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- By RFE/RL
Britain Considering 'Major' Military Deployment To Eastern Europe Amid Russia Tensions
Prime Minister Boris Johnson says Britain is considering a “major” deployment of troops, warships, and fighter jets in Eastern Europe to counter Russian “hostility” toward Ukraine.
"This package would send a clear message to the Kremlin: We will not tolerate their destabilizing activity, and we will always stand with our NATO allies in the face of Russian hostility," Johnson said in a statement late on January 29.
The comment comes as NATO members stepped up vows of additional support for Ukraine in the face of a Russian military buildup along their common border in what many in the West fear could be the prelude to an invasion.
Earlier on January 29, France unveiled plans to send hundreds of troops to Romania.
That came a day after the United States said it would soon move a small number of U.S. troops to Eastern European and NATO countries and that it has put thousands more on standby. The United States already has tens of thousands of troops stationed across Western Europe.
Amid the tensions, Moscow has denied any plans to invade Ukraine.
The conflict between Ukraine and Russia erupted in February 2014, when months of street protests culminated in violent clashes in Kyiv and the ouster of the country’s pro-Russian president. Shortly after, Russia moved to annex Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and began stoking a war in the eastern region known broadly as the Donbas.
Washington and London, among others in the West, have said that any new Russian incursion into Ukraine would lead to swift and devastating sanctions against Moscow.
Britain is set to present its offer of bolstered military presence to NATO military chiefs next week, his office said.
The move could see the British force in Eastern Europe double to some 1,150 troops, officials said. Additional weapons could be sent to Estonia, they added.
Johnson, who is scheduled to visit the region next week, will also speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone, his office said.
Johnson’s office said the deployment would be focused on supporting NATO allies in the Nordic and Baltic regions.
"I have ordered our Armed Forces to prepare to deploy across Europe next week, ensuring we are able to support our NATO allies."
Johnson, who has been under pressure following a series of political scandals at home, said, that if Putin chooses "bloodshed and destruction" in Ukraine, it would be "a tragedy for Europe."
"Ukraine must be free to choose its own future," he argued.
Ukraine is not in NATO but has received military, economic, and political support from the West.
Johnson is also scheduled to send Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Defense Secretary Ben Wallace to Moscow for talks with their Russian counterparts in the coming days.
France, in its announcement, said it plans to send "several hundred" troops to Romania as part of a "defensive alliance." Defense Secretary Florence Parly said she had visited Romania on January 27 to discuss the issue.
With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and dpa
- By RFE/RL
Iranian-Born Deputy Elected To Jointly Lead German Green Party
Germany's Green party has elected a 28-year-old feminist and an Iranian-born foreign policy expert to lead the party just a month after it joined the national government in a three-way coalition.
Ricarda Lang, 28, and Omid Nouripour, 46, were selected to take the reins of the party as it attempts to build on the success of its performance in the national election in September when it captured 14.8 percent of the vote.
Lang, who becomes the youngest co-leader of the party, and fellow member of the Bundestag Nouripour replace the Greens' chancellor candidate, Annalena Baerbock, and Robert Habeck, who now hold ministerial posts in Germany's new government.
Baerbock is foreign minister and Habeck is the new vice chancellor in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government. The Social Democrat became chancellor on December 8 after forming a center-left coalition with the Green party and the pro-business Free Democrats.
Lang and Nouripour were elected during a party conference held largely online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Their election must be confirmed by a postal ballot whose results are expected by mid-February.
Lang has become a rising star in German politics since being elected to the Bundestag last year. She joined the party at age 18 and became its deputy leader in November 2019 as well as its spokeswoman on women's affairs.
As an openly bisexual woman, Lang has faced a deluge of hate speech online, the most egregious of which she has fought with criminal complaints.
Omid Nouripour, who was born in Tehran in 1975, has made his name chiefly on foreign policy in debates in the Bundestag, where he has served as a member for more than 15 years.
He has said he wants to keep the Green party firmly in the mainstream while tending to its activist roots.
"We will become the leading force of the center-left in Germany," he has pledged. That includes keeping its eyes on the chancellery in the 2025 election, he said on January 29.
Nouripour has worked to sharpen the Green party’s profile on human rights, calling recently for a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
He also criticized then-Chancellor Angela Merkel for speaking directly to Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka by telephone, calling it a "disastrous signal."
With reporting by Reuters and dpa
- By RFE/RL
Russia Agrees To Move Naval Exercises Away From Irish Coast After Outcry
Russia will not conduct naval exercises in international waters off the southwest coast of Ireland next week as planned, Moscow's ambassador to Ireland said on January 29.
Ambassador Yury Filatov said in a statement that Russia decided to relocate the naval exercises as a "gesture of goodwill" to Dublin and Irish fishing groups.
Ireland was notified last week that the exercises would take place about 240 kilometers off its southwest coast within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) but not its territorial waters.
The announcement of the drills, originally planned for February 3-8, had caused considerable controversy in Ireland.
Some Irish fishermen had expressed concern that the use of military sonar could damage marine life and some said they planned to protest near the area where they were due to take place.
Earlier this week Filatov told Irish authorities that there were no grounds for concern over the maneuvers and said Ireland had been “duly notified” about the exercises, according to TASS.
But the statement on January 29 said in response to the requests from the Irish government and the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu decided to relocate the exercises “as a gesture of goodwill” outside the EEZ “with the aim not to hinder fishing activities by the Irish vessels in the traditional fishing areas."
It is not known where the naval exercises will take place.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Twitter he had written to Shoigu to ask that Russia reconsider conducting the exercises off the Irish coast.
“This evening I received a letter confirming the Russian exercises will be relocated outside of Ireland’s EEZ. I welcome this response,” Coveney said.
The plans were especially unwelcome at a time when the United States and other Western countries fear Russia could be preparing to invade Ukraine after amassing more than 100,000 troops near its borders.
Russia denies it is planning any invasion of its neighbor. Ireland, which is not a member of NATO, has not independently had a stake in efforts to resolve tensions over Ukraine.
With reporting by Reuters, dpa, and TASS
- By RFE/RL
Kazakh Leader Rejects Outside Probe Into Unrest, Says Country Can Conduct Its Own Investigation
Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev has rejected calls for an international probe into protests earlier this month that left more than 220 people dead and prompted the country to call in troops from a Russian-led military organization.
Toqaev and other Kazakh officials have blamed the clashes on “bandits and terrorists” with foreign connections without giving direct evidence of any alleged terrorists being involved.
In his first televised interview since the unrest began, Toqaev reiterated on January 29 that Kazakhstan had been attacked by militants and said the state would be able to conduct its own probe into the events.
"As concerns an international investigation into the events in Kazakhstan, I don't see the need for such an investigation. We have our own people that are honest, objective," Toqaev said in the interview shown by the state broadcaster Khabar.
The European Parliament on January 20 overwhelmingly adopted a resolution demanding "a proper international investigation into the crimes committed against the people of Kazakhstan" during the violence.
In the interview Toqaev called the resolution "unobjective, premature," adding that it “does not worry me."
Protests earlier this month in the remote town of Zhanaozen over a sudden fuel-price hike quickly spread across Kazakhstan, with much of the protesters' anger directed at Nursultan Nazarbaev, who had ruled Kazakhstan since 1989.
Toqaev, Nazarbaev's handpicked successor, claimed in the wake of protests that Almaty was attacked by "20,000 terrorists" as he issued a shoot-to-kill without warning order and invited troops from the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to enter the country.
The CSTO units began arriving in the country on January 6 and completed their withdrawal about two weeks later after the situation stabilized.
Toqaev said he had been “objective” in his assessment of Nazarbaev before he took over the Security Council on January 5 as protests escalated. At the time, a number of high-ranking officials close to Nazarbaev were fired, prompting speculation of a power struggle between Nazarbaev and Toqaev.
“There was no talk of personal preference. There was only talk of an immediate solution to the issue of the status of the chairman of the Security Council,” Toqaev said in the interview.
Earlier in the day, Toqaev said at a meeting of the ruling party that "our first president has done a great job in transforming our country into a strong state."
Toqaev on January 28 replaced Nazarbaev as the leader of the ruling Nur-Otan party. The presidential press service said that the decision was made at the party's congress at the behest of Nazarbaev.
Despite announcing in March 2019 that he was stepping down after almost 30 years of ruling the oil-rich Central Asian nation, Nazarbaev has continued to have a strong influence over Kazakhstan's domestic and foreign policies as lifetime chairman of the influential Security Council and leader of the Assembly of Kazakhstan's People and the Nur-Otan party.
Nazarbaev has now lost all three of those positions but continues to enjoy the powers of elbasy (leader of the nation).
The congress was held amid a protest by some members of the party who quit its ranks over what they see as the party's "failure" to prevent bloodshed during the anti-government protests.
With reporting by AFP
- By Reuters
Pristina Protesters Storm Government Building Over Energy Prices
Several thousand people protesting a proposed rise in energy prices scuffled with police blocking the entrance to Kosovo's government offices on January 29. Some also threw candles and light bulbs at the building and brandished posters saying: "Work day and night to see dim lights." The protest was called by the opposition Social Democratic Party. Kosovo's energy regulator said it may increase energy prices by up to 50 percent for most consumers. Kosovo, a country of 1.8 million people, has been facing an energy crisis since December 2021, when the prices of imported power increased sevenfold compared to the year before.
U.S. Special Envoy Congratulates Iran On World Cup Qualifying Victory
In a rare message, the U.S. special envoy on Iran has congratulated the Islamic Republic’s national soccer team on making it to this year's World Cup in Qatar.
"Congrats to #teammelli on qualifying for the #WorldCup2022. It's good to see women were allowed to attend the match," Robert Malley wrote on Twitter, using the Iranian team's nickname.
Iran became the first team from Asia to qualify for the 2022 World Cup finals with a 1-0 victory over Iraq in a match that took place in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium on January 27.
Iranian women were allowed into the stadium for the first time in almost three years to watch the victory, which marked the sixth time in the nation’s history that Iran earned a spot at the World Cup.
Despite the spread of the aggressive omicron variant of the coronavirus in Iran, the authorities approved the presence of some 10,000 spectators – including more than 2,000 women -- in the 100,000-seat stadium.
Football’s world governing body FIFA had long demanded that Iran provide assurances that women will be allowed to attend 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Iranian women have been largely prohibited from attending men's sporting events since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
In 2019, for the first time in decades, hundreds of women were allowed to watch -- from separate stands -- Persepolis play the Kashima Antlers of Japan in the Asian Champions League final in Tehran.
Based on reporting by AFP and AP
- By RFE/RL
COVID-19: Virus Cited As Main Cause Of Population Loss In Russia; Hungary Expects Omicron Surge
Russia's population declined by more than half a million in 2021, and COVID-19 is being blamed as one of the main reasons.
Russia had a population of 145.5 million in January, nearly 700,000 fewer people than a year earlier, according to figures published by the Rosstat state statistics service on January 28.
Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said COVID-19 was the main reason for the downward trend.
Officially, Russia’s COVID-19 task force has recorded 329,000 deaths due to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, but the number of deaths reported by Rosstat is more than twice that.
Russian officials have attributed the difference to the fact that the task force only includes deaths for which COVID-19 was the main cause and uses data from medical facilities.
Rosstat uses broader criteria for counting deaths linked to the virus and takes its numbers from civil registry offices where the registration of a death is finalized.
Russia has announced a series of records in recent days as a wave of cases of the omicron strain spreads through the country.
On January 29, Russia's daily coronavirus cases exceeded 100,000 for the first time since the pandemic began.
The country’s coronavirus task force confirmed 113,122 new daily infections, setting a record high for a ninth consecutive day. It said that 668 deaths had been confirmed in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, Hungary's daily tally of new COVID-19 cases could reach 30,000 by mid-February, up from about 20,000 this week, a government minister said on January 29.
Miklos Kasler, the country's minister for human resources, blamed the omicron variant for the expected rise. In a video posted on Facebook, he said the variant was causing less severe illness, but that the one-third of Hungarians who were not vaccinated were at higher risk.
Just over 6 million of Hungary's 10 million people have received at least two shots, and nearly 3.6 million have also received a booster, but the country's vaccination rate lags behind Western European levels.
- By RFE/RL
Watchdog Says Uzbekistan Failed To Investigate Jailed Blogger's Claims Of Ill-Treatment
Human Rights Watch (HRW) says authorities in Uzbekistan have failed to investigate Uzbek Muslim blogger Fozilxoja Orifxojaev’s allegations of ill-treatment and torture while in jail.
Orifxojaev, known for his articles criticizing the Central Asian nation's authoritarian government for its restrictive religious policies, was sentenced on January 26 to 7 1/2 years in prison over a post published on Facebook.
The judiciary press service in Tashkent said the 41-year-old blogger was sentenced after the Olmazor district court found him guilty of “distributing or displaying materials containing a threat to public security and public order using mass media, telecommunications, or the Internet.”
The court sentenced Orifxojaev "for something many people do every day: posting an innocuous message on Facebook,” HRW said in a statement on January 28.
Orifxojaev was arrested in June last year on petty hooliganism charges over a heated confrontation in public with a pro-government blogger and cleric.
Orifxojaev was sentenced to 15 days in jail for that but he was not released from custody after serving the sentence and instead additional charges were filed against him.
HRW said Orifxojaive’s health deteriorated during his seven months in pretrial detention, and on January 25 he began a hunger strike that lasted four days to protest the injustice in his case, his lawyer, Sergey Mayorov, said.
Mayorov also told HRW that the police have ill-treated his client both physically and psychologically, including some treatment that constituted torture. For example, at the end of September, according to Mayorov, police handcuffed Orifxojaev to a pipe and made him sit in a stress position for nearly 12 hours, causing him excruciating pain.
These allegations are among the ones that HRW says authorities have so far failed to investigate.
Human rights groups have urged Uzbek authorities to drop all charges against Orifxojaev and release him, calling the case against him politically motivated.
- By RFE/RL
Lithuania To Put Cameras Along Entire Border Barrier With Belarus
Lithuania plans to install surveillance cameras along the entire length of its border with Belarus, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said on January 28 while touring a stretch of the border and a border station.
The border, which stretches about 680 kilometers and is also the EU’s border with Belarus, has been the scene of a crisis involving mostly Middle Eastern migrants that the EU said Belarus intentionally allowed in with a promise that they would then be allowed to travel on to the EU.
Simonyte visited a checkpoint along the border, the prime minister’s press service said.
The prime minister was briefed by the Border Guard Service (SBGS) and by representatives of the company building a razor-wire barrier along the border. About half of the border structure is already fitted with cameras.
“It is very important that cameras will be fixed along the entire border still this year,” Simonyte said.
The barrier has already been built in the most sensitive and migrant flow-vulnerable sections, the prime minister’s press service said. The length of the razor-wire barrier is now about 200 kilometers and construction continues. A 4-meter-high fence topped with razor-wire is being installed in addition to the razor-wire barrier.
The prime minister’s visit to the border came months after the EU accused Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka's regime of funneling migrants to the borders of Poland, Latvia, and Lithuania.
The EU said late last year it was part of a “hybrid attack” to retaliate for Western sanctions that were imposed following Lukashenka's crackdown on people protesting his reelection in a controversial vote in August 2020.
Belarus has denied the claim and criticized the EU for not taking in the migrants.
The rush of migrants created a humanitarian crisis as they were blocked from crossing the border while at the same time they were prevented by Belarusian forces from turning back.
Some of the migrants trying to cross into Poland retreated into a forest and were reportedly stranded in freezing winter weather. Medical aid organizations said they were denied access to them even amid reports that some had died.
Steel Curtain: Poland Begins Work On Belarus Border Wall
Poland has also taken steps in response to the migrant crisis, including building a razor-wire fence and massing thousands of soldiers along its 400-kilometer border with Belarus.
With reporting by dpa
- By RFE/RL
More Troop Deployment Plans Announced Amid Diplomatic Efforts To Ease Ukraine Tensions
France has announced plans to send hundreds of troops to Romania a day after the United States said it would soon move a small number of U.S. troops to Eastern European and NATO countries as fears continue to mount that a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine's borders could be a prelude to an invasion.
French Defense Minister Florence Parly said on January 29 that Paris plans to send "several hundred men" to Romania as part of a "defensive alliance." She also said she had visited Romania on January 27 to discuss the issue.
Speaking with France Inter radio, Parly described Romania as a "high tension zone" that had to be "reassured." Romania shares a border with Ukraine as well as Moldova, where Russia has troops in the breakaway region of Transdniester.
U.S. President Joe Biden said on January 28 that he would move U.S. troops to Eastern Europe and the NATO countries "in the near term." He did not specify where the troops would be sent from or which country they would be sent to. The United States already has tens of thousands of troops stationed across Western Europe.
The Pentagon earlier this week placed about 8,500 U.S. troops on standby for possible deployment to Europe amid Moscow's military buildup, which has moved more than 100,000 Russian troops to regions north, east, and south of Ukraine’s borders.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said earlier that Russian President Vladimir Putin has all the military capabilities ready to act against Ukraine and it now comes down to a political decision on what action Moscow will take.
"While we don't believe that President Putin has made a final decision to use these forces against Ukraine, he clearly now has that capability," Austin told reporters.
He said there are multiple options available, “including the seizure of cities and significant territories, but also coercive acts and provocative political acts like the recognition of breakaway territories."
Western leaders have scrambled to defuse the crisis caused by the Russian troop buildup by holding talks with Russian diplomats, while trying to put pressure on Putin by vowing unprecedented sanctions should Russia invade.
An ongoing diplomatic effort is set to continue in the coming weeks. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on January 29 that he and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock would visit Ukraine on February 7-8. He said he had reassured Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba "of our full backing and solidarity with Ukraine."
Kuleba issued a call for the West to remain "vigilant and firm in contacts with the Russian side" in his conversation with Le Drian.
Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone for more than an hour on January 28 and agreed on the need for de-escalation.
According to a Macron aide quoted by the AFP news agency, Putin told Macron that he had "no offensive plans."
U.S. Ambassador to Moscow John Sullivan said on January 28 that Washington was awaiting Russia's response to its written proposals for a diplomatic path out of the Ukraine crisis, voicing hope that a meeting between American and Russian diplomats could then follow.
The Kremlin has said Russia would study the written responses submitted by the United States and NATO concerning Moscow's demands on security guarantees and will then “decide on further actions."
Russia is demanding a major restructuring of Europe’s security architecture in exchange for a de-escalation of the crisis over Ukraine. The United States and NATO have largely rejected the demands, including the call to permanently shut the door on membership for Ukraine and other former Soviet republics.
With reporting by AFP and Reuters
- By RFE/RL
Documentary On Navalny Wins Top Awards At Sundance Film Festival
A documentary about jailed Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny has won two top awards at a U.S. film festival recognizing independent filmmaking.
The film Navalny won the documentary audience award and the festival favorite award at the Sundance Film Festival. The awards were announced on January 28 in a ceremony broadcast live on Twitter.
Navalny, a late addition to the competition, tracks the Russian opposition politician as he recovers in Berlin after being poisoned.
The Sundance Institute announced on January 24 that the festival would hold the world premiere of Navalny, making the documentary the 10th and final film in the U.S. Documentary Competition section. It had been kept under wraps prior to its premiere on January 25.
“When we saw this film in the early fall we all immediately knew that we wanted it and would wait for it: riveting cinema in the present tense, incredible access, intrepid investigative journalism, a compelling protagonist speaking truth to power,” said festival director Tabitha Jackson in a news release earlier this week.
Navalny tells the story of what happened after the anti-corruption advocate survived the poisoning and tries to piece together who was behind it. Partnering with the open-source investigative group Bellingcat, Director Daniel Roher and his team set out to interview Navalny while he recovered in Berlin.
Roher said he wanted the film to spark "global outrage and outcry" over Navalny's imprisonment.
Navalny returned to Russia early last year and after a speedy trial was handed a 2 1/2-year prison sentence for violating the terms of an earlier parole. His conviction is widely regarded as a trumped-up, politically motivated case.
Navalny has blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin for his poisoning with a Novichok-style chemical substance. The Kremlin has denied any role in Navalny's poisoning.
The Navalny documentary also won the Festival Favorite Award, which is determined by a vote of audiences who viewed the 84 features screened during the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.
On the same day as the film’s world premiere, Russia added Navalny and several of his allies to its list of "terrorists and extremists" in the latest in a series of moves by the authorities to stamp out opposition to Putin. Many of those designated have already fled Russia.
Among the other top winners of this year’s Sundance Film Festival were Nanny, a drama about an undocumented nanny in New York City, and The Exiles, a documentary about three émigré dissidents who left China following the deadly Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
All winning films will screen on the Sundance online platform on January 29 and January 30. The festival, a top event for independent film, normally takes place in Park City, Utah, but organizers this year canceled the in-person portion of the festival once more, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, moving it to a virtual event.
With reporting by AP and AFP
- By RFE/RL
Diplomats Say Iran Nuclear Talks Reaching 'Final Stage'
The latest round of talks to save the Iran nuclear deal have neared a final stage, diplomats said, after weeks of intense diplomacy in Vienna.
Diplomats from Germany, France, and Britain, known collectively as the E3, together with Russia and China, have been meeting in the Austrian capital since last spring trying to bring Iran and the United States closer to a deal to restore the 2015 agreement.
The EU’s Enrique Mora, who is coordinating the talks, said on January 28 that participants will go back to their capitals for consultations before coming back next week.
“Political decisions are needed now,” he wrote on Twitter.
In a statement, the E3 said all sides know the talks are reaching “the final stage, which requires political decisions.”
"January has been the most intensive period of these talks to date," they said.
Russia's representative, Mikhail Ulyanov, who is often optimistic about the talks, said: "My instinct tells me that agreement will be reached soon after mid-February."
The pause comes after Iran this week suggested it could negotiate directly with the United States if a “good agreement” can be reached. To date, the EU has mediated indirect talks between Tehran and Washington.
"Our understanding is Iran has not yet agreed to direct talks," State Department spokesman Ned Price said on January 27. "We remain prepared to meet directly."
U.S. President Joe Biden has signaled that he wants to rejoin the deal, after his predecessor, Donald Trump, unilaterally withdrew the United States and reimposed sanctions.
The return of economic sanctions led Iran to start rolling back its commitments and restart some uranium enrichment activity, pushing the deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to the verge of complete collapse.
Key issues in negotiations remain the speed and scope of lifting sanctions on Tehran, including Iran’s demand for a U.S. guarantee it will not violate the agreement again.
The talks are also moving slowly over technical details about how and when to restore curbs on Iran’s atomic work, which has advanced significantly since the United States withdrew from the accord.
With reporting by AFP, AP, dpa, and Reuters
- By Reuters
Zelenskiy Calls For Clear Security Guarantees From The West Amid Russia Fears
Speaking before foreign reporters in Kyiv on January 28, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pushed back on U.S. assertions that a new Russian invasion of Ukraine was imminent, saying that panic hurts his country’s economy. Instead, he criticized Western nations who are warning of new economic sanctions, but only if Russia invades. He suggested that such sanctions are needed now and that NATO membership for Ukraine -- something Russia categorically opposes -- would be the best preemptive move.
German Bank Drops Funding For Controversial Bosnian Hydropower Plant
German development bank KfW has dropped plans to finance a controversial hydropower plant on the Bosna river in Bosnia-Herzegovina, environmentalist groups said on January 28.
KfW signed a 30 million euro ($33.5 million) financing arrangement with public utility EPBIH in 2014 for construction of the 15.75 MW Janjici plant.
If completed, the 16-meter-high dam would have created a 3-kilometer-long reservoir over a picturesque section of the river with a series of rapids upstream from the city of Zenica.
Environmental groups and locals had opposed the dam and filed complaints to the bank, arguing the project would damage the ecosystem and hurt protected species.
“The Janjici hydropower plant is clearly not in line with KfW's standards,” said Andrey Ralev, a biodiversity campaigner at CEE Bankwatch Network, a grassroots network of environmental groups in countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
“The river Bosna is the river after which our country is named,” said Emina Veljovic from the environmental Aarhus Center in Bosnia. “It was completely insane for an attempt to be made to destroy it by building the Janjici hydropower plant despite public opposition and contrary to domestic and international environmental laws.”
Environmental groups said the next step is to ensure no other banks fund the project and the government takes steps toward the long-term protection of the Bosna and many other Bosnian rivers.
Bosnia has 109 small hydropower plants. According to environmental organizations, an additional 345 are planned or under construction.
NATO's Door Open To Georgia But Political Reforms Needed, Envoy Says
NATO will not compromise on its open-door policy under pressure from Russia, but prospective members like Georgia must make significant domestic reforms and resolve territorial disputes to join the club, a top alliance official said.
Javier Colomina, NATO’s special representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia, said that Georgia needs to take steps now to prepare to join the alliance, even though membership may be off in the future.
“We know that right now is not the time for a breakthrough in the open-door policy. And I know the Georgian authorities know that, but they still need to be prepared, to fulfill all the reforms that are needed -- in electoral reform, judicial reform, security, etc.,” Colomina told RFE/RL in an interview.
The comments come as Russia is using a troop buildup near Ukraine to press a list of security demands from the United States and NATO, including guarantees Ukraine and Georgia will never join the alliance.
The United States and NATO on January 26 rejected Moscow's demand to permanently shut the door on the former Soviet states from ever joining the Western alliance. NATO also said allied deployments of troops and military equipment in Eastern Europe are not negotiable.
“We've been extremely clear with the Russians: We won't compromise on our basic principles. We won't compromise on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine or Georgia. I think it's 100 percent clear from NATO that we won't compromise on our open-door policy,” Colomina said.
Georgia aspires to join NATO and is one of the alliance’s closest partners, participating in drills and missions with allies. At the 2008 Bucharest summit, allies agreed that Georgia is eligible to become a NATO member, provided it meets all necessary requirements.
But Georgia faces significant domestic hurdles to join the alliance. Russia backs Georgia’s two separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, in part to create frozen conflicts to block Georgia’s hopes for NATO membership.
“We believe that Georgia should continue on its Euro-Atlantic path, and whenever Georgia is ready to access NATO, it will do so, although I don't think there is a possibility to integrate just one part of Georgia,” Colomina said, referring to the territorial disputes.
“We believe that the territorial integrity of Georgia is a fundamental principle. And therefore we will press the Russians to withdraw their troops and at the same time continue to work as we are doing towards Georgia’s accession,” he added.
Meanwhile, Georgia has been plagued by political paralysis and escalating tensions between the ruling Georgian Dream party and the opposition since parliamentary elections in 2020.
The crisis has been exacerbated by the arrest last year of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, the founder of the main opposition United National Movement party.
Colomina said “probably” the biggest obstacle to advancing Georgia’s NATO prospects is the slow pace of reforms and a highly polarized domestic political climate.
“That is among the concerns of those within the alliance that might have a different view on an open door for Georgia,” he said. “2021 wasn't the best year in that sense.”
Nonetheless, Colomina said the military relationship between NATO and Georgian troops is “optimal,” pointing to joint drills and Georgia's contribution to some NATO operations.
“NATO and partners exercising within the partnership is not something that we do with every partner; it is something that we do very specifically with the partners that we believe are actually trained at the level to exercise with NATO directly. This alone is proof of how excellent the relationship is,” he said.
- By Mike Eckel
Zelenskiy Calls For Calm, Warns Of Destabilization Amid Russia Fears
KYIV -- Ukraine’s president again pushed back on U.S. assertions that a new Russian invasion of Ukraine was imminent, as he sought to tamp down fears within the country and ease mounting economic strains.
Speaking before foreign reporters in Kyiv, Volodymyr Zelenskiy insisted that tensions with Russia had not increased and that the main risk to his country is destabilization from within.
Live Briefing: Ukraine In The Crosshairs
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
Zelenskiy said that while he couldn't rule out a further escalation of tensions, it is not clear that the start of a war with Russia, which has moved more than an estimated 100,000 troops to areas close to Ukraine's border, is certain.
"I don't consider the situation now more tense than before. There is a feeling abroad that there is war here. That's not the case," he said January 28. "I am not saying an escalation is not possible...[but] we don't need this panic.”
In recent weeks, a number of U.S. officials have made sometimes dire warnings that Russia planned to launch a new invasion of Ukraine. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki earlier this week said that an invasion was “imminent."
Ukrainian officials have made notably different statements in an attempt to downplay an immediate threat.
“Are there tanks driving on our streets? No,” Zelenskiy said. “But if you are not here, that's the sense you are getting in England, Germany, France, in Lithuania…. The impression you are getting from the media is that there is a war going on here, that soldiers are marching down our streets, that a mobilization has been declared, that people are going somewhere. That's not the case. We don't need this panic.”
Zelenskiy gave veiled criticism of Western nations who were warning of new economic sanctions but only if Russia invades. He suggested that the sanctions were needed before any possible invasion.
“Everyone is saying that there will be a war tomorrow, a large-scale one. Why all this talk about sanctions afterwards?” he said. “Such sanctions are definitely not designed [to help] our country. It speaks of an effort to restrain a large-scale aggression away from EU member states. But it cannot be done at the expense of our country.
“You are talking of the need to come up with some preemptive sanctions -- NATO is one such sanction. If it's not NATO, then be so kind and show us your security guarantees,” he said.
Zelenskiy said that Ukraine needs not only military support from the West during the current crisis but also political and economic support, including $4-5 billion to help stabilize the economy.
He also warned that Ukraine, as well as eastern members of the NATO military alliance, may be exposed to cyberattacks and other tactics by Russia.
Court Says Georgian Chess Master's Lawsuit Against Netflix Over 'The Queen's Gambit' Can Proceed
TBILISI -- The Soviet-era Georgian chess master Nona Gaprindashvili has welcomed a Californian court's decision in a defamation lawsuit related to Netflix's hit miniseries The Queen's Gambit.
In a statement issued on January 28, Gaprindashvili thanked her supporters after the court denied a motion by Netflix to dismiss a defamation lawsuit against the streaming giant that she filed last year.
"Speaking in chess language, the opening phase is won.... The fight goes on until the final victory," Gaprindashvili's statement said.
California's Central District Court ruled on January 27 that Gaprindashvili's $5 million lawsuit against Netflix in September over the fictional television series The Queen’s Gambit cannot be dismissed.
The final episode of the miniseries, which premiered in 2020, includes a line from an announcer who describes Gaprindashvili as “the female world champion" and as a player who "has never faced men.”
Gaprindashvili insists that the dialogue in the episode is “false” and “sexist and belittling” and is directly tied to Gaprindashvili, as her name is mentioned in the final scene and "the camera pans onto an actor sitting in the audience, watching the game, who is obviously meant to be Gaprindashvili."
The lawsuit states that by 1968, the year in which the episode in question is set, Gaprindashvili had competed against at least 59 male chess players, at least 10 of whom were grandmasters at the time.
Gaprindashvili, 80, played for the Soviet Union in the Women's Chess Olympiads from the early 1960s until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, winning 11 team gold medals and nine individual gold medals.
She also successfully competed in several men's tournaments, and her performance at the Lone Pine tournament in 1977 made her the first woman to perform at a high enough level to earn the title of International Grandmaster in 1978.
Deadly Clashes Erupt Along Kyrgyz-Tajik Border
At least two people were killed and many more wounded as Kyrgyz and Tajik security forces traded fire along a disputed segment of the border between the two countries, according to officials on both sides. A standoff over a blocked road apparently triggered the fighting on January 27. It was the most intense outbreak of violence between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan since a similar border clash killed dozens last year. Authorities in both countries agreed to a cease-fire on January 28.
President Toqaev Consolidates Power As Kazakh Ruling Party Leader
NUR-SULTAN -- Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev has replaced predecessor Nursultan Nazarbaev as the leader of the ruling Nur-Otan party, the latest in a series of moves to consolidate his power and marginalize his predecessor following deadly anti-government protests in early January.
The presidential press service said that the decision was made at the party's congress on January 28 at the behest of Nazarbaev.
Despite announcing in March 2019 that he was stepping down after almost 30 years of ruling the oil-rich Central Asian state, Nazarbaev continued to have a strong influence over Kazakhstan's domestic and foreign policies as lifetime chairman of the influential Security Council and the leader the Assembly of Kazakhstan's People and the Nur-Otan party.
While he lost the first two positions earlier this week, and the party leadership on January 27, Nazarbaev continues to enjoy the powers of "elbasy" (leader of the nation).
The congress was held amid a protest by some members of the party who quit its ranks over what they see as the party's "failure" to prevent bloodshed during the anti-government protests.
After the party congress announced him as the new leader, Toqaev reiterated previous statements -- again without presenting evidence -- that "terrorists" tried to take over the country by "hijacking peaceful protests."
He also said that "due to ongoing rumors in the country, I would like to say again that our first president contributed a lot to turn our nation into a stable country with a strong base."
The protests earlier this month in the remote town of Zhanaozen over a sudden fuel-price hike quickly spread across Kazakhstan with much of the protesters' anger directed at Nazarbaev, who had ruled Kazakhstan since 1989.
In the wake of protests, Toqaev, Nazarbaev's handpicked successor, claimed that Almaty was attacked by "20,000 terrorists" as he issued a "shoot-to-kill-without warning" order and invited troops from the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization's to enter the country.
No officials have given direct evidence of any "terrorists" being involved in the unrest."
Kazakh authorities say that 227 people were killed during the unrest, including 19 law enforcement officers, and 12,000 others were detained.
Human rights groups insist that the number of people killed during the violence may be much higher as scores of people remain missing.
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Urges Russian Troop Withdrawal As Putin Says West Has 'Ignored' Its Security Concerns
President Vladimir Putin says the West has "ignored" Moscow's security concerns over the expansion of NATO as the United States again urged Russia to withdraw its forces from areas near Ukraine's borders amid continued fears that the troop buildup could be a prelude to an invasion of its western neighbor.
In Ukraine, meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pushed back on some of the dire warnings from the United States about an imminent Russian attack as he urged people to remain calm.
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Putin’s conversation with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, on January 28 came as tensions continue to soar, with more than 100,000 Russian troops deployed to regions north, east, and south of Ukraine’s borders.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that Putin has all the military capabilities ready to act against Ukraine and that it now comes down to a political decision on what action Moscow will take.
"While we don't believe that President Putin has made a final decision to use these forces against Ukraine, he clearly now has that capability," Austin told reporters.
He said Putin has "multiple options" available, "including the seizure of cities and significant territories, but also coercive acts and provocative political acts like the recognition of breakaway territories."
After Putin’s phone call with Macron, the Kremlin issued a statement saying the Russian side would study written responses submitted by the United States and NATO this week concerning Moscow's demands on security guarantees "after which, it will decide on further actions."
Russia is demanding a major restructuring of Europe’s security architecture in exchange for a de-escalation of the crisis over Ukraine. The United States and NATO, however, have largely rejected the demands, including the call to permanently shut the door on Ukraine -- and other former Soviet republics -- from ever joining the Western alliance.
NATO also said allied deployments of troops and military equipment in Eastern Europe are not negotiable.
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, speaking at an Atlantic Council forum on January 28, said the alliance was ready to step up its presence in Eastern Europe to reassure allies and prove to Russia its resolve amid the Ukraine crisis. He added that Russia was deploying thousands of combat-ready troops and military hardware in Belarus, which borders NATO's eastern flank, as well as Ukraine.
Western intelligence agencies estimate that more than 100,000 Russian troops have already been moved into the border regions with Ukraine.
Stoltenberg, however, noted that, at this point, there is "no certainty" that Russia plans to invade Ukraine.
Speaking to reporters on January 28 in Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that tensions with Russia have not increased and that the main risk to his country is destabilization from within.
Zelenskiy said that while he couldn't rule out a further escalation of tensions, it is not clear the start of a war with Russia is certain.
"I don't consider the situation now more tense than before. There is a feeling abroad that there is war here. That's not the case," he said. "I am not saying an escalation is not possible...[but] we don't need this panic."
Earlier on January 28, U.S. Ambassador to Moscow John Sullivan said Washington was now waiting for Russia's response to its written proposals for a diplomatic path out of the Ukraine crisis, voicing hope that meeting between American and Russian diplomats could then follow.
Sullivan said diplomacy was the only way forward, but warned that could only happen if Russia starts dismantling its buildup near the Ukraine border.
"If I put a gun on the table and say that I come in peace, that's threatening," Sullivan told an online briefing.
He also warned that economic sanctions would be just one part of the West's response if Russia were to invade Ukraine, saying that other measures would include export controls, greater defense of allies in Europe, and preventing the Nord Stream 2 natural-gas pipeline from Russia to Germany from operating.
U.S. officials have indicated that possible punitive measures against Russia such as disconnecting Russia from the SWIFT system of global bank transfers or imposing an expanded ban on high-tech exports to Russia are under consideration.
Sullivan also said the size of the Russian military buildup on Ukraine's borders would allow an invasion with little warning.
He added that "what the Russian government has said publicly is that it has no intention to invade Ukraine, but the facts on the ground tell a much different story."
His comments came hot on the heels of Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's reassurances that it won't be Russia's decision to start a war against Ukraine -- but with the caveat that Moscow will not allow its interests to be "ignored."
Washington laid out in its response a "serious diplomatic path" to resolve the Ukraine crisis, while repeating threats of unprecedented economic sanctions should Russian further invade Ukraine.
"If it depends on the Russian Federation, there won't be a war," Lavrov said in an interview with Russian radio stations in an indication Moscow is willing to continue to engage in finding a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
"We do not want wars, but we won't allow our interests to be rudely trod upon or to be ignored," Lavrov said, adding that the U.S. proposals were "almost an example of diplomatic propriety," compared to NATO's highly "idealized" response.
Lavrov said he expected to meet U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the coming weeks for a new round of talks amid the crisis, though ultimately Putin would decide how to respond to the American proposals.
He added that a new round of U.S. sanctions against Moscow would likely lead to the severing of relations between the United States and Russia.
"The Americans were told, including at the level of presidential contacts, that this package...accompanied by the total disconnection from the financial-economic systems controlled by the West, would be tantamount to the severing of relations," Lavrov said.
Western governments have also called on Russia to pull back its troops from the border regions and from Belarus, a move Moscow has rejected, saying it can place soldiers anywhere it wants on its own territory.
Speaking to foreign reporters in Kyiv, Zelenskiy called for calm and appeared to downplay the urgency of the threat, in contrast to what U.S. officials have been saying in recent weeks.
"I don't consider the situation now more tense than before. There is a feeling abroad that there is war here. That's not the case," he said January 28. "I am not saying an escalation is not possible...[but] we don't need this panic.
“Are there tanks driving on our streets? No,” Zelenskiy said. “But if you are not here, that's the sense you are getting in England, Germany, France, in Lithuania.... The impression you are getting from the media is that there is a war going on here, that soldiers are marching down our streets, that a mobilization has been declared, that people are going somewhere. That's not the case. We don't need this panic.”
In Minsk, authoritarian leader Alyaksandr Lukashenka, a close ally of Putin, sounded a bellicose note, saying Belarus would go to war if Russia was attacked, pledging to host "hundreds of thousands" of Russian troops in the event of war.
Lukashenka said in a televised national address that Belarus would go to war if it was attacked first.
Several rounds of diplomacy held in European cities this month between the West and Moscow have failed to reach a breakthrough, although the sides have shown a willingness to continue talks.
Moscow has been backing separatist fighters in an ongoing war in eastern Ukraine that has claimed more than 13,200 lives since 2014, the same year Russian illegally annexed Crimea.
With reporting by RFE/RL senior correspondent Mike Eckel in Kyiv, RFE/RL Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak, Reuters, AFP, and AP
- By RFE/RL
HRW Urges Iran To 'Immediately And Unconditionally' Release Rights Defender Mohammadi
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has condemned a new prison sentence handed to prominent Iranian human rights defender Narges Mohammadi and called on Tehran to "immediately and unconditionally" release her.
"Iranian authorities' cruel detention and prosecution of Narges Mohmmadi only one year after she was released from an earlier prison term and then piling on more unfair prison sentences are clearly intended to crush her into silence at all costs," Tara Sepehrifar, senior Iran researcher at HRW, said in a statement released on January 28.
A court sentenced Mohammadi to six years in prison for "assembly and collusion to act against national security," and to two years in prison and 74 lashes for "acting against national security and disrupting public order," her husband, Taghi Rahmani, told HRW on January 27.
The sentence also included a two-year ban on membership in political parties and "activities in social and digital platforms," as well as two years of internal exile in Iran.
Rahmani said his wife's trial lasted no longer than five minutes and the judge specifically mentioned her recent nomination by two Norwegian parliament members for the Nobel Peace Prize and her efforts to shed light on Iran's use of prolonged solitary confinement against political prisoners.
In a letter published on January 27, Mohammadi said that the prosecutor informed her of the new accusations on November 22 and she was taken to the prosecutor's office on December 24 to be informed that she would be formally charged.
Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi condemned the "unjust" sentence against Mohammadi.
"Narges has not done anything against the law and the sentence against her must be dropped," Ebadi said in a January 28 interview with RFE/RL's Radio Farda.
“International prizes shine light on the work of those who win these prizes and the Islamic republic fears the attention because it wants to continue its oppressive policies without the world watching," the exiled rights defender said.
Mohammadi was arrested in November 2021 after she attended the memorial for a man killed by Iranian security forces during nationwide protests in November 2019.
Last week, she was transferred from Tehran's Evin prison to the Gharchak women's prison near Tehran.
Before imprisonment, Mohammadi was the vice president of the banned Center for Human Rights Defenders in Iran.
She has been repeatedly jailed and harassed by the authorities.
In May 2021, a Tehran court sentenced her to 2 1/2 years in prison, 80 lashes, and two separate fines on charges that include "spreading propaganda against the system."
In 2016, she was sentenced to 16 years in prison on charges that rights groups said were solely related to her human rights activities.
Following her release from prison in October 2020 after her sentenced was reduced, she continued to criticize human rights abuses in Iran, and accused prison authorities of sexually harassing her and other female prisoners.
In March 2021, Mohammadi was among a group of activists who filed an official complaint against the use of solitary confinement against political detainees.
"People like Narges Mohammadi are the ones who work to bring Iranian civil society together," Sepehrifar said. "Governments that are engaging diplomatically with Iran should make sure to press the government to stop its relentless crackdown against human rights defenders," she added.
A journalist and an engineer, she has been awarded several prestigious prizes, including the American Physical Society's Andrei Sakharov Prize in 2018 for outstanding leadership in upholding human rights.
- By RFE/RL
Blinken Calls For 'Immediate' Release Of Political Prisoners In Belarus
U.S. State Secretary Anthony Blinken has urged Belarus's government to "immediately" and "unconditionally" release political prisoners jailed for taking part in mass protests against authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
In a statement issued late on January 27, Blinken said more than 1,000 political prisoners were now being held in Belarus, while tens of thousands of other "innocent Belarusians" had spent time in jail as well "since, and in the lead up to the fraudulent presidential election in August 2020."
The Crisis In Belarus
Read our coverage as Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka continues his brutal crackdown on NGOs, activists, and independent media following the August 2020 presidential election.
"Since August 2020, the United States, in coordination with allies and partners, has imposed five rounds of sanctions on officials and supporters of the brutal Lukashenka regime. Those sanctions will remain in place until the authorities cease their relentless repression of the Belarusian people, including by unconditionally releasing all political prisoners," Blinken said.
Lukashenka claimed victory in the August 2020 election after clamping down on opposition candidates during the campaign.
Many Belarusians have faced trials linked to mass protests sparked by the results, with many Belarusians -- and some Western governments -- saying the poll was rigged.
The protests were met with the heavy-handed detention of tens of thousands of people. Much of the opposition leadership has been jailed or forced into exile. Several protesters have been killed and there have been credible reports of torture during the widening security crackdown.
"The United States calls again for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners, recognizing it as a necessary step for Belarus to emerge from its political crisis. We will continue to work for justice for victims and accountability for perpetrators.... We stand with the people of Belarus as they seek a future based on the rule of law and accountable, democratic government," Blinken's statement said.
Hungary To Seek Additional Gas Supplies From Russia Amid Energy Shortage
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said that Budapest will seek to step up Russian natural-gas imports at talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week.
Hungary, a member of the European Union and NATO, in September signed a new 15-year gas deal with Gazprom under which the Russian state-run gas giant pledged to ship 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas to Hungary annually through lines that bypass Ukraine.
"I would like to increase the amount of gas to be delivered to Hungary from the levels agreed in the Russian-Hungarian gas contract," Orban, who maintains friendly ties with Putin, told public radio on January 28.
Ukrainian officials have slammed the gas deal between Budapest and Russia, with the Foreign Ministry in Kyiv calling the move "a purely political, economically unreasonable decision taken in favor of the Kremlin while to the detriment of Ukraine's national interests and Ukraine-Hungarian ties."
Asked about the current tensions between Russia and Ukraine prompted by Moscow deploying more than 100,000 troops near the border with its western neighbor, Orban told state radio that Hungary was "interested in peace."
He added that he will seek to strengthen cooperation with Russia in the food industry, tourism, and space research.
Amid a deteriorating economic situation prompted by the coronavirus pandemic and Europe-wide energy crunch, Hungary will hold elections on April 3 in what is expected to be a tough test for Orban and his right-wing Fidesz party, who have been in power since 2010.
With year-on-year inflation in Hungary hitting 7.4 percent in November, Orban has announced price caps on six basic foodstuffs -- sugar, flour, cooking oil, pork legs, chicken breasts, and milk -- from February 1.
Recent polls suggest a close race against opposition candidate Peter Marki-Zay, behind whom multiple opposition parties agreed to unite.
Orban last week dismissed the opposition's calls to cancel his visit to Moscow, scheduled for February 1.
With reporting by Reuters, Kossuth Radio, and Warsawinstitute.com
- By RFE/RL
Modi Hosts Summit With Central Asian Leaders As India, China Compete For Regional Influence
At an online summit, leaders of India and the five Central Asian republics discussed ways to further develop ties as New Delhi and Beijing seek to extend their clout in a region perceived by Moscow as being part of its traditional sphere of influence.
"Central Asia is central to India’s vision of an integrated and stable extended neighborhood," India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said as he hosted the January 27 summit with the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
The gathering came two days after Chinese President Xi Jinping chaired a similar meeting with the five Central Asian leaders, during which he pledged $500 million in aid over the next three years to the countries of Central Asia to bolster their economies and security.
At the India-Central Asia summit, the leaders discussed proposals to increase cooperation in areas including “trade and connectivity, development cooperation, [as well as] defense and security,” according to a statement issued by the Indian Foreign Ministry.
The statement said they reiterated their “strong support for a peaceful, secure and stable Afghanistan with a truly representative and inclusive government.”
"We are all concerned about the developments in Afghanistan,” whose humanitarian situation has rapidly deteriorated since the Taliban returned to power in August, Modi said.
“In this context too, mutual cooperation among us has become more important for regional security and stability,” the Indian prime minister added.
Modi and the five leaders decided to set up a joint working group on Afghanistan for providing aid to the war-torn country to tackle the humanitarian crisis and the issue of international recognition of the Taliban, an Indian official said.
They also agreed to set up a joint working group to develop Iran’s Chabahar port on the Gulf of Oman.
Afghanistan and Central Asian countries lack overland connectivity with India, which has invested in developing and running Chabahar port to promote regional trade.
India is keen to make Chabahar a rival to the Pakistani port of Gwadar, which is being developed with Chinese investment.
Russia was not present at the summits hosted by India and China.
On January 26, the chairwoman of the upper chamber of Russia’s parliament, the Federation Council, said that her country "will stand as an unbreakable wall to defend the security and sovereignty of our partners."
Valentina Matviyenko cited the deployment of troops of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to Kazakhstan earlier this month in the wake of unprecedented anti-government protests.
Troops from the military alliance left the Central Asian republic by January 19.
With reporting by AP
'Dear Russians, You Are Not Welcome Here': People In Southern Ukraine Talk About The Threat Of Invasion
When asked about a possible Russian military invasion of Ukraine, residents in the southern port city of Odesa expressed a mixture of views -- from skepticism to anger and defiance. In interviews on January 26, some said they were ready to fight, while others believe there will be no war.
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