For non-Russian speaking tourists, finding your way around Moscow is challenging at the best of times. If you don't speak English, it can be practically impossible – but that's about to change, says head of Moscow's tourist police Ilya Yegorchenko. Speaking to local news portal m24.ru on the two-year anniversary of the tourist police's creation, Yegorchenko said his team was working hard on expanding its language proficiency.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been named an honorary citizen of the Crimean city of Sevastopol in thanks for his work in returning the city to Russia, local news agency Krym Inform reported Wednesday.

St. Petersburg restaurateur and billionaire Yevgeny Prigozhin has filed to sue online giants Yandex, Google and Mail.ru over their refusal to remove information about him from their searches, the Vedomosti newspaper reported Wednesday. Prigozhin has filed 20 lawsuits against the Internet companies over the past three months, 15 of which are against the Russian online company Yandex, the RBC news website reported.

Sofia Miroyedova Vasily Kashin Chinese officials have visited Russia, the Russian government has announced plans to increase trade volume with China by $200 billion in the next few years and the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) has expressed interest in increasing its stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft. So, is Russia pivoting to China or not?

German newspaper Süddeutschen Zeitung has linked Moscow's deputy Mayor Maxim Liksutov to the Magnitsky case in an ongoing investigation, the Meduza news website reported Wednesday. The joint investigation by Süddeutschen Zeitung and Swiss company Sonntagszeitung is looking into leaked information from the so-called Panama papers. The scandal has revealed the offshore holdings of more than a hundred of politicians and officials around the world.

news Now That Putin Is Back, What Was He Up To in Those 11 Days? Vladimir Putin may have made a comeback, but one question remains: What was he up to during those 11 days of absence from the public eye?

A single NATO battalion inside Poland would be enough to deter Russian aggression, Polish Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz said in an interview Wednesday. Although NATO units in the Baltics would not be able to defeat Russia in case of invasion, they could slow down the attack while waiting for reinforcements, Macierewicz told the Defence News website.

The Kremlin is waiting for an official apology from Ankara for downing its warplane before Russian-Turkish ties can improve, the RIA Novosti news agency reported Wednesday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also said that Russia wanted compensation for the incident, which took place in November last year.

"Crazy About Tiffany's," a new documentary film about the famous New York jewelry and luxury goods store, will premier this Thursday at the Center of Documentary Cinema. Director Matthew Miele shares the dazzling history of Tiffany & Co. which from its opening has drawn clients both glitzy and serious. Over the years Abraham Lincoln, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Marilyn Monroe, and Steve Jobs — to name a few — have been frequent shoppers.

The Russian government has approved the first applications under the country's free land scheme, the Interfax news agency reported Wednesday. Three families in the far eastern Amur region were awarded land to use for beekeeping, Interfax reported. Officials are currently considering two more applications. Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law giving Russians the chance to claim up to one hectare of free land in the country's Far East. The act came into effect on June 1.

Swimming season has officially kicked off in Moscow with the arrival of June 1 and the first day of summer. A total of 121 designed waterside recreation zones have opened in the city, including 12 swimming areas, the Moskva News Agency reported Wednesday. Outdoor swimming pools will be available in Sokolniki Park, Park Fili, Severnoye Tushino Park, VDNKh and Luzhniki.

Last year events at the book fair on Red Square were packed, despite the poor weather. This year promises cloudless skies. Attention all book lovers! This weekend you won't want to miss the second annual book festival on Red Square. With more than 100,000 titles from 400 different Russian publishers, there will be a book out there for everyone. Held for the first time last year, the book festival was a great success that attracted 200,000 visitors.

Two Russian athletes have been stripped of their medals from the London 2012 Olympic Games after failing doping tests, the Interfax agency reported Wednesday. Race walkers Sergei Kirdyapkin and Olga Kaniskina, who were awarded with gold and silver respectively, lost their titles following a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, said head of the Russian Athletics Federation Dmitry Shlyakhtin.

Panic! at the Disco The first summer weekend is almost here and two major festivals are happening on Saturday and Sunday — Usadba Jazz and Bosco Fresh Fest. Both Russian and international heavyweights are among the headliners, including Azealia Banks, Mumy Troll and Aquarium. But if you don't feel like spending the whole day listening to music among the greenery, we picked several concerts worth going to, including three world-class bands from the U.S.

Turkey’s new Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has long been in favor of making peace with Russia. Eight months after the dramatic falling out with Russia, Turkish elite is sending mixed messages. The Cabinet under newly elected Prime Minister Binali Yildirim seems ready to take a seat at the negotiating table. President Recep Erdogan, on the other hand, is, as usual, reluctant to make peace; his Russian counterpart seems no more keen.