• Israel promises to strike S-300 missile systems in Syria in case of an attack on Israeli aircraft

    Israel will strike S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems, which are currently under consideration for delivery to Syria, if they are used against Israeli aircraft, as stated by Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor during an interview with the newspaper Kommersant.

    "If they are not directed against us, that’s one thing. If there is open fire on our aircraft from these S-300 complexes, we will certainly respond," he said while answering a question about Israel's reaction in the event that Russia …

  • Russian Su-30SM fighter crashes off Syrian coast

    A Russian Su-30SM fighter aircraft crashed after takeoff from Khmeimim airbase in Syria, as reported by Interfax with reference to the Russian Defense Ministry.  Both pilots were killed.

    The accident occurred on May 3 at 9:45 am over the Mediterranean Sea. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the plane was not shot down.  The Ministry alleged that a bird could have gotten into the aircraft engine.

    "According to preliminary information, the cause of the crash could be a bird hitting the …

  • Ukraine introduces sanctions that mirror US sanctions against Russia

    The National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) has introduced sanctions that mirror US sanctions against Russian companies and citizens for aggression against Ukraine, as reported by the Press Office of the NSDC.

    According to the NSDC’s statement, the National Security and Defense Council held a meeting on Wednesday during which they considered the issue of introducing personal economic and other restrictive measures (sanctions) against legal entities and individuals related to Russian …

  • European Court of Justice rejects Naftogaz’s claim against the European Commission regarding Gazprom’s access to OPAL pipeline

    The European Court of Justice dismissed the claim of the Ukrainian state-owned company Naftogaz against the European Commission (EC). Naftogaz filed a lawsuit against the EC in March of last year in response to the EC’s decision to allow the Russia’s Gazprom additional transit volumes through the OPAL and Nord Stream pipelines. However, on March 9, the Court rejected Naftogaz’s claim against the EC.

    The EC made their decision to grant Gazprom additional access to the OPAL pipeline on October 28 …

  • US Assistant Secretary of State urges Russia to 'withdraw troops from Georgia'

    Georgian television channel 1TV reports that US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs A. Wess Mitchell declared Russia "must withdraw its troops" deployed in the territory of Georgia in 2008 during the conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

    The American diplomat made this statement from the Georgian side of the demarcation line, which Tskhinvali and Moscow consider to be the state border of South Ossetia. "Ten years have passed since the war [Russia-Georgia 2008 war] …