Eurasia

The European Union condemned Tuesday the decision of the Syrian regime to establish diplomatic relations with the “Georgian breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.” The move “violates international law and the principle of territorial integrity as defined by the United Nations Charter and relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” said …

The 22nd St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) started work on Thursday in the Russian port city with Iranian representatives in attendance.

Ali Akbar Salehi, director of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, announced on Saturday that the European Union had made proposals and also taken initial steps to use euro in transactions with Iran.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday the U.S. has put forward totally unacceptable demands to Iran, criticizing the U.S. government for its policy of “ultimatums” and “threats” towards Iran.

European officials criticized US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for demanding dramatic changes in Iran’s foreign and nuclear policies, with European Union top diplomat rejecting any alternative to the 2015 nuclear agreement. The EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned Monday there was “no alternative” to the Joint Comprehensive Plan …

Up to 13 Islamic State (IS) militants were arrested Monday in their former stronghold of Mosul, a police chief was quoted as saying. “Nineveh police arrested the 13 militants upon accurate intelligence data in al-Entisar, Judaydat al-Mufti and al-Nour districts in Mosul’s eastern side,” Baghdad Today website quoted Nineveh Police …

Tension has returned to the Moroccan-Algerian borders after militants from the Polisario Front launched maneuvers and parades, with the participation of Algerian officers and experts, in the Tifariti, region east of Morocco’s defense wall. Tifariti is located on the Moroccan side of the border with Algeria. Morocco withdrew its military …

The tripartite ministerial meeting on Libya kicked off on Monday in Algiers, and foreign ministers of Algeria, Tunisia and Egypt discussed the developments in the conflict-ridden Libya. Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel, his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry and Tunisian counterpart Khemaies Jhinaoui are expected to discuss the holding of a …

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday that a meeting of the joint commission of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) will take place in Vienna on Friday to discuss the U.S. exit from the multilateral nuclear agreement.

The European Commission is set to launch a legal process based on a powerful law to block American sanctions against Iran as European Union powers mobilize to save the landmark 2015 nuclear deal following Washington’s unilateral pullout.