Eurasia

Hailing Russia as “our country’s greatest friend,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin that India was committed to deepening ties between the two countries and to exploring new areas of cooperation.

Proclaiming the Syrian people winners in a “dirty war” waged by outsiders, President Bashar Assad was sworn in on Wednesday, marking the start of his third seven-year term in office amid a bloody civil war that has ravaged the Arab country.

The United States voiced support Monday to the ongoing dialogue among the foreign ministers from Ukraine, Germany, France, and Russia to work toward “a sustainable ceasefire by all parties in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions in eastern Ukraine that would build toward a lasting peace.” “We should emphasize; however, that …

The French Presidency announced on Tuesday the death of France’s ninth solider in the Mali conflict which began 18 months ago. President Francois Hollande’s office said that a non-commissioned officer was killed Monday while on a reconnaissance mission and he expressed “deep sadness” upon learning of the report and sent …

Ukrainian military forces have waged a massive artillery fire at east Ukraine’s Donetsk regional city of Kramatorsk overnight to Wednesday. “A strong gunfire had been waged at the city which was literally showered with shells. Powerful blasts were heard with a frequency like in automatic fire,” a representative of people’s militia said.

China’s President Xi Jinping on Tuesday invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit China in November and called for a “negotiated resolution” to the boundary dispute “at an early date”, as the two leaders held their first ever meeting in Brazil.

Iraqi forces launched an attack on Tuesday to retake the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit, the second offensive since extremists took over several cities across the country in June. Army officials told DPA that military forces began their assault on the city from the northern and southern entrances of the city, and …

The death toll in a suicide car bombing in Afghanistan’s eastern Paktika province has climbed to 89, with more than 40 people wounded. The blast took place on Tuesday when the bomber detonated his explosives—packed vehicle near a crowded market and a mosque in the Urgun district of Paktika province.

Israel, after eight days of cross-border attacks with Gaza, on Tuesday unilaterally accepted an Egyptian-proposed truce, despite earlier rejections by Palestinian armed groups. “The (security) Cabinet has decided to answer positively to the Egyptian initiative for a ceasefire starting today at 9 am (0600 GMT),” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office …

The United Nations Security Council called for “de-escalation” on Saturday evening, in the latest wave of the militarised conflict playing out in the Gaza Strip. The council “expressed serious concern regarding the crisis related to Gaza and the protection and welfare of civilians on both sides”. It called for a …