Russia and Ethiopia are ready for concluding a whole number of bilateral documents, including in the area of nuclear energy use, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at talks with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in St. Petersburg:

The chief of the Security Service of Ukraine, Vasily Malyuk, has publicly conceded that the terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge last October was carried out by Kiev.

"This is one of our realizations. I mean the destruction of the Crimean Bridge on October 8 of last year," he said in televised remarks at a ceremony to issue a postal stamp dedicated to the security service.

Over half the average monthly precipitation fell on Moscow within a couple of hours, with the city’s west hit the hardest, the municipal service wrote on its Telegram channel.

Western countries have openly joined the Kiev regime’s repressive policy against Orthodoxy, Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi have started their bilateral negotiations in the Konstantinovsky Palace in Strelna.

The dollar is being used in global finance as an instrument of political struggle, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with President of BRICS New Development Bank Dilma Rousseff.

He also noted the importance of developing the BRICS financial institute.

Massive tourist flow from China to Russia is expected in mid-August - early September 2023, vice-president of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia Alexander Kurnosov told TASS.

Egypt welcomes Russia’s initiatives on cooperation on the African continent and it is interested in developing bilateral cooperation, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg.

About a third of the monthly average rainfall for July (31%), 26 mm, fell on the main weather station VDNKh in Moscow, a record high figure since weather observations at the weather station began in 1949, Mikhail Leus, a lead specialist with the Phobos weather center said.

The military of the republic of Niger announced that the country’s president Mohamed Bazoum has been removed from power and the country’s borders have ben closed, Reuters reported referring to a statement made by the military on national television.

Leaders of African countries expect their first detailed exchange of views with President of BRICS New Development Bank Dilma Rousseff on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg, South Africa's Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor told TASS.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has reaffirmed his commitment to implementing the memorandum with Russia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said following a meeting with the UN chief on the sidelines of the UN Food Systems Summit that wrapped up in the Italian capital.

Western countries failed to derail the second Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, who also serves as Special Presidential Envoy for the Middle East and Syria, told TASS.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking part in a plenary session of the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum.

The plenary session is moderated by Director of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of African Studies Irina Abramova.

The Russian Federal Security Service has found traces of explosives in the hold of a dry cargo vessel sailing via a Ukrainian port and the Kerch Strait to Rostov-on-Don to pick up a load of grain, the FSB told TASS.

Putin holds first meetings with guests of Russia-Africa Summit; Kiev asks NATO to overturn Russia’s ban on maritime traffic to Ukrainian ports; and EU may introduce yet more sanctions against Russia before year-end. These stories topped Thursday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.

Trade turnover between Russia and Africa reached $18 bln in 2022, which is one of the results of the Russia-Africa summit in Sochi, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a plenary session of the Russia-Africa forum.

It is important to more vigorously shift in financial settlements with African countries to national currencies, including the ruble, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a plenary session of the Russia-Africa economic and humanitarian forum.

Russia is a major partner for Africa, with Russian investments having ensured an economic upsurge in a number of countries of the continent, President of the Union of Comoros, Chairperson of the African Union Azali Assoumani said at the Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg.

Russia will provide support to needy states and regions and contribute to the fair distribution of resources, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a plenary session of the Russia-Africa economic and humanitarian forum.