This Week’s Highlights:

• A joint statement for Trump and Putin reportedly drafted by the Kremlin emphasizes the importance of maintaining a dialogue between the two countries’ leaders, diplomats, military and special services, as well as the development of economic ties and the promotion of contacts between people. “The American side is ready to take this draft as a basis,” but wants the document to reflect U.S. concerns about “Russia’s interference in the 2016 elections” and to contain guarantees “that this will not be repeated,” according to Russia’s Kommersant daily.
• Ahead of the Trump-Putin summit, Trump’s national security team has been battling internally over a proposed deal that would fulfill Trump’s wish to withdraw most U.S. troops from Syria “very soon” in exchange for a promise by Russia to limit the Iranian presence near Syria’s borders with Jordan and Israel according to The Washington Post.  
• Special counsel Robert Mueller indicted 12 members of the GRU, a Russian military intelligence agency, on July 13, three days before the Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki. They are charged with conspiring to hack Democrats in 2016 to disrupt the U.S. presidential election.
• Russia was the world’s sixth-largest global economy in 2017 by GDP based on purchasing power parity and its trade surplus surged 42.6 percent year-on-year to $81.4 billion in the first five months of 2018.
• U.S. Sen. John Kennedy told reporters that he said he told the Russians "to get out of Crimea and let Crimea self-determine.”

I. U.S. and Russian priorities for the bilateral agenda

Trump-Putin summit in Finland on July 16, 2018:

• The Kremlin has drafted a 2-page joint statement that Moscow would like the Russian and U.S. presidents to adopt and has submitted it to the White House for consideration, according to a July 9 report by Kommersant. The draft emphasizes the importance of maintaining a dialogue between the two countries’ leaders, diplomats, military and special services, as well as the development of economic ties and the promotion of contacts between people, according to Kommersant’s unnamed source in the U.S. Without citing anyone, Kommersant claims that “the American side is ready to take this draft as a basis,” but wants the document to reflect U.S. concerns about “Russia’s interference in the 2016 elections” and to contain guarantees “that this will not be repeated.” Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters on July 13 that the two leaders will decide in the course of the summit whether they are going to sign any kind of declaration. The summit will begin at 1:00 pm local time with a one-on-one meeting of the two leaders, who will be accompanied only by interpreters, according to Ushakov. Then the two delegations will attend a working breakfast, after which Putin and Trump will hold a press conference. (Russia Matters, 07.13.18)
• U.S. President Donald Trump said on July 12 that he will raise arms-control issues with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including what the U.S. says are Russian violations of the 1987 INF Treaty and the possibility of extending the terms of New START. Trump also said it would be "tremendous" if the U.S. and Russia could make headway on nuclear nonproliferation. An agreement to begin talks on the future of strategic stability—a Cold War concept of deterrence through balanced nuclear capabilities—is essential during next week’s summit in Helsinki, say officials, diplomats and analysts, given that the two key remaining U.S.-Russian arms control treaties are at risk. At a press conference on July 23, Putin’s foreign policy aid Yuri Ushakov confirmed that the INF treaty will be discussed at the summit. (RFE/RL, 07.13.18, RFE/RL, 07.13.18, Financial Times, 07.09.18, TASS, 07.13.18)
• A compromise appears to be emerging between Russia and the U.S. that would envisage the deployment of Syrian government forces along the border frontier with Israel, with Iranian and Hezbollah troops withdrawing from the area. Reports suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump might announce such a deal at their summit on July 16. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
  • Ahead of the Trump-Putin summit, Trump’s national security team has been battling internally over a proposed deal that would fulfill Trump’s wish to withdraw most U.S. troops from Syria “very soon,” while endorsing Assad’s and Russia’s takeover of southern Syria. Russia, in turn, would promise to limit the Iranian presence near Syria’s borders with Jordan and Israel. (The Washington Post, 07.12.18)
  • Upon meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel did not object to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regaining control over all of Syria, a vital Russian objective, and Russia had pushed Iranian and allied Shiite forces away from the Israeli border. But a commitment to keep Iranian forces tens of kilometers from Israel was a far cry from ejecting them completely from Syria, which Netanyahu has been lobbying Putin to do. And even that commitment was not confirmed by Russian officials. (New York Times, 07.12.18)
  • Asked about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's visit t0o Russia, Ali Akbar Velayati, top advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,  said in Moscow: "His presence or absence in Russia has no effect on our strategic mission in Moscow." (Reuters, 07.12.18)
• U.S. President Donald Trump pledged on July 12 that he will "of course" raise the issue of Russia's 2016 election meddling at his summit next week with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but he insisted that there was little he could do if—as expected—Putin denies that Russia interfered. "Look, he may. What am I going to do? He may deny it," Trump said. "All I can do is say, 'Did you?' And, 'Don't do it again.' But he may deny it. You'll be the first to know." Jon Huntsman, the U.S. ambassador to Russia, has also vowed that Donald Trump will “drive the discussion on malign activity and election meddling.” (Financial Times, 07.10.18, The Washington Post, 07.12.18)
• After the July 12 meeting of NATO leaders U.S. President Donald Trump said he was unable to say what will happen to Crimea, but he refused to rule out U.S. recognition of the annexation by Russia. "What will happen with Crimea from this point on, that I cannot tell you," Trump said. "But I'm not happy about Crimea." (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline will be discussed by U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said on July 13. The Russian side would also like to discuss developing the economic ties between the two countries, Ushakov said. (TASS, 07.13.18)
• Asked on July 10 whether he considers Russian President Vladimir Putin a friend or a foe, U.S. President Donald Trump said: “I really can’t say right now. As far as I’m concerned, a competitor. A competitor. I think that getting along with Russia, getting along with China, getting along with others is a good thing, not a bad thing. I’ve said that many times for many years. So we’ll see. We’re meeting with Vladimir Putin on July 16. We’ll see how that goes.” “So I have NATO, I have the U.K., which is in somewhat turmoil, and I have Putin. Frankly, Putin may be the easiest of them all.  Who would think?  Who would think?  But the U.K. certainly has a—they have a lot of things going on,” he said. (White House, 07.10.18)
• Asked on July 12 to comment on his upcoming meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump said: “Well, he’s a competitor. He’s been very nice to me the times I’ve met him. I’ve been nice to him. He’s a competitor. You know, somebody was saying, ‘Is he an enemy?’ No, he’s not my enemy. ‘Is he a friend?’ No, I don’t know him well enough … I hope we get along well. I think we get along well. But ultimately, he’s a competitor. He’s representing Russia. I’m representing the United States. So in a sense, we’re competitors. Not a question of friend or enemy. He’s not my enemy. And hopefully, someday, maybe he’ll be a friend. It could happen.” Trump also said on July 12 that the summit would be "just a loose meeting" and that he would go into it "not looking for so much." (RFE/RL, 07.13.18, White House, 07.12.18)
  • "Putin is not America's friend, nor merely a competitor. Putin is America's enemy—not because we wish it so, but because he has chosen to be," U.S. Sen. John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said. (RFE/RL, 07.13.18)
• NATO diplomats are making dark jokes about whether U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin could unveil a globe-shifting alliance of the sort that helped lead to World War I. Leaders and diplomats worry that Trump could halt U.S. participation in military exercises in eastern Europe to avoid "provoking" Russia. (The Washington Post, 07.08.18)
• Finland’s Interior Ministry says it will propose reinstating border controls for travelers from Schengen pact countries several days before and after the planned summit of Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. leader Donald Trump. (RFE/RL, 07.10.18)

Nuclear security and safety:

• “We will continue to improve our capabilities and technologies, including to defend against improvised explosive devices and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats, and to counter terrorist misuse of technology,” NATO leaders said in a signed declaration on July 11. “We remain deeply concerned by the proliferation of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction (WMD), as well as their means of delivery and related materials, by states and non-state actors, which represents a growing threat to our populations, territory and forces,” they said. (NATO, 07.11.18)

North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs:

• The Trump administration asked a U.N. panel this week to ban oil-product sales to North Korea for the rest of the year, calling out China and Russia for exports Washington alleges have often been in violation of the international body's sanctions against Pyongyang. (Wall Street Journal, 07.12.18)

Iran’s nuclear program and related issues:

• Ali Akbar Velayati, top advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, hailed his country's "strategic relationship" with Russia on July 11 during a visit to Moscow, part of a diplomatic offensive by Tehran as it braces for renewed U.S. sanctions. (Reuters, 07.12.18)
• Iran has touted $50 billion worth of potential Russian investments in its oil and gas sector as it seeks to deepen its relationship with Moscow, amid mounting pressure from the U.S. to curb the country’s energy exports and diplomatically isolate Tehran. (Financial Times, 07.13.18)

Military issues, including NATO-Russia relations:

• "The United States is spending far more on NATO than any other Country. This is not fair, nor is it acceptable," Donald Trump said in series of Twitter posts before departing for the NATO summit. (Reuters, 07.09.18)
• "We're protecting Germany. We're protecting France. We're protecting everybody," Donald Trump said during the NATO summit, adding that "it's very unfair to our country. It's very unfair to our taxpayers." (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• During the first day of the NATO summit Donald Trump stunned his European counterparts by calling on them to double their commitments to 4 percent of GDP. Then on July 12 NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg had to order Georgia and Ukraine out of the room for a planned North Atlantic Council meeting and called an emergency session for the NATO leaders to discuss burden sharing. During the discussion, U.S. President Donald Trump launched into a personal attack on Belgium and Germany's military spending. Trump told allied leaders during that meeting that if they didn't immediately meet the 2 percent defense spending goal, "I'll do my own thing," diplomats said. It was unclear to people in the room whether that was a threat to leave the alliance or to change the U.S. role in it. Another official said that Trump read out the spending figures for every single NATO nation, sometimes telling leaders sarcastically: "My friend, you're so nice to me. I'm sorry you're spending so little.” The official said German Chancellor Angela Merkel committed to meeting the NATO goal of 2 percent spending by 2024—an increase from Germany's current plan of 1.5 percent by that date. Trump then held an impromptu news conference, in which he was asked whether he could withdraw the U.S. from NATO without congressional approval. Trump replied, "I think I probably can, but that's unnecessary." He added: "The people have stepped up today as they never have before.” Trump told the press conference that several other NATO leaders had agreed to more quickly raise their defense spending to 2 percent of GDP. Trump said an additional $33 billion would be spent on defense by NATO allies in "a relatively short number of years." (Wall Street Journal, 07.12.18, RFE/RL, 07.12.18, RFE/RL, 07.12.18, Wall Street Journal, 07.12.18. The Washington Post, 07.12.18)
• German Chancellor Angela Merkel said there was a "clear commitment to NATO" by all who attended the July 12 emergency session. Two NATO sources said that Trump told allies in the closed-door meeting to raise their defense spending by January 2019 or the U.S. would go its own way. But French President Emmanuel Macron and Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite denied reports that Trump threatened to withdraw. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, noted that European countries and Canada are expected to "add an extra $266 billion to defense between now and 2024.""We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to all aspects of the Defense Investment Pledge … and to submit credible national plans on its implementation, including the spending guidelines for 2024, planned capabilities and contributions," said a statement issued by NATO leaders at the end of their summit. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• Of NATO's 29 members, 15 currently spend less than 1.5 percent of GDP on defense. Eight members expect to hit the 2 percent target this year and a total of 18 by 2024, NATO officials say. (Wall Street Journal, 07.11.18)
• The U.S. pays 22 percent of NATO's budget, which covers things like offices, salaries and some equipment used in joint operations. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, of the $603 billion that the U.S. spends on the military each year, about $31 billion goes to Europe. (New York Times, 07.13.18)
• After the July 12 meeting of NATO leaders, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he doesn't want Russian President Vladimir Putin to be a security threat to Europe or to the U.S., and "that's why we have NATO." (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• “We continue to believe that a partnership between NATO and Russia, based on respect for international law and commitments, including as reflected in the NATO-Russia Founding Act and the Rome Declaration, would be of strategic value,” NATO leaders said in a signed declaration on July 11. (NATO, 07.11.18)
• “The Euro-Atlantic security environment has become less stable and predictable as a result of Russia’s illegal and illegitimate annexation of Crimea and ongoing destabilization of eastern Ukraine; its military posture and provocative military activities, including near NATO borders, such as the deployment of modern dual-capable missiles in Kaliningrad, repeated violation of NATO Allied airspace and the continued military build-up in Crimea; its significant investments in the modernization of its strategic forces; its irresponsible and aggressive nuclear rhetoric; its large-scale, no-notice snap exercises; and the growing number of its exercises with a nuclear dimension,” NATO leaders said in a signed declaration on July 11. (NATO, 07.11.18)
• In a formal statement issued on July 11, NATO leaders reaffirmed the alliance’s support for its mission in Afghanistan, as the country grapples with a stubborn Taliban insurgency and threats from other extremist groups. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• In a formal statement issued on July 11, NATO expressed support for Britain and its conclusions that Russia was behind the nerve-agent poisoning of a Russian double agent and his daughter earlier this year. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• Russia’s Foreign Ministry has dismissed NATO as a “useless” military alliance, as the bloc’s summit entered its second day in Brussels. The ministry’s Twitter account said they would be turning their attention to the World Cup instead of NATO’s allegations. (The Moscow Times, 07.12.18)
• NATO has formally invited Macedonia to begin membership talks on joining the alliance. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• "I have long wanted to give American colleagues a globe so they can look at it and explain why the declared 'enemies of America,' are located in the Middle East and the Far East and all their military bases and forces are snuggled up to Russian borders," Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said. (Reuters, 07.11.18)
• The U.S. Army is fast-tracking newly configured Stryker vehicles armed with drone and aircraft killing Stinger and Hellfire missiles to counter Russia in Europe and provide more support to maneuvering Brigade Combat Teams in combat. (The National Interest, 07.09.18)

Missile defense:

• “NATO BMD is not directed against Russia and will not undermine Russia’s strategic deterrence. NATO BMD is intended to defend against potential threats emanating from outside the Euro-Atlantic area,” NATO leaders said in a signed declaration on July 11. (NATO, 07.11.18)

Nuclear arms control:

• “The New START treaty contributes to international stability, and Allies express their strong support for its continued implementation and for early and active dialogue on ways to improve strategic stability,” NATO leaders said in a signed declaration on July 11. “Full compliance with the INF Treaty is essential … [and] Allies will continue their efforts to engage Russia on this issue in bilateral and multilateral formats.” (NATO, 07.11.18)
• Last week, a U.S. congressional delegation visiting Moscow raised the issue of arms control during meetings with the foreign ministry and lawmakers, but were rebuffed by their hosts. (Financial Times, 07.09.18)
• U.S. President Donald Trump’s national security adviser John Bolton is a longtime critic of the New START accord, once calling it “unilateral disarmament” by the U.S. Sources familiar with Bolton’s thinking said that he was “very upset” he had to discuss extending the agreement when he spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. (Vox, 07.05.18)

Counter-terrorism:

• The Islamic State has lost nearly all of the territory it seized in 2014 in Iraq and Syria, but it still controls about 1,000 square miles, or roughly twice the size of Los Angeles. (New York Times, 07.08.18)
• More than 1,300 Azerbaijani citizens have joined terrorist groups abroad, Suad Mahmudov, department head of Azerbaijan’s State Security Service, said on July 10. "Dozens of Azerbaijani citizens have joined terrorist groups in the North Caucasus. There were about 300 of them in Afghanistan and Pakistan and over 1,000 in Syria," Mahmudov said. (Interfax, 07.10.18)

Conflict in Syria:

• The Syrian government has retaken control of Daraa, as the president reasserts his authority across much of the country. In recent weeks, towns in the area have fallen one after another in the face of a government offensive backed by an intense Russian bombing campaign. Russian military police were some of the first government-allied forces to enter Daraa on July 12. With Syrian government forces raising the national flag on July 12 over Daraa, the endgame of the Syrian civil war seemed to be fast approaching (Financial Times, 07.13.18, New York Times, 07.12.18)
• "For the first time in modern history, a foreign military intervention has triumphed in the Middle East,” Kamal Alam, a visiting fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said of Russia’s campaign in Syria. (The Washington Post, 07.10.18)
• The world's chemical-weapons watchdog says a substance used in an April 7 attack on a rebel-held town in Syria appeared to be a chlorine-based gas but that it has so far found no evidence of a nerve agent. (RFE/RL, 07.07.18)

Cyber security:

• A Ukrainian intelligence agency has claimed it stopped a cyber attack against a chlorine plant that was launched using the notorious VPNFilter malware. (The Register, 07.13.18)
• Twitter has sharply escalated its battle against fake and suspicious accounts, suspending more than 1 million a day in recent months, a major shift to lessen the flow of disinformation on the platform. (The Washington Post, 07.06.18)

Elections interference:

• A dozen Russian intelligence officers, members of the GRU, a Russian military intelligence agency, were charged July 13 with conspiring to hack Democrats in 2016 to disrupt the presidential election, according to allegations laid out in an indictment filed by special counsel Robert Mueller. The 11-count indictment includes charges of conspiracy by the Russian intelligence officials against the U.S., money laundering and attempts to break into state election boards and other government agencies. (The Washington Post, 07.13.18, New York Times, 07.13.18)
  •  “I think that we’re being hurt very badly by the, I would call it the witch hunt; I would call it the rigged witch hunt,” U.S. President Donald Trump said of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation on July 13 hours before the announcement of latest indictment. “I think that really hurts our country and it really hurts our relationship with Russia.” (New York Times, 07.13.18)
  • Trump’s lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, said on Twitter that the indictments “are good news for all Americans. The Russians are nailed. No Americans are involved.” He then called on Mueller “to end this pursuit of the president and say President Trump is completely innocent.” (The Washington Post, 07.13.18)
• Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani said July 8 that U.S. President Donald Trump would only submit to an interview with Robert Mueller if the special counsel could show a "factual basis" for the Russia investigation, which he characterized as corrupt. (Wall Street Journal, 07.08.18)
• Peter Strzok, the FBI agent who oversaw the opening of the Russia investigation, mounted an aggressive personal defense on July 12, rejecting accusations that he let his private political views bias his official actions and labeling Republican attacks on him “another victory notch in Putin’s belt.” (New York Times, 07.12.18)
• Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani said July 9 that he would like to see text messages sent among members of special counsel Robert Mueller’s team, suggesting they would expose a partisan bias against his client. (The Washington Post, 07.08.18)
• In former national security adviser Michael Flynn's first appearance in federal court since pleading guilty seven months ago, his lawyers confirmed that he continues to cooperate with prosecutors and is eager to be sentenced and wrap up his case. (The Washington Post, 07.11.18)
• Attorneys for former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort asked a federal judge to move his fast-approaching criminal bank and tax fraud trial from Alexandria to Roanoke, saying a more Republican-friendly jury would decide his guilt or innocence more fairly. Hoping to delay his trial in Virginia on charges of bank fraud and money laundering, Manafort instead managed this week to get himself transferred from a jail where prosecutors said he described his treatment as ''V.I.P.'' to one where his lawyers claim he is worried about his safety. (New York Times, 07.11.18, The Washington Post, 07.08.18)
• U.S. Sen. John Kennedy told Russia’s Kommersant that during his trip to Russia from June 30 to July 4 he told Russian officials: “Please do not interfere in our elections.” Kennedy reiterated that point upon his return to the U.S., telling reporters on July 9 that he had warned the Russian government to "stop screwing with American elections,” according to RFE/RL. Kennedy said the American senators warned the Russians that if they interfere in U.S. midterm elections in November, lawmakers "will hit you with sanctions even harder than what we have right now." Sen. Richard Shelby, who headed the delegation, said he told Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin that "I'm not here today to accuse Russia of this or that or so forth. I'm saying that we should all strive for a better relationship." (Russia Matters, 07.10.18)
• Arron Banks, the businessman who bankrolled a prominent Brexit campaign, reportedly met Russia’s ambassador to Britain 11 times in the months before the June 2016 EU referendum—more often than he told a parliamentary inquiry on fake news last month. (The National, 07.08.18)
• Joseph Mifsud, the mysterious professor at the center of the Trump-Russia probe, was due in court in Italy on July 11. But he didn't turn up, and neither did his lawyers. Mifsud has been accused, along with two others, of unjustifiably inflating salaries at a university consortium in Sicily. (Buzzfeed, 07.11.18)

Energy exports:

• U.S. President Donald Trump began his visit to Brussels by accusing Germany of being "captive to Russia" because of its support for Nord Stream 2, an offshore pipeline that would bring gas directly from Russia via the Baltic Sea. Speaking in a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Trump called Germany's support for the project "very sad," and said, "We're supposed to be guarding against Russia, and Germany goes out and pays billions and billions of dollars a year to Russia." Trump said Germany “will be getting 60 to 70 percent of their energy from Russia.” Trump also criticized Germany's military spending as "inappropriate." (Wall Street Journal, 07.11.18, New York Times, 07.11.18, Wall Street Journal, 07.11.18)
• German Chancellor Angela Merkel later responded to Trump's remarks, saying Germany, one of the biggest troop contributors to NATO missions, was free of Russian control since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Recalling her own experience living in a part of Germany that was controlled by the Soviet Union, she said, "I am very happy today that we are united in freedom … Because of that, we can say that we can make our independent policies and make independent decisions." (The Moscow Times, 07.11.18)
• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on July 12 rejected U.S. President Donald Trump's description of Germany as a "captive" of Russia due to its energy reliance, saying his statement was part of a U.S. campaign to bully Europe into buying American energy supplies. (The Moscow Times, 07.12.18)
• Germany is the biggest importer of natural gas from Russia in the EU, accounting for more than 20 percent of the purchases in 2017 by the 28-member bloc, according to the EU's statistics agency. Russia accounted for 37 percent of Germany's annual gas purchases for the past two years, not 70 percent as U.S. President Donald Trump had claimed. (Wall Street Journal, 07.11.18)

Bilateral economic ties:

• No significant developments.

Other bilateral issues:

• U.S. Sen. John Kennedy who traveled to Russia with a Republican congressional delegation last week said Russian President Vladimir Putin could not be trusted and likened dealing with Moscow to "dealing with the mafia." (RFE/RL, 07.10.18)
• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on July 10 said he found U.S. Sen. John Kennedy’s statement comparing the Russian leadership to the mafia “difficult to understand.” (The Moscow Times, 07.11.18)
• The possibility of more Western sanctions against Moscow is the key risk for the Russian economy, as much of 21 percent of which has already felt the impact of existing sanctions, Russia's Analytical Credit Ratings Agency said in a report on July 10. (The Moscow Times, 07.10.18)
• One Russian businessman says the stated U.S. goal of targeting oligarchs in the hope they would appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin to change policies had not worked. “We don’t get what it is for. If you think we can go to Putin and tell him what to do, you don’t understand Russia,” the oligarch says. “Putin loves this. The regime is winning. The people like it because nobody likes oligarchs, and the state consolidates assets.” (Financial Times, 07.10.18)
• Some of the money flows related to the Trump Toronto skyscraper that the Financial Times has established raise questions about U.S. President Donald Trump’s vulnerability to undue influence now that he is in the White House. These include evidence that Trump’s billionaire partner in the Toronto project authorized a secret $100 million payment to a Moscow-based fixer representing Kremlin-backed investors. (Financial Times, 07.12.18)
• The U.S. State Department and the media freedoms office of the Vienna-based OSCE have denounced a Russian court ruling that found Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty had violated a controversial "foreign-agents" law. (RFE/RL, 07.07.18)
• At the U.N. World Health Assembly this spring, officials from the U.S. held up a resolution designed to promote breastfeeding by attempting to remove language that called on governments to “protect, promote and support breastfeeding” as well as a separate section that called for governments to restrict the promotion of products that experts agree could cause harm to children. U.S. opposition to the resolution ended, however, when Russia introduced the measure. (Newsweek, 07.08.18)

II. Russia’s domestic news

Politics, economy and energy:

• Russia was the world’s sixth-largest global economy in 2017, in a World Bank ranking that adjusts GDP for price differences among countries. New figures from the World Bank show that by GDP based on purchasing power parity, the Russian economy ranks below China, the U.S., India, Japan and Germany. In total, the GDP by purchasing power parity in Russia was $3.7 trillion last year.  (The Moscow Times, 07.13.18)
• “As regards growth, Russia is an old industrial economy. It’s not one of those places where you have a lot of peasants coming into the mainstream workforce. You can’t expect it to grow at very significant real rates, particularly given that it’s stuck in a world economy where nobody is growing significantly,” said Martin Gilman, former IMF representative in Russia. (Bloomberg, 07.09.18)
• Russia's trade surplus surged 42.6 percent year-on-year to $81.4 billion in the first five months this year, the Russian Federal Customs Service said July 9. Russia's trade turnover amounted to $273 billion in the January-May period, up 23.3 percent from the same period last year. Fuel and energy products accounted for 63.9 percent of the Russian exports. (Xinhua, 07.10.18)
• Alrosa, which is majority-owned by the Russian federal and regional governments, produces about 28 percent of the world’s diamonds, as measured by weight. Last year, it earned $1.3 billion in profits on $4.6 billion of sales. (New York Times, 07.11.18)
• A quarter of the 70,000 to 100,000 people who go missing in Russia every year are never found. (Xinhua, 07.10.18)
• In 2017, the number of people living with HIV in Moscow has grown by 20 percent from the previous year and by as much as 150 percent in other Russian regions amid complaints the government is neglecting preventative measures in rural areas. (The Moscow Times, 07.13.18)
• The soccer World Cup will boost foreign tourism by 15 percent, said Russian Deputy Prime Minister Olga Golodets. According to Colin Smith, FIFA’s chief competitions officer, Russia recorded a 98 percent attendance rate in the first 61 games of the cup. (The Moscow Times, 07.13.18)

• More than 30 female journalists have been harassed while reporting on the World Cup this summer, Football Against Racism in Europe revealed. (The Moscow Times, 07.11.18)
• Nikolai Bondarenko, regional Duma deputy from Saratov, said he was approached by police about a complaint related to his criticism of the retirement age hike. “They informed me that there is a complaint demanding to investigate extremist content in my statements,” Bondarenko said. (The Moscow Times, 07.12.18)
• A Russian court has changed the sentence of a paratrooper blogger who criticized President Vladimir Putin from a suspended one to three years in prison, according to OVD-Info. (Russia Matters, 07.11.18)
• Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin will reportedly avoid debating any opponents in his upcoming re-election campaign, following in the path of Russian politicians including Russian President Vladimir Putin. (The Moscow Times, 07.12.18)

Defense and aerospace:

• Russia’s Kinzhal missile, which the U.S. is currently unable to defend against, will likely be ready for combat as early as 2020, according to people who have direct knowledge of American intelligence reports. (CNBC, 07.13.18)
• Russia has reportedly fortified several explosive storage bunkers in the latest military buildup in Kaliningrad. (The Moscow Times, 07.11.18)
• Russia will showcase more than 750 pieces of new weaponry and military hardware during the Army 2018 International Military and Technical Forum. (Xinhua, 07.13.18)

Security, law-enforcement and justice:

• Two foreign journalists had run-ins with crime in Moscow, with an American journalist reportedly stabbed and a British reporter drugged and then robbed. (The Moscow Times, 07.10.18)

III. Foreign affairs, trade and investment

Russia’s general foreign policy and relations with “far abroad” countries:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 12 extended Moscow’s embargo on food products from the West to the end of 2019, continuing its retaliation against sanctions over Ukraine. (Japan News, 07.13.18)
• Russia will reportedly expel two Greek diplomats in response to Athens' decision to throw out two of Moscow's envoys. Greek media reported earlier that Athens had decided to expel the Russian envoys and ban entry to another two over suspicions they had tried to undermine an agreement with neighboring Macedonia. (The Moscow Times, 07.11.18)
• A British man poisoned with the Novichok nerve agent is no longer in critical condition. The July 11 announcement about Charlie Rowley came two days after his girlfriend, Dawn Sturgess, died from exposure to Novichok. The death of Sturgess prompted British Defense Minister Gavin Williamson on July 9 to accuse Russia of committing an attack on British soil. The Kremlin rejected the allegations, calling them absurd. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• British Prime Minister Theresa May thanked visiting U.S. President Donald Trump for U.S. support after the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter in England in March, which her government blames on Russia. (RFE/RL, 07.13.18)
• Russia is counting on an improvement of relations with Britain after Boris Johnson stepped down as foreign secretary, the Kremlin said. (Xinhua, 07.10.18)
• French President Emmanuel Macron is planning to have a word with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the FIFA World Cup final on July 15. On July 10, Macron rooted for the French national team in St. Petersburg. (TASS, 07.11.18)
• Matteo Salvini, Italy’s interior minister, said he was aiming to travel to Russia to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in what would be the latest strengthening of ties between Russia and European populist politicians. Salvini, leader of the anti-immigration League, said on July 9 that he hoped to be in Russia to watch the World Cup final July 15 and to meet Putin. (Financial Times, 07.10.18)
• Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Moscow on July 14, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said. They are expected to discuss the Middle East, bilateral projects and the transfer of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. (Channel News Asia, 07.13.18)
• Indian Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said July 13 the S-400 Triumf air defense missile deal with Russia will go ahead notwithstanding the U.S. sanctions on military transactions with Moscow. (Economic Times, 07.13.18)

China:

• No significant developments.

Ukraine:

• “We reiterate our support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova within their internationally recognized borders,” NATO leaders said in a signed declaration on July 11.  “We urge Russia to cease all political, financial and military support to militant groups and stop intervening militarily in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and to withdraw troops, equipment and mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine, and return to the Joint Centre for Control and Coordination,” the declaration said. (NATO, 07.11.18)
• Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on July 12 held talks with U.S. President Donald Trump during the NATO summit in Brussels. They discussed reforms in Ukraine, Trump's scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project. (Xinhua, 07.12.18)
• U.S. Sen. John Kennedy told Russia’s Kommersant that during his meetings with Russian officials he asked them to “please leave Ukraine.” “I had explained to our Russian interlocutor that in America, a person expresses respect when he uses the word ‘please.’ It is a sign of a friendly attitude,” he was quoted as saying in the July 5 issue of Kommersant. Upon returning to the U.S., Kennedy told reporters that he said he told the Russians to "get out of eastern Ukraine and let them self-determine" and "to get out of Crimea and let Crimea self-determine,” according to RFE/RL. (Russia Matters, 07.10.18)
• Efforts to implement the Minsk Agreements within the Normandy format are continuing and new technical talks between representatives of the Normandy Four countries will be held in the coming weeks, the German Foreign Ministry spokesman said. (Interfax, 07.10.18)
• Ukraine's Interior Minister Arsen Avakov met with ambassadors and diplomats from the G7 countries on July 6 to discuss his ministry's new strategy to end the occupation of Donbass. (Interfax, 07.06.18)
• Sea Breeze-2018 drills started in the Odessa and Mykolaiv regions of Ukraine, as well as in the northwestern part of the Black Sea. Servicemen from over 15 countries—Bulgaria, the U.K., Italy, Greece, Georgia, Denmark, Estonia, Canada, Lithuania, Norway, Romania, Poland, the U.S., Turkey, Sweden, India, the United Arab Emirates and Moldova—will take part in the exercise. (UNIAN, 07.09.18)
• The EU has called on Ukraine to respect the rights of national minorities and implement the Venice Commission's recommendations regarding the law on education. (Interfax, 07.10.18)
• The wife of Arkady Babchenko, a Russian journalist who faked his death in Kiev in May, says the couple and their daughter have been under round-the-clock surveillance after the incident, reportedly to prevent any attempts on his life. (The Moscow Times, 07.10.18)
• Participants of the 20th Ukraine-EU summit have called for the release of Ukrainian citizens imprisoned on Russian territory and in the occupied Ukrainian territories, President of the European Council Donald Tusk has said. (Interfax, 07.09.18)
• A driver for the wife of veteran Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev says he was tortured by officers of the Russian Federal Security Service in Crimea. (RFE/RL, 07.10.18)
• The EU has retroactively canceled some sanctions against Andriy Klyuyev, the former head of the Yanukovych administration, but did not lift sanctions against him that were prolonged in March. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• The mother of Ukrainian film director Oleg Sentsov, who is serving a 20-year prison term in Russia and has been on a hunger strike for nearly two months, has asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to pardon her son. (RFE/RL, 07.13.18)
• Ukrainian lawmakers have approved an amendment to a law establishing an anticorruption court in an effort to secure more funding under a $17.5 billion aid-for-reforms program with the International Monetary Fund. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• Ukraine’s Naftogaz filed a suit against Gazprom to the Commercial Court of Stockholm worth $11.58 billion over the required increase in transit costs to speed up amortization of the gas pipeline system after Gazprom's refusal to pump gas after 2019. (Esmerk Russian News, 07.09.18)
• A U.S. jury on July 6 convicted two men in a $30 million insider-trading case that U.S. authorities have called one of the largest on record, using sensitive business information stolen by computer hackers based in Ukraine. Vitaly Korchevsky, a former Morgan Stanley vice president, and his co-defendant, Vladislav Khalupsky, were each found guilty on two securities fraud and three conspiracy counts. (RFE/RL, 07.07.18)

Russia’s other post-Soviet neighbors:

• Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili has told RFE/RL that his country can "commit to joining [NATO] today," saying that his country has "fulfilled basically every requirement" needed to become a member. The declaration signed by NATO leaders on July 11 makes no mention of when Georgia can join NATO or when the alliance will offer Tbilisi a Membership Action Plan. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze has appointed Giorgi Kobulia as economy minister and Vano Machavariani as finance minister as he forms a new government after taking office last month. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• A shepherd in the republic of Georgia has pleaded not guilty to the murders of an American-born couple and their son. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)
• Azerbaijani authorities say police have killed one of the two suspects in the stabbing deaths of two police officers during a protest this week. Two high-ranking police officers were stabbed to death while they were confronting around 200 demonstrators who had gathered outside the local administration headquarters in the western city of Ganca on July 10. (RFE/RL, 07.13.18)
• Taron Markarian, the influential mayor of Armenia's capital has resigned, in the latest political shakeup to follow the mass protests that brought opposition leader Nikol Pashinian to the presidency. (RFE/RL, 07.09.18)
• Former Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian’s nephew Hayk Sarkisian has been charged with attempted murder in a case that was closed more than a decade ago. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev has become the head of the country’s Security Council for life. (RFE/RL, 07.12.18)
• The mayor of the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, has been dismissed while on vacation. City council members decided unanimously to remove Albek Ibraimov in a no-confidence vote on July 13. (RFE/RL, 07.13.18)
• A court in Tajikistan has sentenced prominent journalist Hairullo Mirsaidov to 12 years in prison. The court found Mirsaidov guilty of embezzling, misusing state funds and false reporting to police. (RFE/RL, 07.11.18)

IV. Quoteworthy

• No significant developments.