Pakistan races to arrange second round of US-Iran talks as Strait of Hormuz standoff deepens

Pakistan is racing to arrange a second round of US-Iran peace talks as the Strait of Hormuz blockade deepens, with a Chinese-linked tanker defying the US naval cordon and Iran warning of retaliation against Gulf ports.

Russia warns of danger of war resuming as US blockade of Iranian ports takes effect

The Kremlin has warned that the danger of war resuming in the Middle East remains after US-Iran talks ended without result, as a US naval blockade of Iranian ports took effect on April 13.

Czech Colt CZ announces dual listing on Euronext Amsterdam

Colt CZ to be second Czech defence company to debut on the Dutch bourse this year after Czechoslovak Group's January IPO.

Orbán's defeat deprives Georgian Dream of its main EU ally as opposition draws hope from Hungary vote

Georgian PM Irakli Kobakhidze congratulated Peter Magyar while simultaneously thanking Viktor Orbán for "outstanding and steadfast support of Georgia's national interests".

Russia’s first IPO in 2026 priced at heavy discount

Electronic trading platform B2B RTS set its 2026 IPO price range at RUB112–RUB118 per share, giving it a market capitalisation well below expectations.

Iran's business leaders warn internet shutdowns costing up to $80mn a day

Iran's business chambers warn that internet shutdowns are costing the digital economy up to $80mn a day as the country remains offline for the seventh week.

Saudi Arabia's First Mills deploys AI agent platform in food production first

Saudi flour giant First Mills becomes the first customer of Glasgow AI startup Kodamai, deploying a mathematically verified autonomous agent platform across its four production facilities.

Disinformation over Erdogan threat to invade Israel reportedly goes viral

Video clip taken from real speech, but edited and misrepresented, says Dailymotion.

Iran-linked hackers claim major cyberattack on Dubai government infrastructure

Iran-linked hacker group Handala claims to have destroyed 6 petabytes of data and extracted 149TB of classified documents from three Dubai government bodies in what it calls a warning to Gulf states.

Tehran e-commerce body demands internet restoration immediately

Tehran's e-commerce association demands the immediate restoration of internet services, saying continued restrictions are damaging household incomes and the private sector as Iran's digital economy struggles to recover from the war.

Orbán’s election defeat shakes illiberal allies in Southeast Europe

Implications for leaders across Southeast Europe who have aligned themselves with Viktor Orban's brand of illiberal governance.

COMMENT: The US naval blockade of Iran won't work

The US is moving to choke Iran’s oil lifeline. The market is starting to price something much bigger because the Trump administration naval blockade of Iran is not going to work.

COMMENT: Iran and the US, where maximalism meets survival and peace cannot follow

OPINION: Hungarian vote puts EU unity on the line

Hungary's general election is “make-or-break” for Brussels-Budapest relations, says Clingendael Institute report.

Did America just hand the Gulf to Russia?

The Iran war has turned Russia from a sanctioned energy pariah into an indispensable supplier for half the planet. With Urals crude at 13-year highs and sanctioned LNG going at 40% discounts, Moscow may be the war's real winner.

ADB projects slower growth in all of Asia

According to an outlook forecast report by the Asian Development Bank, the broad Asia region including its many developing high growth economies are facing what can be best described as the most complex set of headwinds in years.

ADB says Uzbekistan expected to sustain steady growth of towards 7%

Delivering on the forecast could prove challenging, however, if the Middle East conflict is prolonged.

Fitch downgrades outlook on Turkey as war impacts drain FX reserves

Unscheduled move comes as central bank stung for $50bn in cost of interventions made in defence of lira.

Serbia's FX reserves fall in March as gold prices slump

Gross foreign exchange reserves stood at €28.48bn at the end of March, down by €1.33bn from a month earlier, the central bank said.

Romania’s trade deficit narrows further on weaker consumption, fiscal tightening

Tenth consecutive month of improvement in Romania’s trade balance reflects subdued domestic demand and the effects of ongoing fiscal consolidation

Tajik government finds that being party pooper is profitable

Law regulating weddings, birthdays and funerals reaps over $1mn in fines.

Iran war is pushing the CRINK alliance closer together, turning it into a military alliance

One of the upsets of the war in Iran has been to drive the members of the CRINK alliance (China, Russia, Iran and North Korea) into a closer military cooperation that is not in the West's interests.

Taiwan’s lethal road culture - where red lights don’t mean stop

Taiwan likes to present itself as a modern, developed democracy, but step off the plane and onto any Taiwanese street, and a very different reality quickly emerges: one in which basic public safety is dangerously absent.

Pakistan’s Ghazab Lil-Haq operation and the prospect of regime change in Afghanistan

A Eurasianet partner post from the Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst.

Seoul’s missing $7.8bn central bank surplus

The move has raised transparency concerns as the administration appears to be shielding a multi-billion dollar windfall from legislative oversight.

ASIA BLOG: How Taiwan’s KMT risks the nation’s sovereignty

As Taiwan’s opposition leader, Cheng Li-wun leads a delegation across China the fine line between opposition outreach and quasi-diplomacy is being blurred. It is an issue that should concern anyone with a stake in Taiwan’s democratic integrity.

TEHRAN BLOG: Ceasefire brings quiet relief to Iran, but few believe it will hold

Iranians remain split in the early hours of the two-week ceasefire between their government and US and Israel on the otherside, but as things stand any return to normality is better than nothing.

CAUCASUS BLOG: Armenian PM’s Moscow pushback plays to a domestic audience pre-election

Nikol Pashinyan made unusually blunt comments to Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit to Moscow.

MOSCOW BLOG: Pax Americana exposed as a paper tiger

Superficially the war in Iran has dealt Ukraine a huge blow. The White House is now completely distracted, and the Trump administration seems to have abandoned, or at least paused, the ceasefire negotiations with Russia.

BALKAN BLOG: The connection between the Middle East conflict and Slovenia’s closely fought election

Strong pro-Palestine sentiment in Slovenia causes alleged interference by Israeli private security firm ahead of general election to backfire.

Iraq says Tigris river pollution contained after sediment surge from Diyala

Iraq's environment minister says authorities have contained a Tigris river pollution crisis caused by sediment from water releases, days after a mass fish die-off in Wasit province killed over 1,000 tonnes of fish.

Moldova prepares damage claims against Russia over energy infrastructure and environmental damage

Russian drone attack against a hydropower plant on the territory of Ukraine blamed for pollution of Dniester River.

Falling battery prices make round-the-clock solar power supply viable in India

A recent report by energy think tank Ember says that declining battery storage costs have reached a level where it makes it economically viable for solar power to supply most of India’s electricity demand.

Argentina eases glacier protection in $40bn mining push despite environmental fears

Argentina’s Congress has approved a reform to the country’s glacier protection law, relaxing restrictions on mining in high-altitude regions in a move aimed at attracting billions in investment, while drawing criticism from environmental groups.

Battery costs have declined by 99% in the last three decades, making electrified transport a reality – OWID

Over 20mn electric cars were sold globally in 2025 — some for as little as $10,000. Even just two decades ago, that would have been impossible. The reason it's possible now? Batteries have gotten much cheaper.