By Benyamin Poghosyan, PhD, Chairman, Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies

Relations with Russia were always a cornerstone for Armenian foreign policy. Since Armenia has regained its independence in 1991, Russia has been its essential political and military ally. Several reasons were behind such a choice – geopolitics, history, significant Armenian community in Russia. The Russian military base and border troops have been deployed in Armenia, and Yerevan joined Collective Security Treaty Organization and Eurasian Economic Union. Meanwhile, in the last 10-15 years, a discourse about Armenia’s dangerous overdependence on Russia was prevalent in Armenian and Western experts’ circles. Many perceived Armenia as a client state of Russia and called for changes. READ MORE

• March 3, 2021

Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Kingdom of Belgium

On 29 January 2021 the Brussels-based media outlet EU Today and the Brussels Press Club in Brussels hosted a conference dedicated to the construction of nuclear power plants in Belarus, Turkey and Uzbekistan. Despite the fact that plans for the construction of new power units are being considered at various stages both in the EU member states-Finland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, and in the UK, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, etc., the discussion was focused on these countries. Much attention at the conference was paid to the construction of nuclear power plants in Uzbekistan. READ MORE

• March 3, 2021

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told the United States not to meddle in domestic energy policy on Friday, ahead of a meeting between his government and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

• February 26, 2021

Moldova’s medical agency on Friday said it had approved Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19, despite President Maia Sandu saying it could not be registered until the World Health Organisation had done so.

• February 26, 2021

Scotland’s former first minister Alex Salmond accused the nation’s government on Friday of acting illegally and lacking leadership in a bitter row with his successor that threatens to damage the Scottish independence movement.

• February 26, 2021

By Benyamin Poghosyan, PhD, Chairman, Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies

US-Turkey relations have passed through significant transformations in the last decade. President Obama started by seeking to build a "model partnership" with Turkey during his first term in office, but later he confronted Turkey over the growing authoritarianism of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The US decision to choose the Syrian Kurds as the main ally in their fight against ISIS in Syria triggered significant resentment from Turkey. Ankara perceives the Kurdish YPG fighters as a Syrian branch of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which was identified as a terrorist organisation by both the US and Turkey. Ankara repeatedly warned the US "not to use terrorists to fight other terrorists". READ MORE

• February 25, 2021

Iran will “immediately reverse” actions in its nuclear programme once U.S. sanctions are lifted, its foreign minister said on Friday, reacting coolly to Washington’s initial offer to revive talks with Tehran aimed at restoring the 2015 nuclear deal.

• February 19, 2021

President Joe Biden will seek on Friday to rally global democracies and European allies to work together to address a range of concerns about China, but is not looking for a “new Cold War,” a senior administration official said.

• February 19, 2021