🇷🇺🇨🇺 Putin welcomes Cuba’s foreign minister in the Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding talks with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla.

Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin also is taking part in the meeting.

The sides would discuss “the difficult situation surrounding the island,” signaling a focus on economic pressure on Cuba and broader regional developments, the Kremlin previously said.

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📹LIVE NOW: Putin holds talks with Cuban foreign minister

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🚨🇷🇺🇨🇺 Sanctions against Cuba are 'completely unacceptable' - Putin

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🚨🇺🇸🇮🇷 'Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump' - White House

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🤝 Lavrov: Russia enjoys solid relations with Arab states

The format of Russia’s relationship with the Arab world helps develop "coordinated approaches" to regional and global issues, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Al Arabiya.

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🇭🇺 ‘Ukraine is blackmailing Hungary’ - Orban

💬 “…And the goal of Ukraine's blackmail is to draw Hungary into the pro-war European coalition," Hungarian ⁠Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.

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🇮🇷☢️ Lavrov: Iran has the right to uranium enrichment for peaceful purposes

The IAEA supervised uranium enrichment in Iran and never stated that enriched uranium has been diverted for military purposes, the Russian foreign minister pointed out in an interview with Al Arabiya.

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🇸🇰 Slovakia’s Fico accuses Zelensky of ‘political blackmail’

Ukraine risks losing Europe’s support due to its current behavior, Fico warned, adding that Slovakia might cease supplying Ukraine with electricity.

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🔥🇷🇺🇮🇳 India hosts International Fleet Review 2026

Over 50 nations, including Russia and the US, take part in the maritime exercises near the city of Visakhapatnam.

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🔊 Lavrov: Europe wants to resolve Ukrainian conflict at Russia’s expense

Europe wants to provide security guarantees only for Ukraine, and only for as long as Ukraine wages a war against Russia at Europe’s behest, Lavrov explained during an interview with Al Arabiya.

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💬 Trump to Starmer: Don't give away Diego Garcia

The US president just issued a direct warning to the UK prime minister over a 100-year lease deal for the strategic Indian Ocean island—tying it directly to potential military action against Iran.

🟠 Trump claims "entities never known of before" are asserting rights to Diego Garcia—calling them "fictitious in nature."

🟠 He warns Starmer is "losing control" of the island.

"Should Iran decide not to make a Deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the Airfield located in Fairford, in order to eradicate a potential attack," he added.

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🤝 US SOUTHCOM chief lands in Venezuela

Gen. Francis Donovan, head of US Southern Command, visited Venezuela alongside diplomatic envoy Laura Dogu and Pentagon official Joseph Humire for direct talks with interim authorities.

"Building trust and strengthening relationships with our partner nations is the most effective way to counter shared threats and ensure regional stability and security."

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📑 US is deploying largest air force to the Middle East since Iraq war — report

Washington is quietly assembling its most formidable military posture in the region in over two decades, sending F-22 and F-35 fighter jets, the Wall Street Journal reports. In addition, a second aircraft carrier and command post aircraft are en route.

This buildup would allow Washington to conduct military operations against Iran for several weeks, US officials told WSJ.

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🚨🇮🇷🇺🇸US military ready for Iran strike Iran, Trump still weighing decision – report

Top national security officials have told Donald Trump the US military could be ready to launch strikes on Iran as early as Saturday, reports CBS News.

However, the timeline could potentially stretch beyond the weekend.

Trump hasn’t signed off on anything yet, the outlet cites unnamed officials as saying, adding that Iran took center stage in the White House Situation Room on Wednesday.

Every US force assigned to the region is reportedly slated to be in position by mid-March.

💣 Meanwhile, the Pentagon is temporarily repositioning some US personnel out of the Middle East — largely to Europe or back home — to reduce exposure ahead of any potential operation or possible Iranian retaliation.

According to insiders this is standard pre-action protocol.

Diplomacy hasn’t left the room either. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is reportedly planning a visit to Israel in about two weeks for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

During a December meeting at Mar-a-Lago, Trump allegedly told Netanyahu he would back Israeli strikes on Iran’s ballistic missile program if the US and the Islamic Republic failed to reach a deal.

👉 With the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier group already in the region and another carrier group, the USS Gerald Ford, en route to the Middle East, Iran has warned of retaliation in case of an attack.

Sending aircraft carriers is a show of force — but sinking them would be a show of capability, warned Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei.

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