Prosecutors in Georgia’s biggest county have opened a criminal investigation into former U.S. President Donald Trump’s attempts to influence the state’s 2020 election results, ordering government officials on Wednesday to preserve documents in the second known criminal probe facing Trump.

• February 10, 2021

Russia’s ambassador to Belarus said on Wednesday that Moscow had fully compensated Minsk for the 2019 contaminated oil crisis, Russian news agencies reported, a statement that Belarus subsequently questioned.

• February 10, 2021

Russian opposition plans to convert anger over Alexei Navalny’s arrest and jailing into parliamentary seats at the ruling pro-Kremlin party’s expense later this year have suffered a setback after an acrimonious outbreak of infighting.

• February 10, 2021

Further sanctions against Russia need to target the right people, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday, adding that cancelling the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline would merely push Russia closer to China.

• February 10, 2021

Russian authorities are considering a new social spending package worth at least $6.7 billion to address discontent over falling living standards before an autumn election, according to two government sources.

• February 8, 2021

United Nations Yemen mediator Martin Griffiths and Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed on Monday how to make progress toward a nationwide ceasefire and reviving the political process in Yemen, a U.N. spokesman said.

• February 8, 2021

U.S. House of Representatives impeachment managers said on Monday that evidence against former President Donald Trump is overwhelming and he has no defense for his actions.

• February 8, 2021

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

Since the end of the second Karabakh war in November 2020, Armenian, Azerbaijani, and international pundits have published many opinions and assessments focusing on the war, its causes and consequences, and the decisive victory of Azerbaijan. The strategic blunders of the Pashinyan government, the Russia – Turkey deal, and the aloofness of the US, are among the hotly debated issues about what contributed to the launch of the war, and the capitulation of Armenia. Some experts seek to forecast the distant future (5-10 years). They argue that Armenia will accept its defeat, will forget about territories taken by Azerbaijan during the war, and will seek to get material benefits through establishing economic cooperation with Baku and Ankara. READ MORE

• February 8, 2021