• Belarus hikes tariff on Russian oil transit by 6.6%

    The Belarusian Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade (MART) has decided to hike the tariff on the transit of Russian oil through the country by 6.6%, the department announced on its website.

    The tariff increase is calculated according to a special formula. “The tariff hike amount has been determined… as the average annual consumer price index established by parameters of Russia’s predicted socio-economic growth in 2020, amounting to 3.6%, plus three percentage points,” the ministry …

  • Turkey strikes back at Syrian army after Turkish forces attacked in Idlib

    Turkish troops killed about 30 Syrian government soldiers in response to the deaths of six of Turkish military, Turkish President Recep Erdogan said on February 3.

    "The operation is ongoing and ... according to preliminary results, 30 to 35 Syrians were killed," Erdogan told reporters at Istanbul airport before his flight to Ukraine.

    The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that 13 Syrian soldiers have been killed.

    Erdogan also warned Russia, an ally of Syria, against intervening …

  • Kremlin files case against Facebook and Twitter

    Russia’s federal communications censorship agency, RosKomNadzor, has initiated an administrative case against Facebook and Twitter due to their non-compliance with Russia’s law on personal information.

    The department’s press service reported that the two social networks which, according to BR Analytics, have 2 million content creators and 210 million messages on a monthly basis, have failed to provide proof within the stipulated time frame that they are complying with the requirement to …

  • Turkish tanks enter Syrian Idlib province

    A Turkish military convoy has crossed the Syrian border, reported Al Arabiya TV channel on Sunday, February 2.

    It is noted that the convoy consists of several dozen armored vehicles, including tanks. In total, at least 40 armored vehicles and tanks of the Turkish army crossed the border through the Kafr Lusin border crossing in the north of the Syrian Idlib province. At the moment, the final destination of the convoy is unknown.

    The day before, the Turkish military began to build a new …

  • Russia explains how Israel managed to destroy Pantsir air defense system in Syria

    Israel was able to destroy the Russian anti-aircraft missile system used by the Syrian army only after the Syrian crew made a mistake, and instead of changing its position, it remained in the same location waiting for the ammunition resupply vehicle, said Valery Slugin, the chief designer of the Pantsir system, in an interview with the Russian news agency TASS. The Pantsir system was created in Design Bureau of Instrument Engineering named after academician A.G. Shipunov which is part of the …