Reuters. Britain was temporarily blocked from concluding a deal on the Chagos Islands with Mauritius on Thursday (May 22) after an eleventh-hour injunction by a London High Court judge, postponing an agreement aimed at securing the future of the U.S.-UK Diego Garcia air base. Britain had been set to sign the multi-billion dollar deal…
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has announced that the fifth round of indirect Iran-U.S. talks will be held on Friday, May 23, 2025, IRNA reports. Referring to the proposal put forward by Oman and its consultations to hold another round of Iran-U.S. talks on Friday in the Italian capital of Rome, the Foreign Ministry…
A Russian missile strike on a training exercise in Ukraine’s Sumy border region has killed six servicemen and wounded more than 10 others, says Ukraine’s National Guard, BBC reports. Russia’s defence ministry had earlier released a video purporting to show an Iskander missile attack on a training camp, and state news agency Tass said…
An Iranian man who had carried out a deadly armed attack on the Republic of Azerbaijan’s embassy in Tehran in January 2023 was executed on Wednesday morning, Tasnim reports. The assailant was hanged after an Iranian court found him guilty of first-degree murder of an Azeri national at the embassy with a firearm, illegal…
Iran has received a proposal regarding the timing and venue of a fifth round of talks with the United States toward resolving the crisis around the Islamic republic’s nuclear program, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said, TASS reports. “We have received a proposal regarding the next round of indirect talks between Iran and…
U.S. Vice President JD Vance extended an invitation to Pope Leo XIV to visit the United States during a meeting at the Vatican on Monday ahead of a flurry of U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to make progress on a ceasefire in Russia’s war in Ukraine, AP reports. Vance gave the first American pope a letter…
A telephone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Donald Trump has begun, Reuters reports, citing a White House spokesman. This is the third conversation between the presidents of Russia and the United States since Trump took office. The first time they spoke was on February 12, the second time on…
On May 17, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the initiative of the US side. The heads of foreign policy offices shared opinions on the outcomes of the Russian-Ukrainian talks held the previous day in Istanbul, the Russian Foreign Ministry has said in a statement….
Yesterday, at the Russian-Ukrainian talks in Istanbul, the head of the Moscow delegation, aide to the Russian President Vladimir Medinsky, stated that the Russians always get what belongs to them. “Those who demand a ceasefire before peaceful negotiations simply do not know history. Military operations have always been accompanied by negotiations,” Medinsky said, commenting…
Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Russia’s delegation at Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul, said on Friday after the negotiations that Moscow was satisfied with the results and was ready to keep talking to Kyiv, Reuters reports. Medinsky said Russia and Ukraine had agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each in the coming days,…
Reuters. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Thursday (May 15) Ukraine would decide on the next steps in talks with Russia after his meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Zelenskiy told reporters at Ankara’s airport that the level of the Russian delegation dispatched to Turkey for talks was a low rank and had an unclear…
The Georgian Parliament adopted a comprehensive statement condemning the Mobilising and Enhancing Georgia’s Options for Building Accountability, Resilience, and Independence Act or the MEGOBARI Act, with an overwhelming 87 votes in favour and no opposition, Georgian Public Broadcaster reports. The Georgian Parliament strongly condemns the U.S. House of Representatives’ adoption of the so-called MEGOBARI…
Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday offered to mediate between leaders of countries at war, saying that he himself “will make every effort so that this peace may prevail.” The new US pontiff, who became head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics last week, also called on Christians living in the Middle East not to abandon…
Former Uruguayan President José Mujica, known as “Pepe”, has died at the age of 89, BBC reports. The ex-guerrilla who governed Uruguay from 2010 to 2015 was known as the world’s “poorest president” because of his modest lifestyle. Current President Yamandú Orsi announced his predecessor’s death on X, writing: “thank you for everything…
Reuters. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, addressed the public in a recorded statement Monday (May 12), saying the return of Israeli hostage Edan Alexander was ‘a very emotional moment’. Netanyahu thanked the diplomatic efforts of Trump and stated Israel’s military pressure and Trump’s political pressure, were a ‘winning formula’. Hamas said it had…
Reuters. Libyan tanks and armoured vehicles were seen in the city of Tripoli on Tuesday (May 13) after armed clashes erupted following reports that an armed group leader was killed, three residents told Reuters by phone. Clashes erupted on Monday (May 12) evening and gunfire echoed in the city center and other parts of…
India reopened 32 airports across its northern and western regions on May 12, marking the end of a temporary shutdown imposed after heightened military tensions with Pakistan. The move followed a ceasefire agreement reached between the two countries on May 10, aimed at de-escalating hostilities that had flared after a deadly terror attack in Jammu…
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday (May 11) that he was “starting to doubt” that Ukraine will reach a ceasefire deal with Russia, and he urged Ukraine to meet with Russian officials in Turkey on Thursday to negotiate. “President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a Cease Fire Agreement with Ukraine, but…
The leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Poland paid tribute to the soldiers fallen in the war against Russia at the start of their visit to Kyiv on Saturday (May 10) in a show of unity a day after Russia’s Vladimir Putin hosted his allies at a Victory Day parade in Red Square, Reuters reports….
George Simion, the leader of the far-right Romanian party Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) who won the first round of the Romanian presidential elections, has demanded that Ukraine compensate his country for its assistance, Digi24 reports. Simion stated that his position on Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine is “neutrality, no escalation, no supplying…
US Vice President JD Vance has said that the US will not intervene in the conflict between Pakistan and India, calling fighting between the two nuclear powers “fundamentally none of our business”, The Guardian reports. The remarks came during an interview with Fox News, where the US vice-president said that the US would seek…
US President Donald Trump has called the election of the first American pope a “great honour” for the country and said he looks forward to meeting him, BBC reports. Trump is among the many American political figures applauding the historic appointment of Robert Francis Prevost, who will be known as Pope Leo XIV, to…
On 7-8 May 2025, Minister of Foreign Affairs Radosław Sikorski, together with the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, organised an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in the Gymnich formula in Warsaw. The meeting was also attended by British Foreign Minister David Lammy and ministers from…
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev will not travel to Moscow to participate in the events dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Victory, said Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov. In Baku, this was explained by Ilham’s participation in the events dedicated to the memory of his father, Heydar Aliyev. May 10 is the birthday of…
Ursula von der Leyen has ruled out, in no uncertain terms, the possibility of resuming purchases of Russian fossil fuels after the conclusion of the war in Ukraine, warning that doing so would represent a “mistake of historic dimensions” for Europe, Euronews reports. “To be very clear: the era of Russian fossil fuels in…
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday urged “maximum restraint” from India and Pakistan as a standoff between the two countries has continued to escalate, Reuters reports. Tensions between India and Pakistan are at their highest in years, the UN chief said. “I deeply respect and am profoundly grateful to the governments and people…
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan took X to thank his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock for the work she has done. “Thank you, dear Annalena Baerbock, for your dedication to strengthening Armenia-Germany relations, bringing Armenia closer to EU and for the efforts aimed at establishing peace in the South Caucasus. It’s been a pleasure to…
Three traffic police officers and two gunmen were killed in a shootout in the North Caucasus republic of Dagestan, authorities and media reported Monday. Eyewitness videos shared on social media showed officers firing their weapons in the capital city of Makhachkala as bystanders looked on. Dagestan regional head Sergei Melikov said the shootout…
Portugal’s caretaker government announced plans on Saturday to expel about 18,000 foreigners living in the country without legal permits or authorisation, Euronews reports. António Leitão Amaro, Minister of the Presidency, said the centre-right government will issue approximately 18,000 notifications to illegal migrants asking them to leave. According to Amaro, officials will begin next…
Yemen’s Houthi rebels said late on Sunday they would impose a “comprehensive” aerial blockade on Israel by repeatedly targeting its airports, in response to Israel expanding its operations in Gaza, Reuters reports. The Iran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility for a missile strike on Sunday that hit near Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, the latest in a…
