live Ukraine-Russia war: Sweden, Finland scramble jets to intercept Russian aircraft
Finland and Sweden deployed fighter aircraft on Thursday after a group of Russian military planes was detected over the Gulf of Finland, the Finnis...
Iran launched naval manoeuvre in its southern waters on Thursday as it concluded hosting the joint counter-terrorism drills of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy staged two-day drills in the Persian Gulf and Oman Sea waters while its Ground Forces launched the final stage of the Sahand-2025 joint anti-terror exercise in which SCO special units participated
“The naval exercise codenamed ‘Shahid Nazeri’ after martyred commander of the elite units of the IRGC Navy takes place in the maritime theater of the Persian Gulf, the Hormuz Strait, the Sea of Oman, and the Iranian islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Siri,” IRGC announced in a statement.
It was staged one day after the (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council’s joint summit with Italy in the Bahraini capital Manama on Wednesday backed the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) claim over three Iranian islands.
Tehran has categorically rejected Abu Dhabi’s claim on Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa in the Persian Gulf.
The Strait of Hormuz in which IRIB Navy is staging the wargame connects the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and is a key waterway for the transit of oil and natural gas to global markets.
Iran has at times warned that it could restrict the strait’s traffic during heightened tension.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation concluded its five-day Sahand-2025 anti-terrorism drills carried out in Iran’s East Azerbaijan Province on Thursday.
“The last day of the joint wargames focused on hostage release tactics as well as cross-border counterterrorism operation,” according to reports by DefaPress website which covers military and defence news.
Commander of the drills Brigadier General Vali Ma’dani said SCO member states Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Kazakhstan, Iran, India and Belarus participated in the drills.
Representatives of neighbouring countries Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Iraq also took part as guest observers, he added.
In 2023, Iran became a full member of The Shanghai Cooperation Organization which is a Eurasian body of 10 member states.
As a regional organisation, it fosters political, economic, international security and counter-terrorism cooperation.
SCO’s Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) has designated terrorism, separatism and extremism as “Three Evils” of the 10-member Eurasian political, economic and international security bloc.
Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained low on Thursday, as Iran reiterated that it will neither enter into new negotiations with the United States nor re-open the Strait as long as its conditions are not met, despite recent indirect talks in New York mediated by Qatar.
As the Ukraine war is highlighted by some leaders during the United Nations' 81st General Assembly meeting in New York, Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Thursday with ballistic missiles, killing two people and injuring six, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
The 81st UN General Assembly continues in New York on Wednesday, with another day of high-level speeches and diplomatic meetings. The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, global security and international cooperation remain at the centre of discussions.
The 81st UN General Assembly has wrapped up its third day in New York on Thursday, with world leaders delivering high-level speeches and holding diplomatic meetings.
Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan will hold an urgent high-level meeting under a joint defence pact to discuss ways to support the kingdom amid attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis. The meeting comes as Tehran seeks to distance itself from the rapid advance of its Houthi allies.
Twelve Kazakh military personnel died after being swept out to sea during a naval training exercise in the western Mangistau region, authorities said on Thursday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mounted a forceful defence of Israel's actions in the region at the United Nations on Thursday, seeking to counter growing international isolation ahead of elections he could lose, as dozens of delegates streamed out.
Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have escalated again, with Pakistani security sources saying its troops thwarted an attempted Afghan Taliban attack in the Gulistan sector of Balochistan on Thursday, along Pakistan’s western border with Afghanistan, killing several Taliban fighters.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze used his address to the UN General Assembly's 81st session in New York this week to make a two-part case: that Georgia is becoming an indispensable regional hub, and that it remains open to repairing ties with international partners.
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