Russia and Nicaragua cooperate in fighting drug trafficking

Source : Vesti Kavkaza

Russia and Nicaragua cooperate in fighting drug trafficking

Russia and Nicaragua have carried out a joint operation to wipe out a drug cartel, Russian Federal Drug Control Service chief Viktor Ivanov said on Monday, RIA-Novosti reports.The cartel, headed by a certain Martin Flores, was affiliated with the Mexican Los-Zetas drug cartel, he said during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.“This cartel had established close ties with European criminals to smuggle cocaine not only into Europe, but also into Russia,” RIA- Novosti quotes Ivanov as saying. In February 2012, Russia and Nicaragua signed an agreement on jointly fighting drug trafficking, RIA-Novosti reports.

Putin awarded the Order of Serbian Republic

Source :  Strategic Culture

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has awarded Russia’s President Vladimir Putin the Order of the Republic for the Russian leader's "outstanding contribution to peaceful cooperation and friendship" between the two countries.

Similar awards have been bestowed also on all other leaders of the former Soviet republics, with the notable exception of EU-members Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

Putin vows to develop Russian icebreaker fleet

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

MOSCOW, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Russia possesses the world's largest icebreaker fleet and will develop it further, President Vladimir Putin said Thursday.

On his visit to the northwest city of St Petersburg where the fleet is anchored, Putin said the nuclear-powered Vitus Bering was "the world's largest fleet of icebreakers, and (Russia) will wor on developing the whole range of the vessels".

According to Putin, 90 percent of the ship has been built in Russia. He urged to sustain that trend in the future.

The 99-meter long icebreaker is designed to serve oil platforms off Sakhalin Island in the Far East. The vessel can also work as firefighting and transportation ship.

The ship's construction works have been completed in June 2012 by the Russian-Finnish joint venture Arctech.