Author: Steven Sahiounie

Iran’s successful experience in nullifying sanctions amid exacerbation of anti-Russian pressures following Ukraine crisis has paved the way for bolstering convergence between Moscow and Tehran; so, Western observers think that the Islamic Republic’s role in the bilateral ties is changing, emphasizing that Tehran is turning into a strategic partner of Kremlin. Iran-Russia strategic ties, including 20-year agreement, have made Western officials concerned; thus, they attempted to propagate Russophobic comments in a bid to strain relationship between the two countries; and now following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent trip to Tehran, the Westerners restarted their plots to hurt the cooperation. Iran…

Serbia’s interior minister says that foreign spies have pressed him to take anti-Russia stance. A major foreign intelligence service has been pressing Serbian Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin on his stance toward Russia and China. Within this context, the minister is anticipating that a large media campaign against him will begin next week. “One of the largest intelligence services in the world, if not the largest, told me that my stance was unacceptable and that if I do not change [it] and do not abandon the policy that I am pursuing … then I will not be a member of the…

A military base housing Turkish troops in northern Iraq was targeted in a rocket attack on Sunday evening. It came days after a fatal shelling blamed on Turkey hit a village in the Arab country’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. A source told Shafaq News Agency that a rocket landed in the vicinity of Zelikan camp in the district of Bashiqa near Mosul City on Sunday evening. According to the security source, no casualties were reported in the attack, which was the second of its kind in the past few days. Other sources said that a resistance group dubbed Saraya Awliya al-Dam…

The Chinese diplomat specified that Beijing sees a peace deal as the only effective way to de-escalate in Ukraine Washington should assist in promoting a Russian-Ukrainian dialogue for peace instead of working towards including Russia in its list of state sponsors of terrorism, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Monday. “The US should create favorable conditions to advance Russian-Ukrainian peace talks. Washington should take steps to facilitate a political settlement to the crisis in Ukraine,” he said at a briefing replying to a question by TASS as to how officials in Beijing view the US government’s intention of…

Russian military reporters shared the video showing the destroyed Caesar self-propelled howitzer supplied by France to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This is the first Caesar which destruction was confirmed. The CAESAR (Camion Équipé d’un Système d’Artillerie) is a French self-propelled 155 mm self-propelled howitzer. Manufactured by the partly state-owned arms maker Nexter Systems, the CAESAR is mounted on a six-wheeled truck chassis. The howitzer can fire up to six rounds per minute and has a firing range of around 42 kilometers using ERFB [extended range, full bore] shells, and up to 55 kilometers using rocket assisted shells. French President…

On July 25th, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) reported that the military intelligence service of Ukraine attempted to steal Russian aircraft. The attempt was thwarted by Russian security forces. Ukrainian intelligence officers supervised by the NATO special services tried to recruit Russian military pilots. They were promised $2 million as well as European passports for them and their families if they cross the Russian border on Russian military aircraft and fly to airfields controlled by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The SBU planned to hijack a Su-24 bomber, a Su-34 fighter and a Tu-22 M3 supersonic…

‘Gepard’ anti-aircraft systems and ammunition have been delivered to Ukraine, the country’s defense minister says Ukraine has received its first shipment of German ‘Gepard’ anti-aircraft systems, as well as thousands of rounds of suitable ammunition, according to a statement made by Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov on Monday. “We are waiting for the first 15 Gepards. Three have arrived in Ukraine today. They are already at the disposal of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Reznikov said on national television. “These are anti-aircraft systems, for which tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition have been transferred to us.” Germany had previously promised to…

Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google said on Friday it has dismissed a senior software engineer who claimed the company’s artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot LaMDA was a self-aware person. Google, which placed software engineer Blake Lemoine on leave last month, said he had violated company policies and that it found his claims on LaMDA to be “wholly unfounded.” “It’s regrettable that despite lengthy engagement on this topic, Blake still chose to persistently violate clear employment and data security policies that include the need to safeguard product information,” a Google spokesperson said in an email to Reuters. Last year, Google said that LaMDA – Language Model for…

Turkish foreign ministry summoned the Swedish charges d’affaires in Ankara to convey its “strong reaction” to what it called “terrorist propaganda” during a Kurdish group’s protest in Stockholm, diplomatic sources said. Finland and Sweden have applied for NATO membership in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but were faced with opposition from Turkey, which accused them of supporting groups it deems terrorists. The three countries signed an accord last month to lift Ankara’s veto in exchange for promises on counter-terrorism and arms exports. Source: Reuters

Major General Hossein Salami commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) paid a secret visit to Syria before the July 22 Israeli strikes on the country’s capital, Damascus, the al-Arabiya TV channel reported. According to the Saudi-sponsored UAE-based news channel, Salami met with Syrian officials to discuss the treatment and deployment of Iran-backed forces in the country. Al-Arabiya said the targets of the recent Israeli strikes on Damascus included the 138th Brigade base of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) elite 4th Division, de-facto led by Major General Maher al-Assad brother of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, and the 57th Brigade base of the army’s 1st Division,…