The International Energy Agency cut its world oil demand forecast for 2022 on Wednesday, warning that sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine could spark a global supply “shock”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine and his push to upend the broader security order in Europe may lead to a historic shift in American thinking about defense of the continent. Depending on how far Putin goes, this could mean a buildup of US military power in Europe not seen since the Cold War.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov yesterday said that Moscow had received written guarantees from Washington on its ability to trade with Tehran as part of ongoing talks to salvage the Iran nuclear deal. More than 10 months of talks in Vienna have brought major powers close to renewing the landmark 2015 Joint Comprehensive

A Russian journalist who protested Moscow’s military action in Ukraine during a prime-time news broadcast on state TV was in court yesterday, facing 10 days in jail for the demonstration.

A Turkish businessman has been distributing free food to around 1,000 Kyiv residents every day at a time when Russian invasion is ravaging Ukraine.

Arms shipments to Europe jumped amid deteriorating relations with Russia in the five years through 2021, even as the global arms trade slowed, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) think-tank said yesterday.

French far-right presidential candidate Eric Zemmour, who has been criticized for his prior backing for Russian President Vladimir Putin, thinks Ukrainians with familial ties to France should be granted visas rather than those fleeing wars in Arab Muslim countries, reports France 24.

Waves of Russian missiles pounded a military training base near Ukraine’s western border with NATO member Poland, killing 35 people, Ukrainian authorities said Sunday. The strike followed Russian threats to target foreign weapon shipments that are helping Ukrainian fighters defend their country against Russia’s grinding assault.

France, Britain and Germany yesterday warned Russia that its demands to have its trade guaranteed with Iran risked the collapse of an almost-completed nuclear deal.

The EU said yesterday that the talks it is chairing on the revival of the 2015 Iran nuclear accord must be paused, days after fresh demands from Russia complicated negotiations.

Britain has urged Myanmar’s former ambassador to leave the official London residence where he has continued to live since he was ousted for criticising last year’s military coup, citing pressure from the junta, according to emails seen by Reuters.

During the first week of war, Russia shifted from strategic strikes against military targets using cruise missiles to a stalled ground attack and, currently, a broader siege of major cities, including bombardments using rocket artillery and cluster munitions, sometimes against residential buildings and civilian infrastructure.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said yesterday he did not believe the conflict in Ukraine would spiral into a nuclear war but cautioned the United States and Europe that Moscow never again wanted to be dependent on the West.

Western powers on Tuesday warned Russia against wrecking an almost completed deal on bringing the United States and Iran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear accord, as Iran’s top negotiator returned from consultations in Tehran.

The flood of refugees escaping war in Ukraine for the European Union has sparked a rare show of unity from the bloc’s 27 nations after years of disputes over the sensitive issue of migration.

Scotland’s government marked International Women’s Day on Tuesday by issuing a formal apology to thousands of women who were executed centuries ago

The UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet yesterday announced that she will visit China in May, with her team heading soon to Xinjiang, where Beijing stands accused of serious abuses, to prepare.

Over six million people have died worldwide from Covid-19 since the pandemic began, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP yesterday.

Global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions rose by six percent in 2021 to a record 36.3 billion tonnes, their highest ever level, the International Energy Agency said yesterday. 

Russian authorities have blocked several independent media outlets including news site Mediazona as the Kremlin seeks to control coverage of its war in Ukraine, a rights group said.