Relations between Russia and the United States have been tense recently, with the Biden administration expelling Russian diplomats and imposing sanctions over allegations of Moscow conducting cyberattacks and acting against US interests. Russia has consistently denied the claims, introducing reciprocal actions in response to Washington's moves.

BERLIN (Sputnik) - The lawsuit filed by the German environmental charity Nabu against the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline halted the issuance of the work permit by the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH), the press service of the regulator told Sputnik on Tuesday, adding that construction could be resumed in May.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia is noticing signals from the United States indicating Washington's readiness to discuss issues of strategic stability and is ready for a dialogue, but will press its missile defence concerns, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Sputnik.

MINSK (Sputnik) - Russia continues to supply oil to refineries in Belarus as usual and as agreed upon in the contracts, and the US sanctions had no effect on the shipments, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko stated on Sunday.

PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKIY (Sputnik) - Russia's Chumakov research centre plans to produce at least 7.5 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine CoviVac by the end of the year, the institute's director general, Aidar Ishmukhametov, said on Sunday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, located a few hundred metres from the Kremlin, for an Orthodox Easter service. Orthodox Christians are celebrating Easter this year on 2 May.

The finalists perform songs from the World War II-era USSR, in the languages of their home countries.

Previously, the annual threat assessment report of the US Intelligence community released on 13 April cited a diverse array of threats, magnified by rapidly evolving technology, and warned of the broad national security challenges posed by China and Russia.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The immunity developed after Russian vaccines currently protects from all strains of coronavirus, the head of consumer rights watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, said on Friday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States considers Russia’s withdrawal of troops from the Ukraine border as a constructive step, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Friday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Nothing prevents the United States from increasing staffing of its embassy to Russia and resuming usual consular work, the Russian Foreign Ministry said, adding that the embassy can hire 175 US citizens according to its quota.

Earlier, German MP Waldemar Herdt warned Berlin that rejecting the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, which is currently over 95 percent complete, would be ‘political suicide’, and yielding to Washington’s pressure on the issue would be ‘absurdity and nonsense’.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed hope on Friday for the full restoration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Social network Twitter has scrapped or blocked 60% of banned content after Russia slowed down its traffic last month in an attempt to enforce compliance with national legislation, but over 1,000 unlawful resources are still available, Russian media watchdog Roskomnadzor said on Friday.

Earlier this week, a senior Biden administration official said US and Russian officials would meet to discuss and clarify their respective positions regarding sanctions that have further strained the relationship between the two countries in recent weeks. At the time, the official claimed Washington does not wish to escalate tensions with Moscow.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Norway, by deciding to revise its defense cooperation agreement with the United States, decided to deliberately follow the path of escalating tensions in the region and destroying its ties with Russia, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia will react to the “unacceptable and provocative” actions of Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Thursday that it detained 16 supporters of Ukrainian radical organization MKU, who plotted explosions and armed attacks, in nine cities across Russia.

According to the American president, both Moscow and Washington can cooperate in fields of mutual interest, like nuclear arms and climate change.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The decision of Brazil’s health regulator Anvisa to deny the request by the country's regional governments on the import of Russia's Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine is politically motivated, the developers said on Wednesday.