Kremlin Declines to Comment on Sale of Russian Sukhoi-35 Jets to Iran
The Kremlin declined to comment on Tuesday on a statement by a senior Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander that Tehran had purchased Sukhoi-35 fighter jets from Russia.
The commander, Ali Shadmani, confirmed the purchase for the first time on Monday but did not specify how many jets had been bought or whether they had already been delivered.
Iran and Russia signed a comprehensive strategic partnership on Jan. 17 which said that the two countries would develop their "military-technical cooperation."
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Leaders
08-06-2025
- Leaders
Ukraine, Russia Prepare for Major POW Exchange Next Week
Ukraine announced on Sunday that a significant exchange of prisoners of war (POW) with Russia will commence next week, following mutual accusations from both nations regarding delays and obstructions in the process, highlighting the fragile nature of their negotiations amidst ongoing hostilities. Moscow has accused Kyiv of postponing the swap, while Ukraine claims Russia is engaging in manipulative tactics. These tensions surfaced after Russia launched a substantial drone and missile attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine's eastern city. Despite these challenges, both countries have reaffirmed their commitment to the exchange, which includes returning the bodies of fallen soldiers. Negotiations and Agreements The negotiations, held in Istanbul, resulted in an agreement to repatriate prisoners and the remains of soldiers starting next week. Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's defense intelligence, confirmed this schedule on social media. The agreement, reached on June 2, marks a critical step in the ongoing conflict, offering a glimmer of hope for the families of the captured and deceased soldiers. The planned exchange will involve all severely wounded and sick prisoners of war, as well as young soldiers aged 18 to 25. This comprehensive swap aims to address the humanitarian aspects of the conflict, providing relief to the most vulnerable captives. Additionally, both sides agreed to return the bodies of 6,000 fallen soldiers, a move that underscores the grim reality of the prolonged war. Previous Exchanges and Current Progress Previous prisoner exchanges between Ukraine and Russia have generally proceeded without major issues. For instance, Ukraine recently shot down a Russian Su-35 warplane, demonstrating its ongoing defensive capabilities. The successful operation in the Kursk direction highlights Ukraine's resilience amidst continuous aggression. Despite the progress, the path to a full ceasefire remains contentious. Russia has resisted Ukraine's proposals for an unconditional ceasefire, instead offering a partial truce. Ukrainian officials have expressed their desire to continue peace talks, aiming for a more comprehensive agreement that could pave the way for lasting peace. Turkey has played a crucial role in facilitating these negotiations, offering to host further discussions between the leaders of both nations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed optimism about the potential for future talks, emphasizing the need for international support to achieve a sustainable resolution. As the planned exchange approaches, the international community watches closely, hoping for a successful implementation that could alleviate some of the suffering caused by the conflict. The upcoming weeks will be critical in determining whether this exchange can build momentum towards a more lasting peace. Short link : Post Views: 2
Saudi Gazette
07-06-2025
- Saudi Gazette
Massive Russian aerial attack targets Kharkiv
KYIV — A large Russian attack with drones and missiles has hit Ukraine's eastern city of Kharkiv on Saturday, killing at least three people and injuring 21, local officials said. The barrage — the latest in near-daily widescale attacks — included aerial glide bombs that have become part of a fierce Russian onslaught in the three-year war. The intensity of the Russian attacks on Ukraine over the past weeks has further dampened hopes that the warring sides could reach a peace deal anytime soon — especially after Kyiv recently embarrassed the Kremlin with a surprise drone attack on military air bases deep inside Russia. According to Ukraine's Air Force, Russia struck with 215 missiles and drones overnight, and Ukrainian air defenses shot down and neutralized 87 drones and seven missiles. Several other areas in Ukraine were also hit, including the regions of Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, and the city of Ternopil, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said in a post on X. 'To put an end to Russia's killing and destruction, more pressure on Moscow is required, as are more steps to strengthen Ukraine,' he said. Kharkiv's mayor Ihor Terekhov said the attack also damaged 18 apartment buildings and 13 private homes. Terekhov said it was 'the most powerful attack' on the city since the full-scale invasion in 2022. Kharkiv's regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said two districts in the city were struck with three missiles, five aerial glide bombs and 48 drones. Among the injured were two children, a month and a half year old baby boy and a 14-year old girl, he added. The attack on Kharkiv comes one day after Russia launched one of the fiercest missile and drone barrages on Ukraine, striking six Ukrainian territories and killing at least killing at least six people and injuring about 80. Among the dead were three emergency responders in Kyiv, one person in Lutsk and two people in Chernihiv. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Air Force said it shot down a Russian Su-35 fighter jet on the Kursk front inside Russia, the Ukrainian daily Ukrainskaia Pravda reported. No more details were given immediately. US President Donald Trump said this week that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, told him Moscow would respond to Ukraine's attack on Russian military airfields last Sunday with "Operation Spiderweb" In a new statement bound to cause offense in Kyiv and amongst its allies, Trump told journalists on board Air Force One on Friday evening local time when asked about "Operation Spiderweb": "They gave Putin a reason to go in and bomb the hell out of them last night. That's the thing I didn't like about it. When I saw it I said 'Here we go, now it's going to be a strike'." — BBC
Al Arabiya
01-05-2025
- Al Arabiya
US weighs easing Nvidia chip curbs on UAE as Trump plans visit
The US is weighing a potential easing of restrictions on Nvidia Corp. sales to the United Arab Emirates, according to people familiar with the matter, who said President Donald Trump could announce the start of work on a bilateral chip deal during his upcoming trip to the Gulf. Nothing has been officially decided, the people said, emphasizing that the debate over semiconductor trade rules for the UAE and other countries remains ongoing in Washington. But talks about modifying AI chip curbs for the UAE in particular have been gaining steam at both the Commerce Department and the White House, said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations. Any announcement would be unlikely to include specific details on how the UAE's chip access would change, the people said. But a step toward an eventual accord would nonetheless be a win for the Gulf state, whose AI ambitions risk being curtailed by global chip rules unveiled during President Joe Biden's final week in office. It would also provide a glimpse into how Trump views AI policy for places outside of China, as his administration debates how to proceed with the so-called AI diffusion rule, which set caps on AI chip exports to the UAE and some 100 other countries. Trump is slated to visit the UAE as part of a broader Middle East trip from May 13 to 16 — meaning he will be in the region on May 15, the date that companies are currently required to start complying with the AI diffusion rule. On that trip, the president plans to emphasize that the UAE is a natural American ally that's made major investments in the US, according to the people. The president recently questioned why the US can't sell chips to a nation approved to buy F-35 fighter jets, one of the people said, though the emirate is still in negotiations with the US on terms of those purchases. Trump's comments followed a meeting with Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, the UAE's national security advisor and brother of its president, who visited Washington in March in part to push for easier Nvidia chip access. White House and Commerce Department spokespeople didn't immediately respond to requests for comment, while representatives for Nvidia and the UAE embassy declined to comment. During Sheikh Tahnoon's trip, the UAE unveiled plans to spend as much as $1.4 trillion over the next decade on energy, semiconductors, AI infrastructure and manufacturing in the US. That pledge accelerated conversations about modifying chip restrictions on the UAE, people familiar with the matter said. Weeks later, Silver Lake — which counts Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co. as an investor — bought a majority stake in Intel Corp.'s Altera, which also helped nudge things in the UAE's favor, according to a US official. Additional UAE-led investments into the US tech sector are expected in coming months, according to people familiar with the matter. As part of the broader chip access talks, the people said, some Trump officials have floated seeking a bigger Emirati investment in Intel, the struggling American chipmaker at the center of the US government's effort to make more semiconductors on American soil. The administration's discussions about including Intel in a potential UAE deal remain internal and in very early stages, the people said. A Mubadala spokesman said he wasn't aware of any discussions regarding Intel, and Intel declined to comment. On Wednesday, Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang urged the Trump administration to change regulations for exporting AI technology to help American businesses capitalize on opportunities overseas where competition with China is intensifying. 'I'm not sure what the new diffusion rule is going to be, but whatever it turns out to be, it really has to recognize that the world has changed fundamentally since the previous diffusion rule was released,' Huang told reporters in Washington. Nvidia has consistently argued that strict chip export rules from the US risk pushing other countries toward Chinese technology. The US government has required a license to export Nvidia chips to the UAE and other Gulf nations since 2023, over concerns that the hardware could be diverted to China. The Middle Eastern country has long tried to assuage those worries, including with a promise by Abu Dhabi AI juggernaut G42 to divest from China's Huawei Technologies Co. — which paved the way for a $1.5 billion partnership with Microsoft Corp. announced during the Biden administration. Microsoft has publicly called for the Trump administration to ease chip export controls on the UAE, among other 'American friends.' Emirati officials also were engaged in advanced negotiations with Biden officials to reach a government-to-government agreement on AI deployment, according to people familiar with those talks, which could have helped UAE companies bypass the national chip cap in exchange for security commitments — which also requires a separate, company-specific application. But the UAE abandoned those talks after Trump won the US presidential election in November, the people said, before the AI diffusion rule was formally unveiled. Now, the country's top government and industry officials are optimistic about their prospects under the new administration. The UAE isn't viewed as 'just another player,' Omar Al Olama, the country's minister for AI and digital economy, said in a recent interview, pointing to partnerships between American and Emirati companies. The head of one of those companies, G42's Peng Xiao, said the UAE is making 'very good and tangible progress' toward securing advanced semiconductors from the US. Still, it's unclear what form that could take. Trump officials have been considering a suite of changes to the AI diffusion rule, Bloomberg News reported in March, including doing away with the tiered system in favor of a more general global licensing requirement. That could pave the way for individual countries, including the UAE, to negotiate their own agreements around chip access — which themselves may be enormously complex. In the meantime, chip shipments to the country require ongoing approvals from US officials who hold differing views on the national security implications of the UAE's AI push.
