A leftist Russian party has prepared a parliamentary motion calling for immediate military, technical and humanitarian aid to the governments of Syria and Iraq in their fight against Islamic terrorists.

In the West, Russia tries to reach out to fringe groups – for lack of a better term – whether on the left or the right, who are unhappy with their current governments and would be willing to form a discursive partnership, even if temporary, with Russia.

The battle for hearts and minds of the global television news audience has entered a new phase with the launch of a dedicated UK version of the Kremlin-backed 24-hour news channel, RT.

Russian “soft power” aimed at promoting the country’s image abroad is working and President Vladimir Putin is its key element, a report presented by the Center for Political Analysis at TASS on Friday says.

The Internet has become so integral to economic and national life that government, business, and individual users are targets for ever-more frequent and threatening attacks.