Category World News

In the general election, Moldova’s pro-European Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) won the election on September 28. It also established a new geopolitical trend and defeated the Patriotic Electoral Bloc (PEB), which is favored by Russia.

Russia is losing ground in post-Soviet Eurasia as a result of Russian aggression against Ukraine. In paradoxical circumstances, Moscow launched a massive invasion of its neighbor in 2022 to assert its authority over what it refers to as its “near abroad.” More than three years later, the failure of the strategy is painfully obvious.

Russia is being relegated by various nations and leaders, whether they are old-school autocrats or Democrats.

The impressive PAS performance in Moldova defied all expectations for a close race. Pro-Russian organizations under the leadership of PEB appeared to be gaining steam in the weeks leading up to the elections. Moldova’s society was evenly divided, and the country was burdened by uncertainty regarding the economy. However, with renewed tensions between the parties within the PEB, things turned around in the late summer.

The coordinated Russian efforts to influence the elections through information ops on social media, which used PAS as a Western puppet to sway the nation’s conflict with Russia and profit from Romania’s fears of an economic downturn and annexation, backfired.

Two blatantly pro-Russian parties were forced to withdraw from the Central Electoral Commission because of allegations of illegal funding. Additionally, the government obtained the extradition of fugitive oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc, who is accused of being a key player in the $1 billion bank theft from Greece.

The West, a strong supporter of the European Union, found renewed by the drama to the Moldovan diaspora. In consequence, only the Gagauz region of northern Moldova and Transnistria, where the opposition parties are concentrated, did well. Despite receiving nearly 3 percent of its votes in comparison to 2021, PAS still won with 50.2 percent, compared to PEB, who received 24.4%.

Moscow-friendly forces likely had had a better chance of challenging PAS if Russia had stopped ingratiating. The opposition squandered a chance to influence how well-governed the elections are. PAS had a competitive advantage when it came to the EU versus Russia debate.

The party could take credit for bringing Moldova closer to membership, which led to the start of the 2024 accession talks, which had become a favored choice. Given its prominence as the country’s main export exporting destination and top trading partner, almost two-thirds of Moldovans are in favor of joining the EU, which is surprising. The populace’s pro-EU attitude is irreversible, and even if PEB gains control, it’s unlikely to significantly alter its course.

The South Caucasus can be seen too. Armenia, which was historically heavily reliant on Russian strategic and economic aid, has turned its head west. As Azerbaijan regained complete control of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2022, Moscow abysmally failed to support its allies.

Nikol Pashinyan, the president of Armenia, had a chance to talk to both Azerbaijan and Turkiye in person. A peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan is currently being considered because Donald Trump, the president of the United States, wants to see it through the finish line to claim credit.

Armenia’s membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization, which was dominated by Russia, was suspended in February 2024. Additionally, France’s cooperation in security and defense increased.

Azerbaijan has also experienced increased tensions with Russia twice in recent years, once in 2024 over a crashed passenger jet over the Caspian Sea and once this summer over the arrests of Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg, which led to a major crisis.

Russia served as Armenia’s and Azerbaijan’s arbitrator in the past and has regional influence. While Turkiye and the US have stepped in to fill the void, it has now managed to alienate both nations.

Only Georgia appears to lean toward Moscow in the South Caucasus. The governing Georgian Dream party and its informal leader, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, have argued with the EU over their propensity for authoritarianism, largely due to this. Georgia has just rejected its democratic demands, which have, in any case, declined under Trump’s control. Tbilisi is attempting to balance between Europe, the US, and, of course, China rather than firmly ties itself to Russia.

In Central Asia, “multivectoring” has long been a common practice. Governments there have also been made aware of Russian ingrainement and given them an additional motivator to turn to China as a counterweight as a result of the conflict in Ukraine.

Beijing has been expanding its economic footprint in the area. It is the largest investor in Central Asia, and it is now the fifth-largest country in the group, accounting for 34% of the total trade of the five Central Asian nations, up from 17.7% in 2020 to 24.1 percent in 2024. Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan are ahead of the rest.

China’s diplomatic efforts have also increased: In May 2023, China held its first China-Central Asia summit in Xi’an. A treaty on “permanent good-neighbourliness, friendship, and cooperation” was signed in Astana in June of this year.

Beijing also emphasized the importance of playing a greater part in transnational crime, border security, and antiterrorism, which are traditionally reserved for Russia. This partnership may be beneficial in overcoming domestic difficulties from the perspective of the regional states. The adage that China must provide the cash and Russia must be accurate no longer.

Given that Russia is reliant on China, which has grown exponentially as a result of the war in Ukraine and the Western sanctions that came with it, it is undoubtedly unhappy. Putin’s participation in the military parade in Beijing on September 3 to honor the victory of World War II and bolster China’s involvement in the conflict is yet another illustration of how erratic the relationship has become. The leaders of Belarus and the five Central Asian nations were also present.

That doesn’t mean China is currently entirely in charge of Central Asians. There is a lot of local agency involved, as regional political researchers have pointed out when criticizing the new “Great Game”‘s perceived impact. Local players are playing against the big boys to assert their independence and profit from these arrangements.

Europe also plays a role in this tale. About 23 percent of Central Asia’s total trade comes from the EU. Some of the turnover is clearly explained by the imports of European-made goods, but not all of it. The pace of EU diplomacy is also increasing. In order to discuss cooperation on civilian nuclear power, French President Emmanuel Macron traveled to Kazakhstan in 2024 for a widely publicized visit. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, and Antonio Costa, head of the EU-Central Asia summit, took place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in April.

Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine has long-lasting effects on both Europe and China, as well as Russia itself. The strong Russian influence over its “near abroad” might be overthrown. There is no denying that Russia’s influence is severely declining in Moldova, the South Caucasus, and Central Asia.

Since Bashar al-Assad’s ouster, Syria has held its first indirect parliamentary election. Osama Bin Javaid from Al Jazeera visits Damascus and explains how the procedure will operate.

Five people have been killed in Ukraine after Russia launched hundreds of drones and missiles across the country overnight, which officials said targeted civilian infrastructure.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Russia fired approximately 50 missiles and 500 attack drones.

“The Russians struck with cruise missiles, Shaheds and Kinzhals among other things,” he said. “The Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Zaporizhzhia, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Odesa, and Kirovohrad regions were all targeted.”

One person in the eastern city of Zaporizhzhia and four members of a family in Lviv were killed in the attack. One of those killed was a 15-year-old girl.

Lviv’s mayor, Andriy Sadovyi, said that the city was left without power and that public transport was affected. Sadovyi warned residents of the city not to go outside, citing smoke and several ongoing fires.

Mykola Dmytrotsa, a resident of Lapaivka village just outside Lviv, said his house was struck.

“All windows were blown out, doors and everything inside, too. What else can I tell you? I do not even want to talk about it. No doors, no windows, no roof,” he told the Reuters news agency.

Volodymyr Hutnyk, a local official, said: “In this area, 10 private homes were damaged so severely that they are no longer habitable. They will need to be dismantled and rebuilt. Many other houses have shattered windows and doors, and their roofs have been damaged.”

Lviv is near Ukraine’s border with Poland and has generally avoided the worst of Russia’s attacks.

Maksym Kozytskyi, the governor of Lviv region, said it was the largest attack the region had experienced throughout the war, which has lasted more than three years.

“Across all affected areas, residential buildings and critical infrastructure were damaged,” Ukraine’s Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said. “Moscow continues to strike homes, schools, and energy facilities – proving that destruction remains its only strategy.”

“Ukraine was shattered by explosions last night,” said Kira Rudik, a member of Ukraine’s parliament. “Every one of these tragedies could have been prevented if Russia had been stopped.”

At least 30 people were killed on a passenger train in Sumy due to a Russian strike on Saturday, which Ukraine’s president said was “savage”.

Poland scrambles jets

Poland said it mobilised its fighter jets along with NATO allies to respond to the strike, which the Polish air force said was “preventive in nature” and “aimed at securing the airspace and protecting citizens”.

Around 20 Russian drones entered Polish airspace in early September, raising concerns about the possible spillover of Russia’s attacks onto Polish and NATO territory. Russia has also been accused in recent weeks of violating the airspace of other NATO members, including Norway, Estonia, Lithuania and Denmark.

Belgium on Friday said 15 drones were spotted flying over a military base in the country’s east. Its Defence Minister Theo Francken said there was no evidence linking Moscow directly, but added, “Personally, I think those drones are often an example of hybrid threats. This is a way to sow unrest. That has been Russia’s pattern for many years.”

Russia has denied responsibility for many of the attacks, with President Vladimir Putin mocking countries claiming Russia was behind the drone attacks over the weekend.

On Saturday, Denmark said Russian naval vessels had tracked Danish ships, sailed on collision courses, tracked aircraft with their radars and pointed their weapons. “Russia is using military means, including in an aggressive way, to put pressure on us without crossing the line into armed conflict in a traditional sense,” Danish intelligence director Thomas Ahrenkiel said.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said Russia is “masking its failed summer offensive with terror attacks on Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure”. Kallas said the EU was prepared to back Kyiv for “as long as needed” and said a new sanctions package was being prepared.

Lithuania’s foreign minister, Kestutis Budrys, joined Zelenskyy after the attack in calling on countries around the world to stop purchasing Russian energy, which they said fuels Moscow’s war machine.

“We must stop feeding its imperial appetite and put an end to state terrorism,” Budrys posted on X.

These incidents come as Europe has hardened its position on Russia, announcing new sanctions, the possibility of using Russian money for Ukraine and purchasing NATO arms for Kyiv, while the US has warmed to the Kremlin.

Samuel Ramani, a fellow at the United Kingdom-based defence think-tank RUSI, said Russia is retaliating for Europe taking a “sharply” pro-Ukraine position in recent months.

Russia sees Europe as a more “incorrigible adversary, whereas with the Americans, we can still find a way back, a way to do business with them and work with them,” Ramani told Al Jazeera.

The president’s palace protesters, according to Georgia’s prime minister, had an ulterior motive for regaining control of the country. The ruling party is accused of rigging the previous election with Russian assistance, but Riot police used tear gas and water cannon to epel demonstrators.

Despite US President Donald Trump’s direct request for Israel to stop bombing Gaza, Israeli attacks have continued across the country, killing dozens of Palestinians. Hassan said it accepted the 20-point plan to end the war in many ways.

Nearly two years after the UN voted in favor of the division of Palestine, the UNRWA was established. The only UN agency that focused solely on the Palestinians, the dispossessed population, existed and still exists.

UNRWA participated in almost every aspect of Palestinian life in the decades that followed, from food distribution to healthcare and education to utilities. The organization’s activities were hampered by Israeli pressure and were sidelined in the wake of the genocide in Gaza.

We need UNRWA to finish its work and put an end to the famine right now that a ceasefire is approaching. It is the only organization that can distribute aid fairly and effectively.

My family has always been a part of UNRWA. My siblings and I attended UNRWA’s schools, where we received free education under the guidance of devoted teachers. Additionally, my family frequently relied on UNRWA to provide food for us. We used to go to the agency’s clinics frequently as children to get primary care, get shots, and get basic treatment. Particularly for those who couldn’t afford private care, this service was always accessible.

UNRWA continued to offer services as best it could following the Israeli genocide that occurred in Gaza on October 7, 2023. Israel, supported by its Western allies, launched a fierce campaign against the organization, though. The Israeli government opened an investigation into the involvement of some UNRWA employees in the attacks in January 2024, and some of them were fired.

These allegations provided justification for Western donor nations, including the United States and members of the European Union, to stop funding UNRWA. At a time when Gaza’s two million people were almost entirely dependent on UNRWA’s resources, that had a significant impact.

The situation with aid started to improve after the ceasefire agreement was announced in January of this year. UNRWA was able to resume distribution of aid in a timely and just manner.

In each neighborhood, there were designated aid centers and clear schedules. Each family had to use their ID number to register in advance to prevent chaos. UNRWA would send them a message letting them know when they would arrive to pick up their parcels. When they arrived at the center, staff or volunteers would check their information to make sure no one was overlooked or given more than they deserved. Based on its size, each family would receive a food parcel. In the midst of extremely challenging circumstances, this system gave Palestinians a sense of calm.

Unfortunately, this circumstance did not endure. Israel resumed its genocide on March 2, when it stopped aid from entering the Strip on March 2. People once more had to deal with displacement and intolerable circumstances that they believed they would never be able to.

UNRWA announced on April 25 that its food stock had run out. We have since experienced yet another severe famine. More than a million people have been left with hunger and malnutrition after UNRWA and numerous other humanitarian organizations stopped conducting their aid efforts.

In response to Israeli claims that Hamas had stolen aid, the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) was established a month later.

GHF does not provide a structured distribution model like UNRWA. Its distribution centers are situated in dangerous locations, and the process is erratic. No registration, fair distribution, or schedules are present. People are permitted to rush in and get whatever they can because a small number of food parcels are just dumped in a fenced-off area every day. More than 2, 500 Palestinians who are in need of aid are currently killed by Israeli soldiers or foreign mercenaries who use live fire to “order.”

Israel has only permitted a small amount of aid to enter Gaza, with the majority of it being looted before reaching its intended destination, aside from the deadly aid at GHF. It started allowing commercial trucks as well in the late summer of that year. They sell products at exorbitant prices to merchants in all of their products.

The famine has continued unabated.

Every day, I witness children in my neighborhood rushing to a small, Palestinian charity-run takyah, which is a soup kitchen. These regional organizations typically use donations from abroad to purchase the small items sold at local markets. Rice, lentils, pasta, or soup are the main dishes. These meals are entirely dependent on families who can’t afford them.

Ironically, many of the same nations that had suspended UNRWA funding called for immediate action in August.

“Famine is brewing right before our eyes.” The statement from the foreign ministers of 19 EU member states, along with Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Japan, read urgently.

However, these nations denied more than two million people their fundamental right to food by cutting funding for UNRWA and allowing Israel to destroy the organization.

They must reaffirm their support for the organization that caused such suffering and demand that Israel permit it to fully reopen its services if they are serious about ending the genocide and starvation.

UNRWA has always provided Gaza’s residents with a lifeline. In the midst of chaos, it was the only organization that gave us a sense of stability and hope. UNRWA would need to be reimbursed and protected in order for us to survive this genocide and what follows. It would be equivalent to allowing the extermination of Palestinians if Israel were to permit its destruction.