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☆ Where to watch free Azerbaijan F1 live stream: sprints and full race viewing details
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Brendan Griffiths | Senior Commerce Director | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

There's a bunch of extra F1 live stream action to enjoy this weekend thanks to this season's first sprint events. We can show you how to watch the Azerbaijan F1 sprints online for free from anywhere too. Watch a free Azerbaijan F1 Sprint live streamThis weekend's simplest option for a free F1 live stream is using a VPN to tune into one of the free European streams mentioned above. How to watch the Azerbaijan F1 live streams with a VPNSign up for a VPN if you don't have one. Turn it on and set it to a country with a free live stream.

☆ Leclerc completes Baku pole hat-trick for Ferrari
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The pole, in a session twice red-flagged early on due to crashes, was Ferrari's first of the Formula One season after Red Bull had qualified fastest in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Australia. Red Bull's championship leader Max Verstappen will line up alongside on the front row with his team mate Sergio Perez third. "It feels good...It's good to be back on top," said Leclerc after whooping in delight over the team radio. There was nothing to separate him and Verstappen after the initial flying laps, with both clocking one minute 40.445 seconds but the Red Bull driver on provisional pole due to setting his time first. "We must not forget that our car is probably behind the Red Bull, so it's going to be difficult to keep the lead.

☆ Verstappen fastest in chaotic Baku practice
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 28 (Reuters) - Red Bull's Formula One leader Max Verstappen put in the fastest time right at the chequered flag on Friday in a chaotic sole practice for the new format Azerbaijan Grand Prix sprint weekend. The double world champion, last year's winner in Baku, lapped the fast street circuit with a best time of one minute 42.315 seconds with his final effort on the soft tyres. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who has never won in Baku but will be chasing his third successive pole in Azerbaijan in later qualifying for Sunday's grand prix, was second on the timesheets. The Monegasque ended up 0.037 seconds slower, after going top in the dying seconds, with Red Bull's Sergio Perez third and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz fourth. Perez has the best record of any driver on the starting grid in Baku with a victory in 2021, second last year and two third places.

☆ A year in Azerbaijan: From the Grand Prix to the ski slopes
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Words Cnn Staff | Photo Illustrations Woojin Lee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

CNN —Anyone who has tuned in to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix has seen a tantalizing glimpse of what the capital Baku has to offer. This year’s Grand Prix comes at the height of spring, often said to be Azerbaijan’s most beautiful season. Juan Vilata/Alamy Stock Photo Explore Azerbaijan in spring Prev NextSummers in Azerbaijan are hot, so getting out of the city is a good idea. Alexander Melnikov/Alamy Stock Photo Explore Azerbaijan in fall Prev NextWrap up, because even at its coldest Azerbaijan still has plenty to offer. You’ll learn much more at the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum in Baku.

☆ Leclerc has a hit with a different kind of track
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 27 (Reuters) - Charles Leclerc is flying low in the Formula One standings but climbing high in the music charts with a different kind of track success. The Ferrari driver is a keen piano player and this week released a four minute composition entitled 'Aus23 (1:1)' on streaming platforms. The track was soaring in the Apple iTunes top song rankings alongside hits by the likes of Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran and Miley Cyrus. Leclerc said the song might be sad, but it was not connected to the disappointing Australian Grand Prix where he spun into the gravel on the opening lap. On track, Leclerc has had two retirements in the first three races and is 10th overall in the championship with just six points.

☆ Vasseur says Ferrari recruiting massively, Mekies exit is no drama
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 27 (Reuters) - Ferrari are recruiting massively as they reorganise the Formula One team and the announced departure of sporting director Laurent Mekies is no drama, team boss Fred Vasseur said on Thursday. He was the second senior team member to head for the exit since Mattia Binotto was replaced by Frenchman Vasseur in January. "I think it’s a mega opportunity for Laurent," Vasseur told reporters at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. "The group is there, we are recruiting massively -- that we are not communicating but we are recruiting massively -- and we will do step by step. Vasseur recognised Mekies' current role was 'quite large" and said it could ultimately be split in two, as some other teams have done.

☆ Podcast: The conflict Russia doesn't want
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Tensions escalate between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, with Moscow watching on warily. And a Republican AI-generated attack ad raises concerns about use of the technology in politics and beyond. Help us improve the Reuters World News podcast by taking this short survey. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt-out of targeted advertisingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Formula One statistics for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

April 25 (Reuters) - Formula One statistics for Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, the fourth round of the 23-race 2023 world championship:Lap distance: 6.003 km. read moreThe street circuit made its debut in 2016 as the European Grand Prix. Daniel Ricciardo won for Red Bull from 10th on the grid in 2017 and Perez from sixth in 2021. Red Bull have been on pole in every race so far in 2023 and the last four in total. Aston Martin have had three successive podium finishes, a first for the Silverstone-based team in its many incarnations dating back to Jordan Grand Prix.

☆ Mekies to leave Ferrari and replace Tost at AlphaTauri
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Tost to step down as AlphaTauri boss at end of seasonMekies to replace him from FerrariFormer FIA executive Bayer also joins teamApril 26 (Reuters) - AlphaTauri's Franz Tost, Formula One's second longest serving team principal, will step down at the end of the 2023 season and be replaced by Ferrari sporting director Laurent Mekies. "With Peter as new CEO and Laurent as Team Principal, we found two very professional people, who will bring the team to the next level. "I am honoured to take on the role of team principal and to return to the Team where I spent a large portion of my early career," he said. Only Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has been in his job for longer than the Austrian who first came into Formula One in 2000 as track operations manager with Williams's then-partners BMW. Mekies' departure continues something of an exodus from Ferrari after the Italian team changed principals, with Fred Vasseur replacing Mattia Binotto in January.

☆ Russia names new peacekeeping head as tensions rise between Armenia and Azerbaijan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Francesco BrembatiApril 26 (Reuters) - Russia said on Wednesday it had appointed one of its most senior army commanders to lead a peacekeeping force in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, as tensions rise again between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Russian peacekeepers were deployed in 2020 to end a war over Nagorno-Karabakh, the second that Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought since the 1991 Soviet collapse. The Russian armed forces said the peacekeepers were now headed by Colonel-General Alexander Lentsov, deputy commander-in-chief of the Russian ground forces. He added: "We continue to be in close contact with the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) and the Russian peacekeeping contingent to best facilitate humanitarian access." An Armenian spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

☆ F1 braced for chaos as sprint season starts in Baku
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

April 26 (Reuters) - Formula One is braced for chaos on the streets of Baku this weekend as Azerbaijan hosts the first sprint race of the season and kicks off a run of five grands prix in six weeks. "It’s absolutely ludicrous to be doing the first sprint race of the year in a street race like Azerbaijan," Red Bull boss Christian Horner told reporters at the previous race in Australia. Verstappen won last year. "We are bringing a new floor to Baku amongst some other aerodynamic and mechanical items," said Alpine technical director Matt Harman. "We then have a further development at the following race in Miami and something further for Imola after that."

☆ Tensions over Karabakh rise after Azerbaijan blocks land route from Armenia
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Azerbaijan "took appropriate measures to establish control at the starting point of the road," the foreign ministry said. Armenia said the checkpoint at the Hakari bridge in the Lachin corridor was a gross violation of the 2020 ceasefire agreement which ended a 2020 war. It called on Russia to implement the agreement which states that the Lachin corridor, the only road across Azerbaijan that links Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh, must be under Russian peacekeepers' control. Azerbaijan then claimed that Armenian soldiers fired on Azeri units at around 1110 GMT in the Lachin district, a claim Armenia denied. In recent months Armenia has repeatedly called on Moscow to do more to support the peace and ensure unfettered access between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh through the Lachin Corridor.

☆ Exclusive: Kazakhstan has ramped up oil exports bypassing Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Pavel MikheyevMOSCOW, April 21 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan ramped up oil exports bypassing Russia in the first quarter of 2023 as it seeks to reduce its dependency on its vast neighbour, data from industry sources and Refinitiv showed. While Kazakh oil exports through the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus are relatively small, they have risen sharply since Moscow began what it calls a "special military operation" in Ukraine in February last year. Last year, Kazakhstan's oil exports via routes other than Russia reached 1.8 million tonnes (36,000 barrels per day), up by 638,000 tonnes from 2021. The main, and most profitable, route for oil exports from Kazakhstan remains the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which supplies the global market via a Russian Black Sea terminal. Supplies via CPC dipped 1% last year to 51.99 million tonnes, but they still represented more than 80% of total oil exports from Kazakhstan.

☆ Erdogan offers free gas pre-election after first Black Sea field shipment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Presidential Press Office/Handout via REUTERSANKARA, April 20 (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday flicked the switch on Turkey's first delivery of natural gas to an onshore plant from a reserve discovered in the Black Sea, and promised to provide free natural gas for households before May 14 elections. "We will provide free natural gas for household consumption up to 25 cubic meters monthly for one year," Erdogan said at the inauguration of an onshore natural gas port in the northern province of Zonguldak. Limitless natural gas for all household consumption will be free for the next month, Erdogan said. 10 million cubic metres of gas per day in Turkey's Black Sea gas fields will be produced initially, Erdogan said. Production will be increased to 40 million cubic metres of gas per day in the coming period, he said.

☆ Half the F1 calendar could become sprint races, says Steiner
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, April 20 (Reuters) - Half the Formula One calendar could be turned into sprint weekends if changes to the format are given the go-ahead and prove a hit in Baku next week, according to Haas team boss Guenther Steiner. MotoGP has already turned its whole calendar into two-race weekends, with a sprint on Saturday and the main event on Sunday. "I don’t know if we will do it every race weekend. But the F1 promoter will know what to do," Steiner told Reuters in an interview through team sponsor MoneyGram. Steiner said there would still be a need for some race weekends with three practice sessions and just a Sunday grand prix but the current Saturday sprint format needed changing.

☆ Azerbaijan protests 'barbaric' flag-burning at weightlifting championship in Armenia
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BAKU, April 15 (Reuters) - Azerbaijan lodged a strong protest on Saturday after its national flag was grabbed and set on fire during the opening ceremony of a weightlifting championship in neighbouring Armenia. Azerbaijan said it had become impossible for its athletes to take part in the championships and they had already left Armenia to travel home via Georgia. They condemned it as a "barbaric act" and as evidence of ethnic hatred and racism, saying Armenia was unfit to ensure the safety of athletes and host international sporting events. Armenia rejected that criticism, saying the incident had been resolved quickly and without any danger to competitors at the European Weightlifting Championships. Russia's RIA Novosti news agency quoted a lawyer for the man allegedly involved in the flag incident as saying he had been released without charge.

☆ Iran, Azerbaijan foreign ministers in talks amid tensions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DUBAI, April 8 (Reuters) - The foreign ministers of Iran and Azerbaijan discussed "problems and misunderstandings" between the two countries in two phone calls, Iranian state media reported on Saturday, days after Baku expelled four Iranian diplomats over "provocative actions". The expulsions came amid a deterioration of ties, partly due to Baku's improving relations with Tehran's arch-enemy Israel. "The two sides emphasised good neighbourliness and mutual respect for each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity," the report said. During the row, Azerbaijan suggested that Iran may have been connected to an attempted assassination of an anti-Tehran Azerbaijani lawmaker. Iran, which has a large population of ethnic Azeris in its northwest, has strongly criticised Azerbaijan for moving closer to Israel, with its foreign ministry saying it sees the relationship between Azerbaijan and Israel as "anti-Iranian".

☆ World Bank says Ukraine, Russia boost eastern Europe, Central Asia growth outlook
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, April 6 (Reuters) - The World Bank on Thursday lifted its 2023 economic growth forecast for eastern Europe and central Asia to 1.4% from an earlier 0.1% prediction, citing improved outlooks for both Russia and Ukraine despite their ongoing war. The regional forecast, released just days before the World Bank and International Monetary Fund hold their annual spring meetings, has Ukraine's economy growing by 0.5% this year following a staggering contraction of 29.2% in 2022, the year Russia launched its invasion. Russia's economy shrank 2.1% last year, considerably less than the 3.5% contraction the World Bank forecast in January. For 2023, the World Bank forecast Russia's economy to contract by 0.2%, compared to its previous forecast of a 3.3% contraction. The World Bank's regional grouping includes Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

☆ Long April break gives F1 time to take stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, April 3 (Reuters) - Formula One teams will welcome more than their drivers the breathing space provided by a long April break in a record 23-race season. "I don't want to have that break, because you know which race was missing from that break," said Alfa Romeo's Guanyu Zhou, the sport's only Chinese driver. "You will use it (the break) just to prepare for the next race in a better way and review the first three races. "For the race team, there's an opportunity to have a little bit of rest because the rest of the season will be tough." The break provides more time also for teams to work on upgrades and add spares after a bruising weekend for some in Australia.

JERUSALEM, March 29 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced confidence on Wednesday that he would find compromise with the political opposition over his judicial overhaul after the contested reforms drew a strong reproach from U.S. President Joe Biden. Separately, Netanyahu predicted on Wednesday that Israel would join the U.S. Visa Waiver Programme in September after passing legislation required by Washington. The national guard was launched last year under former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. "We don't trust the government and certainly not the prime minister and his gang," said 75-year-old retiree Chanoch Lipperman in Tel Aviv. But Biden, when asked by a reporter if he would be inviting Netanyahu, replied: "No, not in the near term."

☆ Killer drones and multi-billion dollar deals: Turkey's rapidly-growing defense industry is boosting its global clout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Drones aren't the only thing elevating Turkey's status as a growing player in the global defense industry. Turnover for the country's defense industry as a whole last year was $10 billion, according to Turkey's Presidency of Defense Industries. And the investment shows in the numbers: research and development in Turkey's defense sector "recently increased by 30 percent," the Atlantic Council's report wrote. Turkish defense manufacturers say they are booked for the next several years with orders to help replenish NATO stockpiles. Those firms also have high demand from Turkey's military alone — it is, after all, the second-largest military in NATO after the United States.

☆ Russia warns Armenia against allying with ICC after Putin arrest warrant - RIA
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, March 27 (Reuters) - Russia has warned Armenia of "serious consequences" if it submits to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) which has issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin, the RIA news agency reported on Monday. The ICC issued the warrant this month, accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine, a move condemned by the Kremlin as a meaningless and outrageously partisan decision. RIA, a state Russian news agency, cited a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry as saying that Moscow regarded Armenia's ICC plans as "unacceptable". The ICC warrant has the potential to complicate Putin's global travel plans if a country he wants to travel to is an official party to the Rome Statute. Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Alison WilliamsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ To escape the rat race, this pair cycled 15,000 km along the route from Finland to Singapore
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Audrey Wan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Valtteri Heinila was working in a startup when he realized he needed a break. With his friend Alvari Poikola, Heinila cycled through 21 countries in eight months, he told CNBC. The men chose Singapore as their goal because it was the farthest point they could cycle to, Heinila said. Valtteri Heinila (left) and Alvari Poikola at the Imperial City of Hue in Vietnam. Valtteri Heinila

☆ Photos from Putin's big meeting with China's Xi show no absurdly long tables but feature unexpectedly giant flags
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

On Tuesday, he was photographed with China's President Xi next to weirdly tall flags. But for Chinese President Xi Jinping, Moscow broke out long red carpets and massive flags. Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 21, 2023. Photo by PAVEL BYRKIN/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty ImagesRussian President Vladimir Putin meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 21, 2023. Russian President Vladimir Putin met with leaders of the countries of the CTSO Monday at a new long table, but this one is round.

☆ UK to help Kazakh exports bypass Russia, seeks critical minerals
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev shakes hands with British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly during a meeting in Astana, Kazakhstan March 18, 2023. Cleverly said London valued the position of Astana - which has traditionally been closely allied with Moscow - on the Ukrainian conflict. Kazakhstan has refused to support Russia's invasion or recognise its annexation of Ukrainian territories. Cleverly and Kazakh diplomats said they have signed a memorandum on critical minerals such as rare earth metals, but provided no details about it. But since the invasion Tokayev has been careful to keep his distance from Moscow and keep relations open with the West.

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