Page 51 - RusRPTApr23

takes and as long as is necessary.
Serbia denies sending military aid to Ukraine. Serbian Defence Minister Milos Vucevic refuted reports that Serbia had sent missiles to Ukraine while also admitting the possibility that a third party may have been involved in their transportation
The West has frozen over $58bn of assets belonging to oligarchs and other Russian nationals in the past year, the Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs (REPO) task force said in a statement on March 9. The task force has been set up as a multilateral body of Western countries to track down Russian money and assets hidden in the West with powers to seize any properties associated with Russians under sanctions. REPO said that in addition to freezing assets, the task force had also effected the first forfeiture of assets of a sanctioned Russian, and transferred the first $5.4mn as foreign assistance to Ukraine. The REPO task force is composed of representatives from various countries, including the US Treasury and Justice secretaries, as well as representatives from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the European Commission.
Lukashenko visits Iran to discuss bilateral relations. Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko arrived in Tehran, Iran, on March 12 to meet with Iranian leaders, according to Lukashenko’s official press service. They will reportedly discuss the countries' bilateral relations with an “emphasis on trade and economic cooperation,” including industry, agriculture, transport, and logistics.
Turkey, Hungary to ratify Finland's NATO bid. After months of Hungary delaying their decision on Finland's NATO bid and Turkey threatening to veto it, both countries are finally ready to support Finland's application to join the alliance. However, they have not yet made a decision on supporting the application of Sweden, which is also seeking to join NATO.
Hungary vetoes joint EU statement on Putin’s ICC arrest warrant. Hungary prevented European Union member states from releasing a joint statement on the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin, Bloomberg reported, citing sources privy to the information.
Erdogan calls on Putin to end war 'through negotiations' in phone call.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin “the importance Turkey attaches to the immediate cessation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict through negotiations," in a March 25 phone call, Erdogan’s office said.
Russia and China are developing cooperation, including on the military track, but this "is not a military alliance," Russian President Vladimir Putin
51 RUSSIA Country Report Russia April 2023 www.intellinews.com