Author: Narek Torigian

Frankfurt, Paris (18/8 – 62.50) Ukraine has scored a series of victories in more than a week since launching a lightning offensive into Russian territory. Now the stakes are rising as its forces prepare to defend their gains and Russia begins to regain its footing. Last week, Ukraine deployed thousands of troops to the Kursk region in western Russia, removing Russian flags from captured towns and taking the initiative from Moscow for the first time in months. On Wednesday, officials in Kyiv said Ukraine would use seized Russian territory as a “buffer zone” to shield its north from Russian strikes.…

Sanjiva Weerawarana is a Sri Lankan success story. He founded enterprise software firm WSO2 in 2005, got it close to $100 million in ARR as its CEO, then sold it to private equity firm EQT for $600 million in May. He sometimes drives for Uber, too. Sri Lanka isn’t renowned for its startup ecosystem, but one company has been something of an outlier in the South Asian island nation these past two decades. WSO2, an open source enterprise software provider with customers such as Samsung, Axa, and AT&T, recently agreed to be acquired by private equity giant EQT, at a valuation TechCrunch reported at the time…

The European Union announced on Friday that it will begin accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova to join the 27-member political and economic bloc starting next week. All 27 members agreed to the Ukraine and Moldova joining the European Union. Negotiations will begin for both countries on Tuesday in Luxembourg, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union said on X. The move comes at a critical time for both nations with Ukraine in the middle of an invasion by Russia and Moldova facing a Russian-led insurgence by a breakaway state. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the European Union for its “robust political…

Sri Lanka’s police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse an opposition protest today in the island nation facing its worst economic crisis while gearing up for a national election later this year. Protesters from the main opposition United People’s Power party gathered in the capital, Colombo, and accused President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s administration of overburdening citizens by increasing taxes, as well as hiking prices for electricity and fuel, causing a sharp spike in living costs. Opposition lawmaker Sarath Fonseka said: “The government is not concerned with the people suffering and being unable to provide for themselves. “People can no…

Armenia releases 2 Azerbaijani soldiers as part of agreement between Baku, Yerevan reached last Thursday Azerbaijan on Wednesday announced that it released 32 Armenian soldiers as part of a prisoner swap deal. A statement by Azerbaijan’s State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons said that the mutual exchange took place in the country’s border region of Gazakh, where Armenia also handed over two Azerbaijani soldiers. The statement said the Armenian soldiers were released after their health conditions were checked by the International Committee of the Red Cross and their condition was confirmed to be satisfactory. On Thursday,…

In a joint statement released on Thursday, Armenia and Azerbaijan announced plans to “reach a peace treaty on the basis of respect for the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity.” Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed to take “steps” to normalise their relationship, according to a joint statement by the two countries, a move welcomed by the European Union and the United States. “The Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan share the view that there is a historical chance to achieve a long-awaited peace in the region,” the statement read. “The two countries reconfirm their intention to normalise relations…

Extreme heat causes the most significant mortality rate among all extreme weather events and hazards, with Asia bearing an exceptionally high burden, as the world warms faster than at any point in recorded history, U.N. agencies said in a report. Climate change threatens to reverse decades of health and well-being progress, especially in vulnerable communities, said the joint report “State of Climate Services” by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and World Health Organization (WHO). Between 2000 and 2019, estimated deaths due to heat were approximately 489,000 per year, with a particularly high burden – 45% – in Asia. Countries with…

Armenia proposes Japan to join the Crossroads of Peace project, Speaker of the National Assembly Alen Simonyan told Japan’s outgoing Ambassador Fukushima Masanori. Alen Simonyan emphasized that Japan is the most important partner for Armenia, and Armenia is interested in deepening multi-polar cooperation with Japan. The Speaker stressed that Armenia highly values Japan’s clear messages regarding the unacceptability of Azerbaijan’s policy of using force in the region, expressing gratitude to the Japanese government for the 2 million funds allocated for the primary needs of more than 100,000 forcibly displaced Armenians as a result of Azerbaijan’s armed attack on Nagorno Karabakh…

Citizens of the Republic of Armenia and their family members have already arrived in Armenia on a special Tel Aviv-Yerevan flight organized by the RA government. As the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia informs, in total, 149 citizens of the Republic of Armenia and persons of Armenian origin, including children, were transported from Israel to Armenia. Priest Tirair Hovakimyan, the spiritual pastor of Israeli city of Haifa and the northern regions of Israel, announced at a briefing with journalists that he had brought his family to the homeland and intended to return to Israel again to…

The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, will visit Armenia and Azerbaijan, including the Karabakh region, from 16 to 23 October 2023 with a focus on the human rights situation of people affected by the conflict. The Commissioner will hold meetings with State officials, representatives of international organisations and civil society. A statement will be published at the end of the visit. Source : Armradio