NEWS FROM RUSSIA: April 16, 2024
Edward's weekly Russia-related news roundup & open thread
Welcome to Edward Slavsquat’s weekly Russian media news roundup and open thread-thing. Feel free to share your own URLs in the comments section.
BREAKING NEWS: BABY GOATS
Three little goats have joined the Edward Institute for Village Studies:
The quote of the week
At a joint meeting of State Duma committees, the head of the Bank of Russia said: “We are going to expand the pilot for the digital ruble, and based on its results we will determine the timing of serious scaling of the digital ruble. But, in our opinion, this will happen no earlier than 2025.” […]
It was previously planned that Russian citizens would be able to try out the digital ruble as early as 2024, so the timeline is starting to get pushed back. […]Apart from the opportunity to quickly and irrevocably part with your honestly earned money … nothing new and useful is being offered to citizens of the Russian Federation.
But here’s what interests me most: Who??? Who are these people who are waiting for the mass introduction of the digital ruble?
And now for some news.
Economy
Aluminum prices on the London Metal Exchange rose by 9.4%, and nickel prices by 8.8%, following the announcement of new US and UK sanctions against Moscow. [nakanune.ru]
The number of foreign companies controlled by Russians at the end of 2022 (“controlled foreign company”, or CFC) increased by 21%, to 45.6 thousand. [rbc.ru]
Russian banks are poised to have another year of record profits. [iz.ru]
Russia was the sixth largest importer of strawberries in the world in 2023. The United States took first place, followed by Germany and Canada. [ria.ru]
The average salary in the Russian IT industry is twice the average for the economy. In 2023, it amounted to 155.9 thousand rubles, which is 1.7 times more than in 2019, the Ministry of Digital Development reported. [nakanune.ru]
The dollar/ruble exchange rate at the opening of trading on the Moscow Exchange on Tuesday exceeded 94 rubles for the first time since October 30, 2023. [tass.ru]
Chinese banks have started blocking payments from Russia for electronic components, which could cause production delays for Russian manufacturers. [kommersant.ru]
Supplies of Russian aluminum, nickel and copper to the US and UK last year amounted to $77.8 million, which is only 0.5% of Russia’s total exports of these metals. [ria.ru]
Society
Several districts in the Tyumen region are being evacuated as floods continue to force thousands of people to flee their homes in Siberia. [ria.ru]
Russia has developed a neural network that is capable of identifying terrorists and criminals among migrant workers, the press service of the Smart Engines company told RIA Novosti. [ria.ru]
A pensioner from the village of Magnitka (Kusinsky district, Chelyabinsk region) was issued a fine of 5,000 rubles for insulting local deputies. According to the text of the court decision, she referred to the lawmakers as “types of lice that live on the hair of intimate parts of the human body”, and “alcoholics”. [ura.news]
The majority of Russians (90%) have a positive assessment of future technologies, such as the development of artificial intelligence (AI), robotization and bioengineering, while every second person believes that such technologies can improve people’s quality of life, according to a survey by state-operated VTsIOM. [ria.ru]
A “smart” tram in St. Petersburg hit three pedestrians. [rbc.ru]
Ukraine
Former DPR Defense Minister Igor Strelkov, who received a four-year sentence in January for “extremism”, has requested to be sent to Ukraine under a MOD contract. [nakanune.ru]
The wife of Russell “Texas” Bentley, a well-known American volunteer in Donbass, claims that her husband was “brutally detained” on April 8 in Donetsk by “the tankers of the 5th Brigade (of the RF Armed Forces)”. There is no information about why he was taken into custody, and he has yet to be released. [Telegram]
The EU’s General Court removed oligarchs Petr Aven and Mikhail Fridman from a list of sanctioned Russians. The ruling lifts restrictive measures adopted between February 2022 and March 2023. [europa.eu]
Two children and an adult were killed in a drone attack in the Kursk region on April 10. [vedomosti.ru]
Gazprom supplies gas to Europe in transit through Ukraine in the amount of 42.4 million cubic meters per day, a Gazprom representative told reporters on April 16. [tass.ru]
Ukrainian authorities reported “hits on critical infrastructure” in areas of the Kherson region controlled by the UAF. [regnum.ru]
Xi Jinping named four principles to securing peace in Ukraine, including “reducing the negative impact on the global economy and refrain from undermining the stability of global industrial and supply chains.” [tass.ru]
Have a nice Tuesday.
— Riley
Sadly, we had to let our goats, Polinka and Horu, go last summer. They were just too much work. - Cutting hey, finding them grazing during the hot Portuguese summer, and constantly keeping them out of my gardens and in their pen - plus constantly repairing the fence around their pen, etc, etc, all got a bit much (especially for hubby). In retrospect I wish we'd kept them! Goats are such lovely animals. I miss them a lot.
On a brighter note, chickens!!! Funny, naughty, and they make eggs!! (We have three, which is 21 eggs a week!)
As for your news from Russia, Mr Skavsquat, why it's almost as if "they're all in it together" as far as their policies go! That said, I'm still very much looking forward to the collapse of the hegemon.
In the meantime, creating our own economic independence on/in the ground seems the only sensible way to go for us little people. Very best of luck/success with all of your excellent villaging!
The Nigerian rollout of CBDCs lasted only 109 days before they abandoned it.