© Sergei Ilyin/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS

Top stories from the Russian press on Thursday, October 20th, prepared by TASS

Vedomosti: Putin declares martial law in four new regions, various alert levels elsewhere

According to the presidential decree approved by the Federation Council at midnight from October 19 to 20, Moscow time, martial law has been introduced in the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions from October 20. A source close to the Ministry of Defense explained to Vedomosti that martial law is needed to "more effectively counteract the increasingly active sabotage by Ukrainian intelligence services in both the new and old regions of Russia." In addition, it would introduce such measures as a ban on filming civilian targets attacked by Ukraine, and it would be possible to use equipment and personnel from civilian organizations to build fortifications.

That said, Russia’s eight border regions with Ukraine will be under a "medium action level", and the other regions of the Central and Southern federal districts will be under an "elevated level", while the rest of Russia’s regions will be under a basic one. Different alert levels introduce the possibility of using various measures. Regional authorities will be able to make decisions regarding measures for territorial and civil defense, to introduce a special mode of operation for the facilities that ensure the functioning of transport, supply links and communications, as well as to restrict the movement of people and vehicles.

Lawyers believe that, at least for now, the authorities have no reason to close the state borders. Lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov suggested that the decree was issued in order to maximize the role of law enforcement agencies in the new regions. Alexander Malakhov, lawyer at Klishin and Partners, believes that the most severe restrictive legal measures can be used only in the territories where martial law has been fully introduced, thus, for example, the restriction on movement only applies to the four new regions.

"The main difference between martial law is the restriction of a number of rights and freedoms provided for by the constitution, and the ability to seize the property of individuals and legal entities. At the moment it will only operate in the areas where martial law has been declared," lawyer Anton Timchenko explained, adding that he believes that movement will also be restricted only in these territories.

Vedomosti: US, EU threaten Iran with sanctions over alleged kamikaze drone supplies to Russia

The European Union plans to impose sanctions against Iranian legal entities and individuals in the coming days over the alleged supply of weapons to Russia, including kamikaze drones and ballistic missiles, Politico reported citing diplomatic sources. According to experts interviewed by Vedomosti, any real effective measures of pressure on Tehran have long been exhausted by the West.

Earlier, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said that Washington "will continue to take practical, aggressive steps to make these weapons sales harder, including sanctions, export control actions". On October 8, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that only Russian weapons are used to carry out combat missions.

US and EU sanctions over supposed supplies of drones and potential deliveries of missiles to Russia would not lead to anything other than further irritating Iran and won’t change its policy, Research Fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at MGIMO Adlan Margoev told the newspaper. The West, according to him, denied itself the chance to truly impact Tehran and its foreign policy through positive motivation following the JCPOA.

The West has already exhausted all possibilities and would not be able to properly punish Iran for alleged arms deliveries, Director of Programs at the Russian International Affairs Council Ivan Timofeev concurs. Large-scale financial and industrial restrictions have already been imposed against Tehran, and many Iranian officials have been included in the sanctions lists. The only thing the EU can do now is to introduce its own restrictions against Iran as a pure formality, the expert believes.

Izvestia: Why Russia won’t sever relations with European Union

Russia will not break off diplomatic relations with Western countries, an informed source told Izvestia that bilateral ties virtually have been reduced to a bare minimum, but Moscow will not be the first to legally terminate them. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed this information.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that maintaining Russia’s presence in Western countries "does not make sense" since the countries of the so-called third world (Asia, Africa and Latin America) need Russia’s attention, so Moscow has decided to refocus its diplomatic efforts to these nations.

Lavrov's remarks do not mean that Moscow intends to officially break off diplomatic ties with what Russia called unfriendly countries, the source told Izvestia. Today, the list of "states and territories committing unfriendly actions against Russia, Russian companies and citizens" includes more than 50 countries. Moscow's actual ties with these countries have been reduced to a minimum. Embassies have been noticeably downsized, but Russia will not be the first to lower the status of bilateral ties, and even more so to cut them off legally, the source noted.

The state of the Russian permanent delegation to the EU is crucial in this regard, the newspaper writes. In September 2022, the country’s Permanent Representative to the EU Vladimir Chizhov completed his tenure and left Brussels. The source told Izvestia, this "says a lot about the nature of relations" between Russia and the European Union, and stressed that now there is no point in the presence of a full-fledged representative in Brussels.

Kommersant: French-German discord jeopardizes annual bilateral summit

The annual meeting of the leaders and members of the governments of two European countries, France and Germany, is in jeopardy because President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Olaf Scholz are at odds over energy and defense issues. Both leaders agree on the challenges facing their countries and Europe in general, but their approaches to solving these problems seem to differ, Kommersant writes.

With a week to go before the two delegations meet, the wording of a joint statement has not been fully agreed upon, and there were heated debates over its key points, Politico reported. According to its source from the French side, the summit may be postponed to allow for more time to hammer out the meeting’s agenda. According to the source, the leaders may get together, but not sign the final document. However, such a scenario would not be very good as far as optics go. Politico’s sources in Berlin noted two areas of concern: energy and defense.

Berlin is in favor of building the Spanish MidCat gas pipeline, but Paris, whose location makes it essential for construction, has been adamantly opposed to moving through with the project. The best way to boost their defense capacities is also a point of contention among the allies. While France, and specifically Macron, have long advocated for the idea of European Collective Defense and insisted on more military independence for the EU, Germany decided to commit an additional €100 bln and spend a substantial portion of it on buying US weaponry.

In any case, at a time when Europe needs unity, Germany and France are not interested in publicly displaying their underlying divisions, according to Kommersant. Therefore, there is a good probability that the summit will be held and the teams preparing its program still have time to reach compromises.

Kommersant: Fuel prices in Europe decline amid LNG purchases and increased storage

Due to ample supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG), which has led to some excess, and substantial storage stocks, gas prices in Europe continue to decline. The price for November has so far settled at about $1,300 per 1,000 cubic meters as gas futures have stabilized. Up till the end of October, warmer-than-normal weather is expected, which will also keep costs low for the time being, Kommersant writes.

European gas storage facilities are now 92.66% full, which is significantly higher than the five-year average. However, the EU fears that the replenishment of stocks by next winter (2023-2024) will be difficult if supplies from Russia stop completely.

Warmer October weather also contributes to lower prices for now, as underground gas storage (UGS) facilities continue to inject gas, although usually by October 20, storage facilities are used for withdrawal.

According to Sergey Kondratiev from the Institute of Energy and Finance, a decrease in gas prices to the level of $1,100 - 1,200 per 1,000 cubic meters could pave the way for a 5-10% increase in demand compared to the current level, primarily in energy-intensive sectors like metallurgy, the manufacture of building materials, and gas chemistry. However, according to the expert, the EU's objective of limiting demand makes large consumption growth unlikely.