National

President Biden said Thursday that negotiations between the U.S. and its allies over imposing a price cap on Russian oil are ongoing and confirmed that he had spoken to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen about the issue.

What they're saying: "It's in play," Biden told reporters while visiting a fire station in Nantucket, Massachusetts, per a White House pool report.

“This is no time to walk away from Ukraine, not at all," Biden said.

The big picture: The U.S. and its allies for months have been debating a potential price cap on Russian oil. The cap is intended to limit Russia's ability to profit from its oil exports and curb its ability to fund its war against Ukraine, while also limiting the invasion's effect on global energy prices.

Russia is the world's second-largest crude oil exporter, and Europe, unlike the U.S., is hugely reliant on Russian oil, gas and coal, Axios' Ben Geman writes.

Officials from the European Union's 27 member states will continue negotiations Thursday over what limit to set for how much buyers outside the EU can pay for Russian oil, the New York Times reported.

State of play: The policy needs to be in place before the EU's planned embargo on Russian oil enters into effect on Dec. 5, per the Times.

But member states have been deeply divided for months over what the price cap should be.

The G7 countries — including the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan — as well as the EU and Australia, will implement the price cap starting Dec. 5, per Reuters.

The price cap will require unanimous consent among the EU's 27 members, and the U.S. has allowed the bloc to take the lead in determining a price that can win the bloc's approval, according to the New York Times.

The other side: Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that efforts by the West to impose a price cap on Russian oil are "contrary to the principles of market relations and are highly likely to lead to grave consequences for global energy markets," the Kremlin said in a readout of Putin's call with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, Agence France-Presse reported.

Biden on Russian oil price cap negotiations: "It's in play"

Joe Biden visits with firefighters at a Nantucket, Massachusetts, fire station to thank first responders during the Thanksgiving Day holiday, on Nov. 24. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Russian invasion of Ukraine

Russia

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

Ominous forecasts about the impact of climate change serve as the backdrop for the world — led by U.S. lawmakers and companies — to debate big action on the problem, which could upend energy systems and our way of life.

Energy & Environment

Ukraine on Thursday marked exactly nine months since the start of Russia's brutal invasion, as parts of the country continued to recover from a barrage of Russian missile strikes the day before.

Driving the news: Russian strikes on Wednesday targeted critical infrastructure facilities across Ukraine, causing massive blackouts throughout the country and even in neighboring Moldova.

Ukraine's military chief Gen. Valeriy Zaluzhnyi wrote in a Telegram post Wednesday that Ukrainian forces successfully shot down 51 of the 67 Russian cruise missiles that were launched. Thirty rockets were "fired at Kyiv alone," he said, 20 of which were destroyed.

The big picture: Kyiv, which had suffered a suspension of its water supply on Wednesday, saw water restored to all districts of the city Thursday, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed in a Telegram post, though he cautioned that "some consumers may still experience low water pressure in the system."

"70% of the capital still remains without electricity," Klitschko wrote on Telegram on Thursday morning.

Kyiv residents queued in lines at public water points Thursday to fill up plastic bottles, AP reported.

In his nightly address Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky provided updates on efforts to restore water and electricity in several regions in the country and vowed that utility workers would work "round the clock" to ensure all regions are reconnected.

Water, heat and electricity were restored in the city of Lviv, with regular planned blackouts continuing, the city's mayor, Andriy Sadovyi, wrote on Telegram on Wednesday night.

The energy situation in the Zaporizhzhia region had "stabilized," regional Gov. Oleksandr Starukh wrote in a Telegram post Thursday.

State of play: Authorities have opened so-called "points of invincibility" across Ukraine, where residents can gather to get warm, eat a hot meal and access working electrical outlets and internet connections. 

As of Thursday afternoon, 4,362 points of invincibility were open across Ukraine, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the president's office, wrote in a Telegram post.

Russia and Ukraine on Thursday announced a successful prisoner of war exchange, with each exchanging 50 prisoners.

Russia's Defense Ministry confirmed that Ukraine had released 50 Russian soldiers, the Guardian reported.

"Today, 50 Ukrainian soldiers were returned from Russian captivity," Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, tweeted Thursday.

What they're saying: "Today is exactly 9 months from the day when Russia started a criminal and unprovoked full-scale war against Ukraine," Zelensky said in an address to the OSCE parliamentary assembly Thursday.

"Our country is showing unprecedented bravery by destroying the army of the occupier, who was bragging that he was allegedly the second most powerful in the world," he added.

"In nine months of its full-scale invasion, Russia has killed and injured hundreds of our children, kidnapped thousands of them, and made millions of children refugees," Ukraine's Defense Ministry tweeted Thursday.

The other side: Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Thursday at a briefing that Ukraine's leadership has "every opportunity to bring the situation back to normal" by meeting Russia's demands to resolve the war and therefore "end all possible suffering among the population," Reuters reported.

Ukraine marks 9 months of war as regions recover from missile strikes

"Our country is showing unprecedented bravery by destroying the army of the occupier," Zelensky said.

Residents return to view their homes in Vyshhorod 

Residents return to view their homes on Nov. 24 in Vyshhorod, Ukraine, after the previous day's missile strikes. Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Ukraine

Pope Francis compared Russia's invasion of Ukraine to a brutal Stalin-era famine on Wednesday in one of his sharpest condemnations yet, the New York Times reports.

Driving the news: During his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square, the pope asked people to commemorate "the terrible Holodomor genocide, the extermination by hunger of 1932-33 artificially caused by Stalin" alongside Ukrainians on Saturday.

"Let us pray for the victims of this genocide and let us pray for all Ukrainians, the children, the women and the elderly, the babies who are today suffering the martyrdom of aggression," he said.

"Let us pray for peace in the world, and for an end to all conflicts, with a special thought for the terrible suffering of the dear and martyred people of Ukraine."

The fourth Saturday of November marks National Holodomor Remembrance Day in Ukraine.

The history: Between 1932 and 1933, millions of Ukrainians were killed in Soviet Ukraine amid the Holodomor, a famine engineered by Joseph Stalin's government.

The mass starvation was intended to wipe out any attempts to seek independence for Ukraine, experts say.

At the height of the famine, over 25,000 people died per day, according to the Kyiv-based National Museum of the Holodomor-Genocide.

The big picture: Nearly 6,600 Ukrainian civilians have been killed since the start of Russia's invasion, the UN Human Rights Office said Monday. That estimate is likely far lower than actual figures.

A UN human rights commission said in September that its initial investigation found evidence of war crimes.

Russia has escalated its missile strikes on Ukraine since early October, causing mass blackouts and energy rationing across the country. 

Ukrainian troops have kept up remarkable stamina, however. They clinched a key win in November after forcing Russians out of Kherson.

Go deeper: Russia insists war in Ukraine will continue "until all the goals" are met

Pope Francis compares Russia's invasion of Ukraine to Stalin-era famine

Between 1932 and 1933, millions of Ukrainians were killed in Soviet Ukraine amid a famine engineered by Stalin's government.

Photo of Pope Francis speaking into a mic

Pope Francis delivers his blessing to the faithful at the end of his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, Vatican on Nov. 23, 2022. Photo: Riccardo De Luca/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Axios from Tel Aviv

Israel in recent weeks has provided a dossier with intelligence about Iranian arms transfers to Russia to its embassies in dozens of Western countries and senior NATO officials, according to Israeli officials and Israeli Foreign Ministry cables.

Why it matters: The new diplomatic and intelligence effort, which started at the end of October, represents a change in Israeli behavior around Iran's role in the war in Ukraine, which until last month didn’t include active lobbying on the issue to avoid tensions with Russia.

Israeli officials said they hope to use the current focus on Iranian assistance to the Russian war effort as a means for increasing international pressure on Tehran. 

Iran has repeatedly denied supplying Russia with weapons since the war began, despite growing Western intelligence and evidence to the contrary.

Behind the scenes: Israeli officials said that on Oct. 20, the Israeli Foreign Ministry sent a secret cable to a few dozen Israeli embassies in key countries asking them to start raising the issue of Iranian drone transfers to Russia and the possible transfer of ballistic missiles.

Shortly after, the Israeli Foreign Ministry sent a dossier to the same embassies that included intelligence on Iran’s arms transfers to Russia, Israeli Foreign Ministry cables show.

Israeli diplomats delivered démarches on the issue in numerous countries and passed on the dossier, the officials and cables said.

The Israeli ambassador to NATO gave the dossier to NATO's deputy secretary-general, and a senior Israeli diplomat traveled to Brussels for a series of briefings on the issue in the EU headquarters and in the European Parliament, according to the cables and Israeli officials.

Last week, the Israeli ambassador to Moscow raised the issue with the Russian deputy foreign minister and presented Israel’s concerns, the Israeli officials say.

What they're saying: Israel’s national security adviser Eyal Hulata at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain on Sunday said that in recent weeks Iranian-made drone attacks killed civilians in Ukraine.

What to watch: Israeli officials say they want to organize an international conference in Israel about the proliferation of Iranian-made drones. They've started raising the idea with allies.

Scoop: Israel lobbies allies with intel on Iranian arms transfers to Russia

It's a change in Israeli behavior around Iran's role in the war in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) meets with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (R) in Tehran ahead of on July 19, 2022. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) meets with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran on July 19. Photo: Iranian Presidency/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images 

Iran

Israel

Russia launched more missile strikes across Ukraine on Wednesday, hitting energy facilities and causing blackouts throughout the country.

The big picture: Since early October Russia has escalated its missile strikes on Ukraine, targeting the country's critical infrastructure and causing massive blackouts and energy rationing.

As of early November, Russian attacks had "seriously damaged" about 40% of Ukraine's entire energy infrastructure.

The attacks threaten to leave many Ukrainians without electricity, water and heat as winter approaches.

State of play: Ukraine's Energy Ministry said on Facebook that "the vast majority of electricity consumers across the country" were without power.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the president's office, wrote on Telegram that critical infrastructure facilities were hit in several areas.

In Kyiv, there were "hits on the housing sector and critical infrastructure facilities," Kyiv regional Gov. Oleksiy Kuleba wrote on Telegram. "There is a threat of repeated shelling. Stay in shelters!"

More than 20 people were injured and one person killed around the capital region, Kuleba wrote.

Driving the news: "The Kyiv region is completely without electricity. There is also a partial lack of heating and water supply," Kuleba said.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote in a Telegram post that "water supply has been suspended" throughout the city due to the shelling, and that specialists were working to restore water and power supplies to the city.

Emergency power shutdowns are occurring in all regions of Ukraine as missile strikes are ongoing, the country's electric utility, Ukrenergo, wrote on Telegram Wednesday.

Lviv's regional governor, Maksym Kozytskyy tweeted that there were two strikes on electrical substations there, adding that several districts of the region were left without power.

What they're saying: "As Russia struggles on the battlefield, it is increasingly turning to horrific attacks against the Ukrainian people with punishing strikes damaging energy grid infrastructure, and deliberately doing so as winter approaches," said Adrienne Watson, a spokesperson for the U.S. National Security Council, in a statement Wednesday.

"These strikes do not appear aimed at any military purpose and instead further the goal of the Putin regime to increase the suffering and death of Ukrainian men, women and children," Watson added.

"It also shows Russia is willing to increase the risk of a nuclear safety incident that could not only further harm Ukraine, but affect the entire region as well."

The big picture: The U.S. Department of Defense announced a new $400 million defense package for Ukraine on Wednesday that will include ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, thousands of mortar rounds and hundreds of Humvees and other vehicles.

Meanwhile, Russia launched rockets at a maternity ward of a hospital in the Zaporizhzhia region overnight, regional Gov. Oleksandr Starukh wrote in a Telegram post. He said a baby had been killed and rescuers were at the scene.

Worth noting: The Russian strikes also caused "massive power outages" in neighboring Moldova, the country's Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Spinu wrote in a Telegram post.

The country's Transmission System Operator is "working to reconnect more than 50% of the country to electricity," Spinu tweeted.

Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities also caused power outages in Moldova last week.

 Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

Russian missiles strike energy facilities across Ukraine, causing blackouts

The Kyiv regional governor said the strikes had hit the "housing sector and critical infrastructure facilities."

Street with anti-tank obstacle defense during a blackout after a Russian missile attack on Ukrainian power infrastructure in Kyiv

Street with anti-tank obstacle defense during a blackout after a Russian missile attack on Ukrainian power infrastructure in Kyiv, Nov. 2022. Photo: Maxym Marusenko/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Russia says it expects "positive result" in Griner prisoner swap talks

A senior Russian official indicated the Kremlin wants to secure the release of a convicted arms dealer.

Brittney Griner is escorted into a court hearing outside Moscow on Aug. 2, 2022.

Brittney Griner is escorted into a court hearing outside Moscow on Aug. 2, 2022. Photo: Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images

Swedish investigators said Friday they found explosive residue at the site of mysterious blasts that hit the Nord Stream pipelines and concluded that the leaks were caused by "gross sabotage."

The big picture: Four ruptures were discovered in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines at the end of September, causing leaks in the exclusive economic zones of Sweden and Denmark that created extensive environmental damage.

Western officials previously indicated that the explosion was a result of sabotage.

Russia has denied responsibility for the blasts and claimed they were an act of "international terrorism."

Why it matters: The pipelines are designed to send Russian gas to the European Union and have become a flashpoint since the invasion of Ukraine.

Denmark and Sweden said in September that the blasts "probably corresponded to an explosive load of several hundred kilos."

What they're saying: "In the crime scene investigations carried out on site in the Baltic Sea, the area and the extensive damage to the gas lines as a result of the detonations have been extensively documented," the Swedish Prosecution Authority said in a statement.

"During analyzes carried out, residues of explosives have been identified on several of the foreign objects seized," it said.

Explosive residue found at site of Nord Stream explosions

The pipelines have become a flashpoint since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The gas leaking at Nord Stream 2 seen from a Danish F-16 interceptor in September.

The gas leaking at Nord Stream 2 seen from a Danish F-16 interceptor in September. Photo: Danish Defence/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Sweden

A former senior aide to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) was convicted Thursday after being found guilty of helping to funnel illegal foreign campaign contributions from a Russian national into former President Trump's 2016 campaign.

Driving the news: Jessie Benton, 45, orchestrated a scheme to conceal the illegal foreign donation with another GOP operative, per the Justice Department. Benton, the husband of Paul's niece and a veteran Republican staffer, faces up to 20 years in prison. His attorney told the Washington Post Benton "maintains his innocence and plans to appeal."

Federal prosecutors say Benton arranged for the Russian national to attend a political fundraising event for Trump's campaign and take a photo with Trump. 

For the record: Neither Trump nor his campaign was aware of the Russian person's nationality, the DOJ said.

Zoom in: The Russian national wired $100,000 to Benton's political consulting firm to make an illegal foreign contribution, but Benton allegedly pocketed $75,000 and gave $25,000 to the campaign, falsely identifying himself as the donor.

He faced six criminal charges, including conspiracy and abetting illegal foreign political contributions.

Flashback: Benton was previously convicted of filing false statements as part of a scheme to funnel money from Ron Paul's 2012 presidential campaign to an influential Iowa politician who backed Paul in the state's presidential caucus.

Trump pardoned Benton shortly before leaving office.

Go deeper: Pro-Trump PAC fined over foreign money offer

GOP operative convicted in scheme to funnel Russian money into Trump campaign

Benton, the husband of Rand Paul's niece and a veteran GOP staffer, faces up to 20 years in prison, but plans to appeal.

Jesse Benton, spokesperson for the Ron Paul campaign, speaking to reporters on Jan. 1, 2012. Photo: Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc/Corbis via Getty Images

Campaign finance

Axios World

One of Russia's most prominent TV hosts fumed this week at what he saw as an act of defiance from allies in the Collective Security Treaty Organization, Russia's answer to NATO.

Driving the news: While Belarus voted against a UN resolution calling on Russia to pay Ukraine war reparations, Russia's other four treaty allies — Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan — all abstained. 

"NATO countries have all lined up, looking at [President] Biden with adoring eyes," TV host Vladimir Solovyov lamented. "What do we have?"

The big picture: Central Asian countries have cautiously distanced themselves from Moscow since the invasion of Ukraine. 

At recent regional summits, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon demanded more "respect," and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov kept Vladimir Putin waiting before a meeting, Nikkei Asia reports.

But nowhere is the shift more notable than in Kazakhstan, which shares the second-longest land border with Russia and has retained close links with Moscow since the collapse of the USSR.

Meanwhile: Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who is expected to win a new seven-year term in elections this weekend, has repeatedly refused to back Russia's invasion.

In June, he went so far as to declare — while sharing a stage with Putin — that Kazakhstan respected "territorial integrity" and would not follow Russia in recognizing the independence of Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.

Kazakhstan canceled a parade in May marking the Soviet victory over the Nazis, officially for budget reasons. Astana also banned military symbols like the "Z" displayed by backers of the invasion.

The other side: Another Russian TV host, Tigran Keosayan, fumed after those moves that if Kazakhstan thought it could "get away" with such "ingratitude," it should "look at what is happening in Ukraine." 

Former President Dmitry Medvedev's account on Russia's VK social network posted and then deleted a claim that the “artificial state” of Kazakhstan was committing a “genocide” against its Russian minority. Medvedev later claimed to have been hacked. Other senior politicians have made similar statements.

In June, a Russian court ordered the pipeline through which 80% of Kazakhstan's oil exports flow to the Black Sea to halt operations due to the risk of spills — though many speculated the true reason was to remind Kazakhstan of its reliance on Russia. 

The order reportedly upset China, which has invested heavily in Kazakhstan and benefits from a stable oil market. It was soon reversed.

State of play: Kazakhstan is working to diversify its export routes and has hosted the presidents of China, Turkey and the European Council all in the past two months — a sign that the world's 10th largest oil exporter has options.

"In order to continue to attract foreign direct investment, it is crucial that Kazakhstan not be lumped together with Russia," Annette Bohr, a Eurasia analyst at Chatham House, said at a recent panel discussion.

The Ukraine invasion also sparked fears in the general public that Kazakhstan could be next, added Bhavna Dave, a Central Asia expert at the University of London. Just this week, a concert in Almaty by Russian singer Polina Gagarina was canceled after online protests over her support for the war.

A senior Kazakh official told Reuters that if Tokayev wins easily on Sunday, he could further distance himself from Moscow. 

That's a remarkable turn of events less than a year after Russia sent  troops to help Tokayev put down a violent uprising.

Yes, but: Kazakhstan and other countries in Central Asia are still heavily reliant on Russia. Around 40% of the food and clothing sold in Kazakhstan comes from Russia, and the Kremlin can still hold Kazakhstan's energy exports hostage, notes the Carnegie Endowment's Temur Umarov.

Zoom out: The UN vote that infuriated Solovyov also underscored that Russia has partners far beyond the post-Soviet space. China voted with Russia, as did Iran and North Korea, which are reportedly providing weapons for Russia's war effort.

Among the other yes votes were five African countries, including two — Central African Republic and Mali — that are hosting Russian mercenaries.

Russia's shrinking sphere of influence

Kazakhstan's president is distancing himself from Moscow.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) and the leaders of his CSTO allies at the Kremlin in May. From left: Armenia's Nikol Pashinyan; Belarus' Alexsandr Lukashenko (back row); Putin, Kazakhstan's Kassym-Jomart Tokayev; Kyrgyzstan's Sadyr Japarov (back right) and Tajikistan's Emomali Rahmon. Photo: Getty Images.

Three men with links to Russia were convicted in a Dutch court Thursday over the 2014 downing of a passenger plane that killed all 298 people on board, AP reported.

The big picture: Investigators say Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down by a Russian surface-to-air missile system over rebel-held eastern Ukraine. The plane was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014. Most of the passengers on board were from the Netherlands. 

A fourth man who was charged in the incident was acquitted.

The four men — three Russians and one Ukrainian— were tried in absentia and are believed to be in Russian-controlled territory, meaning they are unlikely to serve any sentence. 

The judges who delivered the verdict said Russia had overall control of separatist forces at the time of the downing of the plane. 

State of play: The court ruled that the plane crash was the result of a deliberate act, even though the group had intended to target a military aircraft and not a civilian one, the BBC reported.

The court convicted two Russians and one Ukrainian for the murder of the aircraft's 298 passengers. One Russian was acquitted due to lack of evidence, per AP.

The three convicted men were sentenced to life in prison. 

"There is no reasonable doubt," that MH17 was shot down by a Russian-made Buk missile, presiding Judge Hendrik Steenhuis said Thursday, Reuters reported.

The Russian suspects — Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinskiy and Oleg Pulatov — are all former intelligence officers and the Ukrainian, Leonid Kharchenko, is a Ukrainian separatist leader, per Reuters. 

The trial had lasted over two years. Both the suspects and prosecutors have two weeks to file an appeal if they wish, AP reported.

Dutch court convicts three for Malaysian Airlines MH17 plane crash

The three men were sentenced to life in prison for causing the crash that killed 298 people.

 Investigators work at a the crash site of the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014. 

 Investigators work at a the crash site of the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014. Photo: Bulent Kilic/AFP via Getty Images

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned of "a new stage of terror" in a video posted to Telegram on Friday night, referencing the abduction of the mayor of Melitopol by Russian forces.

Driving the news: The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the kidnapping of Mayor Ivan Fedorov a war crime, according to a statement posted to Facebook on Friday.

"It is a democratic world here therefore the capture of the mayor of Melitopol is a crime not only against a particular person. Not only against a particular community. And not only against Ukraine. This is a crime against democracy," Zelensky said in his own video message.

"Obviously, this is a sign of the weakness of the invaders," the Ukrainian president added. "They did not find collaborators who would hand over the city and the power to the invaders. Therefore, they have switched to a new stage of terror when they are trying to physically eliminate representatives of the legitimate local Ukrainian authorities."

Zelensky  warns of "new stage of terror" in latest video

"They are trying to physically eliminate representatives of the legitimate local Ukrainian authorities," said the Ukrainian president.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy is pictured during his regular address to the nation on March 11, 2022.

Photo: Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images

Not to be outdone by Pfizer’s big announcement, Russia’s state-run Gamaleya Research Institute announced Wednesday that its Sputnik V vaccine is 92% effective.

Why it matters: Experts have criticized the lack of transparency around the vaccine and the haste with which the Kremlin approved it, but several countries are lining up to gain access.

Hungary is the first EU country to announce a plan to buy it, per the FT. It expects a sample within the next week or so, and it's in “advanced negotiations” for a larger order.

Russia has already sold doses to Brazil, In­dia, Mex­ico and Egypt, per WSJ. It also plans to make the vaccine available to countries in its neighborhood, like Kazakhstan.

The Philippines plans to join clinical trials for the vaccine, with President Rodrigo Duterte even saying he would be injected himself.

Russia has discussed the distribution of its vaccine with a number of other countries, including Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Yes, but: The rhetoric from Moscow has been far out in front of any evidence that the vaccine is safe, effective and can be developed at a sufficient scale to be distributed around the world.

As countries line up for Russia's vaccine, not everyone is buying it

It's 92% effective, according to unconfirmed data.

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The big picture

Pope Francis compares Russia's invasion of Ukraine to Stalin-era famine

Zelensky warns of "new stage of terror" in latest video

As countries line up for Russia's vaccine, not everyone is buying it

Alexei Navalny in first interview: Putin was behind Novichok poisoning

The tangled web of Russia's Taliban support

Russians back reforms that could let Putin rule through 2036, officials say

All Russia stories

Biden on Russian oil price cap negotiations: "It's in play"

Ukraine marks 9 months of war as regions recover from missile strikes

Pope Francis compares Russia's invasion of Ukraine to Stalin-era famine

Scoop: Israel lobbies allies with intel on Iranian arms transfers to Russia

Russian missiles strike energy facilities across Ukraine, causing blackouts

Russia says it expects "positive result" in Griner prisoner swap talks

Explosive residue found at site of Nord Stream explosions

GOP operative convicted in scheme to funnel Russian money into Trump campaign

Russia's shrinking sphere of influence