Author: Steven Sahiounie

Credit Suisse was forced to write down billions worth of bonds as part of its merger with UBS The merger between Switzerland’s two largest lenders, the embattled Credit Suisse and UBS, could have a negative impact on the entire Western bond market, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing analysts. UBS agreed on Sunday to acquire its rival, which was on the brink of insolvency due to the loss of investor and customer confidence, for 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.24 billion) in stock. The deal, brokered by the Swiss authorities, came with a 9-billion-franc government guarantee for potential losses from Credit Suisse…

Moldova says that Russian energy giant Gazprom may completely halt gas supplies to the country “at a certain stage,” and the government is already considering such a scenario, Energy Minister Viktor Parlikov said on Monday. In an interview with Vocea Basarabiei TV channel, he noted that in such a case, Chisinau would also have to “deal with an energy crisis in Transdnistria.” Moldova reportedly sends the entire volume of gas it receives from Russia to a hydro power plant on the left bank of the Dniester in Transdnistria, its breakaway self-governing region, receiving cheap electricity in exchange. “Now all the gas that reaches…

According to the German leader, the West should continue to support Kiev German Chancellor Olaf Scholz does not rule out that the conflict in Ukraine may be a prolonged one. “We have to be prepared for the fact that it can take a long time,” DPA quoted Scholz as saying in Dusseldorf on Monday. According to the German leader, the West should continue to support Kiev. “Ukraine must be able to defend its integrity and independence,” Scholz added. The German chancellor said he did not expect the war in Ukraine to end any time soon in an interview with Handelsblatt on March…

Banks have been ordered to use the country’s domestic financial messaging systems for transactions The Bank of Russia has forbidden Russian financial institutions to use the SWIFT messaging system for transactions inside the country, the regulator announced on Monday. Starting from October, Russian banks will be obliged to only use domestic services for transferring messages on financial transactions. The use of SWIFT will be allowed only for international payments. “This will ensure reliability, continuity and security of data exchange when conducting intra-Russian transactions,” the regulator said in a statement. Information on such transactions will now need to be transmitted through the…

The United States does not think that by such actions they are adding fuel and provoking the expansion of the geography of the Ukrainian crisis, Anatoly Antonov said The United States has been causing the geography of the Ukrainian crisis to expand and it turns a blind eye to the corrupt Kiev regime, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said on Monday. Commenting on a new $350 million package of US military aid for Ukraine, he said, “Washington is obsessed with the idea of inflicting a strategic defeat on our country. With its steps, the [US] administration is only…

The exit of Western and Japanese companies has provided an opportunity to rising industry players Chinese auto makers have embarked on a major expansion in the Russian market and are expected to reach a 60% share of total sales this year, the newspaper Izvestia reported on Monday, citing car-dealer chain Autodom. According to the report, in the first half of 2022 the share of Chinese car brands in the Russian market stood at 3.7%, a figure that rose to almost 33% in the second half. Overall car sales in Russia last year decreased by 58.8% to 687,000 units, the Association…

The issue of children “brought to Russia forcefully” is totally overblown, Vasily Nebenzya said Russia intends to return children who have been evacuated from the conflict zone to Ukraine when the conditions there are safe enough for that, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya said at a news conference on Monday. “We wanted to spare them of the danger that military activities may” pose. “That is it. The issue of children `brought to Russia forcefully’ is totally” overblown, Nebenzya said. “We want to show it at the [UN Security Council] Arria formula meeting (scheduled for early April -…

The coordinated action is aimed at easing concerns over the state of the global financial system amid the banking crisis The US Federal Reserve and five other major central banks launched a coordinated effort on Sunday to boost the flow of US dollars in the global financial system via swap line arrangements, the regulators announced in a joint statement. Apart from the Fed, the action was joined by the Bank of Canada, Bank of England, Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, and Swiss National Bank. The move will “enhance the provision of liquidity via the standing US dollar liquidity…

Former Iranian Foreign Minister and Head of Iran Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, in a meeting with the Minister of Awqaf (Religious Endowments), said: “We must prevent western conspiracy to divide Islamic countries.” Kamal Kharrazi, former Iran Foreign Minister and Head of Iran Strategic Council on Foreign Relations arrived in Damascus on Sunday for a three-day visit to meet with senior Syrian officials. Abbas Araghchi, the secretary of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations accompanies him on the trip. During his stay in Damascus, Kamal Kharrazi met Syria’s Minister of Awqaf (Religious Endowments) Mohammad Abdul-Sattar al-Sayyed. In the meeting, the parties discussed countering the spread…

The situation in the Zaporozhye region has sharply escalated recently. A major offensive of the Ukrainian military in the area aimed at smashing the Russian grouping in the Donbass and advancing towards the Sea of Azov is expected to begin in the coming weeks. On March 19, Ukrainian forces launched the combat reconnaissance operation to the South of Orekhov. They attacked Russian positions near Novodanilovka with up to two battalions fully equipped by NATO. The Ukrainian column was quickly detected by Russian drones. It was shelled by artillery and struck with ATGMs. The shooting battle broke out in the area.…