Author: Mideast discourse

“The collapse of Ukraine has already begun. Polish, Lithuanian and Latvian politicians, apparently, naively expect to bargain for their future in the new geopolitical realities,” Lukashenko said The United States has been pushing Europe towards an armed confrontation with Russia in Ukraine with the aim of weakening Russia and destroying Belarus, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko told the audience at the patriotic forum This is Our History on the occasion of Popular Unity Day, marked on Saturday. “The United States is pushing Europe into a military confrontation with Russia on the territory of Ukraine. It makes no secret of its plans.…

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Azerbaijan updates the death toll of the war with Armenia to 79 after they had stated on September 15 that it was 50. Azerbaijan has increased the number of its announced death toll from the two-day clash with Armenia to 79 after having declared, on Saturday, after the ceasefire, that only 50 Azeri soldiers have been killed during the conflict. According to the statement “The Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan has updated the list of those killed in the flare-up on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, bringing up the death toll to 79.” As for the wounded, Azerbaijan revealed that the total number of wounded…

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Damascus continues to be the target of Israeli aggression, a mere week after Aleppo was hit. Syrian state-run news agency SANA reported the death of five Syrian soldiers were killed on Saturday by an Israeli airstrike on Damascus airport and other facilities south of the capital, which, according to the report, was carried out at 0:45 a.m. local time (21:45 GMT) on Saturday. A military source confirmed that Syria’s air defense systems have shot down most of the Israeli missiles launched, adding that aside from the five casualties, material losses were reported as well. At the beginning of this month, the Russian Reconciliation Center belonging…

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Tens of thousands of Austrians angered by the government’s inertia in tackling runaway costs of living took to the streets of Vienna and eight major cities on Saturday. The Austrian trade union federation OeGB called the nationwide protest in a bid to put pressure on the conservative-Green coalition that it blamed for “watching idly as our life becomes unaffordable.” Some 20,000 Austrians turned up for a “Prices Down” rally in downtown Vienna, according to OeGB. City police declined to share their estimates. About 10,000 more protested in Linz, Bruck an der Mur, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt St. Polten, Eisenstadt, and Bregenz.…

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Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has criticized Syria’s calls for a Turkish withdrawal from its territory, warning that such a withdrawal would harm both Ankara and Damascus as it would allow what he called “terrorist groups” to expand their control. Speaking to reporters at the minister on September 16, Cavusoglu said that the “demands of the Syrian regime are unrealistic.” The “terrorist groups” mentioned by the minister were likely Kurdish forces, namely the Syrian Democratic Forces. Today, the group controls much of northern and northeastern Syria with direct support from the United States. The Turkish military and its proxies also…

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On September 17, a new wave of Russian airstrikes targeted the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib, which is occupied by al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and several other terrorist groups. The airstrikes, which were reportedly carried out by two Su-24M and two Su-34 fighter bombers of the Russian Aerospace Forces, hit positions of HTS in the towns of Hafsarjah and Sheikh Yusuf in the western countryside of Idlib. A man, allegedly a civilian, was lightly wounded as a result of the airstrikes. Following the airstrikes, the Syrian Arab Army pounded positions of HTS and its allies across the eastern…

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Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of UAE has met several Israeli ministers in Tel Aviv. He arrived in Israel on Wednesday for a trip to mark the second anniversary of the signing of the Abraham Accords and was accompanied by a high-level delegation, state news agency Wam reported. Sheikh Abdullah met Israeli Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked to review cooperation in seve emphasizing emphasis on defense. Sheikh Abdullah said the visit would open new prospects for cooperation between the two sides. Shaked welcomed the visit of Sheikh Abdullah and the UAE delegation and said Tel…

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The $15 billion tally covers almost every missile, vehicle, and round of ammunition sent to Kiev since February The US Department of Defense has released a list of nearly every weapon it’s donated to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s military operation in February. While the US has already given $15 billion worth of arms, Kiev insists it needs more. Released on Friday, the list accounts for most of the $15.8 billion in security assistance sent to Ukraine since President Joe Biden took office. The majority of that – $15.1 billion – has come since Russian troops entered Ukraine in February. Biden…

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Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator On September 10, two Greek Coast Guard boats opened fire on a Turkish cargo ship with an international crew while it sailed in international waters. The “Anatolian” was attacked off the northwestern Turkish island of Bozcaada. Turkey reported no casualties in the attack but has demanded an immediate investigation. After two Turkish Coast Guard ships arrived on the scene, the Greek boats left. The Greek Coast Guard admitted to firing shots at the ship and believed it was acting suspiciously off the Greek island of Lesbos, which is well known as a people-smuggling route…

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 The Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization met and talked with the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran on Thursday in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. In the meeting with the Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Iran’s President voiced readiness to cooperate in various fields with the member states and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. According to Iran Press, Ebrahim Raisi, at the beginning of the second day of his trip to Uzbekistan, on Thursday morning, met Zhang Ming, the Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, explaining the steps taken by the Islamic Republic of Iran to become a…

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