Today's headlines: Chinese tourists return to Thailand's beaches after three years of Covid closures; the Taliban have arrested five people, including two Chinese, for trafficking in rocks containing lithium; Dubai is ready to build the first mosque with a 3D printer; a meeting between Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders on the Lačin corridor is under consideration.
He is minister of the Armenian separatist enclave in Azerbaijani territory. Critic of the premier of Yerevan, Nikol Pašinyan. He wants a broader mandate for Russian peacekeeping troops. According to Baku, his are 'fantasies and illusions'. According to Azerbaijan, Putin's soldiers can stay until 2025 at the latest.
The peacekeeping contingent of the Russians is unable to avoid clashes between Yerevan and Baku over the pro-Armenian separatist region. Moscow would like to replace Armenian PM Pašinyan with its own oligarch. The Kremlin seems increasingly weak in the Caucasus, an effect of the war in Ukraine.
It is the only transport artery linking Armenia and the pro-Armenian enclave on Azerbaijani territory. Baku claims that the blockade is carried out by ecological groups. Yerevan calls for the intervention of Russian peacekeeping troops. Armenians appeal to the UN international court.
Today's headlines: Jakarta has approved a plan to develop a gas field in the South China Sea; Seoul launches a new army division to counter Pyongyang's atomic bomb; Dubai cuts 30% tax on alcohol to boost tourism; Isis claims attack against Taliban forces in Kabul; Russia's former chief rabbi calls on Jews to leave the country.
For more than a week, Azerbaijan has shut down a road that is the only link between Armenia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh, preventing thousands of Armenians from rejoining their families or receiving food and medical care. Pope Francis mentioned the issue in yesterday’s Angelus. For Catholicos Karekin II of the Armenians, “Mere words of condemnation will not be enough”.
