Author: Steven Sahiounie

A group of Russian fighters intercepted a Norwegian R3S Orion reconnaissance plane over the Barents Sea on Friday, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported.The Russian National Defense Administration Center announced in a statement on Friday:“Russian fighters of the Northern Fleet intercepted a Norwegian reconnaissance plane over the Barents Sea.”They continued: “On July 17, Russian airspace monitors discovered a Norwegian Air Force R3S Orion reconnaissance plane over the Barents Sea.”According to the report, the reconnaissance aircraft “was escorted by the Northern Air Force’s combat air defense aircraft. There was no violation of the Russian Federation’s borders,” the statement added.Friday’s incident marked…

Greece’s Chief-of-Staff, General Konstantinos Floros, said on Friday that Turkey was a “destabilizing factor” in the region.In an interview with his Israeli counterpart, Aviv Kochavi, in Israel, he explained that Turkey represents a threat to Greece and the current situation in the Eastern Mediterranean region.Floros that his forces are ready to defend the territorial integrity, rights and sovereignty of Greece against any Turkish threat. He also stressed the need for coordination between the Eastern Mediterranean countries to preserve the security of the region and the prosperity of its citizens.According to the Greek media, the two parties discussed deepening military cooperation…

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said that Egypt will not stand idle in the face of any moves that constitute a direct and strong threat to national security, not only Egyptian and Libyan, but also Arab, regional and international.According to the statement of the Egyptian presidency , Sisi said, “The main goal of the Egyptian efforts at all levels towards Libya is to activate the free will of the Libyan people for a better future for their country and for future generations of their children.”The Egyptian President stated that ” the red lines that he announced before are mainly a…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator Following a week of tension between Western governments and those of Russia and China, the UN Security Council (UNSC) passed a resolution on Saturday allowing the use of the Bab al-Hawa crossing point from Turkey to Idlib for one year.  The final vote was 12 in favor, while Russia, China, and the Dominican Republic abstained.  The UN and humanitarian groups had demanded two crossing points along the Turkish border with Syria to deliver aid to the residents of Idlib, which are estimated to be about 3 million; though, the true count is thought to…

The Russian Air Force has issued its response to the attempted militant drone strikes on the Hmeimim Airbase over the weekend, as their warplanes hammered the jihadist rebel positions in the Jabal Al-Akrad and Jisr Al-Shughour regions. According to a field report from the Latakia Governorate, the Russian warplanes carried out several airstrikes over the jihadist stronghold of Kabani, resulting in the destruction of bases and trenches. The report said the Russian Air Force then carried out several airstrikes along the Latakia-Idlib axis, with the primary target being the jihadists of the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) and the Al-Qaeda-linked Hurras…

Wealthy individuals, calling themselves Millionaires for Humanity, in an open letter on Monday called on governments to increase taxes on rich people to help cope with the coronavirus pandemic and its consequences. “As COVID-19 strikes the world, millionaires like us have a critical role to play in healing our world. No, we are not the ones caring for the sick in intensive care wards. We are not driving the ambulances that will bring the ill to hospitals. We are not restocking grocery store shelves or delivering food door to door. But we do have money, lots of it”. Money that…

A group of gunman belonging to a group called “Mughawer Al-Thourah”, who had been detained near Palmyra, admitted to have received training from the U.S. forces.It was reported earlier that three gunmen were arrested and transferred to the Syrian city of Palmyra, after their group fell into a minefield.The detained militants acknowledged that they had been sent on a mission, and had to obtain information about Russian and Iranian targets in Syria.One of the detainees, Abdullah Al-Mishwat, said in his confessions: “We were taught how to deal with all types of weapons by American trainers. All of the weapons were…

The Air Force of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army tested a ballistic anti-ship missile in the South China Sea recently.According to the National Interest website, these tests came in the wake of the news issued last May that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army had installed cruise missiles and surface-to-air missiles near the coral reef areas, west of the Philippines.Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Dave Eastbourne said that China’s missile test this week contradicts “China’s claim that it wants peace in the region and it is clear that such actions are coercive actions aimed at intimidating other parties in the South China…

Egyptian military expert, General Mahfouz Marzouq, considered that the size of the military maneuvers conducted by the Egyptian forces and the development of landing operations, indicates that Cairo is seriously preparing for a military operation in Libya.On Monday, the Libyan Parliament announced that it was allowing the Egyptian forces to intervene in the Libyan conflict. They said in a statement that “the Egyptian forces have the right to intervene to protect the Libyan and Egyptian national security if they see an imminent threat to the security of the two countries.”Commenting on the Libyan Parliament’s statement, the expert identified three important…

A statement issued by a spokesman for the forces of the Turkish-backed Government of National Accord in Libya, Colonel Pilot Mohamed Qanunu, said that it was time for the oil to flow again and hit the hands that stopped it. Qanunu said in a fiery statement: “The time has come for oil to flow again, strike at the sinful hands of the Libyan forces, and end the presence of mercenaries supporting the war criminal who permitted them to land in Libya and use its sky.”The military spokesman for the GNA stressed that it will continue to “strike the hotbeds of…