-
New rules for travelling to Russia come into effect in Ukraine
On March 1, new rules for border crossing with the Russian Federation came into effect in Ukraine. Ukrainians will need an international passport to cross the Ukrainian border into Russia.
The new rules are a part of the Ukrainian Government’s resolution "On the validity of certain provisions of Ukraine's international treaties with the Russian Federation" of December 18, 2019.
"From March 1, 2020, the crossing of the state border into the Russian Federation will be allowed only with an …
-
Russia says it cannot guarantee safety of Turkish aircraft in Syria
The Turkish side cannot count on the safety of its combat aviation in northern Syria, stated the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria, after Turkey shot down two Syrian fighter jets over Idlib.
"The command of the Russian troops cannot guarantee the safety of Turkish aviation in the skies of Syria," the head of the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria, Rear Admiral Oleg Zhuravlev, said, as quoted by TASS.
"Amid a sharply aggravated situation, the Syrian government closed the airspace in …
-
Turkish drone destroys Russian-made Pantsir air defense system in Idlib
On Friday, a missile fired by a Turkish drone destroyed a Russian-made Pantsir-S1 deployed by the Syrian Army in Idlib province.
A video released by Turkish media, shows an active Syrian Pantsir being destroyed by a Turkish drone.
According to Turkish media, the Pantsir radar was active when it was hit, indicating that the system failed to detect the incoming missile.
The Syrian Air Defense Force reportedly has more than 30 Pantsir systems. Russia has also strengthened its Syrian Khmeimim …
-
Russia and Ukraine discuss next prisoner swap
The head of the Ukrainian President’s Administration, Andrii Yermak, met with deputy head of the Russian Presidential Administration Dmitry Kozak, reported the press service of the Ukrainian President on Telegram.
During the meeting in Minsk, Yermak and Kozak discussed the prisoner exchange in the "all-for-all" format, which was agreed upon by the Normandy Four leaders during a meeting in Paris in December 2019.
Yermak said he intends to hold the next swap in March. Representatives of the …
-
Three journalists from Russian state news agency detained by Turkish police
Turkish police detained three employees of the Sputnik-Turkey news agency in Ankara because of the publication "Stolen Province: Why France handed over part of Syria to Turkey 80 years ago," reported the newspaper Sözcü.
The article was about the Turkish bordering province of Hatay, which after the First World War became part of Syria, under the control of France, and then the region was taken over by Turkey.
According to RT's editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan, it is currently not possible …
-
Merkel's party calls for sanctions against Russia over Syria
Leading representatives of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) of German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for new sanctions against Russia due to its support for the regime in Damascus. Moscow is responsible for a new escalation of the refugee situation in Syria and Turkey, said German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Chairman of the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee Norbert Röttgen in an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung (FAS) published on Sunday, March 1. …
-
Turkey shots down two Syrian warplanes over Idlib
Syria's news agency SANA reported that two Syrian aircraft were shot down by the Turkish military over Idlib province. The agency stated that the pilots managed to eject and were not hurt.
Earlier, Turkish TV channels TRT and CNN Turk reported that of a Syrian government aircraft was shot down in the skies over Idlib. The latter claimed that the plane had been shot down by opposition forces controlling the city of Saraqib.
There were also reports on Twitter that a Russian Su-24 had been shot …
-
Erdogan: Turkey has opened its border with EU to Syrian refugees
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara is opening the border with Europe to refugees from Syria.
"As of this morning, 18,000 migrants have crossed the Turkish-European border. And we will no longer close those doors, it will continue. We are not in a position to feed so many refugees," he said during his speech In Istanbul on Saturday, February 29, as cited by Anadolu.
According to Erdogan, there are 3.7 million Syrian refugees in Turkey today.
The day before, the …
-
Russia wants to complain to UN about Elon Musk’s satellites
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) is very unhappy about the activities of American businessman Elon Musk and, in particular, about launches of SpaceX Starlink satellites to provide the global Internet, reported the Russian news agency RIA Novosti with reference to the researcher of the Institute of Astronomy of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Nikolai Samusya.
The Academy even prepares a complaint to the UN, as, according to Russian scientists, the system will interfere with the work of …
-
Erdogan asks Putin to step aside in Syria
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that during a telephone conversation he asked Russian President Vladimir Putin not to interfere in the conflict between the Turkish Armed Forces and Syrian troops.
"I openly asked Putin, "What are you doing in Idlib? If you want to create a military base, then create one, but get out of Turkey’s way," Erdogan said on Saturday in Istanbul, as cited by Anadolu.
According to Erdogan, the Turkish military in Syria is "at the invitation of the Syrian …