Georgia closes its airspace to Syria
Georgia closed its airspace to two Syrian airlines because of Syria’s recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, as stated by the CEO of Sakaeronavigatsia (Georgian air traffic controller) Gocha Mezvrishvili, Interfax reports.
He noted that the Georgian government, in connection with the decision of the Syrian leadership to recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia , had already made the political decision to sever diplomatic relations with Syria. “ …
France drops charges against Russian oligarch Kerimov
Russian billionaire and senator from Dagestan Suleyman Kerimov has been pardoned by the French justice system, and can leave his villa on the French Riviera, where he has been under house arrest since the end of last year.
Kerimov, who was suspected of money laundering through a series of deals to purchase property in France, has had all the charges against him dropped, his attorney Nikita Sychev told Interfax. Kerimov’s passport will soon be returned to him, and he will be allowed to return …
Putin reports withdrawal of 1000 Russian soldiers from Syria
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that over the last few days 1,140 Russian soldiers have been withdrawn from the Middle Eastern country, RIA Novosti reports.
“They are all people who have experience and have been tested in combat,” the Russian president said during a meeting with military university graduates in the Kremlin. He gave the order to withdraw when he visited the Khmeimim air base. “This withdrawal is underway now,” he noted.
14 helicopters and 13 planes have also returned to …
Europe to abandon Russian Soyuz launch vehicles
By 2023, Europe plans to stop using Russian Soyuz-ST launch vehicles for launches from the Kourou Space Center, RIA Novosti news agency reports with reference to a source in the European space industry.
According to the source, Europeans will replace the Soyuz with their own carrier rocket, Ariane 6 that has two lateral accelerators. The source of RIA Novosti reports that the first launch of Ariane 6 is scheduled for July 16, 2020. The launch could be postponed for a year, and given the …
Volker compares the situation in Eastern Ukraine to the annexation of Crimea
Special representative of the U.S. State Department for Ukraine Kurt Volker compared the situation in eastern Ukraine with the annexed Crimea and called it “a state to state conflict.” “In the case of Ukraine, what we see here is not an ethnic conflict, it’s not an indigenous conflict that grew up internally, it’s not a civil war, it’s not a conflict between Russians and Ukrainians ethnically. It is a State to State conflict. It is a conflict in which Russia has put its forces onto the …