RIDDLE: Sanctions and the Eurasian Economic Union
Belarus President Lukashenko wins re-election in a landslide, to no one’s surprise
Belarus' Lukashenko is a shoo-in for his seventh election as president
Lukashenko mulls building a second nuclear power plant
Russian Orthodox Church to send more “military priests” to the front in bid to make army more religious – and beat Ukraine
Russian military withdraws from Syria amid tensions with Damascus regime
Germany’s Russian LNG imports surge over 500% in 2024, via other countries
Russia blocks a record 417,000 websites in 2024 as the Kremlin tightens its control over RuNet
Ukraine's stored gas falls to critically low levels, imports urgently needed
Brazil's President Lula and Putin hold talks on Ukraine war and BRICS
ING: EU considering Russian aluminium ban in new sanctions push
Lack of megadeals drags down M&A volume in Emerging Europe
Turkey’s role in European security on agenda as top diplomats of Ankara, EU meet
COMMENT: Europe needs to start the fightback against Trump now
Analysts expect ‘perfect storm’ of political risks in 2025
Central and Eastern European banks defy expectations with robust 2024 earnings, says RBI
Czech National Bank to become the first European central bank to add Bitcoin to its reserves
Slovakia's political crisis deepens, PM Fico accuses Czech politicians and media of meddling with Slovak internal affairs
Hungary’s economy emerges from recession in Q4 but 2024 growth disappoints
Hungary to enhance cooperation with UAE in defence and advanced technologies
Hungarian PM arrives in UAE amid controversy surrounding flagship real estate development project
Solar generation tops coal for first time in EU in 2024
Polish retail sales disappoint in December
Protests against Fico’s pro-Kremlin turn intensify across Slovakia
President Pellegrini calls situation in Slovakia “serious” in wake of country-wide protests, PM Fico coup plot claims
Slovenian president “very worried” about far-right FPÖ-led government in Austria
Albania plans Vatican-style state for Bektashi order in Tirana
Albania's PM signals possible shift on TikTok ban
OUTLOOK Southeastern Europe 2025
Shopping boycotts spread across the Balkans
BALKAN BLOG: Polluted Balkan capitals choke on winter smog
Bulgaria’s new government gives up on January 2026 eurozone entry
Bulgaria’s ruling coalition rejects central bank law changes putting eurozone entry at risk
Croatian shops nearly empty as boycott gets underway
Croatian robot boat to tackle microplastics in the Adriatic
Analysts and diplomats accuse Serbia of hybrid warfare ahead of Kosovo's general election
Sanctions stepped up in the Western Balkans, but with mixed results
EU gives Moldova €30mn as short-term fix to energy crisis and promises longer-term plan
Ukraine offers coal and experts to settle Transnistria’s energy crisis without Russia
Expected settlement of energy crisis in Transnistria may have a security cost
Protesters in Montenegro threaten civil disobedience
Owner of North Macedonia’s Gley streaming platform to launch IPO
Romania’s public debt reaches 54.3% of GDP at end-November
Romanian energy minister slams EU’s "green shock therapy"
Iconic Romanian ancient artefacts stolen from Dutch museum
Serbian students march from Belgrade to Novi Sad
Serbian President Vucic mulls snap general election
Musk urged to knock Turkish drones out of global market
Sweden’s Aonic invests $10mn in Turkish game developer Mega Fortuna
Syria removed customs tariffs after inflation warning from Turkey, says Turkish trade minister
Turkish opposition to name presidential candidate early in pushback against judicial crackdown
PANNIER: Taliban’s relations with Central Asia imperilled as Trump turns off aid taps
India’s doubts over TAPI Pipeline persist amid security and geopolitical concerns
PANNIER: Tajikistan, Taliban tone down the hostile rhetoric
Central Asia emerges as new e-commerce hub
China enhances position as Central Asia’s economic overlord
Azerbaijan's President Aliyev demands land corridor through Armenia as tensions rise
Russia and Armenia seek to ease strained relations
CAUCASUS BLOG: Is it the end of the honeymoon between Azerbaijan and Russia?
Saving the Caspian Sea for Central Asia and Kazakhstan
Georgia quits PACE over demand for new elections
European Council suspends visa-free regime for Georgian officials and diplomats
Detained Georgian journalist's life at risk after 16-day hunger strike
URUS-ClearPic: Across Eurasia, China is leveraging supply risk successfully – so could others
Thoughts of teenagers licking backs of “psychedelic toads” bother MPs in Kyrgyzstan
OUTLOOK Small Stans & Mongolia 2025
Angry Mongolians take to streets in public backlash over taxes and smog
Mongolia revives traditional "Ghengis Khan" script bichig
EBRD delivers 26% expansion in investments in 2024, commits record €16.6bn across economies
Tajikistan: Personnel reshuffle creates glide path for dynastic transition of power
Turkmen loo users warned state newspapers not “read and wipe” material
Uzbekistan boasts Central Asia’s best wind and solar energy potential, says expert
Uzbekistan’s Saneg turns flared gas into fuel
Sanctioned Russian cargo ship sinks in Mediterranean after explosion
Russia's budget oil breakeven price world’s second lowest as oil revenues recover
Southeast European countries look to Algeria to diversify energy supplies
Slovenia turns back to Algerian gas after flirtation with Russian supplies
IEA: Access to energy improving worldwide, driven by renewables
The hurricane season in 2024 was weird
Global warming will increase crop yields in Global North, but reduce them in Global South
Hundreds of millions on verge of starvation, billions more undernourished as Climate Crisis droughts take their toll
Global access to energy starts to fall for the first time in a decade, says IEA
Saudi Arabia hosts kingdom's first Africa summit, to boost ties, promote stability
Putin at 2023 Africa-Russia summit: Wiping debts, donating grain and boosting co-operation
Botswana throws the diamond industry a lifeline
Nelson Mandela worried about natural diamonds, Leonardo di Caprio defended them, makers of lab-grown stones demonise them
Botswana’s 2,492-carat diamond discovery is golden opportunity to replicate legendary Jonker diamond's global legacy
Kamikaze marketing: how the natural diamond industry could have reacted to the lab-grown threat
Russia’s Rosatom to support nuclear projects across Africa at AEW2024
JPMorgan, Chase and HSBC reportedly unwittingly processed payments for Wagner warlord Prigozhin
Burkina Faso the latest African country to enter nuclear power plant construction talks with Russia
IMF: China’s slowdown will hit sub-Saharan growth
Moscow unlikely to give up Niger toehold as threat of ECOWAS military action looms
CAR mercenary becomes first African to die in Ukraine conflict
Overcoming insecurity to unlock the Central African Republic’s mineral riches
Rain, rain go away
Africa, Asia most people living in extreme poverty
10 African countries to experience world’s fastest population growth to 2100
EM winners and losers from the global green transformation
Russia seeks to expand its nuclear energy dominance with new international projects
EBRD warns of risks for emerging markets pursuing industrial policies
Russia blocks UN Security Council resolution on Sudan humanitarian crisis
G20 summit wraps up with a joint statement strong on sentiment, but short on specifics
SDS storms fed by sand and dust equal in weight to 350 Great Pyramids of Giza, says UNCCD
Southern Africa has 'enormous' potential for green hydrogen production, study finds
Malaysia seeks BRICS membership
Kazakhstan has no plans to join BRICS, says Astana
Sri Lanka to apply for BRICS membership
From oil to minerals: Gabon’s ambitious mining transition
How France is losing Africa
Guinea grants final approvals to Rio Tinto for $11.6bn Simandou iron-ore project
Mixing with the running stars at Kenya’s Home of Champions high altitude training camp
Kenya’s untapped mineral wealth holds the promise of economic transformation
US adds 17 Liberian-flagged bulk carriers and oil tankers to Russian sanctions-busting blacklist
Panama and Liberia vying for largest maritime registry
Force majeure at Libya’s Zawiya Refinery threatens exports and oil expansion plans
Russia, facing loss of Syrian base for Africa operations, seen turning to war-torn Sudan or divided Libya
Libya’s mineral riches: unlocking a future beyond oil
Russia funding war in Ukraine via illegal gold mining in Africa – WGC report
Ukraine claims it was behind massacre of Wagner Group mercenaries in Mali
Can Morocco's phosphate wealth put it at the centre of the global battery supply chain?
Hajj aftermath: deaths, disappearances and detentions spark investigations across world
Sri Lanka's LTL Holdings targets African power sector
Russia's nuclear diplomacy binding emerging markets to the Kremlin
Can Niger's military junta seize the country's uranium opportunity?
Disaster season: heat waves sweep the world – in charts and maps
More than 5,000 Nigerian women trapped in Iraq
Niger and beyond: Francophone credit delivers coup de grâce
EBRD 2023: Bank to expand into the whole of Africa plus Iraq
Global coal trade approaches its peak
The world has passed peak per capital CO₂ emissions, but overall emissions are still rising
Trump threatens BRICS with tariffs if they dump the dollar
SITREP: Middle East rapidly destabilised by a week of missile strikes
Colombian mercenaries trapped in Sudan’s conflict
Air France diverts Red Sea flights after crew spots 'luminous object'
COMMENT: Tunisia on the brink of collapse
Tunisian President Kais Saied re-elected for second term
WHO declares "global public health emergency" owing to mpox outbreak in Central Africa, new virus strain
Climate crisis-driven global food security deteriorated between 2019 and 2022 and is even affecting the US
Reserve Bank of India resumes bond purchases after three years to manage liquidity
Cost of repairing Syria’s power infrastructure put at $40bn by electricity minister
Indian banks' profitability to moderate in FY26
Former chief of the Bank of Japan sees more rate hikes on the horizon
Is China ready for Trump’s tariff threats?
Transparency International Bangladesh urges new renewable energy plan free from fossil fuel lobby
Trump calls on OPEC to ramp up oil supply
Feed-in-tariff costs for Japanese solar in 2025 set at JYP10 per kw/h
Pakistan urges World Bank to fund smart meter project
China’s satellite internet provider Spacesail sets up in Kazakhstan
Microsoft to invest $3bn in India
INTERVIEW: REnergy Dynamics eyes 175 tonnes per day in compressed biogas projects in India
Chinese power projects under CPEC leave Pakistan struggling with debt
Japan’s ramen shops face crisis as rising costs push more to bankruptcy
Where are the world’s rare earth metals?
Aluminium prices dip as Trump considers 10% tariff on Chinese imports
India's Competition Commission approves major steel industry acquisition
Trump vows to block Nippon Steel's $14bn bid for US Steel
Nepal to criminalise anonymous social media activity
US President Trump says Microsoft in new talks to acquire TikTok
Sanctions have created opportunities for Chinese tech companies in Russia
COMMENT: Gulf states court Russia but stop short of strategic shift
Bahrain's security chief meets Syrian commander amid diplomatic push
Bahrain and Iran to begin talks on normalising relations
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait set to offer Russians visa-free entry
Iran's first post-suspension flight to Europe cancelled by France
Iran ends mobile phone registration restrictions in policy shift
Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei labels US epitome of colonialism
Britain secures major Iraq military base as US influence declines
China's Shanghai SUS Environment secures $497mn contract for waste-to-energy project in Iraq
Iraq seeks Iran-backed militia disarmament in new push
Hamas confirms death of top military commander Mohammed Deif
Argentina's Milei seeks to establish right-wing international alliance
Hostage Agam Berger returned to Israel with two other Israelis and five Thai nationals set to be released
Former Jordan official foresees regional challenges under Trump
Damascus International Airport resumes operations
Turkey, Syria tandem could mean piped Qatari gas for Europe and a supercharged Middle East clean energy transition
Qatar-Turkey-Europe gas pipeline ambition could be back on following fall of Assad
Syrian foreign ministry urges Kuwait to reopen embassy in Damascus
Kuwait greenlights tax deal with Iraq to prevent double taxation
Iran demands 'equal footing' with Kuwaiti and Saudi plans to drill for gas in Gulf
French president in Lebanon to meet the country's new leaders
ICJ's Nawaf Salam appointed as Lebanon's new Prime Minister
Lebanon faces a new phase: will Hezbollah surrender its weapons to the state?
Lebanon ends two-year void with military chief Aoun as president
US winds down Guantanamo Bay with removal of Yemenis to Oman
So you want to get on the right side of Donald Trump? Try gift-wrapping a hotel
ANALYSIS: Regional escalation on the table following Israeli strike on Iran
IDF Chief of Staff resigns over October 7 security failure
IDF launches major operation in Jenin, four Palestinians killed
Qatari Emir discusses developments with Syrian interim President
NEOM's The Lina to launch vertical construction phase in 2025
Saudi Arabia's Neom secures €3bn Italian export financing
Saudi crown prince pledges $600bn US investment in Trump call
COMMENT: Trump's cryptocurrency venture sparks debate as memecoin risk data emerges
Syria's interim president al-Sharaa delivers first national address outlining plans
Syria outlines free market vision at Damascus economic forum
Abu Dhabi plans AI transformation across government services by 2027
The world reacts to Trump 2.0
Yemen launches missile at Israeli base amid US-UK airstrikes escalation
“Latin American Davos” kicks off in Panama as region battles growth slump
Climate crisis threatens Latin America's fight against hunger, UN report says
COMMENT: Is Latin America prepared for Trump 2.0?
Latin America set for tepid growth as Trump tariff threat looms, ECLAC says
IMF: Breaking Latin America’s cycle of low growth and violence
COMMENT: Trump’s White House picks signal rocky start with Latin America
Trump's return to White House draws polarised Latin American response
Mexico and Central America face pressure over US deportation push
LATAM BLOG: US-Colombia migrant standoff tests Washington's regional sway
Latin America urged to boost tax take and private investment to close development gap
Mexico grapples with migrant surge as Trump policy bites
Mexico's $20bn refinery crisis threatens energy sovereignty
Human Rights Watch warns of old pattern of abuse returning in Bangladesh
Bangladesh’s BNP urges interim government to expedite elections
Bangladesh revokes former Prime Minister Hasina’s passport
China's coast guard deployment raises tensions in South China Sea, Philippines protests
Balancing growth and sustainability: Southeast Asia’s energy dilemma
US imposes preliminary duties on Southeast Asian solar imports
Hong Kong firm to build 150-MW wind power plant in Cambodia
Volkswagen ponders handing over idle production lines to Chinese carmakers
Peru's APEC summit exposes trade tug-of-war between Beijing and Washington
Rising gold ETF inflows set to drive global bullion prices
Russian exports of diamonds to Hong Kong up 18-fold in 5M24
Canadian hitman jailed for life over murder of Air India bombing suspect
India accelerates pivot to Western defence platforms, away from Russia
Trump issues anti-wind executive order
Landslide in Central Java, Indonesia claims 17 lives, nine still missing
Bali shuts down "Russian Village"
Russia backs Vietnam's bid to join BRICS
Japan hikes rates in a move that goes largely unnoticed
Death sentence for Chinese killer
Hiroshima invites Trump to mark 80th anniversary of atomic bombing
BCPG to invest $945mn in power projects, prioritising clean energy
Malaysia maintains key interest rate as economy shows resilience
Authorities seize $3.8mn of meth in northeastern India
Hundreds of children killed or injured in Myanmar in 2024: UNICEF
Over 120 dead as powerful tremor hits Tibet
Nepal floods - death toll rises to 209
Kolkata hospital rape and murder case sparks international outcry, raises questions
Human rights groups urge Zelenskiy to protect North Korean soldiers captured in Ukraine
Trump labels North Korea a 'nuclear power' as he eyes diplomatic revival
North Korea rejects Belarus summit proposal, calls for clarity in relations
North Korea issues warning in response to air drills with B-1B bombers
Russia’s arms exports slump, Kremlin preparing for possible war with Nato
Papua New Guinea tribal conflict leaves 30 dead amid gold mine dispute
The Philippines takes a stand against China's maritime aggression in the South China Sea
Trump to give thumbs up on expedited arms supply to Taiwan
Extreme weather surges in 2024
Kamala Harris to visit Singapore, Bahrain and Germany on final vice-presidential overseas trip
Singapore’s PacificLight Power embarks on $735mn hydrogen power plant project
Yoon's failed martial law declaration leaves South Korea in political turmoil
India's NTPC plans solar joint venture in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports in October up 18.22%
China’s AI chatbot DeepSeek – just don’t mention Taiwan, the Uyghurs or Tiananmen Square
Taiwan’s GDP growth up on back of domestic demand
Taiwan set to cull 120,000 green iguanas
BRICS expands membership, adding Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand
German Prosecutors Confirm Termination of Money Laundering Investigation Against Alisher Usmanov
Comments by President of the Russian Fertilizers Producers Association Andrey Guryev on bilateral meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin
PhosAgro/UNESCO/IUPAC green chemistry research grants awarded for the 8th time to world's best young scientists
PhosAgro Tops RAEX ESG Ranking
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Iran’s second-biggest car producer SAIPA has unveiled its first domestically produced sports utility vehicle (SUV). It is called the “Offroady”, according to Asbe Bokhar magazine.
The announcement of the first “Iranian crossover” car came after SAIPA finally halted production of its much-maligned Pride which first entered production in the early 1990s and was based on the design of the Kia Pride which it took its name from.
Javad Soleimani, SAIPA’s CEO, announced the SUV without revealing details of the car or even close-up pictures of the vehicle.
"This product will be the first localised SUV in the country and features two differentials and an independent chassis, which gives this car considerable capability, power and quality," he said.
Social media immediately questioned the origins of the SUV which has appeared out of thin air, with some suggesting it may be a rebadged Chinese vehicle.
Iranian automakers have a long history of working with Chinese car manufacturers.
SAIPA previously assembled small SUVs but under foreign brand names.
Soleimani noted that along with the Offroady, other cars from the firm’s localised SP-100 platform would be brought on to the market.
Iran’s Administrative and Employment Organisation has reaffirmed regulations on teleworking and leave for employed women with young children, Borna reported on January 21. The ... more
Top league Esteghlal defender Ramin Rezaeian has been summoned by the Iranian Football Federation's Ethics Committee after being embraced by a female fan in Yazd, state media reported on December 27. ... more
Iranian banks faced massive queues and public frustration on December 17 as widespread branch closures due to gas shortages entered their second week, causing significant disruption to business ... more
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