US envoy touts ‘potential’ of Israel-Saudi deal in Netanyahu talks
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan says there is a potential of Israel-Saudi normalization deal if Netanyahu alters his political...Geostrategy
Bahrain calls for Mideast peace conference at Gaza-focused Arab League
King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa was addressing fellow heads of state and government at the 22-strong grouping in Manama,...Geostrategy
Iran, Saudi agree to restore severed ties after talks in China
Riyadh cut ties with Tehran after Iranian protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in the Islamic republic in 2016 following the...Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme NSC, had travelled to Beijing for "intensive negotiations with his Saudi counterpart" to resolve Riyadh -Tehran problems, IRNA said.
Iraq, a neighbor to both countries, had hosted several rounds of low-level talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia since April 2021.
Israeli settler kills suspected Palestinian gunman in West Bank
An Israeli settler killed an assailant in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military said, the latest bloodshed in a...The Palestinian health ministry said the settler killed 21-year-old Abd al-Karim al-Sheikh at Qalqilya, a Palestinian city near Dorot Illit.
The attack came hours after a member of the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas opened fire on a cafe in Tel Aviv.
Turkey to hold talks with Sweden, Finland on stalled NATO bids
A statement from NATO said that "participants welcomed the progress that has been made" on a three-way deal struck last...Turkey and Hungary are the only NATO countries still to ratify the applications, which must be accepted by all 30 existing members of the military organization
Finland and Sweden dropped their decades-long policies of military non-alignment and applied to join the alliance last May after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine
Bahrain ‘cancels’ HRW visas ahead of parliamentary meet
Dubai, UAE -- Bahrain has revoked visas for two members of Human Rights Watch who planned to attend this week's...The IPU, which groups parliaments around the world and aims to promote democracy, said it was "aware" the visas were revoked.
But IPU said it "is not responsible for the visa process which is a sovereign decision of the host country".
Xi Jinping gets third term as China’s president
The 69-year-old has weathered widespread protests over his zero-Covid policy and the deaths of countless people after its abandonment. But...The appointment by China's rubber-stamp parliament comes after Xi locked in another five years as head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in October
In an oath beamed live on state television, he vowed to "build a prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious and great modern socialist country."
20 years after US invasion, Iraq is closer to Washington, far from ‘liberal democracy’
President George W. Bush's war, launched in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, is seared in memory for its "shock...The decision after the March 20, 2003 ground invasion to dismantle Iraq's state, party and military fuelled years of bloodletting
The US forces, backed mainly by British troops, never found the weapons of mass destruction that had been the justification for the war
Iran ready to join efforts to reconcile Syria, Turkey
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been politically isolated in the region since the start of Syria's war in 2011, triggered...Amir-Abdollahian landed in quake-wracked Latakia province before flying to Damascus, where he met Syrian Foreign Minister and the president
He discussed with Assad "Tehran joining meetings to build a dialogue between Damascus and Ankara," the Syrian presidency said
In Israel, Pentagon chief raises Iran, Ukraine concerns amid judicial reform stir
Austin's talks with his hosts were centred on the changing geopolitics of the region, which is currently roiled by rising...Netanyahu and his defence minister raised concerns Iran is developing nuclear weapons, something the Islamic republic has always denied
Austin said "diplomacy is the best way to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon", while adding the US would not allow that to happen
Poor states’ summit promised just US$1.4bn, says UN
DOHA, QATAR - Just US$1.4 billion in new loans and grants were promised at a UN summit devoted to the world's...The Doha meetings saw Saudi Arabia offer $800 million in loans to Least Developed Countries.
Qatar said it would give $60 million for UN projects and Canada $59 million for vitamin supplements in LDCs.
Grain deal not being implemented properly, says Russia
MOSCOW, RUSSIA - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday that extending a deal that allowed grain exports from Ukraine to...Russia's military intervention saw Ukraine's Black Sea ports blocked by warships until a deal was reached for the export of grains.
The UN and Turkey-brokered deal will automatically renew on March 18 unless Russia or Ukraine object.
