Advertisement
Advertisement
World /

Russia & Central Asia

Related Topics:
Russia's alleged election meddling
Ukraine
Russia
Vladimir Putin
Espionage
An attendant holds a petrol nozzle after refuelling a car at a petrol station in Beijing last week. China imported 159.79 million barrels of Russian crude in the first two months of the year. Photo: Reuters
China energy security

China’s Russian oil imports spike in early 2026, but Iran war changes outlook

China’s need to bolster crude stockpiles amid rising geopolitical risks likely to have been a factor behind pre-war import surge, analyst says.

Ukraine war

EU leaders clash with Hungary’s Orban for blocking Ukraine loan

US, Israel war on Iran

Iran’s exiled prince Reza Pahlavi plans to flip the script on Beijing

videocam
31
Russia

Pro-Kremlin Russian blogger who turned on Putin sent to psychiatric unit

Ilya Remeslo made a career calling out Putin’s critics until an abrupt about-turn saw him denouncing the Russian leader as a ‘war criminal’.

videocam
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting via videoconference at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow on Wednesday. Photo: Sputnik/EPA
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting via videoconference at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow on Wednesday. Photo: Sputnik/EPA
Ukraine war

Kremlin says Ukraine peace talks on ‘situational pause’ amid Iran war

The Kremlin confirms halt as Russian newspaper claims the Middle East crisis could force Ukraine towards territorial compromise.

Pakistan

Pakistan announces 5-day pause on Afghan strikes for Eid

The temporary ceasefire comes after Monday’s hospital strike, the deadliest in an escalating conflict between the two neighbours.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Ukraine war

Ukraine’s Zelensky warns of ‘brothers in hatred’ as Iran war steals focus

Ukrainian leader visits London as the Middle East conflict overshadows the four-year war against Russia.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte at 10 Downing Street in London. Photo: Reuters
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte at 10 Downing Street in London. Photo: Reuters
China-Russia relations

China, Russia look to boost transport links amid Middle East disruption

Increased use of Arctic shipping route among topics covered at inaugural China-Russia Logistics Business Forum.

4
Ukraine war

Zelensky to visit UK as Starmer says it is ‘vital’ to support Ukraine

‘We cannot allow the war in the Gulf to turn into a windfall for Putin,’ Starmer said ahead of Tuesday’s meeting in London.

Ukraine war

Oscar-winner Penn skips Academy Awards ceremony to visit Zelensky in Kyiv

The ‘One Battle After Another’ star skips ceremony for his third Oscar win to meet President Zelensky and potentially visit the front lines.

American actor Sean Penn walks down a street in Kyiv on Monday. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

One-way ticket: Emirates flies near-empty flights back to Dubai

Before the Iran war, the world’s largest international airline was chalking up hundreds of daily flights that were nearly full.

An Emirates Airbus A380 aircraft prepares to land as a smoke plume rises from an ongoing fire near Dubai International Airport in Dubai on Mpnday. Photo: AFP
An Emirates Airbus A380 aircraft prepares to land as a smoke plume rises from an ongoing fire near Dubai International Airport in Dubai on Mpnday. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

To help Middle East nations fight drones, Ukraine wants cash and tech

This is about ⁠protection and a full assessment of how to counter Shahed drones, says Zelensky, after Kyiv dispatched dozens of experts.

videocam
US, Israel war on Iran

UK says Russia, Iran trying to ‘hijack global economy’ amid Hormuz closure

Foreign Secretary Cooper said Moscow and Tehran ‘benefit together’ from soaring oil prices.

videocam
11
Ukraine war

Russia, Ukraine both claim frontline success while US-led talks on hold

Washington is now focusing on the Iran war, drawing the spotlight from Ukraine’s four-year fight to see off Russia’s bigger army.

videocam
Rescuers stand near bodies retrieved from the site of a strike on a residential building in Kharkiv, northeastern Ukraine, on Saturday. Photo: EPA
US, Israel war on Iran

Trump and Putin discuss ‘quick’ ending to Iran war

However, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say they will decide when war ends, and nation’s security chief warns Trump needs to avoid elimination.

videocam
84
Russian President Vladimir Putin meeting with US President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska in August 2025. Photo: Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin meeting with US President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska in August 2025. Photo: Reuters
Ukraine war

Ukraine protests Russia’s participation in Venice Biennale

Organisers have said Russia could participate for the first time since launching its all-out invasion in 2022.

Ukraine war

At least 7 killed in Ukraine’s Kharkiv as Russia strikes apartment building

Moscow struck its neighbour overnight with 29 missiles and 480 drones, President Zelensky said, with hits at 22 locations.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
US, Israel war on Iran

‘We are decimating them’: US brushes off Russian help for Iran in war

The White House downplays Moscow sharing information with Tehran on US targets in the Gulf, saying it is not affecting military operations.

videocam
4
Smoke and fire rise from the site of air strikes at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, on Sunday. Photo: AFP
Smoke and fire rise from the site of air strikes at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, on Sunday. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

Azerbaijan vows to respond after Iranian drones injure 4

Azerbaijan and Iran already have tense ⁠relations over Baku’s growing economic, energy and military ties to Turkey and Israel.

Russia

Russia may halt gas supplies to Europe amid Iran energy spike, Putin warns

The leader says the chaos triggered by the Iran crisis has led to the emergence of other buyers willing to pay top dollar for fuel.

videocam
Ukraine war

Trump’s Iran attack sparks calls in Russia to abandon Ukraine talks

Some Russian hardliners are urging Vladimir Putin to double down on the war in Ukraine.

videocam
A billboard in Moscow advertising contract military service in the Russian unmanned systems forces. Photo: EPA
France

France to boost atomic arsenal, could deploy nuclear-armed jets to allies

France’s Macron says eight European countries have agreed to a ‘forward’ deterrence plan to bolster continental security.

France’s President Emmanuel Macron during a visit to Ile Longue nuclear submarine base. Photo: AFP
France’s President Emmanuel Macron during a visit to Ile Longue nuclear submarine base. Photo: AFP
Extreme weather

Record-breaking? El Nino may return in 2026, making planet even hotter

However, scientists say there’s a risk of 2026 being ‘the warmest year on record even without El Nino, due to the global warming trend’.

videocam
US, Israel war on Iran

Long Iran war could hurt Ukraine’s defence, says Zelensky

The president said if military strikes in the Middle East continue, the supply of weapons to fend off Moscow’s long attack could be affected.

videocam
US-Iran tensions

Airspace closed, flights cancelled amid US-Israel-Iran conflict

Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, Syria and the UAE all announced at least partial closures of their skies.

videocam
An interior view of Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv in Israel on Saturday after the nation closed its airspace to civilian flights following a joint Israeli-US attack on Iran. Photo: Xinhua
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW