be told, its length has yet to be determined. However, I will reveal a military secret for the Kiev regime to be aware of what it is about: it is indeed a bridge to NATO, but it’s a drawbridge any way you look at it. It is a drawbridge meaning that the Westerners may pull it up or lower it any time they choose to without asking the Kiev regime, or the people of Ukraine. And this is how it is going to be indefinitely.

There is also a figure of speech meaning that the drawbridge to NATO will draw Ukrainian citizens into trouble. It’s a hard thing to accept, but they should face the truth anyway.

The outcomes of the summit show without equivocation that the United States and its allies see NATO as a tool of choice in pursuit of global hegemony in the form of the infamous rule-based order and use every avenue trying to prevent the formation of a multipolar world. All those who pursue independent sovereign policies and are not willing to follow instructions from Washington are declared opponents or enemies. The ambition to rule the world, as the US President stated, is wrapped in purported efforts to “defend democracy” against the alleged “authoritarian alliance” of Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. What are they talking about? The only protection democracy needs is protection against NATO countries, primarily, Washington.

In order to insist on their own language of defending democracy from authoritarian regimes Washington and its allies are planning to expand cooperation with like-minded countries, primarily Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan, and are taking steps to strengthen their influence in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa.

As a reminder, the issue is about the North Atlantic Alliance. What is it doing in other parts of the globe? If you hear them say again they are strengthening security or guaranteeing something to its new members or partners, ask Brussels the following question: who has the alliance or its collective bureaucratic entities, or its individual members ever helped maintain security, prevent catastrophic developments, man-made disasters or help deal with the aftermath, perhaps, respond to new challenges or threats, or overcome international terrorism? Have you ever seen any of that ever show up on their track record? No. All we see is devastation and disaster.

No matter how hard they tried, they failed to put up a spectacular show of NATO’s achievements in its 75 years of existence. There is simply nothing to brag about. NATO activities remain limited exclusively to ratcheting up confrontation with Russia and the countries that NATO has declared non-constructive or axis of evil, i.e., the countries that do not obey their orders.

Much of NATO’s efforts remain focused on annihilating the security structure in Europe which is almost non-existent as it is. Clearly, they decided to finish it off. The alliance’s aggressive rhetoric and provocative actions are driving it into a dead-end.  This is probably why they keep saying that Russia poses an existential threat to them. It’s not us threatening them. It’s them doing everything they can to bring about their own demise. NATO has no future. The Washington summit has proved it again.

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US President’s remarks at the NATO summit

It is nobody’s business other than the US Department of State. But the other countries’ foreign ministries should be concerned with what President Biden said at the NATO summit. He did not speak about America’s domestic issues or the summit’s agenda but about global issues that concern absolutely all nations. The reaction of the international community, which became public knowledge several hours after Biden’s press statements, is indicative. It was that reaction that made top news as the outcome of the NATO summit. The US State Department and Administration probably thought that it would be seen as proof of Biden’s competence and competitiveness as a presidential candidate. But it turned out differently. They have only made matters worse, especially after President Biden called Putin the president of Ukraine and said that “Vice-President Trump” was qualified to be president.

It shows that for the past few years the world was watching a horrible picture of the bonding of America’s “deep state” with official US institutions and western mainstream media. They have covered up the real state of affairs at the White House and manipulated information about the US President’s health for years. They likewise keep information about the situation in Ukraine secret from the American public and manipulated global public opinion regarding US activities in Ukraine. They have staged numerous anti-constitutional coups, changed governments and financed political changes there to incite yet another conflict in Europe.

The American official agencies, deep state and mainstream media acted hand in glove to manipulate the situation and information about President Biden’s physical and mental health, just as they did with regard to other international issues. And the longer this continues, the worse is the picture the world can see.

Over the past few years, we saw that bonding – it is more than just a connection – of the Western neoliberal elite’s propaganda and political instruments in all spheres, primarily with regard to Russia. The West manipulated public opinion to demonise Russia and distort its activities. The media that are controlled by Washington, London and “collective Brussels” is providing a similar interpretation of the developments in Ukraine.

The US media, which keep information and facts about President Biden’s health secret from Americans, don’t tell them who is really shelling the Zaporozhskaya nuclear power plant, pretending that they don’t know it. When it becomes impossible to hide the facts, they invent lies to conceal the guilty party, even though everyone knows that it is the Kiev regime’s forces that are shelling the nuclear power plant.

The US media, which are hiding the truth about President Biden’s health now, acted likewise for years, claiming that there was no Nazism, nationalism or Russophobia in Ukraine. They knew that they were lying. They knew that the US administration was pouring billions into the nationalist epidemic in Ukraine, but they kept silent and pretended that they knew nothing about it.

They have been telling the public that President Biden is “sharp and focused” behind closed doors, and they are using the same methods to tell the Americans about Zelensky’s legitimacy, citing facts that are not consistent with the reality to give legitimacy to interaction with him. Look at how the US, British and Brussels-centric media are playing with information about Biden’s health and you will understand what they are doing with international news.

The problem with the current Washington elites is not only that they don’t know what to do with the elections. Their problem worldwide is that they have no doubt that their institutionalised “lie machine” is working and will continue working under any conditions no matter what they do. They occupied Iraq, destroyed Libya, staged an anti-constitutional coup in Ukraine and are inciting a conflict in Europe, thinking that they can get away with anything, and that the world would only see and believe the “right” image broadcast by the US and British media.

But in the new multipolar world, with transborder media and social networks, the global public is watching the hopeless look on the faces of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan as they listen to their president talking gibberish. They can no longer conceal the truth. And their propaganda lies about the situation in Ukraine will be laid bare too.

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Euro-Atlantic allies and their satellites scale up the supply of arms, military equipment and ammunition to the Kiev regime

 We have taken notice of the statements concerning new large-scale arms deliveries to the Kiev regime worth around $1 billion. The question arises: is Joe Biden, who doesn’t seem to know which president or which country he is talking about, the one who signs the cheques, invoices and orders allocating such vast amounts? He also seems to think that his main rival in the upcoming election is his own vice-president, who has every chance to move to the White House. Does this not suggest that someone could slip any paper for him to sign? But who would do this? And what is their endgame? The answer is obvious: Washington has instigated corruption on a global scale, especially with regard to the situation in Ukraine. The transfer of various air defence systems, including the outdated Patriot systems, to Ukraine was announced at the NATO summit that ended in Washington yesterday.

At the same time, the countries of the collective West, led by the United States, continue to step up pressure on countries that still have stocks of Soviet/Russian weapons and ammunition to have them transfer this equipment to the Kiev regime, often in flagrant violation of the end-user certificates, which explicitly prohibit re-exporting armaments without the written consent of the initial exporter country.

By sending large batches of weapons to Ukraine, including the most lethal systems (including ballistic missiles and long-range multiple-launch rocket systems, air defence systems, a wide range of armoured vehicles and artillery) the NATO and EU countries, and their satellites are violating their own international legal and political obligations under a number of multilateral agreements. They are not circumventing them, but openly overstepping them now.

In particular, these actions run counter to the International Arms Trade Treaty, as well as the ones of the EU’s “common positions” – this is not a symbolic designation, but a document defining common rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment. The Arms Trade Treaty requires exporting states to objectively assess the risks of the weapons they transfer being used for violating international humanitarian law or for gender violence (Article 7), and prohibits arms transfers if the state party has “knowledge at the time of authorisation that the arms or items would be used in the commission of genocide, crimes against humanity, grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, attacks directed against civilian objects or civilians protected as such” (Article 6). You might argue that the West believes the Kiev regime is not committing any of these crimes. As a reminder – they also believe that President Biden is capable.

The European Council Common Position of 2008 establishes basic rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment and maintains that members states are to deny an export licence if there is a clear risk that the military technology or equipment to be exported might be used for internal repression in the recipient country, for serious violations of international humanitarian law, might aggravate existing tensions or conflicts in the country of final destination, or be used for offensive action against third countries.

When making decisions to supply arms, EU member states must take into account the risks of uncoordinated re-export, of those weapons ending up in black markets (as there have been numerous precedents, according to Europol), the human rights situation in the recipient country and the fulfilment of its international obligations in general. The question should have been raised a long time ago. But no. The murders of journalists by the Kiev regime and the mass repression against public figures and representatives of civil society in Ukraine do not seem to count.

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Ukraine crisis

Zelensky’s criminal regime does not cease terrorizing peaceful population of Russia’s cities and villages to serve Washington, and the West supplies it with money, weapons and provides support in return. This is part of the election campaign that the White House dwellers rely on.

On July 3, Ukrainian armed forces launched an UAV attack on a bakery in Alyoshki, Kherson Region, and after setting it on fire struck at its workers, who were extinguishing it. Two workers were killed and one female worker wounded. Don’t the European Union, NATO and pro-Western “human rights” organisations understand this? They do understand. It suits them.

On July 4, Banderites dropped explosive devices from a UAV on two cars in the Borisovka District of the Belgorod Region. Four people were injured, including a child. On the same day, they used a copter to attack a residential house in Tetkino, Kursk Region, a woman was wounded.

On July 5, Ukrainian neo-Nazis used a drone to attack a block of flats in Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Krasnodar Territory. They killed a six-year old girl and wounded 16 people, including a child.

On the same day, Ukrainian Armed Forces shelled Donetsk, Gorlovka, Volnovakha and Yasynovataya, killing five civilians and wounding 24, including a child. Two Russian EMERCOM employees were injured after a repeated Ukrainian attack.

During the two days from July 8 to 10 Banderites subjected the Belgorod Region to mass shelling. Seven districts came under the fire. Five fatalities have been reported. About 20 people were wounded.

Russian law enforcement authorities maintain records on the crimes of the Ukrainian neo-Nazis. These child-killing barbarians should have no illusions of impunity. All those involved will be brought to justice.

On July 11, the Kiev regime committed one more terrorist act – specifically against children.

Based on the evidence provided by the Investigative Committee of Russia, Russian courts continue to pass sentences to Ukrainian neo-Nazis for their criminal acts against civilians.

The Supreme Court of the Donetsk People’s Republic sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment Ivan Filipov, a Ukrainian armed forces fighter, who shot three civilians, including a child, travelling by car, in Mariupol in March 2022.

Ukrainian neo-Nazi Alexey Kazymov, who ordered his subordinates to shell the towns of Chermalyk, Oktyabr and Kominternovo (Donetsk People’s Republic) with mortars in 2019, received a 26-year sentence. These criminal acts resulted in the death of one civilian, injury of another one and partial or complete destruction of 19 residential houses and civil infrastructure facilities. Kazymov’s subordinates who executed his criminal orders have also been sentenced to long prison terms.

Bandera supporter Myroslav Chernomor, who ordered the shooting of civilians in Mariupol in the spring of 2022 on suspicion of assisting the Russian army, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison. Those who carried out his orders have also received 25-year prison sentences.

On July 2, 2024, it was reported that the Supreme Court of the DPR sentenced French mercenary Hugo Julien Cuesta, who fought alongside the Ukrainian armed forces, to 14 years in prison in absentia. He is currently on the international wanted list.

The Moscow City Court sentenced Zinovy Parasyuk in absentia to 8 years in prison for his role in the March 2016 attack on the Russian Consulate General in Lvov. Alongside his son, former Verkhovna Rada member Vladimir Parasyuk, he threw pyrotechnics and other objects at the building. Vladimir Parasyuk also entered the consulate grounds, tore down the Russian flag, and publicly called for terrorist activities against Russian citizens. In November 2023, the Western District Military Court sentenced Vladimir Parasyuk in absentia to 11 years in prison for this crime.

None of the Ukrainian criminals and their accomplices will escape justice. They will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

We have noted the reports regarding the study by the World Data Centre for Geoinformatics and Sustainable Development at the Sikorsky Kiev Polytechnic Institute. The study examines potential flooding scenarios of nearby areas resulting from the destruction of dams in certain reservoirs of the Dnieper cascade.

In September-October 2022, this centre simulated the potential consequences of a breach at the Kakhovskaya Hydroelectric Power Station dam that eventually collapsed in June 2023 due to incessant shelling by the Ukrainian armed forces. The Kiev regime and its Western backers hastily blamed Russia for this crime. Currently, the centre’s focus has shifted to the hydraulic structures of the Kievskaya and Kanevskaya hydroelectric power stations. The analysis revealed that in the event of a spill from the Kievskoye Reservoir, the flooding area could reach up to 2,040 square kilometres, affecting 76 communities. The most severe damage would be inflicted on the Kiev areas along the Dnieper and Desna rivers, with up to 900,000 potential victims, 90 percent of whom are residents of the capital. If the Kanevskoye Reservoir overflows, the flooded area could extend to 4,108 square kilometres, covering 177 settlements, including the coastal areas of Kanev and Cherkassy. Approximately 75,000 people, mostly residents of Cherkassy, would be affected.

There is no doubt that Zelensky’s regime is preparing yet another cynical provocation against its own people, following which it will blame Russia for war crimes and ecocide and use it as a reason to beg the West for more assistance and to cover up its own terrorist activities.

The Ukrainian authorities continue to harp on the problems of children, turning a blind eye to the real state of affairs. They plant “shocking stories” about divided families and the plight of children who dream of returning home. They often use propaganda cliches about the Ukrainian children who are allegedly stripped of their names, language and culture, some of them illegally adopted in Russia and others forced to fight against Ukraine. They continue to insist that these young Ukrainians must be returned to their families and official guardians as soon as possible. At the same time, they deliberately omit to mention the efforts taken by Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova to help children reunite with their relatives in Ukraine. It is a fact, but why is the Kiev regime disregarding it?

It has been established that the Kiev regime is using its alleged concern for children for shady transactions. Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmitry Lubinets has recently reported a scam involving orphaned children. It turned out that Kiev officials sent their conscription-age relatives abroad allegedly to accompany orphans to a children’s camp in Germany. They were hired by the relevant social services or charity organisations several days before departure and quit their jobs after crossing the border. As you can guess, none of them have returned to Ukraine. Is the International Criminal Court aware of this?  Has the Kiev regime informed it of its tricks? Why am I putting the blame on the Kiev regime? Because this machination is only possible with support from a government agency.

This scheme is a vivid demonstration of the rotten and cynical essence of the Kiev regime, whose representatives climb international platforms to shed tears about children allegedly abducted by Russia. However, they can’t provide a list of these children, just like they can’t provide a list of those who were allegedly killed in Bucha, which we have requested publicly on numerous occasions. The explanation is very simple:  Russia has not abducted children or killed anyone in Bucha. It is a horrible lie in the worst traditions of Goebbels’s propaganda. But the junta in Kiev is ready to use the worst possible means because Washington is paying for this. Both sides have mercenary interests of their own. The truth is that Ukrainians are forced to die for Western interests, while representatives of the corrupt regime are using false pretences to send their relatives abroad.

A NATO summit ended in Washington on July 11. Zelensky, who was invited to the closing ceremony, had been cautioned against spoiling the general mood by begging for NATO membership or more weapons and money for the Ukrainian armed forces.

Kiev’s dream of joining the North Atlantic family has been ruined again. Every year since the Bucharest summit in 2008, when the door to the bloc was half-opened for Ukraine, the leaders of NATO countries, primarily the United States, invented new formulas to hide the fact that Kiev has no future in the bloc. They did it this time again. The Washington summit declaration mentioned Ukraine’s “irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership” and said that it would “extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the Alliance when Allies agree and conditions are met.”

This reminds me of the world order based on rules. Nobody has seen these rules, and nobody has seen these conditions. Does the bloc want Ukraine to defeat corruption without controlling the disposal of billions of dollars and heaps of weapons it is sending there? Is this the condition? It can’t be implemented. They are doing this to keep the Kiev regime hoping and so to mobilise more Ukrainians, lowering the conscription age and shedding rivers of blood.

In this context, we have taken note of an open letter against NATO membership for Ukraine by over 60 academics from Western universities and research institutes, which The Guardian published before the NATO summit. These people work for Russia’s opponents, such as the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the universities of Washington, Toronto, Miami and Los Angeles.

In short, the Kiev regime has not attained its main goal – NATO membership – again and had to resign itself to consolation prizes in the form of monetary aid and promises that it would eventually cross the bridge to its membership in NATO. As for when this could happen, Kiev will know this after meeting all the conditions, which will not be disclosed to it.

In addition, a new command called NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) will be set up in Wiesbaden, Germany. Also, NATO will appoint a permanent representative to Kiev to deepen ties with Ukraine. All of that means that NATO has taken over the role of the main coordinator of providing military aid to the Zelensky regime, because previously these matters were tackled exclusively by the US-led Ukraine Defence Contact Group (Ramstein-format group).

The Ukrainian delegation tried its best to woo the summit participants trying in vain to hit them up for the military equipment and ammunition that they “need so badly in order to obtain victory.” Zelensky demanded that as many F-16 fighters as possible be sent to the front as soon as possible. Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba was similarly insistent as he pushed for Washington’s consent to authorise the use of US missiles to target Russian airfields. Truth be told, on July 10, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said some F-16 jets had been sent from Denmark and the Netherlands to Ukraine, but did not provide the details. President Biden’s subsequent statements to the media clearly “finished him off.”

Overall, the summit showcased NATO’s continuing aggressive Russophobic approach and cynical plans to continue the hybrid war against our country at the hands of Ukrainians and at the cost of their lives. Kiev is being encouraged to fight without regard for casualties. The main thing is to prevent Russia from winning.

July 10 marked the 315th anniversary of the defeat of the Swedish army in the Battle of Poltava by Russian troops led by Tsar Peter the Great. Historically, it is as important as the battles of Kulikovo, Borodino and Stalingrad. The victory at Poltava and in the Northern War saved our people from enslavement and created prerequisites for taking back Russian lands that had been captured by the Swedes.

At Poltava, Russia achieved a vital strategic objective: the Swedish army, which was considered invincible, was defeated and a serious threat to the country’s security coming from the north and northwest was eliminated. Sweden was no longer able to re-create a similarly strong army. It lost its former military superiority forever and stopped hatching expansionist plans. At the same time, Russia’s international standing increased significantly. The victory reinforced its power and international prestige, and convincingly confirmed the country’s role and significance as a world’s major power.

Stockholm seems to have forgotten the lessons of the past and is raring to join the fight. Centuries-old neutrality, which essentially started after the Battle of Poltava and which more than one generation of Swedes took pride in, has been swapped for a puppet-like NATO membership with uncertain prospects for ensuring national security. Sweden has become a leader in providing military aid to the Kiev regime and is priming its people for an almost total defence in naive fear of a “potential war against Russia.” Perhaps, as NATO members, they overheard someone say the alliance had such plans. In that case, they should level with the Swedish public rather than come up with old wives’ tales about our country. However, ordinary Swedes hardly wish to see a re-run of the Battle of Poltava against the Russian troops. Hopefully, they remember the historical lesson taught by Peter the Great, as well as the tragic experiences of Charles XII, Napoleon, and Hitler.

Kiev is similarly reluctant to reminisce about the Battle of Poltava, and for a reason. Falsifying its results is impossible, since everyone is aware of them. However, it grossly distorts the actual role of Hetman Mazepa and calls him “the first fighter for the independence of Ukraine,” even though Ukraine was not even on the map back then. It is hard to believe that claim even amid the drug-induced delirium that swept Bankovaya Street. In exchange for betrayal, he was supposed to receive from the Swedish king a small plot of land within the modern-day Vitebsk Region of Belarus. Sure enough, this fact is hushed up, but historical documents confirm that this descendant of the Ukrainian nobility changed masters several times during the decades of his career.

Statements are made to the effect that the hetman’s “treason” was a complex “Ukrainian choice.” However, the joint forces led by Charles XII and Mazepa burnt down the towns of Malorossiya, which did not open the gates to invaders and traitors, and annihilated their residents. Such a “choice” was called treason throughout history, and most often traitors ended their lives on gallows or the chopping blocks.

The Zelensky-led junta is following in Mazepa’s footsteps. They betrayed millions of Ukrainians and are ready to sacrifice their future and even lives without regret in the name of preserving their lives and ill-gotten gains.

The above facts confirm the relevance of the special military operation’s objectives to denazify and demilitarise Ukraine and to eliminate threats emanating from its territory. All of them will be fulfilled no matter what.

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Reports in the Western press about the killing of Russian POWs by Ukrainian armed forces militants

For over two years since the commencement of the special military operation, reports of egregious acts of murder, abuse, and humiliation inflicted on Russian military personnel in Ukrainian captivity have not received the proper attention and response from international human rights organisations. 

Despite ample evidence of these crimes, international officials consistently find reasons to downplay or dismiss the information. They often express doubts about the “credibility of the provided evidence” and call for “the further verification,” or cite other “unforeseen circumstances” that delay their response.

Furthermore, in the case of the bloody frame-up in Bucha, they did not seek additional evidence or verification of the circumstances. They swiftly accused Russia without substantiated evidence or reliable information. There is no official list of the killed because no killings occurred there. Representatives of the Kiev authorities collected and placed the bodies there, and later removed them. It is still uncertain − were these individuals killed or were they actors? Importantly, these events were unrelated to the actions of the Russian armed forces. Similarly, for eight years starting in 2014, these international officials turned a blind eye and deaf ear to evident instances of mistreatment of captured militia members from Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics by the Ukrainian armed forces and nationalist groups. They also ignored documented cases of civilian and child casualties in Donbass.

Meanwhile, evidence of the horrible mistreatment of Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine continues to emerge in the public sphere. What we have been discussing in our briefings since the beginning of the special military operation, what Russian media have reported, and what our military personnel have sacrificed their lives for on the front lines, is finally beginning to gain attention from the “free” and “democratic” media. Just recently, The New York Times made a breakthrough by publishing an article featuring revelations from foreign mercenaries who served in one of the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, known as The Chosen Company. They disclosed instances of unarmed, wounded Russian soldiers being executed, which they claimed to have witnessed multiple times.

Furthermore, reports surfaced in the media regarding a mercenary who served in places like Bucha and Irpen as part of the Carpathian Sich battalion of the Ukrainian armed forces, now facing trial in the Czech Republic. He stands accused of illegal enlistment in the Ukrainian army and pillaging. During his interrogation, he admitted to appropriating valuable items from killed soldiers and civilians, citing it as standard practice and the norm of behaviour among his peers. He also confessed to the arbitrary executions carried out by his unit, stating, “We were the police, we were the court, we were the firing squad for that matter.”

If we combine this with the information that surfaced in 2022 and 2023, including video evidence of executions of unarmed Russian military personnel, a clear pattern emerges. These instances reveal numerous egregious violations by the Kiev regime of its commitments under the 1949 Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War. They include deliberate killings of surrendered prisoners, torture, inhumane treatment, severe mental anguish, and irreparable harm to health. Sadly, these shocking realities have become commonplace within the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, populated by fervent supporters of Bandera, and foreign mercenaries. These revelations were a stark awakening for the Western media, which had been previously shielded from such discoveries.

We observe Bankovaya Street’s efforts to conceal the true extent of violations of international humanitarian law. In an attempt to divert attention and possibly cover up past crimes, the Zelensky regime occasionally permits limited access to detainees for representatives of international organisations and sympathetic media.

We urge the international community, organisations, and specialised NGOs not to be swayed by Kiev’s propaganda. Behind the slogans portraying Ukraine as a bastion of Western democracy and a defender of human rights lies a grim reality. Ukrainian military, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies systematically employ advanced methods of physical violence and psychological coercion against Russian military personnel held captive.

The level of moral degradation of Ukrainian war criminals is reminiscent of ancient times, when historical records documented mass torture, such as the extermination of Soviet prisoners and innocent civilians. It evokes memories of atrocities committed by the Japanese Unit 731, infamous for inhumane experiments on prisoners of war and Chinese detainees in Manchuria. There is no doubt that today’s Ukrainian neo-Nazis will meet a fate similar to their predecessors from the Third Reich and the Kwantung Army: they will face justice and receive severe punishment. Russian investigative authorities are actively pursuing these cases.

Once more, we remind Vladimir Zelensky’s Western supporters, who deploy their soldiers of fortune to the conflict zone, that we hold them equally accountable for war crimes against Russian military personnel and civilians.

We want to underscore that despite the criminal conduct of the Kiev regime, Russia continues to uphold its commitments under international humanitarian law, including the treatment of prisoners of war. Ukrainian military personnel held on Russian territory are maintained in humane conditions, receiving nutritious meals and prompt medical attention.

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Developments in Moldova

 The Maia Sandu regime is taking steps to completely break ties with Russia. The interests of Moldovans, who maintain close business, cultural, and personal contacts with partners in various regions of Russia, are not taken into account.

On July 4, Fly One, a Moldovan air carrier, had to introduce new rules for transportation on the Yerevan-Chisinau flight under pressure of the Moldovan authorities. After cancelling direct flights to Russia in 2022, at the initiative of the Moldovan leadership, this flight became the most popular one to travel between our countries. Now, before flying from Yerevan to Chisinau, the air company has to transmit passenger lists to the Moldovan authorities, who decide who will be allowed on board. Additional security controls have also been introduced when entering Moldova, and the limit on the transportation of currency has been reduced to $3,000.

The authorities are also pursuing a domestic policy that Moldovans are increasingly calling “pre-sale European tuning.”

Artificial de-Russification of Moldova continues. This happens in the situation where Moldova is also being artificially and barbarically de-Moldovased. On July 5, a bill was registered in the Parliament of Moldova that abolishes the mandatory translation of legislative acts into Russian, which makes Russian-speakers second-class citizens. About 80 percent of Moldovans know Russian to some degree and use it in their everyday life. There is an important difference between what Maia Sandu is doing to promote the Romanian language and everything Romanian, and how Russia promotes Russian. There is not a single example of Russia demanding to replace the traditional language, which is a state or working language for a certain part of the population, with Russian. It is important for Russian-speakers to preserve it without replacing other languages with it. Look at what Ms Sandu is doing. She abolished Moldovan, “re-registering” it as Romanian. This is where our approaches differ significantly, not only to language, but also in humanitarian policy and in international relations in general. This is a pro-Western, liberal ideology of abolition, which destroys everything that was dear to the local, indigenous population, majority or minority, and passed on as values ​​for generations, and replaces it with what is beneficial to them. Our approach is harmonisation, reasonable combination, preservation of the cultural code and heritage of the peoples living in a particular territory.

Repressions against the opposition are picking up momentum. On July 3, 2024, the leader of the Chance political party, Alexey Lungu, was taken into custody during a protest near a court building in Chisinau. Deputies who are members of the opposition are not allowed to enter the parliament’s conference hall, criminal cases are opened against them and their offices are searched all the time.

Moldovan authorities are toughening control over undesirable elements. For example, they are discussing the idea of setting up “territorial counter-terrorism councils.” According to local experts, this mechanism can be used against persons involved in protest movements. Does this ring any bells? US authorities referred to members of the opposition who disagreed with election returns and pointed to their obviously rigged nature as “domestic terrorists.”

NATO is actively developing the territory of Moldova under the pretext of the country’s upcoming EU accession. On June 17-28, the republic hosted NATO’s Peace Shield 2024 exercise. On July 8-19, Moldovan service personnel are taking part in the fourth seminar of NATO’s regional staff exercise Regex-2024. With NATO’s active assistance, Moldova is modernising the National Army and the country’s military infrastructure, and reservists are summoned to field training sessions more and more often. All this runs counter to the republic’s neutral status and undermines it, and it is clear that all this emanates from the West.

Ordinary Moldovans emphatically reject the destructive anti-Russia policy. Indicatively, over 200,000 people, primarily young people, have left the country during President Maia Sandu’s tenure. Experts believe that, if this trend persists, more Moldovans would be born outside the country than on its territory after 2029. Those born in Moldova will no longer be Moldovans, they will be Romanians right away.

The protest movement continues to expand in Moldova. The actions of authorities are compelling the republic’s residents, as well as opposition parties and movements, to consolidate for the sake of protecting the country’s sovereignty and national identity, to defend their right to be called Moldovans and to speak the Moldovan language. This is a noble goal.

Russia has always advocated equitable and mutually respectful dialogue with the Republic of Moldova. History proves that close cooperation with our country has always guaranteed the Moldovan nation’s genuine independence and well-being. We aim to expand dialogue with our Moldovan friends who do not believe in myths about an alleged Russian threat, “Moscow’s hybrid war against the Moldovans” and other baseless narratives, being introduced by the West. The people of Moldova know the truth, and they know that they are fighting for their identity, the future of their children and future generations.

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Resumption of live-fire exercises by the Republic of Korea in areas bordering the DPRK

In early June, the Republic of Korea conducted live-fire exercises in the areas bordering the Democratic People's Republic of Korea for the first time in six years. Pyongyang considered these steps by Seoul as a direct threat to its national security forcing it to take retaliatory self-defence measures.

Over the two years in power, the present Seoul administration has surpassed its predecessors in terms of military tension and confrontation level with the DPRK. The South Korean leadership does not hesitate to publicly label Pyongyang as “the world's evil,” thus confirming the unchanged course towards eliminating the North and absorbing its territory. Attempts to put these plans into practice are fraught with disastrous consequences, including for South Korea itself. Therefore, our advice is to stop the reckless war games and take the path to detente and mutual trust, which are key conditions of peaceful settlement to problems on the Korean Peninsula.

Regretfully, the prospects for getting out of the deadlock in the sub-region are currently invisible. The risks of military escalation are, on the contrary, increasing. The growing involvement of NATO in regional affairs has become an additional destabilising factor. We have taken notice of the South Korean leader's public statements about Russia, which were made the day before, during his participation in the anniversary summit of the North Atlantic Alliance in Washington. Recommending that we should make some kind of choice between Seoul and Pyongyang, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said that it was possible to supply lethal weapons to the Kiev regime in the future if Russia transfers its military technologies to North Korea.

In this respect we would like to emphasize the following. It is regrettable, that Seoul is using NATO narratives, tactics of blackmail and threats, which are totally unacceptable in the diplomatic practice of sovereign nations that respect each other. As for choosing according to the principle “he who is not with us is against us,” we would recommend that the South Korean leadership define its priorities and decide what is more important: peace and stability on the peninsula, which are necessary for the prosperity and well-being of the their people, or pandering to the aspirations of the United States to maintain its military dominance in the APR at the expense of a permanent state of confrontation between South and North Korea that is fraught with a full-scale conflict.

As for the threat to revise current Seoul’s foreign policy towards Ukraine, President of Russia Vladimir Putin was clear enough about it at the press conference following his visit to Vietnam. Such steps will not remain unanswered by Russia.

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 Japan’s new anti-Russia steps

The Japanese government continues to sever what little is left of bilateral ties with Russia with fanatical persistence. On June 21, the administration of Prime Minister Kishida adopted another package of personal and sectoral sanctions, number 24 in fact.