Author: Tamaz Kereselidze

Russian forces have foiled several attempts by Ukrainian units to cross the Dnipro River in the southern Kherson region over the past day, Russia’s defence ministry said on Sunday. According to the ministry, Ukrainian “sabotage and reconnaissance” teams were stopped while trying to cross the river near the villages of Pridniprovske, Tiahynka and Krynky. Russia also said it had destroyed Ukrainian personnel, water-crossing equipment and vehicles near the village of Stanislav. Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports. On Friday the Institute for the Study of War, a U.S. research group, said Ukrainian forces appeared to have broken through on…

We always underestimate the power of propaganda and dictators. No one believed that Putin would start a full-scale war in Ukraine, but he did. Before that, Russia waged war in Georgia, Syria and Donbass.Now, weeks after seizing control over the breakaway Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan could be readying an invasion of southern Armenia proper, according to U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. It may happen as soon as in the coming weeks. It is rather difficult to react to news like this. I thought perhaps Azerbaijan is trying to distract us from the ethnic cleansing in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenian name) that…

Across the region, however, while economic activity is improving, growth lags pre-pandemic levels. Economic growth for the emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) of the Europe and Central Asia region has been revised up to 2.4 per cent for 2023, says the World Bank’s Economic Update for the region, released this week. The pickup in growth reflects improved forecasts for war-hit Ukraine and for Central Asia, as well as consumer resiliency in Turkey and better-than-expected growth in Russia because of a surge in government spending on the military and social transfers. The forecast broadly reflects those of the European Bank for Reconstruction and…

Moscow said Russian and Azerbaijani forces on Monday came under sniper fire in Nagorno-Karabakh, days after Baku secured the surrender of Armenian separatists in an offensive to regain control of the mountainous territory. The report came as Armenia said one serviceman was killed along its shared border with Azerbaijan, underscoring the volatility of the region even after Karabakh’s capitulation last week. “In the city of Stepanakert (Khankendi) a joint Russian-Azerbaijani patrol was shot at by an unknown person using a sniper weapon. There were no casualties,” the Russian defence ministry said. Russia deployed its peacekeepers to the mountainous region in 2020 as part of…

The counterterrorism expert and author of “Sri Lanka’s Easter Sunday Massacre: Lessons for the International Community” explains how religious extremism manifested in Sri Lanka’s deadliest terror attack. On April 21, 2019 – Easter Sunday – a coordinated series of bombings ripped through Sri Lanka, targeting churches and luxury hotels. Over 260 people were killed, making it the deadliest terrorist attack ever suffered by Sri Lanka. The attack has continued to resonate in Sri Lankan society and politics, as the public demands to untangle questions of responsibility: Why was the attack not prevented, and what can be done to stop the…

The Armenian army began conducting joint military exercises with the United States (US) army on Monday (11/9/2023). This came amid tensions with neighboring Azerbaijan and the exercises were held near the capital Yerevan. The main agenda of the joint exercises is to increase the ability of Armenian soldiers to prepare themselves if they want to join the peacekeeping forces. The training was carried out in two places, Zar and Armavir Training Areas. Armenia basically has close ties to Russia. Moscow also has a major role in mediating Armenia’s conflict with Azerbaijan. The military exercises with the US at least made Russia a little annoyed.…

Under the instructions of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, the resettlement of former internally displaced people to the city of Lachin continues, News.Az reports. Another group of citizens was sent from the Gobu Park 3 residential complex in Baku’s Garadagh district to Lachin on Tuesday. At this stage, another 13 families (52 people) moved to the city of Lachin. These families will be resettled in the houses where they once lived in Lachin, which were restored or rebuilt on the basis of instructions from the head of state after the end of the Armenian occupation. Lachin residents thanked President Ilham Aliyev and First…

A day after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, as the country was still reeling from the violent attempt to halt the transfer of presidential power, a local Republican Party official greeted a group of computer experts outside the election office in a rural county in south Georgia, where they were given access to voting equipment. Their intent was to copy software and data from the election systems in an attempt to prove claims by President Donald Trump and his allies that voting machines had been rigged to flip the 2020 election to his challenger, Democrat Joe Biden,…

Frankfurt, London (12/08 – 80) It seems that the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has become a hostage to its investments in Tajikistan. In mid-July, the Prosecutor’s Office of the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO) appealed to the Supreme Economic Court of Tajikistan with a demand to annul the land certificate for the campus of the University of Central Asia in Khorog, which is owned by the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN). The university’s administration, local authorities, and the prosecutor’s office have not commented on this matter. However, it is evident that if the authorities manage to revoke the land certificate,…

The economic activity index of Armenia grew 11,4% in January-June 2023 compared to last year’s same period, according to official data published by the Statistical Committee. Industrial production volume grew 1% and stood at 1 trillion 167 billion 535 million drams. Construction grew 17% and comprised 174 billion 155 million 400 thousand drams. The trade turnover grew 23,6% and amounted to 2 trillion 280 billion 859 million 800 thousand drams. Services grew 16,8%. The consumer price index grew 4,2%, while the industrial product price index dropped 1%. Electricity production dropped 2,7%. Total foreign trade turnover grew 72,9% in the reporting…