Moldova likely to be the next target in Russia’s war
· Russia sees Moldova as a “historical Russian territory”, reflecting Putin’s ambition to regain control over former Sviet republics and drive the US and European presence out of Eastern Europe.
· Russia uses hybrid measures to destabilize the country, including disinformation, economic pressure, internal destabilization, corruption and proxy groups, election interference where the pro European Moldovan president Maya Sandu was ousted in favor of pro-Russian opposition. This move comes ahead of presidential elections and referendum about Moldova’s future membership into the European Union to be held in 2024.
Read more:
https://www.chathamhouse.org/2024/03/moldova-new-battleground-russias-war
Attempted attack on Yerevan police station by 3 armed men
· Three men stormed a police station in the Armenian capital detonating hand grenades, injuring two in the process. The station was reportedly holding members of the Combat Brotherhood Organization detained earlier. The group opposes the transfer of villages in Armenia’s Tavush region to Azerbaijan.
· Following the peace treaty signed between Azerbaijan and Armenia after a lightening military campaign was launched by the former, ending three decades of ethnic Armenian separatist rule in the Karabakh region, a border demarcation was agreed upon, based on mutual recognition of territorial integrity based on Soviet maps of 1991.
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Russian Soyuz rocket takes off from Kazakhstan
· The rocket carrying NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson, Russian Oleg Novitsky and Marina Vasilevskaya from Belarus, took off from the international space station on Saturday, one of the last remaining areas of collaboration between Russia and the west, amid tensions in Ukraine.
· The space capsule separated and went into orbit eight minutes after the launch, beginning a two- day, 34 orbit trip to the space station.
Read more:
https://www.euronews.com/2024/03/24/russian-spacecraft-blasts-off-from-kazakhstan
Partnership between Kazakhstan and Qatar, investment worth $17.6 billion
Long term strategic partnership between the two countries, prioritizing sectoral development projects. Construction of gas processing plants to boost commercial gas exports, including the Aktobe-Kostanai and Beineu-Bozoi-Shymkent, and a hydroelectric power station to boost Kazakhstan’s energy security.
Currently, the two countries are set to collaborate in supplying halal and organic agricultural products and implement projects in the agricultural sector.
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Report on refugee crisis in Armenia by WSU students
As a part of Murrow College’s Backpack Journalism Program, students traveled to Yerevan to interview refugees and international aid workers helping to resettle them. The data collected showed tens of thousands of Armenians have fled the disputed region of Karabakh in Azerbaijan and settled in Yerevan.
The scholarship program allows students to go on competitive, donor funded international reporting expeditions and publish their work.
Read more:
https://news.wsu.edu/news/2024/03/26/wsu-students-report-on-refugee-crisis-in-armenia/
Moldova's Constitutional Court on Tuesday, March 24 struck down a law restricting pro-Russian Party from polls
- This law was primarily aimed at preventing the pro-Russian Shor Party from participating in elections.
- The party was founded in 1998 and is headed by Ilan Shor, a businessman who fled to Israel in 2019.
- Over the past few months, the party has held demonstrations across Moldova, protesting against the policies of the country’s pro-West leader, Maia Sandu .
The EU and Moldova expanded their Road Transport Agreement
- The current Road Transport’s validity between the EU and Moldova got extended until December 31, 2025 .
- The Agreement was first sealed on June 29, 2022 .
- Since it was signed, the EU Commission points out, the agreement “has substantially increased road exports from Moldova to the EU, benefiting both economies.”
President Alexander Lukashenko contradicted Russian President Vladimir Putin while claiming that Belarus prevented Moscow suspects on the border
- The four suspects for the March, 22/2024 terrorist attack on Crocus City Hall, a concert venue on the outskirts of the Russian capital, were caught and arrested on the Belarus-Ukraine border.
- Lukashenko further claimed that, "terrorists were first headed for Belarus and they were turned away from the border due to heightened security.’’
- Lukashenko added , "Putin & I did not sleep for 24 Hours. He asked me to seal off our borders .’’
Ukraine, Georgia and Poland qualify after late drama in playoffs , EURO 2024 .
- The 24-nation Euro 2024 lineup was finalised Tuesday with three qualifying playoffs giving a stronger eastern European flavour to the tournament that opens June 14, 2024 in Germany.
- These triumphs infused a stronger eastern European presence into the event.
- Ukrainian fans displayed yellow-and-blue banners criticising Russia and its president Vladimir Putin in the stadium in Wroclaw due to the war-torn situation of the country .
Read more -
Azerbaijan warns Armenia as it plans a ‘full-scale war’
- "Our analysis shows that Azerbaijan wants to launch military action in some parts of the border with the prospect of turning military escalation into a full-scale war against Armenia," Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan said.
- Tensions between the two Caucasus neighbors have been there since Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh was captured last September . On the other hand , Azerbaijan asks for the return of its land which also includes several tiny enclaves entirely surrounded by Armenian territory .
Read more -
Russia and Serbia seek to refight Kosovo using lies this time
- It was 25 years ago yesterday that NATO intervened against Serbia in 1999 to stop the violations of human rights committed against the ethnic Albanian community in Kosovo.
- At Russia's request, the U.N. Security Council is scheduled to discuss NATO intervention today.
- This will start a new round of Russian disinformation regarding alleged NATO aggression against Serbia, which is Moscow's closest Balkan partner.
Still looking for a way out of the Pristina-Belgrade impasse over Kosovo's sole use of the euro, the EU
- As the conclusion of the transition phase draws near, tensions between Pristina and Belgrade are escalating due to the unresolved dispute over Kosovo's sole use of the euro for official payments.
- After expressing "concerns" earlier this year about the impact on the Serbian community in Kosovo, the European Union is attempting to push for a solution through Miroslav Lajčák, its special representative for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue.
- However, as of right now, neither of the two governments appears to have taken any concrete steps to move the dialogue forward.
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According to Armenia's PM, he must give back disputed territories to Azerbaijan or risk war
- Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan warned in a video released on Tuesday that if Armenia does not make concessions to Baku and give back four Azerbaijani villages that it has controlled since the early 1990s, it may go to war with Azerbaijan.
- Pashinyan was speaking on Monday at a gathering with people who live near a series of abandoned Azerbaijani villages that Yerevan has controlled since the early 1990s. The meeting is located in the Tavush region of northern Armenia.
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Kyrgyzstan: Deported from Azerbaijan is fallen kingmaker Matraimov
- In a shocking change of events, corrupt and once-powerful former customs official Rayimbek Matraimov was transferred to Kyrgyzstan for detention on March 26 after being placed into a plane in Azerbaijan.
- The abrupt and swift expulsion occurred only a few days after government sources said Matraimov, who was residing in Azerbaijan, was involved in a conspiracy to kill the head of Kyrgyzstan.
read more:
https://eurasianet.org/kyrgyzstan-fallen-kingmaker-matraimov-deported-from-azerbaijan
Azerbaijan supportive towards 'Pak on Kashmir'
- According to outgoing Azeri Ambassador to India Ashraf Shikaliyev, Azerbaijan continues to assist Pakistan on the Kashmir dispute.
- This strong friendship between Azerbaijan and Pakistan has infuriated India.
- Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev met with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2020, during which time he stated support for Pakistan on the Kashmir dispute.
Poulina Banerjee (BA IR 2nd year)
Drafted by:
Angel Chindalia (MA IR 1st year)
Published by: Varsha Das (BA IR 2nd year)
