News
EU warns Georgia that 'foreign agents' bill could block accession hopes
The European Parliament has called for Georgia’s accession process to be suspended if the Georgian parliament passes the so-called “foreign agent" law.
Iraq recovers thousands of antiquities, calls for antiquities law reform
Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities has received thousands of returned archaeological pieces following a push by the central government in Baghdad to retrieve stolen assets in the past year.
US secretly sent long-range missiles to Ukraine in February
The US secretly sent Ukraine long-range missiles in February ahead of the new $61bn aid package on April 20 that Kyiv used for the first time this week.
Russia already treating Bosnia’s Republika Srpska as an independent state
Use of Republika Srpska’s flag alongside national flags at St Petersburg conference seen as a possible green light by Russia for Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik’s secession plans.
North Macedonia’s opposition VMRO-DPMNE candidate takes strong lead in first round of presidential election
Incumbent President Stevo Pendarovski trails Gordana Siljanovska Davkova as voters punish ruling SDSM.
Slovakia’s cabinet approves legislation to restructure public broadcaster
New bill will allow government to change leadership of public broadcaster, while 'ethical council' will oversee content.
Russian Deputy Defence Minister suspected of treason, say reports
Russian Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov, arrested on April 23 on charges of bribery, may actually have been arrested for treason, independent Russian media has reported.
Iran presses Afghanistan's Taliban to uphold water-sharing agreement
An Iranian environmental official accused the Afghan Taliban of intentionally redirecting overflow waters of the shared Hirmand River to prevent its inflow into Iran’s Hamoun wetlands.
Tajikistan striving to convince the world that it can contain terrorism
Dushanbe’s strategy ignores underlying sources of radicalisation.
Saudi Arabia eyes 320,000 new hotel rooms to meet soaring tourism goals
Saudi Arabia is projected to have 320,000 new hotel rooms by 2030 as the Kingdom ramps up efforts to accommodate an annual influx of 150mn tourists, both domestic and international.
Turkey, Iraq, Qatar and UAE ink initial Development Road transit corridor agreement
Route competing with rival India-Middle East-Europe option. Ankara wants Baghdad to commit to stamping out Kurdish PKK militants said to threaten project security.
Russian oil depo at Yartsevo in the Smolensk region set on fire by Ukrainian drone attack
Ukraine drones hit and set on fire the RosNeft oil depot in the Yartsevo, Smolensk region as the sun began to rise on April 24.
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More than €15bn of Chinese investments underway in Hungary, says foreign minister
Hungary has become the primary European destination of Chinese corporate investments, with a string of investments targeting the battery industry.
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Romanian fuel distribution company JT Grup Oil plans Bucharest IPO
IPO announcement comes after Premier Energy announced a similar step earlier in April.
Hungarian rate-setters slow pace of rate cuts to 50bp at April meeting
The Monetary Council of the National Bank (MNB) reduced the base rate by 50bp to 7.75% in line with projections, slowing down the pace of monetary easing from 75bp in the previous meeting.
Czech prosecutors indict former president's top aide for embezzlement
Vratislav Mynar was at the centre of many of the scandals surrounding Milos Zeman's two terms as president.
President Duda says Poland 'ready' to host nuclear weapons
Government queries president's comments, while Moscow attacks them as "provocative".
Moldova's pro-Russian opposition forms new political bloc at Moscow meeting
Fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor seeks to consolidate pro-Russian opposition ahead of autumn presidential election.
Serbia takes aim at investment grade rating from S&P by end-2024
Earlier this month, S&P upgraded its outlook on Serbia to positive from stable, maintaining the country's 'BB+/B' ratings.
Iran eyes overseas power plant development
Iran plans to expand its power plant development projects overseas, including renewable energy generation.