Category: News

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has arrived in Damascus, Syria.

 Guterres announced his arrival in a post on X.

“I have just arrived in Damascus for a visit of solidarity. My message is clear: The United Nations stands with Syria at this pivotal moment, and I appeal to the international community to spare no effort to support the people of Syria as well,” the UN secretary-general wrote.

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi met and held talks with Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Zheenbek Kulubaev on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers meeting, the Iranian news agency Mehr reported.

 According to the report, the two senior diplomats exchanged views on bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest.

Mehr also reported that, on the sidelines of the ministerial meeting, Araghchi held separate meetings with other counterparts, including Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Romanian President Nicușor Dan has announced that a second drone that entered the country’s airspace in the past two days has been shot down. The president made the announcement in a post on social media.

“This morning, at 8:30 a.m. local time, another drone was shot down in Romanian airspace, 10 kilometres west of the city of Sfântu Gheorghe. It was brought down by an F-16 flown by a Romanian pilot,” Dan wrote.

Dan had announced the downing of another drone on July 24, a report later confirmed by NATO.

The Alliance said that two Romanian F-16 fighter jets and two Italian Eurofighter aircraft had been scrambled in response to the incident.

“The drone was shot down in Romanian airspace. The investigation is ongoing, and NATO remains in close contact with the Romanian authorities,” NATO said in its statement.

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani held talks in Doha with UK Foreign Secretary Edward Miliband. The meeting was announced by Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a post on X.

The ministers discussed bilateral cooperation between the two countries and ways to strengthen it, as well as the latest regional developments, with a particular focus on diplomatic and coordinated efforts to reduce tensions and reinforce security and stability in the region.

According to the statement, the meeting underscored the importance of ensuring all parties remain committed to dialogue, diplomacy and the implementation of the memorandum of understanding between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran, including safeguarding freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, maintaining regional security, preserving the progress achieved and strengthening regional stability.

 “Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani reaffirmed the State of Qatar’s full support for all efforts aimed at de-escalation and reaching a comprehensive agreement that would establish lasting peace in the region,” the statement said.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has proposed returning to the Istanbul agreements as a basis for resolving the conflict in Ukraine during talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The remarks were reported by RIA Novosti, which provided details of the Putin-Tokayev meeting held in Omsk ahead of the Forum of Interregional Cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan. 

“Perhaps this conflict should be frozen and we should return to the Istanbul Formula 2.0, as significant results were achieved there. Naturally, with guarantees from the major powers, including Russia. We could then move towards the long-awaited peace,” Tokayev said. 

For his part, Putin said he would brief Tokayev on the current situation surrounding the conflict in Ukraine.

Under a decision by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan has been dispatched to the Islamic Republic of Iran on an official visit from July 24 to 27.

The decision has been published on the Armenian government’s official website. According to the decision, Khudatyan is scheduled to hold meetings in Tehran with a number of senior Iranian officials. 

“Upon returning from the visit, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan shall submit a report on the results of the visit within three days,” the decision states.

Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan has reported growth in the country’s exports to several destinations during the January–June 2026 period.

In a post on Facebook, Papoyan highlighted three key export markets.

“Compared with the same period last year, exports to China increased by 83.4%, exports to India rose by 81.3%, and exports to the European Union grew by 80%,” Papoyan wrote.

Armenia and Iran will establish a joint specialised working group in the energy sector, with a particular focus on gas trade, the Iranian news agency Mehr reported.

The agreement was announced following talks in Tehran between Armenian Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan and Iranian Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad.

“Praising Armenia for standing by Iran during difficult times, Paknejad reaffirmed Tehran’s readiness to strengthen cooperation with its northwestern neighbour within the framework of its technical and economic capabilities,” the Iranian news agency said.

According to the Iranian oil minister, the two sides discussed a broad range of energy projects, including expanding bilateral trade, exporting technical and engineering services, constructing an oil refinery and supplying petroleum products to Armenia. 

Paknejad also said that Tehran and Yerevan had agreed to establish a joint specialised working group and proposed launching its work as soon as possible so that concrete results could be assessed during the next round of bilateral talks.

 The minister recalled that the existing energy partnership between the two countries is based on the gas-for-electricity swap agreement. It was reported earlier that Khudatyan is in Tehran on a working visit.

Iran has proposed a new commercial model to Armenia aimed at expanding exports of Iranian natural gas to the country, the Iranian news agency Tasnim reported, citing remarks by Iranian Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad during a meeting with Armenian Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan.

According to the report, Paknejad said that implementing the proposal would require a comprehensive assessment of the existing infrastructure and the feasibility of expanding gas trade beyond the Armenian market by using Armenia as a regional transit corridor. 

It was reported earlier that Khudatyan is in Tehran on a working visit.

Armenian Ambassador to Uruguay Mariam Gevorgyan met in Asunción with Lilian Portillo, Head of the Strategic Planning Department and Director of External Relations at Paraguay’s Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development.

The meeting was announced in a statement issued by the Armenian Embassy in Uruguay. 

According to the statement, the sides discussed a number of issues related to the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17), which will be held in Armenia. 

Ambassador Gevorgyan outlined the progress of preparations for COP17, Armenia’s priorities for its presidency, as well as the Leaders’ Summit to be held ahead of the conference.