• Chechen ombudsman demands criminal case be brought against Russian journalist

    Chechen ombudsman Nurdi Nukhazhiyev addressed the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation (SKR) with an appeal to open a criminal case against Elena Milashina, a correspondent with Novaya Gazeta. From the ombudsman’s official website he accused Milashina of spreading false information about Magomed Daudov, Speaker of the Chechen Parliament. Nukhazhiyev alleged that Milashina’s aim was to discredit the speaker’s honor and dignity.

    The issue is based on Milashina’s article published in …

  • Iraqi Kurds hope for more weapons from Russia

    Iraqi Kurds are expecting the delivery of hundreds of Russian ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft guns, according to a representative of northern Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Moscow, Aso Talabani, as reported by Interfax.

    On March 14th, Russia gave the Kurdish Peshmerga forces five such anti-aircraft installations.

    “I hope there will be more supplies. Russia delivered five installations the day before, and I think this is just the beginning,” Talabani told Interfax.

    "We need hundreds of …

  • Georgia denies Russia's request to abolish law 'On Occupied Territories'

    The Government of Georgia does not intend to abolish the law "On Occupied Territories", but this law may be eased for the Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-Ossetian families, said the Minister of Justice of Georgia, Thea Tsulukiani, on Wednesday, as reported by Interfax.

    "The law 'On Occupied Territories' will be in force as long Georgian territories are occupied, because we need a special legal regime that governs the entry and exit of people on these territories, as well as many other issues," …

  • The Pentagon: Only a few Russian aircraft have left Syria

    US Colonel Steve Warren, Director of Defense Press Operations and Spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR), the US military operation against the so-called Islamic State, claimed that it was hard to interpret Russian intentions towards the extremist group.

    The US-led coalition, which has been fighting against the so-called Islamic State, notes that some Russian military aircraft and troops left Syria, but their main forces there remain mostly unchanged.

    This was announced by Colonel …

  • Russia widens agricultural sanctions against Turkey

    On Wednesday, Russia expanded agricultural sanctions against Turkey, Radio Svoboda reported. According to the Russian Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance, Rosselkhoznadzor, Turkish pomegranates and sweet peppers were added to the list of banned Turkish products. The agency emphasized that this includes all pomegranates and sweet peppers originating from Turkey, regardless of where the products were shipped from.

    "Rosselkhoznadzor introduces on March 17 temporary …