Reuters. Firefighters battled the flames of a wildfire in Turkey’s northwestern province of Bursa as it entered its third day on Monday (July 28).   The fire in the Harmancik district was stoked by high winds after it was largely contained earlier in the day. Locals used whatever means at their disposal to battle the…

Moscow is interested in accelerating the process of normalizing relations with Washington but an effort on both sides will be needed for that, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.   “Certainly, we would like to see stronger momentum, and we are committed to that. However, moving forward requires impetus from both sides,” Peskov emphasized,…

Donald Trump has presented a new, shorter deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire over the war in Ukraine of “ten or 12 days” from Monday, BBC reports.   The US president said there was “no reason” in waiting any longer as no progress towards peace had been made.   Two weeks ago, Trump…

Cambodia and Thailand agreed to an “immediate and unconditional ceasefire” from midnight (1700 GMT) on Monday, in a bid to halt their deadliest conflict in more than a decade after five days of fierce fighting that has displaced more than 300,000 people, Reuters reports.   After days of efforts by Malaysia, chair of the ASEAN…

The United States and European Union have agreed a trade deal, ending a months-long standoff between two of the world’s biggest economic partners, BBC reports.   After make-or-break negotiations between President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Scotland, the pair agreed a US tariff on all EU goods of 15%….

Military confrontation or escalation between Armenia and Azerbaijan is not on the agenda, Hikmat Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan said in an interview with the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung.   According to Hajiyev, efforts are currently underway to sign a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia:   “Sometimes countries sign peace agreements on…

Two people died in Rostov region of Russia, when a drone fell on their car, Russian media report.    Air defenses shot down 54 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions last night, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.   “On-duty air defenses intercepted and destroyed 54 Ukrainian fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles last night. Twenty-four drones…

President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said on Thursday that the US is cutting short Gaza ceasefire talks and bringing home its negotiating team from Qatar for consultations after the latest response from Hamas “shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza.” “While the mediators have made a great effort, Hamas…

The United Nations Security Council is due to hold an emergency meeting on Friday to discuss the ongoing border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia, DW reports.   A long-running border dispute erupted into intense fighting on Thursday, with violence flaring near two temples on the border between Thailand’s Surin province and Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey.  …

The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline got Caspian oil with organic chlorides, which can damage the refinery equipment. Some parties have reached Europe, EA Daily reports.   The oil supplied via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline contains oil with organic chlorides, which are used to increase the extraction of raw materials. British BP reported that it is…

Iran has agreed to allow a technical team from the U.N. nuclear watchdog to visit in the coming weeks to discuss “a new modality” on relations between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Tehran, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday, according to Reuters.   “The delegation will come to Iran to…

Reuters. Russian negotiators flew to Turkey to hold peace talks with Ukraine on Wednesday (July 23), the Kremlin said, before what will be the first direct discussions between the warring sides in more than seven weeks.   Russia played down expectations of any breakthrough at the meeting, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said this week…

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov emphasized that there are real opportunities for sustainable peace with Armenia.   During a joint press conference with his Georgian counterpart Maka Bochorishvili in Tbilisi, the minister noted that the Armenia-Azerbaijan settlement was thoroughly discussed during today’s talks with Bochorishvili.   “We provided detailed information on developments. The prospects for…

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has renewed calls for the European Union to restart accession talks with Turkey, asserting that the bloc would benefit from admitting what he described as a “dynamic and solution-oriented” member, EU Today reports. Speaking on Monday, Erdogan said that the EU “should not wait even a day” to revive and advance…

Sources revealed to Ma’an News Agency that the exchange deal will see the light of day within a few days.   Sources indicated that Hamas had responded positively to the proposed proposal, which includes a 60-day truce and a prisoner exchange.   Ma’an’s sources estimate that the deal will be signed and announced during this…

The Kremlin said on Monday, July 21, that Russia-Azerbaijan relations are currently going through a challenging phase, but Moscow remains hopeful for improvement as the two countries share common interests.   “Sometimes it happens that difficult periods occur in relations between two countries. Now is one of those periods. We hope that this period will…

The European Union welcomes the ceasefire agreement reached between Syria and Israel, with the support of the United States and regional partners, The Diplomatic Service of the European Union said in a statement.   “The ceasefire must now be fully respected. We urge all parties to immediately stop all acts of violence, to protect all…

An Iranian lawmaker warned the European troika that their bid to trigger the snapback provisions of the 2015 nuclear deal would compel Iran to take a series of measures in retaliation, including withdrawal from the NPT and uranium enrichment above 60 percent purity.   Speaking to Iranian Tasnim news agency, Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for the…

In President Erdoğan’s phone call with Russian President Putin, bilateral relations between Turkey and Russia, as well as regional and global issues, were discussed.   According to a statement made on the social media account of the Presidential Directorate of Communications, bilateral relations between Turkey and Russia, as well as regional and global issues, were…

Reuters. The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives early on Friday (July 18) passed President Donald Trump’s $9 billion funding cut to public media and foreign aid, sending it to the White House to be signed into law.   The chamber voted 216 to 213 in favor of the funding cut package, altered by the Senate…

Reuters. Several explosions were seen and loud blasts heard over northern Gaza in the early morning on Friday (July 18).   The blasts came after Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. presented Israel and Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas with an updated Gaza ceasefire proposal, Axios reported on Thursday (July 17), citing sources.   Israeli and…

On July 17, the Verhovna Rada of Ukraine approved the appointment of Yulia Svyrydenko as Prime Minister of Ukraine, Ukrainian media report.   262 elected representatives voted for Svyrydenko’s appointment.   Yulia Svyrydenko became the 19th Prime Minister of Ukraine, and the second woman to hold the position.   On July 15, Denis Shmyhal resigned…

The process for approving supplies of Patriot air defense systems as part of a deal between the US and NATO is still ongoing and the German Defense Ministry denies reports that deliveries have already been launched, the ministry’s spokesman Mitko Mueller told reporters at a briefing, TASS reports.   “Specific terms, including which systems will…

Israel has struck the headquarters of the Syrian military and close to the presidential palace in the capital Damascus, compounding a volatile situation on the ground and following through on its threats over clashes between Syrian government troops and Druze fighters in the southern Syrian city of Suwayda, AL Jazeera reports.   Israeli Defence Minister…

Reuters. The European Union did not approve new Russia sanctions on Tuesday (July 15), EU’s foreign Chief Kaja Kallas said after a meeting with EU foreign ministers in Brussels.   She said she was “really sad” the sanctions did not get approved, but hopeful a deal will be reached on Wednesday, adding that the ball…

Reuters. The Kremlin said on Tuesday (July 15) that U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent statements, including a threat of sanctions on buyers of Russian exports, are serious and require analysis.   In a major policy shift underscoring his growing frustration with President Vladimir Putin, Trump on Monday announced new deliveries of weapons to Ukraine and…

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met U.S. special envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg on Monday in the capital Kyiv, where they discussed boosting Ukraine’s air defences and Kyiv buying weapons with European help.   The meeting took place the day after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would send Patriot air defence missiles to Ukraine and ahead…

The format of direct peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev in Istanbul has “practically exhausted itself” due to Russia’s “maximalist” demands, Ukrainian First Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Kislitsa has claimed, RT reports.   Russia and Ukraine have met for two rounds of direct negotiations in Türkiye this year, restarting talks that Kiev unilaterally abandoned in…

France on Saturday announced a “historic” accord with New Caledonia in which the overseas territory, rocked by deadly separatist violence last year, would remain French but be declared a new state, France 24 reports.   President Emmanuel Macron had called for talks to break a deadlock between forces loyal to France and those wanting independence,…

At least 28 people were killed in the Gaza Strip in Israeli airstrikes. According to media reports, four children and two women were among at least 13 people killed in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, late yesterday. Another four people were killed in strikes near a fuel station, and 15 others died in Israeli airstrikes…