Category: General

French President Emmanuel Macron has postponed a state visit to Germany expected to begin on Sunday, June 2, the German presidency said, following four days of riots in France sparked by the death of a 17-year-old shot dead by police earlier this week. “French President Macron spoke today by telephone with German President [Frank-Walter] Steinmeier and informed him of the situation in his country,” the presidency said in a statement, adding Macron had asked for “a postponement of his planned state visit to Germany.” Macron’s office said he spoke with Steinmeier and, ‘given the internal security situation, the president said he wishes to stay in France over the coming days.” The trip would have seen Macron travel to Berlin and two other German cities. The move is hugely embarrassing for Macron who earlier this year was forced to postpone a visit by Britain’s King Charles III to France due to the protests over pensions.

Source: Azerbaijan State News Agency

In a speech at the Chatham House think tank, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly reiterated the UK government’s commitment to reforming the United Nations (UN) and expressed support for India’s aspiration to become a permanent member of the powerful Security Council.

Cleverly emphasized the need for a modernized and inclusive multilateral system that reflects the current global landscape. He highlighted the shifting economic center of gravity from the Euro-Atlantic to the Indo-Pacific and underscored the importance of adapting multilateral institutions to these changes.

The Foreign Secretary outlined five transnational priorities, with UN Security Council reform topping the list. He advocated for permanent African representation and proposed extending membership to India, Brazil, Germany, and Japan. Cleverly acknowledged that this reform would be a bold step but asserted that it would bring the Security Council into the 2020s.

Cleverly also emphasized the need for reforming international financial institutions, addressing climate finance and poverty reduction. He praised India’s leadership in advocating for representation of poorer nations within the G20, expressing support for granting the African Union permanent membership in the group.

Additionally, the Foreign Secretary highlighted the importance of updating trade policies to reflect the digital economy, emphasizing the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) need for new rules that ensure fair, open, and unmanipulated trade. He further underscored the significance of artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing, planning to chair the UN Security Council’s first-ever meeting on this issue and announcing an AI summit to be hosted by the UK Prime Minister later in the year.

Source: TREND News Agency

Another footage has been released showing provision of an unhindered passage for the Armenian residents of Azerbaijan’s Karabakh economic region through Lachin checkpoint, Trend reports.

The footage clearly shows that Armenian residents of Karabakh can freely pass through the checkpoint established by the State Border Service of Azerbaijan at the beginning of the Lachin-Khankendi road at any time of the day.

In order to prevent the transportation of manpower, ammunition, mines, as well as other military equipment from Armenia for illegal Armenian armed groups on the territory of Azerbaijan (which weren’t withdrawn contrary to the trilateral statement signed by Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian leaders following the 2020 Second Karabakh War), and as an adequate response to the unilateral establishment of a checkpoint by Armenia on the border with Azerbaijan on April 22 at the entrance to the Lachin-Khankendi road contrary to the trilateral statement of November 10, 2020, on April 23 at 12:00 (GMT+4), the units of the State Border Service of the Republic of Azerbaijan set up a border checkpoint in its sovereign territories, on the border with Armenia, at the beginning of the Lachin-Khankendi road.

Source: TREND News Agency

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Friday told MPs Brussels, the European Union and “large financial institutions” were backing the Black Sea submarine electricity cable project for linking the power grid of the South Caucasus with those of EU states, APA’s Tbilisi correspondent reports.

In comments at the lawmaking body for presenting an annual report on the Government’s work, Garibashvili told the lawmakers his team expected the planned infrastructure to become a “historic project” among initiatives that have been implemented over the last 30 years.

Garibashvili told MPs the project – which he called a “Georgian initiative” he had proposed in Brussels in 2021 – was being “actively studied”, with results of the preliminary work set to be announced in September before works move on to the second phase.

“We received full support from the European Union from the beginning. Then we continued active cooperation with our strategic partners – Azerbaijan, Romania, Hungary – and last year a memorandum [for the initiative] was signed”, he noted in comments on the origins of the idea.In comments on other energy projects and infrastructure, the Government head told the Parliament seven hydropower plants had become operational across the country last year.

“Currently, a total of 229 memorandums have been signed. Work is underway on the development of four large capacity hydroelectric power stations. It is planned to build a new 350-430 MW combined cycle thermal power station – Gardabani 3 – which will be the largest thermal power station in Georgia”, he said.

He also noted a new renewable energy scheme to support 15 hydropower, two wind and 10 solar power projects across the country had been launched.

Source: Azeri-Press News Agency

Dovletmamed Azadi library has hosted the first international media forum dedicated to the establishment of the first smart city in Turkmenistan – Arkadag, Trend reports.

Within the framework of the forum, the sessions “City of Arkadag – the first “smart city” in the region”, “The emergence of ecological culture in the system of innovative urban planning”, “Gaining the importance of the city of Arkadag in the developing paradigm of “healthy cities”” were held, as well as issues of media cooperation were considered.

The high level of organization of events dedicated to the opening of the city of Arkadag, historical ties and fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, the importance of holding a forum for cooperation and exchange of experience between foreign media and experts in this field were highlighted.

Speakers at the forum: Derya Orazov, Chairman of the Arkadag City Construction Committee, Ilyas Demirdzhi, Secretary General of the Association of Engineers and Architects of Turkic-Speaking Countries, Gurbanmurada Mezilov, Rector of the Oguz Khan Engineering and Technology University, Fundare Salvatore, Head of the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-HABITAT), Department of International Relations of the Ministry of Nature Protection and Environment of Turkmenistan Berdy Berdiyev, Director of the Information Center of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan Ogulmakhri Geldiyeva, Editor-in-Chief of Business Central Asia magazine and others.

Source: Trend News Agency

At the upcoming meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which will be held on July 4, Iran is expected to be fully accepted into the organization, Trend reports.

This information was confirmed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during the presentation of the SCO National Center for People’s Diplomacy.

“Iran’s full-scale membership will be officially accepted at the upcoming meeting on July 4, and a memorandum on Belarus’ obligations to join the SCO will be signed. This event will launch the procedure for Belarus’ full-fledged entry into the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation,” Lavrov said.

The SCO focuses on cooperation with international and regional organizations. The SCO is governed by the Heads of State Council (HSC), its supreme decision-making body, which meets once a year.

It is the world’s largest regional organization in terms of geographic scope and population, covering approximately 60 percent of the area of Eurasia, 40 percent of the world population. The SCO is the successor to the Shanghai Five, formed in 1996 between the People’s Republic of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.

Source: Trend News Agency