Europe should rally behind the reality that a successful transition will not only help Syrians but is the only means of addressing the full range of its interests — such as cementing democratic governance, securing sustainable conditions to allow significant Syrian refugee returns, and diluting Iranian and Russian influence in the country. If the transition … Read more
The Iranian rial fell to an all-time low on Wednesday, trading at 777,000 rials to the US dollar, a sharp decline from 703,000 in November after Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election. For more stories from The Media Line go to themedialine.org Central Bank Governor Mohammad Reza Farzin announced measures to stabilize … Read more
“We constantly ask for sanctions against the Russian nuclear industry,” the official said, granted anonymity to speak frankly about the sensitive row. Slovakian Prime Minister Robert “Fico is among those who block those sanctions … and is one of the key blockers of [Ukraine’s] bid to join NATO, too.” Fico, who along with Hungarian Prime … Read more
Thrusting Kavelashvili — who has no higher eduction and is anti-Western despite his soccer carreer there — into the presidency “was a farce,” Lithuanian MEP Rasa Juknevičienė said on X. She visited Georgia this Thursday with a delegation from the European Parliament. “Just like in Russia, Belarus, and other autocracies.” Local media report that demonstrators … Read more
Serbian oil company Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) faces financial sanctions from the United States as soon as next month because of its Russian ownership, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said late Friday. The U.K. and the EU would likely follow the U.S. in introducing sanctions against the company, Vučić said in an interview with Serbian broadcaster Informer … Read more
The rest of the package focuses mostly on sanctioning companies and vessels involved in circumventing existing EU penalties on Russia. A draft list seen by POLITICO shows plans to more than double the number of oil and gas tankers on its blacklist, bringing the total to 75. Yet talks fell apart, two of the diplomats said, after … Read more
“We must not lose anyone in this region — neither Georgia, nor Moldova, nor Ukraine. We must stand united in defending ourselves against Moscow,” he said. The sanctions also target State Security Service head Grigol Liluashvili and Tbilisi `Mayor Kakha Khaladze, a former Dynamo Kyiv football player. Several lawmakers and businessmen affiliated with Georgian Dream … Read more
China’s far west region of Xinjiang is seeking closer ties and cross-border cooperation with Pakistan and Central Asian countries in a bid to counter US sanctions and consolidate its role as a gateway under the Belt and Road Initiative. Khunjerab port – the sole border crossing connecting China and Pakistan – in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous … Read more
A string of top officials including the Georgian ambassadors to Italy, the Netherlands and Lithuania have resigned in protest at the move, as well as Deputy Foreign Minister Temur Janjali. “What we see is this resistance has really gone beyond previous public demonstrations,” said Tinatin Akhvlediani, a senior researcher with the EU foreign policy unit … Read more
The US on Tuesday imposed sanctions on six senior Hamas officials, the US Treasury Department said, in further action against the terrorist organization as Washington has sought to achieve a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza. The Treasury Department said in a statement the sanctions targeted the group’s representatives abroad, a senior … Read more
