Eurasia

Today is crunch day for Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko as far as his reputation in the West is concerned. His country is electing a new parliament.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran and Azerbaijan are due to sign an agreement to enhance mutual cooperation in area of sports.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran’s Ambassador to Pakistan Mashallah Shakeri urged Islamic nations to enhance unity, saying that Tehran and Pakistan play a pivotal role in strengthening solidarity among Muslims.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki met with his Turkish counterpart Ali Babacan on the sidelines of the 63rd annual session of the UN General Assembly in New York.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan are part of a “larger family”, given their historic ties and their cultural links, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told a news conference at the United Nations Headquarters on Tuesday.

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Somali pirates demanded a $35 million ransom on Saturday for a Ukrainian ship they had seized which was carrying 33 tanks and other military supplies to Kenya, a maritime official said.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistani security forces killed 30 militants loyal to al Qaeda and Taliban in the latest fighting in a strategically important tribal region on the Afghan border, officials said on Saturday.

Turkish warplanes have attacked suspected Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq.The raids, late on Thursday, hit areas in the Qandil mountains. A spokesman for the PKK rebels said one of its members and two civilians were wounded.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran has reached a framework for pricing gas imports from Turkmenistan following a supply dispute last winter, with a senior official in Tehran saying the deal will be finalized once Ramadan ends next week.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Russia is seeking to forge closer ties with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and has invited the cartel’s members to a meeting in Moscow next month, Iran’s OPEC Governor said.