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West Asia
Sarin or similar used in Idlib attack
Sarin or a similar banned toxin was used in an attack in Syria’s Idlib province on April 4 that killed nearly 90 people, the global chemical weapons watchdog said on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The finding supported earlier testing by Turkish and British laboratories. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical…
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Central Asia
Iran-Russia trade volume to grow further in 2017
Iran-Russia trade volume has surged by 70% after the removal of sanctions against the country early last year, Alexander Maksimov, honorary representative of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Iran, told Sputnik. He added that Iranian-Russian trade relations are set to rise further this year after increasing almost…
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West Asia
Death toll rises to 42 in northwest Iran’s floods
The death toll of the recent flooding in Iran’s northwestern provinces has risen to 42 people, IRIB TV reported. Among the dead, 36 were from Ajab-Shir and Azar-Shahr regions in East Azerbaijan Province, five from Kurdistan Province and one from West Azerbaijan Province, the spokesman of Iran’s Crisis Management Bureru…
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West Asia
Putin warns of future chemical weapons ‘provocations’ in Syria
Russia has received intelligence about planned “provocations” using chemical weapons that would put the blame on the Syrian government, Russian President Vladimir Putin said following talks with his Italian counterpart Sergio Mattarella. “We have information that a similar provocation is being prepared in other parts of Syria including in the…
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West Asia
Refugee Crisis in Syria: Greatest Fear of EU, Great Hospitality of Turkey
Arab Spring, which started in 2010 and still has prolonged effects, has also penetrated Syria and protests against the regime have turned into a war in a short time. This process has resulted in instability and obscurity both in Syria and around the region. The war in Syria has led…
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East Asia
What’s at stake for Saudi-East Asian relations?
Saudi Arabia’s King, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, accompanied by a large delegation including royal family members and ministers, paid a month-long visit (that started from the end of February) to East Asian-Pacific countries, including Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, and China. It is rare in Saudi diplomacy to have such…
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West Asia
Nowruz, the Persian New Year
The Persian New year through Iranian Solar calendar is the first day of spring will begin on 21st March 2017. “Nowruz literally “New Day” is the name of the Iranian New Year, also known as the Persian New Year, which is celebrated worldwide by the Iranian peoples, along with some…
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West Asia
Economic relations with Russia overshadowed by renegotiation of gas transit
The dominant topic in Georgia’s foreign economic relations in recent months was the renegotiation of terms for Russia’s gas transit to Armenia. Moscow is using a pipeline running through Georgia north-south to supply Armenia with natural gas, with Tbilisi receiving ten percent of the gas transported through the pipeline as…
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West Asia
Big Victory for Georgia’s Westernization Progress: Visa Liberalization
Significantly for the post-Soviet states, including the ones in the South Caucasus region, the EU has conducted ‘Visa Liberalization Dialogues’ with three Eastern Partnership countries, namely Ukraine, Moldova (the country has already obtained the right to visa-free travel in April 2014) and Georgia. Through these dialogues, the EU has taken…
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West Asia
Armenian Elections and Regional Implications
On April 2, Armenians will go to the polls to elect a new parliament. Although Armenia has a very poor record of free and fair elections, this particular ballot stands as a milestone for the country; this for several reasons. First, this election marks the start of the transformation to…
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