Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that the country is ready for real integration with Russia, but without coercion.

“We remain, as always, committed to real integration, without coercion to integrate. And it’s strange that this began with Belarus being coerced to integrate. You understand what I’m referring to,” said Lukashenko during a meeting with Mikhail Myasnikovich, Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission College, as cited by BelTA.

He pointed out that even with Boris …

The continuation of the conflict in Syria’s Idlib province, which remains in the hands of pro-Turkish forces and radical groups, could force Ankara to close the Bosporus strait to Russian naval vessels, said Muharrem Sarikaya, a correspondent for the Turkish TV channel Habertürk, citing his own sources in the country’s leadership. According to him, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has such options “on the table”. The Montreux Convention, which regulates ship traffic through the Bosporus …

The strikes on the Turkish military convoy in Syria's Idlib were carried out even though Turkey informed Russia about its location, said Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, as cited by Anadolu.

According to him, the Russian side was informed in advance about the locations of the Turkish military in the de-escalation zone, but the airstrikes continued despite Ankara's warning. Even military ambulances came under fire.

"The Turkish military, which was in Idlib to secure a truce and prevent a …

In March, Belarus will receive its first batch of oil from Azerbaijan – 160,000 tons.

When Russia failed to reach an agreement with its “brother Belarus” on oil prices, it essentially lost this market, and gave Minsk an opportunity to select suppliers independently. As a result, Belarus has been receiving deliveries of black gold from other countries since January, eliminating Rosneft’s monopoly.

In January, Belarus received its first batch of Norwegian oil through the Lithuanian port of …

Two frigates of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Makarov and Admiral Grigorovich, have passed through the Bosporus and Dardanelles in the direction of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Russian news agency Interfax reported, with reference to the official representative of the Black Sea Fleet Alexei Rulev, that the ships "which are equipped with the Kalibr-NK cruise missiles make a planned transition from Sevastopol to the far sea zone, where they will join the Mediterranean flotilla."

Russia is …

The situation in northern Syria, where Bashar al-Assad’s army, with support from the Russian Aerospace Forces, is fighting for control over Idlib, deteriorated sharply on Thursday.

The Turkish army, which entered Idlib at the end of last year, was targeted in an air raid, which killed at least 22 soldiers, the Daily Sabah reports, citing the authorities of the Turkish border province of Hatay.

According to Al-Monitor, at least 30 people were killed in the attack. The Syrian Observatory for …

Israeli helicopters attacked Syrian Army positions, reported the Syrian government TV channel Alikhbaria on its Facebook page. The information was later confirmed by the Syrian news agency SANA.

According to the channel, Israeli helicopters carried out a missile attack on a number of military sites in Al Quneitra Governorate. According to the report, positions near Al-Qahtaniyah, Al-Quneitra city, and Jubat Al-Khashab were attacked.

As a result, three Syrian soldiers were injured.

On the …

Twenty-two Turkish soldiers were killed in an attack by Russian aircraft supporting Bashar al-Assad's regime in Idlib, Syria, said Rakhmi Dogan, the governor of the Turkish province Hatay, bordering Idlib region, as reported by Anadolu. The news agency reported later that the number of killed had increased to 33.

In turn, some media sources report, citing eyewitnesses, that the number of victims may be higher.

Earlier, Turkish authorities reported nine dead in an airstrike by Syrian forces in …