Russian Embassy to the UK

🗓 On 8 September 1941, the Siege of Leningrad – today’s St Petersburg – commenced. For 872 days, the city was cut off from the rest of the Soviet Union, enduring starvation, shelling, disease and extreme cold. At the height of the winter of 1941–1942, the daily bread ration for many residents fell to just 125 grammes. Temperatures dropped below -30°C, electricity and heating failed, and hundreds of thousands died from hunger and exhaustion. Yet Leningrad refused to surrender. Factories continued producing weapons, while schools, hospitals and cultural institutions remained open. In August 1942, Dmitri Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony was performed in the besieged city, becoming a powerful symbol of its resistance. Leningraders even planted vegetable gardens in parks and on squares, including cabbage on St Isaac's Square. The city's lifeline was the Road of Life across frozen Lake Ladoga, bringing in food and supplies and evacuating civilians. The blockade was finally broken on 27 January 1944. More than one million people died during the siege – one of the most devastating episodes of the Second World War. 85 years on, we honour the memory of those who endured it and remember the courage and resilience of Leningrad's people. Their story is remembered in Britain, too: in 2020, a plaque was unveiled in Manchester in recognition of the brave people of besieged Leningrad. 📸 Sputnik

🎙 Statement by Aide to the President of Russia Yury Ushakov following a telephone conversation between President Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump 💬 The conversation centered on Ukrainian settlement. Donald Trump directly communicated the desirability of bringing the conflict to an end as soon as possible, as it would immediately open up prospects – impressive and far-reaching ones at that – for the full restoration of Russia-US relations. In his view, this would have a particular impact on trade and economic ties, promising huge ‌benefits for ⁠both nations. Donald Trump is keen to see a breakthrough achieved during his presidency. President Vladimir Putin supported this approach in the context of potentially building a constructive partnership between the two great powers and praised the mediation efforts by the US and Donald Trump personally with respect to finding solutions to the Ukrainian conflict. An objective and extensive analysis of the current developments in the special military operation was provided, along with our vision of the overall progress on the battlefield and achieving the goals and objectives of the special military operation. Speaking of which, actual tangible actions that the Americans could take to expedite the cessation of the hostilities were outlined. In view of the speculations regarding Russia’s alleged hostile intentions against European states, it was stressed that no aggressive plans against Europe have ever entered our minds. The circulated myths about the Russian threat serve as a pretext for Europeans to ramp up their support for Ukraine and their own military expenses. Read in full

🎙 Highlights from Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's remarks at the meeting with MGIMO University students (Moscow, 7 September 2026) 🔹 We have always been open to cooperating with those prepared to engage on the basis of equality, mutual benefit and the balance of interests. The vast majority of countries in the Global South and East are willing to do so. However, the West does not want this to happen. 🔹 The process of mounting tensions between us and the West did not begin because we wanted to "pick a fight". We simply wanted our truth and our legitimate interests, which are fully consistent with the principles enshrined in the UN Charter and other instruments of international law, to be heard and taken into account. 🔹The unprecedentedly aggressive actions taken to impose sanctions and to seize state assets and reserves [...] are nothing short of outright theft and plunder. Western countries are now engaging in plunder with regard to Russian assets and the so-called "shadow fleet". 🔹Once the globalisation created by the Americans, which everyone was being drawn into and persuaded to join, has been destroyed by its very creators, it means we need to be bolder in shaping new spaces in which rules will apply that cannot be unilaterally revised or changed at someone's whim. This is precisely what BRICS is doing now. 🔹 When it comes to security, we should set ourselves an ambitious goal, even if it will take time to achieve: a Eurasian security architecture that is open to all countries on the continent and does not involve actors from outside the region. This is not a utopian idea. At some point, it could become a reality. Real in full