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☆ Azerbaijan’s 10 best castles and fortresses
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Tom Marsden | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

It grew up around a fortress built in the 1750s by Panah Ali Khan, founder of the Karabakh Khanate (1748-1822). Kamilla Rzayeva Tea culture: Azerbaijani tea culture originated in Lankaran and the hospitable locals will often welcome visitors with a refreshing glass. Kamilla Rzayeva Yanar Bulag: Yanar Bulag, meaning "burning spring" is a natural spring which percolates methane gas. Kamilla Rzayeva Hirkan National Park: Home to endangered Persian leopards, Hirkin National Park is a great place for hiking and cooling off. Kamilla Rzayeva Ironwood trees: Hirkan National Park's famous ironwood trees are believed to have survived the last Ice Age.

Persons: ”, Alexander the Great, Timur, Russia –, Elchin Aliyev, who’s, Akhsitan I, Ilisu, Ivan Paskevich, Imam Shamil, Potemkin, Sergei Einstein’s, Panah Ali Khan, Persian Shah, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar, Joseph Stalin, Kamilla, Stalin, Yanar, Zindan Organizations: CNN, UNESCO, Sheki, of Sheki, Zaqatala Locations: Europe, Asia, Azerbaijan, Russia, USSR, jostle, Old City, Baku, Mardakan, Shabran, Persia, Chirag, Sheki, Caucasus, Ilisu, Ilisu Sultanate, Soviet, Zaqatala, Lesser Caucasus, Shusha, Karabakh, Persian, Alinja, Azerbaijan’s, Nakhchivan, Armenia, Iran, Turkey, Machu Picchu, Azerbaijani, Lankaran, Ironwood, ironwood, Talysh

☆ Armenia and Azerbaijan Have Agreed on Basic Peace Treaty Principles -TASS Cites Armenian PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) -Armenia and Azerbaijan have been able to agree on the basic principles for a peace treaty but are still "speaking different diplomatic languages", Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Saturday, according to Russia's TASS news agency. "We have good and bad news about the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process," TASS quoted Pashinyan as saying in Yerevan. "It is good that the basic principles of peace with Azerbaijan have been agreed. "The most important bad news is that we still speak different diplomatic languages and very often do not understand each other," Pashinyan said. Pashinyan said Armenia had also proposed swapping all Armenian prisoners for all Azerbaijani prisoners, TASS reported.

Persons: Nikol Pashinyan, Pashinyan, Charles Michel, Alexander MarrowEditing, Andrew Osborn Organizations: Reuters, Armenian, TASS, European Locations: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Yerevan, Brussels

The commander of the victorious army watched on in triumph as his troops goose-stepped in columns through the central square of the former breakaway capital they had captured in a brazen attack just weeks before. The commander, President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, was taking a victory lap last week around the Nagorno-Karabakh city of Stepanakert, also known as Khankendi, a ghost town after its ethnic Armenian residents fled in fear as Azerbaijani troops captured the area. “The enemy has knelt before us,” Mr. Aliyev, dressed in camouflage, said as he hailed his troops from a small podium. Azerbaijan seized full control over Nagorno-Karabakh, including Stepanakert, in late September after defeating separatist forces, extending gains made in 2020 when a Russia-brokered cease-fire allowed it to take over most of the territory that Armenia had seized in a yearslong war in the 1990s.

Persons: Ilham Aliyev, ” Mr, Aliyev Locations: Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Stepanakert, Russia, Armenia

☆ World Court: Azerbaijan must let ethnic Armenians return to Nagorno-Karabakh
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTHE HAGUE, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Judges at the World Court on Friday ordered Azerbaijan to let ethnic Armenians who fled Nagorno-Karabakh in September return, and to keep the Armenians remaining in the enclave safe, as part of a set of emergency measures. Azerbaijan in September recaptured the region, then controlled by its ethnic Armenian majority despite being internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. The lightning offensive, after decades of enmity between Baku and Yerevan and a nine-month blockade of essential supplies by Baku, prompted the mass exodus of most of the region's 120,000 ethnic Armenians to neighbouring Armenia. Yerevan accused Azerbaijan of ethnic cleansing and asked the International Court of Justice, as the World Court is formally known, to issue emergency measures aimed at protecting the rights of ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan's foreign ministry said it had already pledged to ensure all residents’ safety and security, regardless of national or ethnic origin, and that it had not forced the ethnic Armenians to leave Karabakh.

Persons: Irakli, Joan Donoghue, Stephanie van den Berg, Nailia, Andrew Heavens, Hugh Lawson, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, HAGUE, International Court of Justice, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Baku, Yerevan

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The visuals of the world-famous Strip expected to emerge from the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday night has enticed sports bettors so much that the event is expected to set Formula One and motor sports wagering records. “Race weekend in Las Vegas has the potential to shatter every company record for the sport,” BetMGM chief revenue officer Matt Prevost said in a statement. Pullen said races typically draw bettors especially interested in that circuit, but Las Vegas is attracting more of the casual or cross-over gambler. “It'll blow away NASCAR,” Pullen said. The trend is similar at Caesars, with Verstappen going from minus-250 to minus-225 “and slowly coming down and down,” Pullen said.

Persons: ”, Adam Pullen, “ It’s, ” That's, Matt Prevost, Carlos Sainz Jr, Pullen, ” Pullen, it's, Max Verstappen, FanDuel, bettors, “ Organizations: LAS VEGAS, Las Vegas, Caesars Entertainment, Formula, Vegas, NASCAR, Caesars Locations: Las Vegas, U.S, East Coast, United States, Vegas, BetMGM, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Azerbaijan

☆ Azerbaijan snubs Armenia meeting in Washington, accusing US of bias
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh region ride in a truck upon their arrival at the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 16 (Reuters) - Azerbaijan's foreign ministry said on Thursday it could not take part in a meeting with Armenia's foreign minister planned for Nov. 20 in Washington because of the "one-sided approach of the United States". Azerbaijan objected in particular to "one-sided and biased" comments on Wednesday by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O’Brien to the House Foreign Affairs Committee. It complained that O'Brien did not mention that "for more than two months Armenia has not been responding" to Azerbaijani peace proposals. The Azerbaijani statement also said Washington was continuing to offer support to Armenia even though Armenia was "an aggressor and a destabilizing source in the region".

Persons: Irakli, Nikol Pashinyan, State James O’Brien, O'Brien, Washington, Ali Asadov, Kevin Liffey, Mark Trevelyan Organizations: REUTERS, Russia's TASS, U.S, State, House Foreign Affairs Committee, U.S ., Reuters, Thomson Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Kornidzor, Armenia, Washington, United States, Baku, Azerbaijan, U.S, Tbilisi, Yerevan

☆ Armenian PM Says to Intensify Efforts to Agree Peace Treaty With Azerbaijan - TASS
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

Health News Bulletin Stay informed on the latest news on health and COVID-19 from the editors at U.S. News & World Report. Sign Up Sign in to manage your newsletters »Sign up to receive the latest updates from U.S News & World Report and our trusted partners and sponsors. By clicking submit, you are agreeing to our Terms and Conditions & Privacy Policy.

Organizations: U.S . News, U.S News

☆ Russia: Armenia Skipping CSTO Summit Is Latest Anti-Russian Move Orchestrated by West
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Wednesday that Armenian Prime Minister's Nikol Pashinyan's decision to stay away from a summit of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) was the latest anti-Russian move by Armenia orchestrated by the West. Relations between Russia and Armenia, which are formally allies, have soured in recent months, with Yerevan publicly questioning the value of its partnership with Russia and trying to deepen ties with the West. Some Armenians blamed Russia for failing to stop what Baku called an anti-terrorist operation, an allegation that Moscow has rejected. Russian Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that Russia saw Pashinyan's refusal to attend the CSTO summit as the latest in a "chain" of events. The West, whose plans in Ukraine have failed, is now gripping Armenia, trying to tear it away from Russia," she said.

Persons: Minister's Nikol, Maria Zakharova, Armenpress, Dmitry Antonov, Felix Light, Andrew Osborn Organizations: Security, Organisation, West . Relations, West, Russian Foreign, Russia Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Armenia, Yerevan, Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Baku, Moscow, Russian, Ukraine

Red Bull Racing's dominance in Formula 1 this year is translating directly to higher sales of its namesake energy drink, the team's principal and CEO, Christian Horner, told CNBC. The Red Bull team, which also counts tech giant Oracle as a title sponsor, has trounced the grid this season, winning 19 of the 20 Grand Prix weekends so far. The Red Bull team secured the constructors championship the weekend prior, in Japan. Red Bull declined to share specific sales metrics, but a company spokesperson reiterated the F1 "uplift" and said it's particularly noticeable in corresponding race markets. It's incredible the amount of consumption of Red Bull that is happening," Horner told CNBC.

Persons: Bull, Christian Horner, Horner, CNBC's Sara Eisen, Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, Verstappen, Red Bull Organizations: CNBC, Red Bull Locations: Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, Qatar, Japan, Las Vegas, Abu Dhabi, Red

☆ Paris 2024 calls for vigilance amid disinformation campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Games is seen on an official toy mascot at the Doudou et Compagnie factory in La Guerche-de-Bretagne near Rennes in Brittany, France, April 12, 2023. "Between now and the Games, Paris 2024 will continue to monitor, in conjunction with the relevant authorities, the veracity of information circulating about the event and its organisation," Paris 2024 said in a statement on Tuesday. Ties between Paris and Baku have been strained in recent months and have worsened since Baku took control of the Nagorno-Karabah region. Paris 2024 said it was not the first time such campaigns had been aimed at the Games. In summer 2022, a video from New York Insider linking the June riots to the organisation of Paris 2024 went viral, it said.

Persons: Stephane Mahe, VIGINUM, Julien Pretot, John Irish, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Paralympics, Compagnie, REUTERS, Games, New, Paris, Thomson Locations: La Guerche, Bretagne, Rennes, Brittany, France, Azerbaijan, Paris, Baku, Karabah, New York

☆ French report flags Azeri-linked disinformation campaign targeting 2024 Olympics
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

According to the report seen by Reuters and other media, the campaign ran from July 26-27 on an account of an Azerbaijani individual on social media X, formerly Twitter, with links to the Azeri presidential party. However, Viginum said it had not been able to link the campaign directly to the Azerbaijani authorities. Ties between Paris and Baku have been strained in recent months and have worsened since Baku took control of the Nagorno-Karabah region. A French diplomatic source said Paris had asked Baku for clarifications on the disinformation campaign. It would also be discussing the matter with X, formerly Twitter, in the coming days, the source said.

Persons: Benoit Tessier, Viginum, Paris, John Irish, Tassilo Hummel, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: IOC, Paris, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Vigilance, Protection, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, Azerbaijan, Baku, Karabah, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh

☆ Rabbis From Across the Globe Flock to New York for Prayer — and Hope
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Sarah Maslin Nir | More About Sarah Maslin Nir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The rabbis came from Israel and Ukraine, from Azerbaijan and France, from Thailand and farther still, as thousands of Jews filed into a graveyard in Queens under a sea of black hats. The roughly 6,500 orthodox rabbis, in New York City for an annual conference, arrived in a city convulsed by protests over the war between Israel and Hamas. “We are losing everything we have,” Rabbi Avraham Wolff, the chief Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbi of Odesa, Ukraine, said in Hebrew. And just before he left for New York, Russian rockets fell on Odesa. “For them I have to be strong.”He added, “If I have to cry, I do it under my blankets.”

Persons: —, Avraham Wolff, “, ” Organizations: Lubavitch, Hamas Locations: Israel, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, France, Thailand, Queens, New York City, Odesa, New York, Russian

☆ An Epic Pilgrimage Across Three Great Religions
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Aatish Taseer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +111 min

Before there was tourism, there was pilgrimage: a trip of endurance, hardship and ecstasy in celebration of one’s faith. On an epic pilgrimage of his own, one writer ventures into the heart of three great religions in Bolivia, Mongolia and Iraq. The Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala the day after Ashura. “They’re poor, but they come thousands of kilometers for the love of Imam Hussein.” PILGRIMAGE WAS A great equalizer. “Labaik ya Hussein,” came the solemn chorus of surrounding voices.

Persons: Eduardo Quintela Gonzáles, ” Quintela, JAN, “, ”, Quintela, Victor, Edith Turner, Chaucer, ferne, sondry londes, Vaishno Devi, Lyra Skinner, Lyra, Victoria Preston’s, —, Prophet Muhammad, Virgin Mary, Bath, Naipaul, Augustus, Ryan, garret, Virgin, Monica Machicao, Nicholas Casey, ” Monica, Casey, Evo Morales, sloughing, Columbus, Cortés, Francisco Pizarro, Monica, glitzy cholets, Peru —, Viracocha, it’s, Pablo Quisbert, Leandro Chitarroni, Eichmann, Father Chitarroni, Father Chitarroni’s, Conquistadores ”, Fernando Cervantes, Bernabé Cobo, Quisbert, Edgar Quispe, Tatiana Huayhua, Francisco Tito Yupanqui, Mary, Yupanqui’s, su, Yupanqui, Chitarroni, she’s, Friar Abelino Yeguaori, Friar Yeguaori, Friar Yeguaori’s, Irene, Juana, hajji, Waka, Aracely Alcón, Santiago, Alcón, ‘, don’t, ” Alcón, Tito Yupanqui, Uma Marka, Pachamama, haggard, Amaru Fiorilo Barrios, he’d, ” Fiorilo, Fiorilo, who’d, Valeria Alcón, Laureano Jose Quisbert, Elena Ticona Flores, Eduardo Quintela’s, Ensamble, pang, padre, consolations, Sincrético, El, Rodrigo Paz Pereira, Axel, amauta, strode, La, Aatish Taseer, Saint Helena —, Constantine I, La Paz, Orgilbaatar Tsolmon, Orgil, Genghis Khan, Edward Gibbon, ” Orgil, Araniko’s, Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan’s, Kubla Khan, Coleridge, Kublai, Stalin, sybarite, Khamar, Dalai Lama, Lama, Christopher Kaplonski, ger, I’d, banshtai tsai, Prim, Egi, Munkhdul, Gandantegchinlen, Haidav, herder, “ Um sain, boltugai, Danzanravjaa, Zanabazar’s, Erdene, Mandakhtsog Monkhbaatar, Monkhbaatar’s, Dalai Lamas, prostrated, He’d, Zuu, she’d, Santiago de, L.K, Advani, Emperor Babur, Ram, kar sevaks, Ayodhya, Narendra Modi, Munkhbaatar Batchuluun, Henry Wallace, Franklin D, Potemkin, Munkhbaatar, Gerelmaa, Giimaa, She’d, Eduardo Quintela, Aracely, Santiago’s, Joseph Brodsky’s, Muhammad’s, Hussein, William Keo, ” Khuder, pillion, Labaik, Hussein ”, O Hussein, hearkened, Prophet, Ali —, Ali, Yazid, Imam, crackling, chickpeas, Imam Ali, Imam Hussein, Saddam Hussein, Tusi, Qasim, Imam Hussein’s, Khuder, “ Will, Najaf, prestes, — I, Yasir Yaseen, Ashura, Ali Akbar, Abbas, Ali Asghar, “ We’re, Francisco Goya’s, Hussein’s, Groom, Joseph, ” Wissam, Turfi, Saddam —, Arbaeen, Saddam, “ Imam Hussein, WE, Muhammad, Barnaby Rogerson, Prophet Muhammad ”, ” Ali, Muhammad — Muhammad, formlessness, Muqtada al, Abrams, chiding, Abu Musab Al, Zarqawi, Al Qaeda, William, “ They’re, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, flagellants, ruddy, stylishly, Hussein — shahid —, Farman Ahsan, Syed Salman Raza —, Saddam’s, ” Raza, William “, Ali Zayn al, Abidin, Labaik ya Hussein, thrall —, Lloyd, Susanne Rudolph — Organizations: CITY LA, LA, LA PAZ, Virgin, Crusaders, Dolorosa, Sun, The New York Times, Bolivian, Spain, La, Cordillera, Universidad Mayor de, Catholic, Good, La Paz, Dominican, Pakistan, Caesars, Nissan, Coke, Communists, Communism, ardor, Communist, Hyundai, flails, sacra, Apache, Mahdi Army, Al, ISIS, Karachi —, Princeton Locations: Bolivia, Mongolia, Iraq, Aatish Taseer Bolivia Mongolia Iraq, CITY LA PAZ, BOLIVIA, NAJAF, IRAQ, ULAANBAATAR, MONGOLIA, LA PAZ, La Paz, Bolivian, Copacabana, Lake Titicaca, New York, Christian, British, sondry, India, Delhi, Varanasi, Europe, American, Mecca, Arabia, Long, Vino Tinto, Chile, Peru, Monica, Plurinational State, Bolivia —, Americas, Spain, Columbian, Aztec Mexico, Inca Peru, Calvary Hill, Virgen del Cerro, South America, Puerto Rico, Huatajata, ”, Argentine, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, Mexican, revelry, Spanish, “, morena, La, “ India, multilayered, Potosí, Argentina, Warisata, Scotch, Santiago de Compostela, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Nations, El Alto, Buenos Aires, Bombay, Tibet, Bolivia’s, Yamuna Rivers, United States, Buddhist Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolian, Istanbul, Asia, Islam, China, Beijing, Dadu, Erdene Zuu, Soviet, Gobi, Los Angeles, gers, Qing China, Karnataka, Töv Province, Karakorum, Khamar, Erdene, Ukraine, Korea, Golden, Bayankhongor, Lhasa, Dalai, Inner Mongolia, Mongol, Nalaikh, Santiago, Santiago de Compostela and Canterbury, Bulgan Province, Somnath, Gujarat, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, ger, East German, Uvs Province, Pakistani, Indian, Tennessee, Najaf, Baghdad, Khuder, —, abayas, KARBALA, Kufa, Medina, Saudi Arabia, Karbala, Imam Ali, Bab, Kuwaiti, Bohras, South Asia, Tajikistan, Zaydis, Yemen, Alawites, Anatolia, Syria, Iran, Bahrain, Azerbaijan, Sadr, U.S, Jordanian, Al Qaeda, Mesopotamia, Al, Multan, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan’s, Islamabad, Lahore, Kuwait, Karachi, Doha, Qatar

☆ As the West courts Russia's neighbors, Putin shows he won't give up its backyard without a fight
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Eurasian Economic Summit on Nov. 9, 2022, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at a joint news conference at the Kremlin in Moscow, on Feb. 10, 2022. "Central Asia obviously has to keep a fine balance and tread that line," Hess said. Analysts note that while an economically isolated Russia wants and needs to keep Central Asia on side, it is gradually losing its grip on the region. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev arrive for a working breakfast of the leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States in Moscow, Russia, on May 9, 2023.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Keen, Emmanuel Macron, Putin, Ilham Aliyev, Serdar Berdimuhamedow, Emomali Rahmon, Alexander Lukashenko, Sergei Lavrov, —, it's, Max Hess, Hess, Kassym, Mikhail Klimentyev, Xi Jinping, Florence Lo, they've, Temur Umarov, Tokayev, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Vladimir Smirnov Organizations: Economic, Getty, Russia, Commonwealth of Independent States, Russian, Central Asia —, Central Asian, Kazakh, CIS, West, Georgia, Foreign Policy Research Institute, CNBC, Kremlin, Reuters Central, Central, Central Asia Summit, Afp, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, Commonwealth of Independent, Sputnik Locations: Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia, Moscow, Russian, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakh, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, China, Soviet, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Baltic States, Soviet Union, Moldova, Ukraine, U.S, Afghanistan, Asia, Xian, Shaanxi

Azerbaijan's President Addresses a Military Parade in Karabakh and Says 'We Showed the Whole World'Hundreds of Azerbaijani soldiers have paraded through the capital city of the Karabakh region that came under full control of Azerbaijan in September after a lightning rout of ethnic Armenian forces

Locations: Karabakh, Azerbaijan

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russia claims Kyiv attacked 3 nuclear power plants; Putin says post-Soviet space is being weakened
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

BISHKEK, KYRGYZSTAN - OCTOBER 13 Russian President Vladimir Putin speeches during his press conference at the Commonwealth of Independent States's Head of States Meeting at the Ala-Archa State Residence, October 13,2023, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. (Photo by Contributor/Getty Images)Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that a number of countries are acting in a way that is "directly aimed" at weakening power the post-Soviet space. Russia called on the CIS, a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia, to beef up collective security. Putin said Russia and its neighbors faced common threats of terrorism, organized crime, drug trafficking and illegal migration, as well as radicalism and extremism. The CIS includes Russia and former Soviet republics including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, formely Pishpek, Putin, Holly Ellyatt Organizations: Commonwealth, Independent, Indendent, CIS, Commonwealth of Independent States, RIA Novosti, EU, Georgia Locations: BISHKEK, KYRGYZSTAN, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, formely, Frunze, Central Asia, Commonwealth, Russian, Moscow, Russia, Eurasia, Soviet, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Baltic, Moldova, Ukraine

☆ Russia fumes at the West's charm offensive in its backyard, saying it's 'luring' its friends away
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

One top official in Moscow was fuming as he claimed the West was "luring" its "neighbours, friends, and allies" away from Russia. Moscow's disdainThe French leader's comments are likely to have enraged Moscow, which is already watching Western efforts to court Central Asia with suspicion and disdain. "Look at how Western powers are wooing Central Asia," Lavrov told the BelTA news agency, in comments published by Russia's Foreign Ministry. "They have created numerous formats such as 'Central Asia plus' involving the United States, the EU, and Japan ... On top of the Central Asia plus EU format, the Germans have created their own format. China's roleThere's certainly a tussle for influence that's taking place in Central Asia, with China also "courting" the region to a certain extent.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Kassym, Sergei Lavrov, Lavrov, Ilham Aliyev, Serdar Berdimuhamedow, Emomali Rahmon, Alexander Lukashenko, Mark Galeotti, Galeotti, we've, Ed Jones, There's, Joe Biden, Jim Watson, Alexander Titov, Russia's, Xi Jinping, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov Organizations: Getty, Ukraine, Kazakh, CNBC, Russian, Central, Russia's Foreign Ministry, EU, Commonwealth of Independent States, Central Asia's, West, General, Afp, Georgia —, Queen's University of Belfast, U.S, Analysts, of, Forum, International Cooperation, Xinhua News Agency Locations: 13,2023, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Moscow, Central Asia, Kazakhstan, Soviet, Astana, France, Uzbekistan, United States, Japan, Turkmenistan, Russian, London, Europe, China, Central, Ukraine, Central Asian, Tajikistan, New York City, Belarus, Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, North Korea, Nicaragua, Syria, South Caucasus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Moldova, Afghanistan, Beijing, People's, of Turkmenistan

☆ Anti-Semitic riot in Russia's Dagestan leaves some local Jews shaken
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] A view of gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in the ancient city of Derbent on the Caspian Sea coast in the Caucasus region of Dagestan, Russia, November 2, 2023. With row after row of gravestones engraved with the Star of David or portraits and pictures of the dead, Derbent's Jewish cemetery gives an indication of how large this coastal city's Jewish population once was. One of a string of enclaves of so-called Mountain Jews that pepper both Russia's Caucasus and neighbouring Azerbaijan, Derbent's Jews still speak a dialect of Persian that evokes their hometown's rich history. Today there are barely 2,000 Jews still living in Dagestan, once home to 10 times that." Alexander Fedotov, who was visiting Derbent's Jewish cemetery with Zoya Solomonova, said he thought the airport riot had been planned by someone intent on spoiling ties between Russia and Israel.

Persons: Kazbek Basayev, Zoya Solomonova, Vladimir Putin, David, Derbent's, Derbent, Shneor Segal, Alexander Fedotov, Eduard Ilgiyaev, I've, I'm, Andrew Osborn, Felix Light, Daniel Wallis Organizations: REUTERS, West, Star, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Derbent, Caucasus, Dagestan, Russia, St Petersburg, Makhachkala, Tel Aviv, Gaza, Ukraine, Soviet Union, Israel, Moscow, Chechnya, Azerbaijan

☆ Europe’s gas prices are a worry ahead of winter despite brimming stores
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

But while gas shortages are unlikely in Europe this winter, the price of the fuel remains a worry. According to S&P Global, about one-fifth of global LNG supply travels through the channel on Iran’s south coast. In a less jittery market, neither incident may have had the effect it did, helping boost European gas prices by more than 40% over the course of a single week. High gas prices have presented a persistent economic headwind for Europe's biggest economy due to its reliance on energy-intensive industries. Together, these milestones should push European gas prices down to €30 ($32) per megawatt hour by the end of next year, Weatherburn added.

Persons: Asia —, Soeren, ”, Jack Sharples, Heikki Saukkomaa, Simone Tagliapietra, Bill Weatherburn, Stefan Sauer, Weatherburn, “ Organizations: London CNN, European Union, International Energy Agency, EU, Getty, “, Oxford Institute of Energy Studies, CNN, Hamas, P, Chevron, Egyptian, Steam, ”, Capital Economics, Qatar, Energy Locations: Russia, Moscow, Ukraine, Europe, North America, Asia, Norway, Hungary, Austria, Azerbaijan, Algeria, Germany, Israel, Gaza, Hormuz, Jordan, Egypt, Cairo, Estonia, Australia, AFP, “, ” Europe, France, Italy, Lubmin, Pomerania, United States, Qatar

Eventually he found a ride, but he and the driver were terrified while driving from central Gaza on the enclave’s empty streets. Family members of those who could evacuate were sometimes barred from leaving, because they did not have foreign citizenship or the necessary documents, forcing people into difficult decisions. “We just want one thing: Help us to leave Gaza,” Ms. Abu Middain said. Mkhaimar Abu Sada, 58, an associate professor of political science at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, was accompanying his two sons, both in their 20s, at the Rafah crossing on Thursday. He said they had American citizenship, but that he was not allowed to leave because he has only an American green card.

Persons: ” Ala, ” Ala Al Husseini, Al Husseini, Israel, “, ”, Hisham Adwan, Al Qahera, Adala Abu Middain, Maha, Ms, Abu Middain, Matthew Miller, Mkhaimar Abu Sada, Lena Beseiso, Iyad Abuheweila, Vivian Yee, Anna Betts Organizations: American Embassy, State Department, Al, Azhar University Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Egypt, “, ”, ” Ala Al, Austrian, Cairo, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belgium, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, American

☆ Democracy Under Threat Around the World -Intergovernmental Watchdog
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Half of the world's countries are suffering democratic decline, ranging from flawed elections to curtailed rights including freedoms of expression and assembly, an intergovernmental watchdog group said on Thursday. "In short, democracy is still in trouble, stagnant at best, and declining in many places," IDEA Secretary-General Kevin Casas-Zamora said in the report. IDEA bases its Global State of Democracy Indices on more than 100 variables and is using four main categories - Representation, Rights, Rule of Law and Participation - to categorise performance. It also said Azerbaijan, Belarus, Russia and Turkey had drifted away from the rest of Europe, performing well below the European average across most indicators of democracy. However, the think-tank said there were some green shoots, with surprisingly high rates of political participation and decreasing levels of corruption, especially in Africa.

Persons: Kevin Casas, Zamora, Johan Ahlander, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Institute for Democracy, Electoral, IDEA, Global State, Democracy, Law Locations: STOCKHOLM, Stockholm, Ukraine, Europe, Austria, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Russia, Turkey, Americas, El Salvador, Guatemala, Africa

Listen and follow The DailyApple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon MusicIn late September, one of the world’s most intractable conflicts ended suddenly and brutally when Azerbaijan seized the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh and tens of thousands of ethnic Armenians fled their homes. Andrew Higgins, the New York Times bureau chief for East and Central Europe, explains how the conflict started, why it lasted for more than 30 years, and what its end can tell us about the nature of seemingly unsolvable disputes.

Persons: Andrew Higgins Organizations: Spotify, Music, New York Times, East Locations: Azerbaijan, Nagorno, Karabakh, Central Europe

In London, girls in a playground are told they are "stinking Jews" and should stay off the slide. In China, posts likening Jews to parasites, vampires or snakes proliferate on social media, attracting thousands of "likes". She was describing what was in the minds of those behind antisemitic incidents. The most chilling antisemitic incident globally was the storming of an airport in Russia's Dagestan region on Sunday by an enraged crowd looking for Jews to harm after a flight arrived from Tel Aviv. Rabbi Alexander Boroda, president of Russia's Federation of Jewish Communities, said in response that anti-Israeli sentiment had morphed into open aggression towards Russian Jews.

Persons: Anna Gordon, Anthony Adler, Adler, Nonna Mayer, France's, Israel, Mayer, Rabbi Alexander Boroda, Shneor Segal, Akiva Carr, Layli Foroudi, Julia Harte, Chen Lin, Maytaal Angel, Andrew Osborn, Carien du Plessis, Steven Grattan, Eliana, Wa Lone, Thomas Escritt, Stephanie Van Den Berg, Estelle Shirbon, Angus MacSwan Organizations: REUTERS, Russia's Federation of Jewish, Cornell University, Center for Jewish, Thomson Locations: Golders Green, London, Britain, Gaza, Los Angeles, China, Israel, United States, France, Germany, South Africa, Russia's Dagestan, Tel Aviv, Azerbaijan, Caucasus, Buenos Aires, New York, Johannesburg, Western Europe, Dagestan, Wa

☆ Russia's dwindling 'Mountain Jews' in spotlight after Dagestan airport riot
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A rabbi walks in the courtyard of a synagogue in the ancient city of Debent on the Caspian Sea coast in Russia's Caucasus region of Dagestan August 17, 2007. Dagestan became part of the Russian empire in 1813, when Tsarist forces prised it away from Persia. Known locally as "Mountain Jews", they speak a dialect of the Farsi or Persian language spoken in Iran to the south. Some scholars believe that the first Mountain Jews, like members of many other Jewish communities, started to emigrate to a prospective homeland in what was then Ottoman-ruled Palestine as early as the 19th century. Rabbi Ovadia Isakov, the best-known contemporary Mountain Jewish rabbi, told Russian media that 300-400 families remained in Derbent.

Persons: Thomas Peter, prised, Rabbi Ovadia Isakov, Isakov, Shneor Segal, Filipp Lebedev, Kevin Liffey, Grant McCool Organizations: REUTERS, Palestinian, Thomson Locations: Debent, Caucasus, Dagestan, RUSSIA, Israel, Gaza, Derbent, Persia, Iran, Ottoman, Palestine, Soviet Union, Russia, Azerbaijan

☆ Putin is using a new massive table to keep his distance from officials — and it's just as ridiculous as the original
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Footage shows them meeting with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin around a rectangular table. Putin is conscious of germs and likes to keep his distance from people, reports have speculated. AdvertisementAdvertisementRussian President Vladimir Putin revealed a new massive table to keep his distance from his officials — and it's just as ridiculous as the others. Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on February 15, 2022. In June last year, he was seen with fellow heads of state at a massive table in Turkmenistan.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, —, Catherine Hall, Olaf Scholz, Anton Gerashchenko, Reddit, Emmanuel Macron Organizations: Service, Presidential, Reuters Locations: Moscow, Kremlin, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Russia

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