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☆ Is one of Russia’s oldest allies slipping from the Kremlin’s orbit?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

“Armenia’s security architecture 99.999% was linked to Russia,” he told Italian newspaper La Repubblica earlier this month. Analysts said the effectiveness of Russia's peacekeeping presence, which began after the war in 2020, has diminished over time. “Russia failed to deliver on its promises to secure the Lachin corridor… Russia failed to deliver weapons that Armenia purchased from Russia, Russia failed to curtail Azerbaijan’s expansionist and aggressive behavior against Armenia,” said Ter-Matevosyan. But in trying to shore up its security vis-a-vis Azerbaijan, Armenia has inadvertently delivered a stinging snub to Russia. “We have to remember that Russia has a huge destructive potential in the region,” said Ter-Matevosyan, referring to Russia’s sizable military base north of Yerevan.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Nikol Pashinyan, ”, Pashinyan, Armenia’s, Tofik Babayev, Azerbaijain, Vahram, Matevosyan, Karen Minasyan, Ter, Marie Dumoulin, Azerbaijan’s, ” Dumoulin, “, Putin, Ilham Aliyev –, He’s, Aliyev, Dumoulin, Dmitry Peskov, ’ ”, Anna Ohanyan, Ohanyan, –, Will Organizations: CNN, La Repubblica, Russian Federation, Getty, American University of Armenia, Collective Security, Organization, European Council, Foreign Relations, ICC, Politico, NATO, Stonehill College, Kremlin Locations: Armenia, Soviet, Ukraine, Rome, Russia, Azerbaijan, Italian, Russian, Nagorno, Karabakh, AFP, Turkey, Yerevan, “ Armenia, Moscow, “ Russia, Baku, Pashinyan, Massachusetts, “, Belarus, Repubblica, Western

☆ EU Troops Confront Would-Be Rioters in Exercise Echoing Bosnia Political Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

SARAJEVO (Reuters) - As a group of would-be protesters grows, shouting and blowing their whistles at the EU force's camp in Sarajevo, a military aircraft flies low and helicopters take off, all as part of a EUFOR exercise echoing the current political crisis in Bosnia. Dodik, a pro-Russian nationalist, has long sought to separate the Serb-dominated part of Bosnia from the rest of it. EUFOR replaced NATO troops in Bosnia in 2004 with a mandate to stabilise the ethnically divided country. Last year, days after Russia invaded Ukraine, the EU decided to almost double the size of its peacekeeping force from 600 troops by sending in reserves to ward off any potential instability. NATO and senior EU officials have warned that instability from the war in Ukraine could spread to the Western Balkans.

Persons: Milorad Dodik, Vladimir Putin, Helmut Habermayer, Habermayer, EUFOR, Daria Sito, Hugh Lawson Organizations: EU, Bosnian, NATO Locations: SARAJEVO, Sarajevo, Bosnia, Bosnian Serbs, Russian, Russia, Ukraine, Balkans

☆ Russia Voices Annoyance With Both Armenia and Azerbaijan
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Russia has protested to Azerbaijan over comments it made about weekend regional elections in areas of Ukraine claimed by Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday. She also accused Armenia of making "unacceptable and harmful" statements that were damaging to the prospects for a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan have risen in the past week, with each side accusing the other of building up troop concentrations near their borders. Armenia has accused Russia, which has maintained a peacekeeping force in the region since the last war in 2020, of failing to protect it against what it calls Azerbaijani aggression. The territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but is mostly populated by ethnic Armenians who broke away from Baku in a war in the 1990s.

Persons: Maria Zakharova, Zakharova, Filipp Lebedev, Mark Trevelyan, Gareth Jones Organizations: Reuters, Foreign, Russia Locations: Russia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Moscow, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Soviet Union, Baku

YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — Lawmakers in Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway Armenian-populated region of Azerbaijan, voted to elect a new separatist president on Saturday in a move that was strongly condemned by the Azerbaijani authorities. Samvel Shakhramanyan's election as the new president of Nagorno-Karabakh follows the resignation of Arayik Harutyunyan, who stepped down on Sept. 1 as president of the region — which the Armenians call Artsakh. Nagorno-Karabakh is a region within Azerbaijan that came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by the Armenian military after a six-year separatist war that ended in 1994. Armenian forces also took control of substantial territory around the region. Political Cartoons View All 1148 ImagesAzerbaijan regained control of the surrounding territory in a six-week war with Armenia in 2020.

Persons: Samvel, Arayik Harutyunyan, Nikol Pashinyan, Vladimir Putin, ” Organizations: —, Azerbaijan's, Ministry, Azerbaijan, Russian, Security, Organization, United States, Criminal Court, Russian Foreign Ministry Locations: YEREVAN, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Artsakh, Russia, Stepanakert, Moscow, Yerevan, Russian, Soviet, Ukraine

The Russian foreign ministry on Friday summoned the ambassador from longtime ally Armenia to protest upcoming joint military exercises with the United States and other complaints, highlighting growing tensions that are straining traditionally close relations. About 175 Armenian troops and 85 from the United States will start exercises on Monday focusing on peacekeeping operations. Landlocked Armenia has close military ties with Russia, including hosting a Russian military base and participating in the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization alliance. Political Cartoons View All 1148 ImagesHowever, Armenia has become increasingly disillusioned with Russia since the 2020 war with Azerbaijan. Armenia this year refused to allow CSTO exercises on its territory and it declined to send troops to bloc exercises in Belarus.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Maria Zakharova Organizations: Criminal Court, Russian, Security, Organization Locations: Armenia, United States, Ukraine, Rome, Russia, Moscow, Azerbaijan, Russian, Karabakh, Nagorno, Belarus

After the coup, the United States paused certain foreign assistance programs for Niger and military training has been on hold. "The leaders of this attempted coup are putting Niger's security at risk, creating a potential vacuum that terrorist groups or other malign groups may exploit," the official said. The United States has been pressing for a diplomatic resolution of the crisis that erupted on July 26 when Niger military officers seized power, deposed President Mohamed Bazoum and placed him under house arrest. Military juntas have come to power through coups in Mali and Burkina Faso - both neighbors of Niger - in recent years. But so far, Paris has rejected calls by the coup leaders to withdraw their 1,500 troops.

Persons: Joe Biden, Mohamed Bazoum, Kathleen FitzGibbon, Nusrat al, Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart, Jonathan Oatis, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Pentagon, Reuters, American, Air Base, Islamic State, Troops, United, Niger, Thomson Locations: Niger, U.S, Niamey, Agadez, West, al Qaeda, United, Washington, United States, State, Mali, Burkina Faso, France, Paris

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Central African Republic is facing a humanitarian crisis with 2.4 million people in need of assistance and the U.N.’s $534 million appeal only 36% funded, a U.N. official said Wednesday. Mineral-rich but impoverished CAR has a population of 6 million. CAR's President Faustin Archange Touadera has developed close ties to Russia and its Wagner mercenary group whose forces have served as his personal bodyguards. He said there are armed groups and security issues around CAR’s borders with Sudan, Chad and South Sudan and minefields and explosives in the west. The U.N. announced Tuesday it was giving CAR $6.5 million from its emergency relief fund.

Persons: Mohamed Ag Ayoya, Ayoya, it’s, aren’t, Francois Bozize, Faustin Archange, Wagner, Touadera, Yevgeny Prigozhin, ” Ayoya, ” Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, —, United Nations, Republican Front, Central African, Russia Locations: African Republic, Chad, Sudan, Russia, Bangui, Central African Republic, CAR’s, South Sudan

☆ Armenia says it will stage joint military exercise with US next week
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Sept 6 (Reuters) - Armenia said on Wednesday it would host a joint military exercise with the United States next week, a development likely to irritate Russia. The Armenian Defence Ministry said the purpose of the Sept. 11-20 "Eagle Partner 2023" exercise was to prepare its forces to take part in international peacekeeping missions. Russia has a military base in Armenia and sees itself as the pre-eminent power in the South Caucasus region, which until 1991 was part of the Soviet Union. It maintains a peacekeeping force in the region to uphold an agreement that ended a war between Armenia and Azerbaijan in 2020, the second they have fought since the Soviet collapse. "Russia plays a consistent, very important role in stabilising the situation in this region ... and we will continue to play this role."

Persons: Nikol Pashinyan, Dmitry Peskov, Pashinyan's, Mark Trevelyan, Christina Fincher Organizations: United, Armenian Defence Ministry, Eagle, Thomson Locations: Armenia, United States, Russia, U.S, South Caucasus, Soviet Union, Azerbaijan, Soviet, Italian, Ukraine

☆ Armenia to exercise with US troops next week, Russia voices concern
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sept 6 (Reuters) - Armenia said on Wednesday it would host a joint military exercise with the United States next week, a development that Russia said was cause for concern. The Armenian Defence Ministry said the purpose of the Sept. 11-20 "Eagle Partner 2023" exercise was to prepare its forces to take part in international peacekeeping missions. Russia has a military base in Armenia and sees itself as the pre-eminent power in the South Caucasus region, which until 1991 was part of the Soviet Union. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in a weekend interview with an Italian newspaper that Russia had failed to protect Armenia against what he called continuing aggression from Azerbaijan. "Russia plays a consistent, very important role in stabilising the situation in this region ... and we will continue to play this role."

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Nikol Pashinyan, Peskov, Pashinyan's, Mark Trevelyan, Andrew Osborn, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: United, Armenian Defence Ministry, Eagle, Kansas National Guard, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Armenia, United States, Russia, U.S, South Caucasus, Soviet Union, Azerbaijan, Soviet, Italian, Ukraine

☆ US could help settle Lebanon, Israel border dispute - White House adviser
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Senior White House Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein speaks at the end of his visit to Lebanon, at Beirut international airport, in Beirut, Lebanon, August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Issam Abdallah Acquire Licensing RightsBEIRUT, Aug 31 (Reuters) - The United States is exploring the possibility of resolving the long-standing border dispute between Lebanon and Israel, senior White House adviser Amos Hochstein said on Thursday at the end of a two-day visit to Lebanon. The senior White House adviser said he visited southern Lebanon during his trip "to understand and learn more about what is needed to be able to potentially achieve an outcome". Lebanon's caretaker foreign minister Abdallah Bou Habib said last week that determining the land border could put an end to those tensions. The U.N. peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL, which had its one-year mandate renewed on Thursday, has hosted meetings of Lebanon, Israel and the United Nations on points of contention preventing the delineation of the land border.

Persons: Energy Security Amos Hochstein, Issam Abdallah, Amos Hochstein, Hochstein, Abdallah Bou Habib, Maya Gebeily, Mark Heinrich, Jonathan Oatis, Andrew Heavens Organizations: White, Energy Security, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, United, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Beirut, Rights BEIRUT, United States, Israel, America, United Nations, Lebanese

☆ UN vote on Lebanon peacekeeping force delayed as France, US, UAE argue
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Michelle Nichols | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) - established in 1978 - patrols Lebanon's southern border with Israel. France has drafted a U.N. Security Council resolution to extend the peacekeeping mission for another year, but the United States and the United Arab Emirates argue it has weakened some language on the ability of U.N. troops to move freely. Lebanon's caretaker foreign affairs minister Abdallah Bou Habib has said that the new Security Council resolution should stipulate that UNIFIL coordinate with the Lebanese army. That has sparked friction with Hezbollah, which effectively controls southern Lebanon despite the presence of the Lebanese army. In December, an Irish peacekeeper was killed when his UNIFIL vehicle came under fire in southern Lebanon.

Persons: Aziz Taher, Antonio Guterres, Guterres, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Gilad Erdan, Abdallah Bou Habib, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Michelle Nichols, Dan Williams, Laila Bassam, Gebeily, David Holmes Organizations: Lebanese, UN, REUTERS, UNITED NATIONS, Nations, United, Interim Force, Security, Security Council, Reuters, Israel's Army Radio, Irish, UNIFIL, Thomson Locations: Israel, Lebanon, France, United States, Emirates, Iran, UAE, Lebanese

☆ Turkey says UN peacekeepers intervention of Turkish Cypriot roadworks unacceptable
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Scuffles broke out on Friday between U.N. peacekeepers and Turkish Cypriot security personnel when peacekeepers tried to prevent roadworks starting in an area the U.N. says is part of a buffer zone under its jurisdiction. Erdogan also said Turkey will continue to side with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), a breakaway state recognised only by Ankara. Turkish Cypriot authorities want to build a road that would give residents of Pyla/Pile, a village in the U.N.-administered buffer zone, direct access to territory under Turkish Cypriot control. Turkish Cypriot authorities say the peacekeeping force, known as UNFICYP, overstepped its boundaries. Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar characterised the road project as essential.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Anitkabir, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Erdogan, Scuffles, Ersin Tatar, Ezgi, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Supreme Military Council, Presidential Press, REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, Peacekeeping Force, Turkish Cypriot, Thomson Locations: YAS, Ankara, Turkey, Rights ISTANBUL, Cyprus, Pyla, U.N, Turkish, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Turkish Cypriot

[1/9] United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) members stand near their vehicles in Naqoura near the Lebanese-Israeli border, southern Lebanon, August 16, 2023. Israel and Hezbollah have avoided war across the Lebanese-Israeli frontier since their last major clash 17 years ago, deterred by mutual threats of destruction. The tensions come against the backdrop of a political crisis in Israel that has emboldened its enemies. Lebanon can ill afford conflict four years into a financial meltdown that has paralysed the state. Hezbollah last year gave its blessing to a maritime border deal with Israel that allows Lebanon to explore for offshore energy.

Persons: Aziz Taher, Israel, Tzachi Hanegbi, Hassan al, Baghdadi, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohanad Hage Ali, General Lázaro, Andrea Tenenti, Tom Perry, Nick Macfie Organizations: United Nations Interim Force, REUTERS, Reuters, National Security, Iran's, Guards, Carnegie Middle East Center, West Bank, UNIFIL, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Naqoura, Lebanese, Israel, JERUSALEM, BEIRUT, Iran, Syria, Ghajar, Western, Tel Aviv, Palestinian, Gaza, Jerusalem, Al, Aqsa, Beirut

☆ Armenia-Azerbaijan: 'Reasonable' to believe genocide being committed, former ICC chief prosecutor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Eve Brennan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A former International Criminal Court chief prosecutor has said there is “reasonable basis to believe that genocide is being committed against Armenians” in the contested region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenia and Azerbaijan have been battling over the region for decades. On Monday, UN experts urged Azerbaijan to lift a blockade on the Lachin corridor, the sole road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. An Azerbaijani checkpoint at the entry of the Lachin corridor, the Armenian-populated breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region's only land link with Armenia, on July 30. “It is essential to ensure the safety, dignity, and well-being of all individuals during this critical time,” they added.

Persons: CNN —, ”, Luis Moreno Ocampo, Ocampo, KAren Minasyan, Vahe, Josep Borrell, “, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Karabak Organizations: CNN, Criminal Court, ICC, UN Security, Deputy, European Union, EU Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Eastern Europe, Western Asia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Netherlands, UNHCR, Azerbaijani

"Our drone base in Niger is extremely important in countering terrorism in the region," one of the U.S. officials said. FOREIGN ASSISTANCEThe Biden administration has not formally labeled the military takeover in Niger a coup, a designation that would limit what security assistance Washington can provide the country. The U.S. drone base has grown in importance due to a lack of Western security partners in the region. The drone base, known as airbase 201, was built near Agadez in central Niger at a cost of more than $100 million. Wagner's chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has welcomed the coup in Niger and said his forces were available to restore order.

Persons: Abdourahmane Tiani, Balima, Mohamed Bazoum, Russia's Wagner, Biden, Antony Blinken, Nusrat al, Cameron Hudson, Hudson, Terence McCulley, WAGNER, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Idrees Ali, Daphne Psaledakis, Simon Lewis, Michelle Nichols, Don Durfee, Deepa Babington Organizations: REUTERS, Nigerien, Islamic State, Al, West African, Center for Strategic, International Studies, United States Institute of Peace, Wagner Group, ., U.S, Thomson Locations: Niger, Niamey, United States, Sahel, Al Qaeda, France, Africa, insurgencies, Russia, China, Washington, U.S, Mali, Burkina Faso, Agadez, State, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Niger's, Nigerien

☆ Niger’s coup leader faces a deadline to cede power. Will military action come next?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-06 | by ( Stephanie Busari | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The leaders of a coup in Niger are digging in their heels as they face a looming deadline from neighbors to give up power or face possible military action. President Bazoum’s election win in 2021 marked a relatively peaceful transfer of power, capping years of military coups following Niger’s independence from France in 1960. ECOWAS has shown a willingness to take action in cases where leaders refuse to relinquish power or when political crises escalate. The US and France consider Niger a critical ally and both countries have military bases in Niger. That kind of sentiment suggests that even if the stated goal is to restore democracy, a military intervention may not be welcomed across the country.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, “, Bazoum’s, Bazoum, Abdourahamane Tiani, Bola Tinubu, Tinubu, Security Abdel, Fatau Musah, Oluseyi, ” Adetayo, Jammeh, Nigeriens, Russia, Wagner, ” Ali Sounama Organizations: CNN, Regional, Economic, West African States, Nigerien, The Washington Post, ECOWAS, Local, Political Affairs, Peace, Security Locations: Niger, Sahel, Mali, Burkina Faso, France, Nigeria, Senegal, Bazoum, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, West Africa, Niamey, Nigerien

☆ Factbox: Military interventions by West African ECOWAS bloc
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The main regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), has imposed sanctions and said it could authorise the use of force as a last resort if soldiers do not restore ousted president Mohammed Bazoum to power. Below are previous ECOWAS military interventions:LIBERIAIn 1990, West African leaders sent a neutral military force to Liberia to intervene in the civil war between the forces of President Samuel Doe and two rebel factions. West African forces were deployed again at the tail end of the brutal 14-year conflict, which finished in 2003. GUINEA-BISSAUIn 1999, ECOWAS sent around 600 ECOMOG troops to preserve a peace deal in coup-prone Guinea-Bissau. In 2004, they were integrated into a U.N. peacekeeping force.

Persons: Abdourahmane Tiani, Balima, Mohammed Bazoum, Samuel Doe, Charles Taylor, Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Yahya Jammeh, Adama Barrow, Anait Miridzhanian, Alessandra Prentice, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Economic, West African States, ECOWAS, West, ECOWAS Monitoring, Human Rights Watch, Bissau . Rebels, Islamic, Restore, Thomson Locations: Niger, Niamey, LIBERIA, Liberia, SIERRA LEONE, Nigerian, Sierra, Freetown, GUINEA, BISSAU, Guinea, Bissau, IVORY, Ivory Coast, MALI, Mali, al Qaeda, Central, Northern Mali, Islamic State, Burkina Faso, GAMBIA, Gambia, Senegal

☆ Britain investigates after Mali gets defence emails meant for Pentagon
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 28 (Reuters) - UK authorities said on Friday they were investigating defence ministry emails that were mistakenly sent to the wrong recipient, after reports that messages intended for U.S. military intelligence ended up with Russian ally Mali. Ministry of Defence officials were trying to contact the Pentagon, whose domain name is ".mil", but accidentally sent the mails to Mali, which has the domain name ".ml", the Times newspaper reported. Britain said the information that was mistakenly shared was not highly sensitive. "We have opened an investigation after a small number of emails were mistakenly forwarded to an incorrect email domain," a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said, without confirming the domain's name. "All sensitive information is shared on systems designed to minimise the risk of misdirection," the spokesperson said.

Persons: Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan romcom, Alistair Smout, John Stonestreet Organizations: Ministry of Defence, Pentagon, Times, MoD, BBC, Britain's MoD, Thomson Locations: Mali, Russia, France, Britain, U.S

☆ Hezbollah members wounded in flare-up on Lebanon border with Israel -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] A Lebanese army vehicle drives in Khiam, near the border with Israel, in southern Lebanon July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Aziz TaherBEIRUT/JERUSALEM, July 12 (Reuters) - Several members of Lebanon's powerful armed Hezbollah group were wounded on Wednesday in a flare-up on the southern border with Israel, two Lebanese security sources and a source briefed on the developments told Reuters. The Lebanese source briefed on developments described the incident as an attack and said several Hezbollah members had been wounded, but could not immediately provide more details. A Lebanese security source said Israeli troops had fired "something like a grenade" that emitted shrapnel and hurt three Hezbollah members. A Lebanese parliamentary delegation planning on visiting the southern border on Thursday indefinitely postponed the visit "due to the security developments on the border".

Persons: Aziz Taher, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel, Maya Gebeily, Laila Bassam, Dan Williams, Toby Chopra, Howard Goller, Diane Craft Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, United Nations, Hezbollah, Lebanese, Thomson Locations: Lebanese, Khiam, Israel, Lebanon, Aziz Taher BEIRUT, JERUSALEM, U.S, New York, Ghajar, Syria, Beirut, Jerusalem

☆ Rocket launch at Israel from Lebanon draws Israeli cross-border shelling
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Summary Two rockets fired from southern Lebanon towards IsraelIsrael responds with cross-border strikesIncident follows large Israeli incursion in West BankBEIRUT/JERUSALEM, July 6 (Reuters) - Two rockets were fired from southern Lebanon toward Israel on Thursday, prompting cross-border strikes by the Israeli military, sources on both sides said. Three security sources in Lebanon said two rockets were fired toward Israel, one of them landing in Lebanese territory and the second near a disputed area at the border. After initially saying it had no indications of any unusual incidents on its side of the border, the Israeli military said a projectile had exploded there. One resident of Wazzani, the village in southern Lebanon where one of the rockets fell, said artillery fire had hit there from the direction of Israel. Israel blamed the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas for firing rockets into Israel from Lebanon in April during another flare-up in Israeli-Palestinian violence.

Persons: Israel Israel, Najib Mikati, Israel, Laila Bassam, Aziz Taher, Maya Gebeily, Dan Williams, Ahmed Elimam, Gebeily, Tom Perry, Gareth Jones, Ros Russell Organizations: West Bank, IDF, Israel Defence Forces, Lebanon's National News Agency, Caretaker, Lebanese, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Israel, West Bank BEIRUT, JERUSALEM, Jenin, Palestinian, Wazzani, Ghajar, Syria, Iran, Jerusalem

☆ Putin is facing a new threat at home while Russia's military is making itself 'vulnerable globally,' experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Christopher Woody | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

It comes as Russia's military is tied down in Ukraine and less able to respond to crises elsewhere. Those questions come as a Ukrainian offensive bears down on Russia's military, which since late last year has been replenishing its forces in Ukraine with aging equipment and under-trained personnel. These efforts have bolstered Russian units in Ukraine but left the Russian military more vulnerable elsewhere and undermined its ability to respond to other crises, experts say. Russia's military has tried to show it still has muscles to flex, mostly with air and naval forces that are largely undamaged by the war. Russian troops board a military aircraft on their way to Kazakhstan in January 2022.

Persons: Wagner, it's, Putin, —, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Russia's, Dara Massicot, Maxym, I've, there's, Massicot, Gorshkov, Kassym, Tokayev, Mark Galeotti, Galeotti, It's, Prigozhin, SERGEI GUNEYEV, Angela, John Kirby, Kirby Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Rand Corporation, Georgetown University, Getty, Russia's, Fleet, Northern Fleet, Iranian Army, Anadolu Agency, Moscow, Russian Defense Ministry Press, Kremlin, SPUTNIK, Center for, East European Studies, Brookings Institution, National Security Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russian, Ukraine's Kharkiv, Siberia, Norway, Georgia, Central Asia, Russia, Syria, Kazakhstan, Russia's, Armenia, Tajikistan

☆ US urges 'orderly, responsible' drawdown of UN peacekeepers from Mali
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 19 (Reuters) - The United States regrets a decision by Mali's interim military authorities to ask a United Nations peacekeeping force to leave the country, the State Department said on Monday, calling for an "orderly and responsible" drawdown of the mission. "The United States regrets the transition government of Mali’s decision to revoke its consent for MINUSMA," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said. "MINUSMA's drawdown must be orderly and responsible, prioritizing the safety and security of peacekeepers and Malians." MINUSMA was deployed by the U.N. Security Council in 2013 to support foreign and local efforts to restore stability. U.N. Security Council members had started to discuss a draft resolution to extend MINUSMA's mandate, which expires on June 30.

Persons: Abdoulaye Diop, Matthew Miller, MINUSMA, Miller, Michelle Nichols, Daphne Psaledakis, Franklin Paul, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: United Nations, State Department, Mali's, Security, Department, . Security, Thomson Locations: United States, Mali, France, Russia, West Africa, El

☆ Germany resists Malian junta demand for immediate exit of troops
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Berlin has deployed some 1,000 troops to Mali, most near the northern town of Gao where their main task is to gather reconnaissance for the 13,000-strong MINUSMA. MINUSMA was deployed by the U.N. Security Council in 2013 to support foreign and local efforts to restore stability. A resolution requires at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes by Russia, China, the United States, Britain or France to pass. The junta has burnt bridges with traditional Western allies and turned to Russia for help boosting its military capabilities. Germany said late last year it would start to pull out its troops from Mali from the middle of next year after a decade-long mission, with the withdrawal to be completed by May 2024.

Persons: MINUSMA, Wagner, Sarah Marsh, Sabine Siebold, Giles Elgood Organizations: United Nations, West, . Security, Security, UN, Thomson Locations: BERLIN, Germany, Berlin, Mali, Gao, France, Russia, China, United States, Britain

☆ Mali asks United Nations to withdraw peacekeeping force
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Michelle Nichols | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, June 16 (Reuters) - Mali's interim military authorities on Friday asked for a United Nations peacekeeping force to leave "without delay", citing a "crisis of confidence" between Malian authorities and the decade-long U.N. mission known as MINUSMA. MINUSMA was deployed by the U.N. Security Council in 2013 to support foreign and local efforts to restore stability. "This situation is begetting mistrust among the Malian population and also causing a crisis of confidence between Malian authorities and MINUSMA," he said. Security Council members must adopt a resolution to extend MINUSMA's mandate by June 30. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recommended this month that the Security Council extend MINUSMA's mandate for a year, maintaining the current authorized strength of some 15,000 troops and police.

Persons: MINUSMA, Abdoulaye Diop, Wagner, Russia's U.N, Vassily Nebenzia, Nebenzia, Nicolas de Riviere, de Riviere, U.N, Antonio Guterres, Michelle Nichols, Bate Felix, Alessandra Prenticel, Frank Jack Daniel, Grant McCool Organizations: YORK, United Nations, West, . Security, Foreign, Security, UN, Thomson Locations: France, MINUSMA, Russia, China, United States, Britain, Mali, al Qaeda, State, Sahel, El

☆ Kosovo PM presents plan to defuse tensions in Serb-majority area
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Around 200 Serbs gathered in North Mitrovica to protest against the arrest, with Kosovo Albanian police in anti-riot gear standing a few hundred metres away. During the operation to arrest Milun Milenkovic, three Kosovo Albanian policemen were lightly injured, Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla said on his Facebook page. Kurti said nothing about setting up the association of Serb municipalities which would ensure greater autonomy for the Serb majority area. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic urged Kosovo last week to grant more autonomy to Serbs before organising a new vote. NATO bombing drove out Serbian security forces but Belgrade continues to regard Kosovo only as its southern province.

Persons: Kurti, Milun Milenkovic, Xhelal Svecla, Albin Kurti, Quint, Aleksandar Vucic, Petar Petkovic, Milenkovic, Fatos, Ivana Sekularac, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: KFOR PRISTINA, Kosovo Albanian, NATO, KFOR, European Union, U.S, Serbia, Serbian, Thomson Locations: Kosovo, North Mitrovica, U.S, United States, Republic of Kosovo, Italy, France, Germany, Britain, EU, Serbian, Brussels, Serbia, Belgrade

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