Russia’s Federation Council ratified a protocol to the Russian-Syrian agreement on the deployment of the Russian Aerospace Forces’ air group to Syria at its session on Wednesday.The protocol states that the agreement will be valid for 49 years and will be automatically extended for subsequent 25-year periods. Source: Tass
Russia’s population could decrease by half by the end of this century, a new United Nations demographic report has said.
Russia has grappled with stagnating population growth in recent years despite the government’s efforts to reverse the trend as the country’s population ages and fewer people have children. In 2018, Russia’s population declined for the first time in a decade to 146.8 million, while its migration numbers hit a record low. Source The Moskow Times
Russian official has warned that the country’s armed forces are prepared to respond to any new U.S. military bases close to its borders, amid concerns in Moscow over intensified American activity in Eastern Europe.
Leonid Slutsky, the chairman of the Russian State Duma’s International Affairs Committee, told the Rossiya-24 TV channel that the country’s armed forces are stronger than they have ever been and ready to respond to American deployments perceived to threaten Russia. Source NewsWeek
South Korea on Wednesday announced it would donate 50,000 metric tons of rice to North Korea through the UN’s World Food Program (WFP). It is the largest food donation from South since 2008, coming as the North faces an acute food shortage. South Korea also promised to donate $4.5 million (€4 billion) to the WFP to help fend off a humanitarian crisis. Source: Deutsche Welle
