The United States said that, for its Diversity Visa Program, residents of the South Kuril Islands will be considered to be natives of Japan.

In the instructions for the Diversity Visa Program published by the U.S. Department of State, it is noted that “persons born in the Habomai Islands, Shikotan, Kunashiri, and Etorofu are chargeable to Japan”.

At the same time, the program states  that “persons born in Southern Sakhalin are chargeable to Russia”.

In turn, the Russian Foreign Ministry …

If there is no progress in the Donbas negotiation by the end of the year, Ukraine may insist on strengthening sanctions against Russia, stated the head of the Ukrainian delegation in the Trilateral Contact Group on Donbas Leonid Kravchuk on air of  TV channel "Ukraine 24."

"If before the end of the year, as Christmas and New Year holidays are approaching, if it does not happen (progress in the negotiations), then I think the beginning of the new year will be the beginning of a new standard of …

The European Council condemns the possible expansion of U.S. sanctions against the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline, stated European Council’s spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano, RIA Novosti reports.

The European Union strongly opposes third-country sanctions against European companies doing legitimate business. "The extraterritorial sanctions run counter to the international law. European policy is defined in Europe, not in third countries," Stano said.

He noted that …

Ukrainian air defense for the first time will try to intercept the American drones M-9 Reaper. As part of the joint drills, the Ukrainian military want to see whether the drones will be able to overcome Ukrainian air defenses, reported the Air Force Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The exercises will take place in the area of responsibility of the Air Command West. The Ukrainian Armed Forces noted that these drills are an extremely important element of cooperation with air defense …

The Kremlin considers it impractical to contemplate about under what conditions Russia can recognize the independence of the self-proclaimed Donetsk (DPR) and Luhansk (LPR) People’s Republics, said the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov, TASS reports.

"We consider such musings impractical," Peskov said, adding that "Kyiv's delay in fulfilling the terms of the Minsk agreements will only further complicate the situation in terms of these two self-proclaimed "republics." …

According to TASS, a new motorized division will be created as part of the 11th Army Corps of Land and Coastal Defense Forces of the Baltic Fleet, which is stationed in the Kaliningrad Oblast not far from the Polish border.

According to the agency's information, the division will be created partly on the basis of the units previously under the command of the 11th Corps.

The new division would include a motorized regiment, an armored regiment, and a motorized brigade, which previously were …

NATO is creating a military group in order to seize Western Belarusian territories, stated Alexander Lukashenko during the session of the Collective Security Council of the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organisation).

The self-proclaimed head of Belarus expressed serious concern about the increase in the military presence of the United States and NATO near the western borders of the country.

"The case, I quote, is in the historical affiliation of the Belarusian lands to Poland. This is …

Authorities in the German federal state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are working to establish a climate protection foundation in order to circumvent U.S. sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, reported Bild, citing sources. Bild's article is entitled "How Schwesig wants to outsmart the U.S. " (Manuela Schwesig heads the government of this German region).

According to Bild, soon after its opening, the Foundation for Climate Protection will recognize Nord Stream 2 as "the most important element …