Author: Steven Sahiounie

The regulator expects the country’s GDP to increase by up to 2% this year and return to 2021 growth levels next year The Bank of Russia kept the key interest rate unchanged and improved the country’s economic growth forecast at a regulatory meeting on Friday. The key rate has been kept at 7.5% amid falling inflation and lower inflation expectations, as well as the swift growth of economic activity. The rate has remained unchanged since September of last year. “Economic activity is growing faster than the Bank of Russia assumed in February’s forecast. This reflects both an expansion in domestic…

Local energy resources can be used to partly compensate, President Nikos Christodoulidis believes Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulidis has proposed that the EU use natural gas from the eastern Mediterranean as a replacement for Russian supplies, which make up a shrinking percentage of the bloc’s energy sources since Ukraine-related sanctions came into effect last year. In an interview on Friday, the head of the island nation said that the region could cover about 15%-16% of the bloc’s gas needs over the next 25 years. “Europe’s greatest weakness in the current crisis with Ukraine… is its energy dependence on Russian gas. The eastern Mediterranean…

For the ninth day in a row, the ancient city of Jericho in the occupied West Bank remains under a suffocating Israeli military siege, with checkpoints stifling Palestinian traffic on all the entrances to the city. Temporary military checkpoints have been set up by the Israeli occupation army at all the main entrances to Jericho since last week, resulting in traffic jams and unusually long queues of vehicles as soldiers thoroughly inspect drivers and commuters’ identity cards and their belongings. Palestinians trying to leave the city or enter it and those wanting to travel abroad who have to go through…

The UK has already provided Kiev with a whopping £2.3 billion in military assistance, remaining its second largest donor after the US. Russia has repeatedly warned that such aid is only prolonging the Ukrainian conflict. Britain plans to purchase long-range missiles for Kiev within the framework of the UK­­-led International Fund for Ukraine, according to an announcement published on the British government’s website. In line with the Urgent bidding round initiative, which expires on May 4, No 10, in particular, expects to gain so-called expressions of interest from “suppliers across the globe for land, sea or air launch missiles or…

During Russia’s presidency “all events implied by the Council’s mandate and reporting and cycle in April were held,” the Russian Foreign Ministry noted The Russian side managed to ensure the efficient work of the UN Security Council despite the heated environment due to Western delegations’ efforts, according to a statement released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Sunday following Russia’s UN Security Council presidency in April 2023. “On April 30, Russia’s UN Security Council presidency ends. Despite the very heated environment in the Security Council due to Western delegations’ efforts, we managed to ensure the efficient work of this crucial…

Meanwhile, Moscow expects return moves as well, Chairman of the Russian State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky noted Russia will not leave Cuba alone with problems connected with grain and fuel provision, while Moscow expects return moves as well, Chairman of the Russian State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky told reporters on Saturday. “We are ready to offer much to Cuba, and we will not leave [Cuba] alone in what concerns fuel, what concerns grain, what concerns things the republic seriously need today,” he said. Meanwhile, Moscow expects return moves as well, the lawmaker noted. “We have relevant…

Aoun says that the process of integrating displaced Syrians into the Lebanese society is “a dangerous matter.” Lebanese Former President Michel Aoun said that Lebanon, in coordination and agreement with Syria, returned 500,000 displaced Syrians to their homes, indicating that the Syrians breaking Lebanese law are not considered political refugees. Aoun stressed that “most European countries do not want to return the displaced Syrians to their country,” pointing out that the attempts made by some countries to integrate them into Lebanese society is “a dangerous matter.” Likewise, Aoun believed that “whoever destroyed Syria and funded the war against it must…

Amman is preparing to host a meeting with the foreign ministers of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Syria in order to find solutions to the Syrian crisis. Amman is preparing to host a meeting of the foreign ministers of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad, on Monday. Sinan Al-Majali, the official spokesperson for the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, said the meeting comes as a continuation of the consultative meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt, which was hosted by Saudi Arabia in Jeddah on April 14th. According to Majali, the summit aims to build on contacts made by…

Al-Quds Brigades announce that their Resistance fighters confronted the Israeli occupation forces with intense fire. Palestinian Resistance fighters confronted Israeli occupation forces during their storming of the city of Tulkarm early Sunday. The storming Israeli units, which were protected by a large number of military vehicles, unexpectedly fell under Resistance bullets that were already anticipating them, forcing them to withdraw from the city. The Al-Quds Brigades’ Tulkarm Brigade confirmed that its fighters confronted the occupation forces that stormed the city and carried out attacks against them from multiple fronts, while the Jenin Brigade announced targeting with direct bullets two occupation…

According to Israeli channel 13, Raisi will hold a series of meetings with President of Syria Bashar Al-Assad during a two-day visit to Damascus next week. Israeli media reported on Saturday that the upcoming visit of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Syria should be a cause of worry for “Israel.” Israeli Channel 13 pointed out that the Iranian President will apparently arrive in Syria on Wednesday to hold a series of meetings with President Bashar Al-Assad during a two-day visit. According to Channel 13, the worrying part for the occupation is that Iran wants to unify the axis of resistance- Hezbollah, Hamas, and…