Author: Steven Sahiounie

China’s Commerce Ministry said on Thursday that Beijing and Moscow are discussing ways to increase bilateral trade, particularly by increasing imports of Russian soybeans and other agricultural products. Commerce Minister Zhong Shan met with Russian Minister for Economic Development Maxim Oreshkin this week. They agreed to “deepen trade in soybeans” as China looks to diversify supplies away from the United States. The agreement follows Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement last year that Russia will increase its production and export of soybeans to China. Putin explained that Russia will fill China’s gap in the market, which was left by the protracted trade war…

Russian Expert and diplomat for the Middle Eastern affairs Viacheslav Matuzov affirmed that Damascus International Fair is one of most important economic events in the region. ” A lot of Russian and European companies show interest to work in Syria, whether in regards to reconstruction process or in the field of energy and agriculture,” Matuzov told SANA correspondent in Moscow on Thursday. In a similar interview, Economic Researcher Gregory Lukyanov said that economic exhibitions and conference, particularly Damascus international Fair, play a key role in finding good economic environments, adding that the Fair will witness a wide participation from Russian…

The world Heritage Committee at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) agreed to lift “old Damascus” from the list of endangered heritage. The step came during UNESCO’s 43rdsession being held in the Azeri capital of Baku. Due to the terrorist acts which targeted old Damascus and a number of Syrian archaeological sites, the UNESCO decided in 2013 to include these sites in the list of endangered heritage to draw attention to the dangers that encircle this world human heritage. “The UNESCO’s decision included dispatching a fact-finding committee to investigate the situation of the city and discuss technical and…

Sarah Abed, an independent journalist and political commentator After years of deprivation and financial turmoil farmers across the most fertile parts of Syria and Iraq were looking forward to a much-needed return on their investment. Unfortunately, before that could happen, their hard work went up in flames, literally. The devastation and pain that these fires have caused a countless number of families is heartbreaking and immeasurable. Recently, tens of thousands of acres of agricultural land have been set on fire in the northern and eastern regions of Syria. 0ver 84,000 acres of wheat and barley crops have been destroyed, estimated losses are…

Padraig McGrath, political analyst Quickly following US threats to impose sanctions on Turkey following Ankara’s resoluteness in its decision to purchase the S-400 air-defence system, the US State Department raised the possibility of implementing sanctions against India, for precisely the same reason. The Indian government plans to acquire the S-400 in 2020, having just signed a $5 billion deal with Moscow. The S-400 will radically improve India’s air-defence capability. Currently, the Indian armed forces’ air-defence systems are limited to an effective range of 40 kilometres. The S-400 comes bundled with 4 different missiles, is effective against both aircraft and cruise…

Sarah Abed, independent journalist, political commentator Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif is in New York this week for high level talks at the UN. He has been confined to a six-block radius. It’s not uncommon for Iranian diplomats along with envoys from North Korea, Syria and Cuba to be confined to a broader radius of 25 miles. Zarif’s movements, however, are limited to the UN Headquarters in Manhattan, the Iranian Mission to the UN, and the Residence of the Iranian Ambassador. Even with the restrictions placed on him with a limited visa, he has made time for a few interviews to…

The Farsi accounts of three Iranian news agencies have been suspended on Twitter since Friday, shortly after they reported the capture of a UK-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. Twitter says the events are unrelated. Two Farsi-language Twitter pages of Mehr News Agency, as well as pages belonging to the Young Journalists Club (YJC) and IRNA, have all been blocked on Twitter since Friday. Mehr and the YJC are semi-official news agencies, and IRNA is Iran’s official government-run agency. Mehr and IRNA’s English-language accounts were still accessible as of Saturday evening. Twitter apparently didn’t tell the targeted agencies why…

The combination of rare yellow color, clarity, and size makes a diamond unearthed at a mine in Russia’s northwest one of the most unique gemstones ever discovered in Europe. A deep lemon-yellow diamond weighing 47.61 carats found in the Grib mine in Arkhangelsk, Russia may be the largest of its kind unearthed in this part of the world. The “exclusive crystal” boasts flawless clarity and the right shape, which makes its attractive for major jewelry firms, according to the owner of the mine, AGD Diamonds. The company attributes the fact that the stone was recovered undamaged to its innovative mining…

An increasing number of Iranians have started turning to cryptocurrencies, in particular bitcoin, with the devaluation of the national currency prompted by US economic sanctions. The crypto craze has raised concerns from authorities that the energy-hungry process of “mining” bitcoin is abusing Iran’s system of subsidized electricity. Currently at half-a-cent per kilowatt, the subsidized electricity rates have fueled the country’s thriving crypto-mining community. Iran’s Electrical Industry Syndicate has recently revealed its intention to hike prices to seven cents per kilowatt. Iran’s Minister for Information and Communications Technology Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi said that the country has become “a heaven for miners.” “The business…

Chinese telecom giant Huawei has secured more than 50 commercial contracts for 5G across the world, according to the company’s board member and Senior Vice President Catherine Chen, who was cited by news agency Xinhua. Despite pressure from Washington on its allies to ban Huawei technology, Chen said that 28 contracts were signed in Europe. In June, Huawei helped to launch the 5G commercial network in Saudi Arabia. The company – which was barred from building fifth-generation networks by the US, Canada, and New Zealand – has also stepped into the Russian market. Huawei announced an agreement with one of…