The Russian presidential press secretary has refused to comment on the Aktau plane crash until the investigation is complete. Dmitry Peskov noted that the Kremlin has seen statements from Baku that Russia should apologize for shooting down the Azerbaijani plane with air defense. “The incident is under investigation, and until the results of the…
The second black box has been found at the plane crash site near Aktau and handed over to the investigation department, according to a Kazakh official from transport department on Thursday, Reuters reports. The Embraer 190 aircraft operated by Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 from Baku to Grozny crashed near Aktau Airport in Kazakhstan on…
The Georgian Parliament has confirmed that diplomats accredited to Georgia will not be invited to the December 29 inauguration of Mikheil Kavelashvili, the elected president representing the ruling Georgian Dream party, Front News Georgia reports. The press center of the parliament cited a “shortage of seats in the meeting hall” as the reason for…
Reuters. Yemen’s Houthi group said it carried out two drone operations targeting Israeli positions on Wednesday (December 25). In a televised statement, the group’s military spokesman, Yahya Sarea, said the first operation targeted a “sensitive and vital target” in Tel Aviv. The second drone attack targeted a military industrial area of Ashkelon in…
US president-elect Donald Trump said he would cut the taxes for Canadians, if the country joins USA as a state. In his Christmas message on Truth Social Trump first “greeted” saying: Merry Christmas to all, including to the wonderful soldiers of China, who are lovingly, but illegally, operating the Panama Canal (where we lost 38,000…
Panama’s President Jose Raul Mulino reaffirmed the country’s sovereignty over the Panama Canal in a statement signed alongside three former presidents of the country on Tuesday in response to recent threats made by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to take control of the canal, Reuters reports. Calling the Panama Canal “a vital national asset for…
All structures of the OSCE Minsk Conference, the Minsk Group and the High-Level Planning Group should be dissolved, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said today. ‘The mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs on the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement approved by the OSCE has lost its relevance. And it all started with the blocking of…
The West and Kiev are now only talking about a ceasefire in Ukraine, which does not suit Moscow as it needs legally binding guarantees, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, TASS reports. “As for the essence of the conversations that are now taking place in the West and in Ukraine: they are talking exclusively…
The Danish government has announced a huge boost in defence spending for Greenland, hours after US President-elect Donald Trump repeated his desire to purchase the Arctic territory, BBC reports. Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the package was a “double digit billion amount” in krone, or at least $1.5bn (£1.2bn). He described…
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is returning to Baku from Russia after an Azerbaijani airliner crashed in Kazakhstan. He had arrived there to attend an informal meeting of CIS leaders. According to preliminary data, there were 37 people from Azerbaijan, 6 from Kazakhstan, 3 from Kyrgyzstan and 16 from Russia on board the plane.
Reuters. Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa reached an agreement on Tuesday (December 24) with former rebel faction chiefs to dissolve all groups and consolidate them under the defence ministry, according to a statement from the new administration. Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir had said last week that the ministry would be restructured using former…
Armenian Foreign Minister thanks his Romanian outgoing counterpart Luminita Odobescu and congratulates Emil Hurezeanu on his appointment. “Dear Luminita Odobescu, I appreciate our close cooperation on enhancement of Armenia’s partnership with EU, and strengthening our bilateral ties. Extending warm congratulations to Emil Hurezeanu on his appointment as Foreign Minister of Romania, I look forward…
Germany with regret – stopped projects with Georgia state worth €237 million, Peter Fischer, German ambassador to Georgia, said. “Svenja Schulze Federal Minister Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development react to Georgia leaving EU path and crackdown on protests. We stopped finance of green hydrogen,…
Suren Papikyan, Armenia’s Defence Minister congratulated Sébastien Lecornu on his reappointment ad French Minister of Armed Forces. “Dear Sébastien Lecornu, my warmest congratulations on your reappointment as head of Ministry of Armed Forces of France. I am convinced that during your renewed mandate, we will continue to work together to strengthen and further develop…
US President Joe Biden announced Monday that he is taking 37 people off federal death row to serve out life sentences behind bars — a decision that leaves only three federal prisoners awaiting execution when President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month, CNN reports. “Today, I am commuting the sentences of 37 of the…
The Baghdad Karkh Appeals Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Iraq’s Federal Oil Ministry seeking to nullify oil contracts established by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), marking an important legal victory for the Kurdistan Region’s energy sector. Sabah Subhi, a member of the Iraqi Parliament’s Oil and Gas Committee, told Kurdistan24 that the…
US President-elect Donald Trump has demanded Panama reduce fees on the Panama Canal or return it to US control, accusing the central American country of charging “exorbitant prices” to American shipping and naval vessels, BBC reports. “The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous, highly unfair,” he told a crowd of supporters in Arizona…
After Donald Trump demanded the return of the Panama Canal under the US’s control, the President-elect has now said that he wanted to buy and control Greenland, asserting it was an “absolute necessity”. Greenland is a part of the North American continent but is controlled by Denmark, India Today reports. “For purposes of national…
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that “Whatever sanctions EU member states agree on, we’ll back them,” Hungary Today reports. In an interview with public news channel M1 on Sunday, he stressed that “strategic composure is necessary in time of war.” Orbán reiterated his position that Hungary must “concentrate efforts on staying out of…
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday went to Magdeburg to voice his sympathy and support for the victims of a Christmas market attack that killed five people and left more than 200 injured, Reuters reports. “What a terrible act it is to injure and kill so many people there with such brutality,” Scholz said….
The spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Saturday that a local employee of Iran’s embassy in Damascus was killed last week after being shot in his vehicle in the city, Iran International reports. Esmaeil Baghaei said that Davood Bitaraf was killed by “terrorists” and added that the Syrian transitional government is responsible for “identifying,…
Police in the German city of Magdeburg have so far confirmed the deaths of four people in a car ramming attack on a Christmas market, the Bild newspaper reports. According to the law enforcement agencies, a total of 205 people suffered injuries, with 41 being in critical condition. Reiner Haseloff, the premier of…
The European Commission has proposed suspending parts of the EU-Georgia Visa Facilitation Agreement, targeting Georgian diplomats, officials, and their families, civil.ge reports. If adopted by the Council, these individuals would need visas for short stays in the EU (up to 90 days in any 180-day period), losing privileges such as reduced fees, shorter application…
The European Union will deliver additional 30 billion euros of financial support to Ukraine in 2025, EU’s Council President Antonio Costa said on Thursday (December 19) after meeting with EU leaders in Brussels, Reuters reports. Costa added that the EU already delivered about 130 billion euros of financial support to Ukraine since the beginning…
At a meeting with journalists organized by the Charter of Journalistic Ethics, EU Ambassador to Georgia, Pawel Herczynski, expressed gratitude and solidarity with journalists for their “dedication” and “selflessness” in carrying out their professional duties, calling attacks on them “disgusting” and noted that the EU-Georgia relations are at the lowest point ever “because of a…
The UK has sanctioned five senior individuals responsible for violent attacks against journalists and peaceful protestors in Georgia, in coordinated action with the United States, the UK government website said. The statement continues as follows: “Georgia’s authorities began a systematic crackdown on demonstrations, civil society, media and opposition figures following public opposition to…
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he was ready to meet US President-elect Donald Trump “anytime”. “I don’t know when we will meet because he doesn’t say anything about it. I haven’t spoken to him at all for over four years. And I am ready for this, of course, at any time. And…
Overnight, the Rostov Region in southern Russia came under a massive attack, acting governor Yury Slyusar said. “Last night, the Rostov Region came under a massive attack from the enemy that used more than 30 unmanned aerial vehicles and three projectiles for that. Air defenses were activated to protect Taganrog, Bataisk, Rostov, Shakhty, Kamensk,…
On 17 December, a group of MEPs held a rally in support of journalists and activists arrested in Azerbaijan. MEPs from different political groups called to put an end to repression against civil society and independent media in Azerbaijan. On 18 December, within the framework of the Plenary Session of the European Parliament,…
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron held a telephone call on Wednesday focusing on bilateral relations and key regional issues, particularly Syria. “The call addressed relations between Türkiye and France as well as regional and global matters,” the Turkish Communications Directorate said on X. Erdogan voiced his approval…
