The Dispatch

UPDATED: Azerbaijan reports major escalation as second city bombed

Azerbaijan said on Sunday that Armenian forces had shelled its second city of Ganja in an escalation of the war in the South Caucasus. Armenia denied that it fired towards…

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Armenia to use “all necessary means” to protect Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia said on Saturday it would use "all necessary means" to protect ethnic Armenians from attack by Azerbaijan, which said its forces had captured a string of villages in fighting…

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Fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh enters seventh day

Armenia said on Saturday it would use "all necessary means" to protect ethnic Armenians from attack by Azerbaijan, as the opposing sides pounded each other for a seventh day and…

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Germany expects EU to impose new sanctions against Russia over Navalny’s poisoning

Germany expects the European Union to impose new sanctions against Russia over the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny with an internationally banned nerve agent, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said…

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Russian journalist dies after intentionally setting herself on fire in protest

A Russian journalist died on Friday after setting herself on fire in front of the local branch of the interior ministry in the city of Nizhny Novgorod, a day after…

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Armenia declares readiness for ceasefire talks

Armenia said on Friday it would work with Russia, the United States and France on renewing a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh as the death toll rose on the sixth day of…

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Russian state journalists among first to receive COVID-19 vaccine outside trial

Russian journalists working for two state-owned media outlets are among the first to be offered the new Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine outside of the framework of a clinical trial, according…

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Fighting in Nagorno-Karbakh showing no sign of easing

Armenia’s defence ministry on Friday said Nagorno-Karabakh air defence systems had shot down an Azeri warplane and two drones, an online government platform reported. Fighting between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian…

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Belarus announces sanctions list in retaliation against EU

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said on Friday it had compiled a list of people barred from entering Belarus in retaliation against sanctions imposed by the European Union. The ministry said…

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Moscow to reinstate tough measures if COVID-19 rules ignored

Moscow may reinstate tough measures if its 13 million population ignores COVID-19 protection rules, its mayor Sergei Sobyanin said after the Russian capital started to record increases in daily cases…

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Turkey to “do what is necessary” to support Azerbaijan

The presidents of France, Russia and the United States called on Thursday for an immediate ceasefire between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces around Nagorno-Karabakh, but Turkey said the three big…

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Cyprus demands sanctions on Turkey as EU summit stalls on Belarus

Cyprus defied pressure to approve European Union sanctions on Belarus at a leaders' summit on Thursday, urging other members of the bloc to also punish Turkey for its oil and…

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Poland, Russia, and Slovakia report record number of new daily coronavirus infections

Poland, Russia, and Slovakia on Thursday all reported a record number of new daily coronavirus infections Poland reported a record number of new daily coronavirus infections on Thursday, with the…

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Russia decries use of ‘foreign terrorists’ in Karabakh conflict

Russia’s foreign ministry said that Syrian and Libyan fighters from illegal armed groups were being sent to the Nagorno-Karabakh region, where fierce fighting has raged for the past four days…

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Moscow willing to mediate between Azerbaijan and Armenia, conflict causes rift in NATO

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow was willing to host the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan for talks, a ministry statement cited him as saying. He said…

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Armenia and Azerbaijan engaged in an all-out-war in Nagorno Karabakh region – Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera’s journalist Robin Forestier-Walker, who has extensively covered developments in the region, said that videos being released from the contested region give the idea of “an all-out war”. “The…

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Russia to supply Egypt with COVID-19 vaccine

Russia has clinched a deal with Egypt to supply it with 25 million doses of its Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, as Moscow seeks to take a leading global role in…

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Former Ukraine president Poroshenko contracts coronavirus as cases hit record

Former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko has contracted the novel coronavirus, he said in a statement on Facebook. “Therefore, from today I am being treated at home. I hope for a…

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Turkey denies claim that it shot down an Armenian warplane, Putin appeals for ceasefire

The claim by an Armenian official that Turkey shot down an Armenian fighter jet is “absolutely untrue”, Turkey’s communications director Fahrettin Altun said. “Armenia should withdraw from the territories under…

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Armenia and Azerbaijan reject peace talks

Armenia and Azerbaijan accused one another on Tuesday of firing directly into each other's territory and rejected pressure to hold peace talks as their conflict over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh…

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Britain and Canada impose sanctions on Belarusian President Lukashenko

Britain and Canada imposed travel bans and asset freezes on Tuesday on Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, his son and other senior officials, accusing their government of rigging an election and committing…

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Macron promises help to Belarus opposition

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday committed to help mediate in the Belarusian political crisis during a meeting with opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. "We will do our best as Europeans…

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Azerbaijan cancels all international flights as country imposes martial law

Azerbaijan canceled all international flights except for those with Turkey as fighting intensified in the Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region, according to reports on regional media. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev ordered martial…

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Fighting escalates between Azerbaijan and Armenian enclave

Fighting escalated sharply on Monday between Azerbaijan and its ethnic Armenian mountain enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, and at least 55 people were killed in a second day of heavy clashes. The…

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Russian energy minister warns of COVID-19 risks for global oil

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Monday that the global oil market has been stable for the past few months and the balance between supply and demand has been…

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Photo Story: The exhibition ‘Space design’ in Space museum in Moscow

Visitor examine designs of the fist Russian space designer Galina Balashova during the exhibition 'Space design' in Space museum in Moscow, Russia. Galina Balashova for almost three decades was the…

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Russia’s new coronavirus cases surge past 8,000, highest since June 16

Russia's new coronavirus cases rose to their highest since June 16 on Monday as authorities confirmed 8,135 new infections in the last 24 hours, pushing the national total to 1,159,573.…

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Armenia accuses Turkey of direct military support for Azerbaijan

Armenia accused Turkey on Monday of providing direct military support for Azerbaijan in a flare-up of fighting between the two former Soviet republics over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. The Armenian…

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UPDATED: Azerbaijan declares partial military mobilisation amid reports of Syrian fighters involvement

Azerbaijan declared a partial military mobilisation on Monday following clashes with Armenian forces over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. See also: Armenia Accuses Turkey Of Direct Military Support For Azerbaijan Azeri President…

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50th day of protests in Belarus

About 100,000 demonstrators marched in the Belarusian capital calling for the authoritarian president’s ouster, some wearing cardboard crowns to ridicule him, on Sunday as the protests that have rocked the…

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Azerbaijan – Armenia Conflict – Updates

Clashes erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan on Sunday over the volatile Nagorno-Karabakh region, reigniting concern about instability in the South Caucasus, a corridor for pipelines transporting oil and gas to…

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Belarusian police use tear gas, stun grenades against protesters -TASS

Belarusian police said on Sunday they had used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse "disobedient" protesters in the eastern city of Gomel and prevent them from breaking through the…

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EU Charles Michel calls for immediate return to negotiations

Reports of hostilities from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone are of most serious concern, European Council President Charles Michel posted in his Twitter account. Charles Michel called the sides to stop…

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Pope Francis appeals for peace in Caucasus

Pope Francis has appealed to conflicting parties in the Caucasus nations of Armenia and Azerbaijan to “accomplish concrete deeds of goodwill and fraternity” for a peaceful solution. Speaking on Sunday…

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Azerbaijan’s Aliyev: Solving issue ‘is our national task’

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev says his country wants a complete resolution over the disputed region. “The problem of Nagorno-Karabakh is our national task… The solution is our historical mission”, he…

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Iran says ready to facilitate talks

Iran has called for an end to the fighting and said it was ready to facilitate talks and a ceasefire between its two neighbours. Iran “is closely following the military…

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Vladimir Putin discuss issue with Armenia’s PM – Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan have discussed the clashes in a phone call, the Kremlin has said in a statement. It said the conversation noted…

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Ukrainian President orders investigation into plane crash

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday the causes of a military plane crash which killed 26 people would be investigated promptly and impartially. A military transport plane carrying air…

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Explainer – Nagorno-Karabakh – Old tensions erupt again into violence

Nagorno-Karabakh is a mountainous and heavily-forested patch of land that sits inside the territory of ex-Soviet Azerbaijan. Under international law, Nagorno-Karabakh is recognised as part of Azerbaijan. But the ethnic…

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Nagorno-Karabakh says it destroyed four Azeri helicopters, 15 drones and 10 tanks

The defence ministry of the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region said it had destroyed four of Azerbaijan’s helicopters, 15 drones and 10 tanks during clashes that flared early on Sunday. Armenia declared…

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Armenia calls for Turkey’s non-involvement in conflict

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called on the international community on Sunday to ensure that Turkey does not involve itself in Armenia's conflict with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, trading barbs…

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Macron says Lukashenko has to go

French President Emmanuel Macron said Sunday that Belarus's leader Alexander Lukashenko must step down, after the EU refused to recognise him as the legitimate president of the ex-Soviet country. It's…

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Azerbaijan and Armenia clash over Nagorno-Karabakh region

Armenia declared martial law and mobilised its male population on Sunday after clashes with Azerbaijan over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region in which sources on both sides reported fatalities. Authorities in…

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Belarus accuses West of sowing chaos and anarchy

Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei accused Western countries on Saturday of attempting to sow "chaos and anarchy" in the former Soviet republic, which has been rocked by street protests since…

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Belarus police detain dozens as crowds chant against Lukashenko

Belarusian security forces detained dozens of protesters on Saturday as crowds rallied in central Minsk accusing President Alexander Lukashenko of rigging last month's election. One group of women chanted "Our…

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Ukraine’s president orders prompt investigation of plane crash

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday the causes of a military plane crash which killed 26 people would be investigated promptly and impartially. A military transport plane carrying air…

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Ukraine registers record number of Covid cases

Ukraine registered a record 3,833 cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, the national security council said on Saturday, up from a previous record of 3,584 new cases reported…

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22 dead as military plane carrying air force cadets crashes in Ukraine

A military transport plane carrying air force cadets crashed and burst into flames near a highway in northeastern Ukraine on Friday evening, killing at least 22 people on board, officials…

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Photo Story: Makeshift memorial to medical workers that died from COVID-19 in St. Petersburg

A woman walks past a makeshift memorial to medical workers that have died from COVID-19, in front of the local health department in central St. Petersburg, Russia. Russia's daily tally…

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Russia’s new coronavirus cases hit highest since June 23

Russia's daily tally of new coronavirus cases hit its highest level since June 23 on Friday as officials reported 7,212 infections across the country, bringing the national tally to 1,136,048.…

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U.S., UK, Canada plan sanctions on Belarusian officials

The United States, Britain and Canada plan to impose sanctions on Belarusian individuals following what they view as a rigged election and violence against peaceful protesters since, six sources familiar…

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Russia warns Bulgaria of retaliatory measures after expulsion of diplomatic officials

Moscow on Thursday expressed regret at Bulgaria's decision to declare two Russian diplomats 'persona non grata' and promised details on retaliatory measures at a later date, the foreign ministry said…

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Russian landlords feel the pinch as COVID-19 hits incomes and rents

Before the coronavirus pandemic hit Russia, pensioner Elena rented out her one-bedroom apartment in the Moscow suburbs to help make ends meet. The 18,000-rouble monthly rent, nearly $240 at the…

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Russia to supply 17 more countries with COVID-19 drug Avifavir

Russia's sovereign wealth fund and its partner Chemrar will supply the COVID-19 drug Avifavir to 17 additional countries, the fund said in a statement on Thursday. Avifavir gained approval from…

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UPDATED: EU says Belarus’ Lukashenko not legitimate president

President Alexander Lukashenko is not the legitimate president of Belarus, the European Union said on Thursday, saying his abrupt swearing-in on Wednesday went directly against the will of the people.…

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Germany does not recognise Lukashenko as Belarus president after swearing in

Germany still does not recognise Alexander Lukashenko as president of Belarus even after his inauguration on Wednesday, government spokesman Steffen Seibert said. Lukashenko was sworn in for a new term…

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Photo Story: Russia starts military exercises in the Caucasus

A series of photos from the Kavkaz-2020 (The Caucasus 2020) military exercises in Ashuluk range in Astrakhan region, Russia, 22 September 2020. The Caucasus 2020 strategic command and staff exercise…

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