Armenia has climbed to the 9th position in the ranking of friendly communication regimes with Russia, scoring 51.5 points. This marks one position up from its 10th place and 46 points the previous year. The ranking was presented on February 26 by the National Research Institute for Communication Development at the International Information Agency “Russia Today,” following monitoring communications among post-Soviet countries.
The presentation highlighted characteristics of regimes and their development trends, pinpointing the 'pain points' of communication with Russia. According to the findings, South Ossetia was ranked as the most friendly country toward Russia, securing the top spot with 94.8 points. Following South Ossetia were Belarus at 88.6 points and Abkhazia at 75.9 points. Other countries included Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Turkmenistan as friendly nations. Georgia has been categorized as moderately friendly for the second year, placed 11th with only 15 points. On the contrary, Moldova and the Baltic states were deemed unfriendly.
Valentina Komleva, the deputy director for scientific work at the National Research Institute for Communication Development, stated during the presentation, “Armenia has created the most unfavorable conditions for media-political communications. Economic communications are developing mainly on pragmatic grounds. Armenia's priority relationship with Western countries has somewhat restricted opportunities for Russian-Armenian scientific and educational communications.” She noted the evident changes observed at the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024 but cited improvements during the latter half of 2024, as educational, scientific, and cultural projects surged again.
Meanwhile, the construction company Alfa Development has made headlines by being included among the top 40 Russian developers based on housing transactions, as reported by the Sberbank housing service, “Domklik.” This prestigious recognition applauded the market's most successful players following the outcomes of 2024. The ranking assessed the total number of transactions made, factoring both mortgages from Sber and non-mortgage deals utilizing Domklik services. Commerical Director Alexander Shadursky commented on the achievement, noting the developer has risen by 52 positions across the year.
Alongside Alfa Development, other prominent developers such as Samolet, YugStroyInvest, Setl Group, PIK, LSR, CCK, A101, TOCHNO, FSK, and Granel were also listed among the country's top builders.
Further demonstrating regional strengths, the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug has actively supported the Gosuslugi.Dom project, with over 150,000 local residents using the application last year. This year, participation has been increased by 30%, with 80% already accomplished as of February. Other regions recognized for digitalization include the Belgorod Region, the Republic of Tatarstan, the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Yuga, and the Chelyabinsk Region.
On the culinary front, the restaurant Auyl and the bar Temple Bar were featured among the “50 Best Discovery” list, which is part of the global “The World’s 50 Best” rankings, a credible verification for gastronomy enthusiasts. Kazakhstan is becoming increasingly recognized as a tourism spot, appealing to discerning international travelers. Located within the premium eco-hotel Qazaq Auyl, owned by businessman Kairat Boranbaev, Auyl has previously garnered accolades from both local and international publications, according to Forbes.
The “50 Best Discovery” ranking is based on the votes of over 1,000 independent hospitality experts. This accomplishment follows previous encounters such as Qazaq Gourmet and Barmaglot Bar's inclusion on the global culinary platform.
Lastly, Irkutsk Region has asserted itself as one of Russia's fitness tourism hotspots, according to data from TVIL.RU booking service. The region has made its mark among the top destinations for fitness activities based on the number of hotel reservations near gyms and fitness centers.