Author: Steven Sahiounie

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Thursday called for an international investigation into reports of US biological laboratories in Ukraine and other countries. “Published reports about US military biological laboratories in Ukraine and in some other countries cause serious concern. An impartial international investigation is needed,” Kanaani tweeted. Earlier in April, the Russian parliament approved the report of a parliamentary commission investigating the activities of US biological laboratories in Ukraine. The report claims that there are at least 30 US biological laboratories currently operating in Ukraine, with the Pentagon as the main customer. This raises concerns about the military…

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian highlighted the Islamic Republic’s resolve to strengthen ties with Japan. Amirabdollahian, in a phone conversation with his Japanese counterpart Hayashi Yoshimasa on Wednesday, expressed Tehran’s commitment to further deepening ties with Tokyo. He also said Iran views diplomacy and dialogue as the only viable solution to current regional and global challenges. According to a statement issued by Iran’s foreign ministry, the Japanese foreign minister, for his part, said friendly relations between Tehran and Tokyo were of high importance. The two top diplomats also discussed ongoing efforts aimed at the revival of the nuclear deal, known…

Assets of the Bank of Russia cannot be simply transferred to Ukraine, EC experts said Lawyers of the European Commission (EC) have arrived at a conclusion that assets of the Bank of Russia frozen in the EU will have to be returned to Russia after the end of the conflict in Ukraine, Die Welt newspaper said on Thursday, citing an unpublished EC document. Assets of the Bank of Russia cannot be simply transferred to Ukraine, EC experts said. “There is political will but legal barriers are high. The European Commission comes to a sobering conclusion that frozen assets cannot be touched since…

France’s largest unions confirm that the demonstrations will not stop even if the reform plan is adopted tomorrow. Protesters clashed with French security forces on Thursday across the country, objecting to the pension reforms undertaken by Macron’s government one day ahead of the final decision by the Constitutional Council to pass the bill, some of it, or dismiss it entirely. Public outrage has erupted for months over the pension plan – which adopts a two-year extension of the current retirement age to 64. Large numbers of security forces were deployed in the vicinity of the Constitutional Council, which is based…

The region must be one of cooperation and security for everyone, Dmitry Peskov has said Despite efforts from Kiev, the Black Sea will never be the domain of NATO, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday. He was commenting on a speech by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba, who called for the military bloc to devise a new strategy for the region. Speaking at the Black Sea Security Conference in Bucharest, Romania, Kuleba urged the West to “work out a comprehensive security network for all nations… that feel threatened.” He insisted that it is “time to turn [the] Black Sea into what…

The foreign ministers of Russia, China and Iran and Pakistan’s minister of state for foreign affairs released a joint statement after a meeting in Uzbekistan’s Samarkand on Thursday within the framework of a ministerial conference of Afghanistan’s neighboring countries. The meeting is proceeding in a closed format, in which the top diplomats of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan also took part. The diplomats discussed steps on facilitating Afghanistan’s political settlement, the stabilization of the humanitarian and socio-economic situation in the country as well as the development of regional economic integration and the implementation of transport and energy projects with Kabul’s participation.…

Wagner fighters continue the operation to encircle and destroy the Ukrainian grouping in Bakhmut. The head of Wagner PMC confirmed that 80% of the city is under Russian control, including all administrative buildings, factories and plants. In their turn, Ukrainian units, including various Special Forces, nationalist battalions reinforced by numerous foreign mercenaries, continue to hold their positions in the residential areas in the west of the city. Units of the Russian Ministry of Defense, including the Airborne Forces, covered the flanks in the Bakhmut region, allowing Wagner fighters to concentrate on the street battles and in Khromovo. On the northern…

The former US president has warned that incompetent leaders and advanced weaponry have imperiled humanity more than ever The world has been pushed to the brink of total destruction by inept leaders and nuclear weapons that are 500 times as powerful as the atomic bombs that American forces dropped on Japan during World War II, former US president Donald Trump has claimed. “Look, we could end up in World War III over this whole thing,” Trump said in a Fox News interview that was aired on Wednesday night. He added, “I believe it is the most dangerous period of time in history…

US Attorney General Merrick Garland confirms that the suspect will make an initial appearance in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The FBI on Thursday arrested an employee of the US Air Force National Guard over the online leaks of classified US documents that embarrassed Washington with allies around the world. US Attorney General Merrick Garland confirmed that US law enforcement arrested a military servicemember as a suspect in connection with a leak of classified defense information online. “Today, the Justice Department arrested Jack Douglas Teixeira in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of…

The Egyptian and Turkish FMs hold talks in Ankara on strengthening bilateral relations and expanding cooperation in the political, economic, and cultural spheres. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Thursday announced that Turkey and Egypt agree on improving bilateral ties and raising diplomatic relations to the highest level. “We are taking concrete steps to raise representation to the level of embassies. In the coming period, we will inform you with a joint statement,” Cavusoglu indicated at a news conference with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry in Ankara. Shoukry visited Ankara for the third round of talks with his Turkish counterpart in two months.…