Eastern Europe / News

Plane crashes in Kazakhstan on Baku-Grozny flight with nearly 70 onboard

bne IntelliNews December 25, 2024

An Azerbaijan Airlines flight traveling from Baku to Grozny crashed in Kazakhstan with nearly 70 passengers onboard on December 25. Two dozen survivors are in a critical condition, according to reports.

Russia sentences dual US-Russian citizen to 15 years on espionage charges

bnm Gulf bureau December 24, 2024

A Moscow court has sentenced US citizen Gene Spector to 15 years in prison on espionage charges.

Sanctioned Russian cargo ship sinks in Mediterranean after explosion

bnm Gulf bureau December 24, 2024

A sanctioned Russian cargo vessel, Ursa Major, has sunk in the Mediterranean Sea between Spain and Algeria.

Slovakia’s Fico in surprise visit to Putin in Moscow

bne Berlin bureau December 23, 2024

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico made a surprise trip to Moscow on December 22 to hold rare face to face talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as he seeks to secure gas deliveries ahead of the end of the Ukrainian gas transit deal next week.

Russian Muslims allowed to have four wives, religious council rules

bne IntelliNews December 23, 2024

Muslim men in Russia will be allowed to take up to four wives in religious marriages, the Council of Ulema – part of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims – has decreed.

Russian long-haul driver murdered in northern Iran

bne Tehran bureau December 22, 2024

Iranian authorities are investigating the death of a Russian citizen who was found with gunshot wounds in the northern province of Gilan.

North Korea’s missile support to Russia raises alarms at UN

bno - Taipei Office December 20, 2024

North Korea’s involvement in supplying ballistic missiles to Russia for use in Ukraine has become a matter of serious international concern, as fresh evidence suggests that the regime is capable of producing and transferring missiles within months

Ukraine invasion was ‘spontaneous’ and unplanned, Putin claims

bne IntelliNews December 19, 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin has described his decision to invade Ukraine in February 2022 as “spontaneous,” admitting the operation was carried out with minimal preparation.

Bulgaria’s interim PM Glavchev refuses to sign 10-year military support deal with Ukraine

Denitsa Koseva in Sofia December 19, 2024

Gerb also backs away from Ukraine deal as it seeks to secure pro-Russian Bulgarian Socialist Party as a coalition partner.

Azerbaijan’s Aliyev lines up with Russia and Trump, admits Georgia interference

bne IntelliNews December 19, 2024

Azerbaijan’s president voices rightwing narratives and slams Western meddling in Rossiya Segodnya interview.

North Korean troops face heavy losses in Russia-Ukraine War as conflict intensifies

bne IntelliNews December 18, 2024

North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine have suffered significant losses, with “several hundred” killed or wounded during combat in the Kursk region.

Uzbek national arrested in Moscow bombing that killed Russian chemical defence chief Kirillov

bne IntelliNews December 18, 2024

Russian authorities have detained a 29-year-old Uzbek national suspected of organising the assassination of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of the Russian military’s chemical and biological defence forces.

Uzbekistan’s Moscow embassy “clarifying” details on man detained after scooter-bomb assassination of Russian general

bne IntelliNews December 18, 2024

Speed of arrest of Uzbek suspect will inevitably prompt some scepticism over whether the accused is a scapegoat.

Russia sells stakes in Kazakhstan uranium JVs to China

bne IntelliNews December 18, 2024

Move kicks off debate on whether move illustrates a loss of Kremlin influence in Central Asia.

North Korean troops suffer casualties in Ukraine conflict

bno - Taipei Office December 18, 2024

North Korean soldiers have been reported killed or wounded while fighting alongside Russian forces in the Kursk region of Russia, according to US officials.

Ukrainian bomb kills Russian Nuclear Forces general in Moscow

bne IntelliNews December 18, 2024

A senior Russian general has been killed in an explosion outside his apartment building in southeastern Moscow, in the latest targeted assassination reportedly carried out by Ukraine on Russian soil.

EU Council says enlargement is a "geo-strategic investment in peace"

Valentina Dimitrievska in Skopje December 17, 2024

The enlargement process has been revitalised since the start of the war in Ukraine, but EU ministers say candidate countries must step up reform efforts.

Hungary blocks EU military help to Ukraine and some sanctions against Georgia and Russia

Tamas Csonka in Budapest December 17, 2024

European Commission set to suspend visa-free travel for Georgian diplomats.

Russia’s HIV crisis: 30,000 annual deaths of working-age people undermine dwindling labour force

bne IntelliNews December 16, 2024

Around 30,000 Russians of working age die annually from HIV, according to Vadim Pokrovsky, the head of Russia’s Federal Methodological Centre for HIV/AIDS Prevention.

Russia to ban discounted alcohol in bid to crack down on problem drinking

bne IntelliNews December 16, 2024

The Russian government is planning to prohibit discounts on alcoholic beverages and restrict their placement near checkout counters as part of a broader initiative to reduce alcohol consumption nationwide by 2030.

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