Japan on Tuesday demanded Russia apologise for detaining a diplomat over alleged espionage, denying the charge and accusing Moscow of blindfolding and pinning the man down in ‘unbelievable acts’. Motoki Tatsunori, a Japanese diplomat based in the eastern city of Vladivostok, was deemed ‘persona non grata over illegal intelligence activities’, top government spokesman Hirokazu... 

Kim Jong-un’s armored train has reached Vladivostok, a city in Russia’s Far East, which will host the first-ever meeting between Kim and President Vladimir Putin. The summit, which is scheduled for Thursday, will be hosted by the Far Eastern Federal University at its new campus on Russky Island, which is across the bridge from Vladivostok. The program of the visit has largely been kept secret,... 

A US House of Representatives bill establishing control over the Russian Far East ports envisions a show of force and thus amounts to a declaration of war, the chairman of the Russian upper house of parliament’s international committee told Sputnik. “This bill, I hope will never be implemented because its implementation envisions a scenario of power with forced inspections of all vessels... 

A former policeman-turned-serial killer from the East Siberian city of Angarsk, Mikhail Popkov, has confessed to killing at least 59 more women, two years after he was given a life sentence for 22 murders, the city’s Investigative Committee said. Popkov has for now been charged with 47 of the new murders he has confessed to, Angarsk Investigative Committee told RIA Novosti. The total number of his... 

A video from a residential area in Vladivostok, Far-Eastern Russia, posted online this Tuesday shows every single car skid and crash on a slippery road as they try to take a sharp turn. The author of the video claims to have recorded it from his window in just two hours: from 7 to 9am. Later that day, he adds, communal services sprinkled sand over the ice, which immediately reduced the slippery effect. Vladivostok... 

The government in Athens has refused a demand by the United States to close its airspace to Russian aircraft ferrying what it describes as humanitarian aid to Syria. “On Saturday, U.S. Embassy [in Athens] appealed to the Greek government with a request to prohibit the flights of Russian aircraft in the FIR Athens. The Greek government refused to do so, in order not to worsen relations with Russia,”... 

When President Barack Obama announced the rebalancing of U.S. forces toward Asia in 2011, it was often called “the pivot to the Pacific”. Now it’s Russia’s turn to refocus. Russians, like Americans, are turning their attention to a region that’s home to half the global population, several of the largest and fastest-growing economies and some of the world’s busiest ports and shipping lanes. “The... 

A Chinese fleet of seven vessels is on its way to Vladivostok to participate in its biggest-ever foreign joint exercise with Russia. The drill, the Naval Interaction-2013, will be held from July 5 to 12 in the Sea of Japan. The Chinese Navy has sent four guided missile destroyers, two guided missile frigates, a supply ship, three ship-borne helicopters and a special operation detachment from the port... 

The four major Russian Navy fleets will hold a joint exercise in late January in the Mediterranean and Black seas. It will be the biggest such event in decades. ­Commands for the Northern, Baltic, Black Sea and Pacific fleets have been preparing for the exercises since December of last year, the Russian Defense Ministry has announced. Warships detached for the event are currently sailing to those... 

A State Duma deputy, the head of the Committee on Economic Policy and Entrepreneurship of the Russian State Duma, Yevgeny Fyodorov, told Pravda.Ru of his impressions from visiting the APEC summit in Vladivostok. According to him, the meeting showed that the U.S. gradually loses absolute power in the world economy and politics. The power and influence of other countries, such as Russia and China, grows... 

Admiral Panteleyev destroyer A group of Russia’s Pacific Fleet warships has arrived at the U.S. Pearl Harbor naval base to take part in the Rim of the Pacific international drills, a fleet spokesman said on Saturday. “During their long voyage from Vladivostok to Pearl Harbor, the warships’ crews held several firing drills, successfully destroying all the targets,” First-Rank Captain Roman Martov... 

As I write this piece, many things are happening around us, some visible and some aren’t. A bit of a blast from the past took place recently when Vladimir Putin refused to attend the G-8 summit at Camp David and instead sent his buddy and right hand man, Dmitry Medvedev, to oversee Russia’s role. It was kind of reminder of the cold-war era, yes, ‘Russia is strong and getting stronger... 

China will send 16 naval ships and two submarines to its first joint naval exercise with Russia, slated to start this weekend in the Yellow Sea, the Ministry of National Defense said on Tuesday. The drill, which Russian authorities said will involve warships cruising near Japanese waters, has rattled the nerves of media from Japan and South Korea. Japanese media speculated that the move is aimed at... 

The improvement in relations between Russia and Ukraine will soon result in joint military drills in a variety of formats, officials said Sunday. Relations between the two countries have improved significantly since Viktor Yanukovych was elected president last year, RIA Novosti reported. “The Russian side is prepared to hold drills with Ukraine not only at sea but also in the air and on the... 

Investigators opened a criminal case on Sunday in connection with an armed attack on a police patrol car on Saturday in the Primorie territory, which resulted in one of the two traffic police officers sent to the hospital with a critical wound. The second one was not injured, the representative of the regional police department told RIA News. “An armed attack on a police vehicle with two...