Author: Steven Sahiounie

Peter Szijjarto demanded that the OTP bank to be removed from the list of international war sponsors Budapest opposes a number of key provisions in the 11th package of sanctions on Russia developed by the European Commission and will not support giving any additional military assistance from the European Peace Facility until its OTP Bank is taken off of Ukraine’s list of international war sponsors, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Monday. He recalled that EU countries want to increase military assistance to Ukraine from the European Peace Facility to the tune of 500 million euro. “We demand the…

However, the US president still insisted he would arm Taiwan and “respond” to any attempts by Beijing to retake the island US President Joe Biden has told reporters that there will soon be a “thaw” in relations between Washignton and Beijing. With US sanctions still in place and the G7 leaders accusing China of posing a military and economic threat, Beijing questioned Biden’s “sincerity.” Speaking at a press conference on Sunday after the G7 leaders’ summit in Hiroshima, Japan, Biden said that diplomatic communication between the US and China ceased after the shootdown of an alleged Chinese surveillance balloon in American airspace in…

The endorsement comes ahead of Sunday’s runoff The third-place finisher in the Turkish presidential election, Sinan Ogan, has officially endorsed incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu for the runoff vote, scheduled for May 28. The endorsement was announced on Monday, after a surprise meeting between Ogan and Erdogan in Istanbul last Friday. No public statements were made after the meeting at the time. “On May 28, 2023, I am stating that we will support the candidate of the People’s Alliance, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the second round,” Ogan said in a statement, referring to the electoral alliance between…

Several writers, researchers and political analysts affirmed that the curtain on the 32nd Arab Summit will establish a new phase of joint cooperation between Arab countries, and true determination to get rid of past disagreements and move towards the future. The Saudi writer and political analyst, Ali al-Jassem said that Syria is a founding country of the League of Arab States, and its decision to resume meetings opens a new and important phase in Arab history whose motto is security and stability. In his turn, Dr. Muhammad bin Saleh al-Harbi, a specialist in strategic studies and political sciences, noted that…

The chancellor described the Republican frontrunner as divisive while praising the incumbent president for his experience German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed his support for Joe Biden in next year’s US presidential election, saying the incumbent president is better suited for the top job thanks to his extensive experience in politics. Speaking to pupils at a primary school near Berlin on Monday, Scholz was asked who he wants to win, Biden or Trump. He replied that the “current president is better” and that he hopes he will be re-elected, arguing that that 80-year-old Democrat knows “what you have to do…

This comes after news broke out that a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group had infiltrated the territory of the Grayvoronsky district of the region. Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said that three people were sent to hospital after a shelling struck Russia’s town of Grayvoron on Monday. Earlier this morning, the Governor said that a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group had penetrated the territory of the Grayvoronsky district of the region. “There are three more victims in Grayvoron, two men and one woman with shrapnel wounds, they are in the hospital in a state of moderate severity. All necessary medical…

Activities of The 49th edition of Arab Labor conference kicked off in Cairo on Monday amid wide welcome of the participation of the Syrian delegation and the return of Syria to assume its role at the Arab League. On the sidelines of the opening ceremony, the member countries elected President of the Syrian Trade Unions, Jamal al-Qaderi, as head of the workers’ team at the conference. “Issues have returned to their normal when Syria was back to its seat at the Arab League,” Mohammad Shehata, Minister of Manpower in Egypt said in a speech. Iraqi Labor Minister, Ahmad al-Assadi, for his…

Europe may have done a good job in reducing its dependency on Russian oil and gas and mitigating an energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine but it’s “not out of the woods” yet, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) told CNBC. “Europe was able to transform its energy markets, reduce its share of Russian gas to less than 4%, and its economy still didn’t go through a recession,” Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director told CNBC’s Martin Soong on Sunday. “Europe emissions have declined … and gas storage is at very decent levels,” Birol said, speaking…

As a possible debt default looms just 11 days away, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., will meet in person at the White House on Monday to resume negotiations around the debt ceiling, NBC News reports. McCarthy told reporters that he had a “productive” call with Biden on Sunday, and that staff members for both parties will resume talks later that same day. A White House spokesperson confirmed to NBC News that staff would restart negotiations at 6 p.m. Sunday, and that Biden and McCarthy will meet on Monday. It is not yet known what time the meeting will begin,…

There’s plenty of optimism about Thailand due to its tourism potential, but political headwinds could still be a game-changer, says Kelvin Tay from UBS Global Wealth Management. While Thailand stands to be a “big beneficiary” of China’s reopening and an expected tourism boost, so far, outbound tourism from China has been “pretty meager,” Tay told CNBC “Squawk Box Asia” Thursday. China’s employment numbers need to go up first, he added. Thailand also needs to reinvest in infrastructure and rebuild at a faster rate, said Tay. The country had plans to build up infrastructure on its eastern seaboard side via new ports…