Each deputy speaker will be allocated 30 additional assistants on a voluntary basis and will be allowed to organize expert councils, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin told reporters. There will be no additional budget expenses required for this. Olga Epifanova (“A Just Russia”) proposed creating an expert council for the development of the Arctic.

National Security Adviser to the US President Michael Flynn resigned late on February 13 amid suspicions that he may have discussed the issue of sanctions with Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak even before the inauguration of Donald Trump. Flynn's resignation was reported by Reuters, citing an official statement from the White House. He filed the statement hours after Trump, through a spokesman, told reporters he was reviewing the situation and discussing it with Vice President Mike Pence.

The centre is part of the government's £1.9bn ($2.38bn) cybersecurity programme, which was unveiled by the government in November 2016 and is expected to run for five years. The UK's National Cyber ​​Security Centre opened in London on February 14, serving as the centre of the kingdom's efforts to combat hacker attacks, "particularly from Russia," AFP reports . The ceremony was hosted by Queen Elizabeth II.

An animated film about Batman from a children's construction set brought in $55.6 million in North America. And although Warner Bros.'s expectations. were slightly higher - about $60 million - a good reception from both critics and audiences (who gave an A- CinemaScore) should ensure the second film from the Lego franchise continues to be successful.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has called the information about the tender for the production of 20,000 medals “For Participants in the Military Operation in Syria” erroneous: the order is an order of magnitude too high. "The information about the alleged purchase of 20,000 departmental medals by the Russian Ministry of Defense is not true.

As a result of trading on Monday, the total market capitalization of companies included in the American stock index S&P 500 exceeded $20 trillion, reports the Financial Times. According to S&P Dow Jones Indices, over the past year the index has grown by almost 25%, and the value of companies in it has increased by $3.6 trillion. About two-fifths of that growth occurred after Donald Trump won the presidential election on November 8, 2016.

The Bank of Russia set the official dollar exchange rate on February 15 at 57.7388 rubles, which is 32.31 kopecks. lower than the previous figure. The official euro exchange rate was reduced by 47.07 kopecks, to 61.2955 rubles. The cost of the bi-currency basket (0.55 dollars and 0.45 euros), calculated at official rates, decreased by 38.95 kopecks, to 59.3393 rubles. Read also: The ruble returned a year and a half ago Read also: The dollar exchange rate dropped below 58 rubles

February 13, 2017, 23:51 / Finance Exclusively by subscription The dollar exchange rate dropped below 58 rubles This will not last long, experts warn, the Ministry of Finance’s interventions will have an impact on the exchange rate Daria Borisyak Ilya Usov The last time the dollar traded below 58 rubles was in July 2015 / A. Gordeev / Vedomosti “The strengthening is due to several factors.

February 14, 2017, 17:48 / Economics Smolny expects GRP growth by 3% in the next 18 years The city's population should increase by no less than 12% by 2035 Maria Buravtseva Valeria Lebedeva Vedomosti - St. Petersburg According to the most optimistic scenario, the city’s economy will grow by 5% per year / Evgeniy Razumny / Vedomosti Until 2035, the physical volume of St.

February 14, 2017, 21:44 / Finance / News The law on easier return of stolen funds may be adopted this year undefined Vedomosti A federal law on accelerating the return of stolen funds from customer bank accounts may be adopted during 2017, top managers of the Central Bank told reporters on the sidelines of the IX Ural Forum “Information Security of the Financial Sphere.” “We are now working to change the legislation, including to resolve this issue.

Journalist Ksenia Sokolova has become the president of Dr. Lisa's Fair Aid Foundation, the foundation's former press secretary and current board member Natalia Avilova told Interfax. "Ksenia Sokolova was invited to us by our comrades and colleagues to organize the work and continue the strategy of our activities during this difficult period. In particular, she is a public figure, in the public space, so she will be able to guarantee that the work will continue," Avilova said.

February 14, 2017, 18:46 / Business The income of Gazprom board members decreased for the first time in five years Vedomosti The total income of Gazprom board members in 2016 decreased by 9.4% to 2.449 billion rubles, according to the concern’s report. Prior to this, a decrease in payments to managers (nominal - to 1.067 billion rubles from 1.088 billion rubles) was observed five years ago - at the end of 2012 compared to 2011.

NATO is preparing plans to modernize its fleet of early warning and early detection aircraft AWACS at its base in Geilenkirchen near Aachen, Deutsche Welle reports , citing dpa and its sources. According to them, the alliance's defense ministers may give orders this week to develop an updated concept that could replace AWACS. It is expected that the procurement program for new reconnaissance aircraft will be presented by 2022, and the first new developments will enter service in 2035.

The traditional theme of the Pushkin Festival is classical literature on the theater stage. The current one offered the audience different options for the theater’s dialogue with the texts of the classics. In the play “The Snow Maiden. Laboratory" of the Novosibirsk theater "Old House" based on Ostrovsky's play, there is no word as such.

The Japanese Cabinet of Ministers has lodged a protest with Russia over the naming of five unnamed islands in the Kuril chain, Chief Government Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a press conference. "This is unacceptable and contradicts Japan's position. On February 13, we lodged a protest with Russia through diplomatic channels," TASS reports him as saying.