Russia to officially hand over first unit of Bushehr NPP to Iran; Russia-China anti-terrorist military exercises have ended successfully; Russia is ready to help investigate India’s submarine accident; Russia praises Syria’s willingness to allow chemical
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    • According to reports, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Aragchi has said that Russia will officially hand over the first unit of the Bushehr nuclear power plant project to Iran in the next few weeks. He further noted that discussions are currently underway to examine the possibility of adding several more units to the Bushehr nuclear power plant and Russia’s participation in other nuclear power plants in Iran. 1

    Reports noted that the Russian-Chinese Peace Mission 2013 anti-terrorist exercises, held at the Chebarkul firing range in the Chelyabinsk region, have concluded successfully. The exercise took place from July 27 to August 15 and involved over 1,500 servicemen and about 200 units of military equipment. 2

    According to reports, Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov has said that Russia is looking at creating a positive image of the Russian Armed Forces abroad and establishing a favourable foreign policy condition. 3

    According to reports, Russia's Zvyozdochka shipyard has announced that it is willing to provide assistance to India in forensic evaluation of the accident on board of India’s submarine Sindhurakshak. First Deputy Chairman of Russia's Military-Industrial Commission Ivan Kharchenko has said that the Unified Shipbuilding Corporation /OSK/ will send qualified personnel to India to ascertain the cause of the explosion. 4

    According to reports, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov has said that Syria’s decision to receive U.N. chemical weapons inspectors will create a positive background for initiating a political process aimed at resolving the crisis in the country. 5

    Ukrainian Ministry of Energy and the Coal Industry has said that the construction of the Russian-Ukrainian nuclear fuel plant in Ukraine’s settlement of Smolino will begin in September 2013. The plant’s first stage will be completed by 2015. 6

    According to reports, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said that friendship and cooperation with Russia will gain momentum and contribute towards strengthening of peace and development in Northeast Asia. 7

    In other developments, according to reports, Russia urged all political forces in Egypt to ‘show restraint in the current crisis and take guidance from the highest national interests in order to prevent further escalation of tension and avoid new casualties’. 8

    Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovich have held discussion over the phone on August 16 issues regarding bilateral cooperation, including customs clearance procedures at the Russian-Ukrainian border. It has been estimated that toughening of customs procedures at Russia’s border will force Ukrainian business to incur losses worth US$ 2 billion. 9

    Russian President’s aide Yuri Ushakov has said that there is no pause in Russian-American relations and bilateral relations are important to the extent that it is impossible to drive them into an impasse. 10

    Russia's President Vladimir Putin has paid an official visit to Baku on August 13. The leaders of both countries have said that they are ‘pleased with the development of bilateral relations, including record high trade volume and diversification of international ties’. Amongst the issues that were discussed by both the sides included growing trade volume, Caspian situation etc. 11

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