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Armenia * Dozens of Armenian truck drivers are facing deportation or entry bans from Russia following the country’s new immigration rules that limit visa-free stays to 90 days per year, down from 180. Many drivers say they were unaware of the change and have already been blacklisted, threatening their livelihoods and Armenia’s exports to its largest trade partner. The Armenian government has yet to comment as Russia recently intensified scrutiny of Armenian transport companies amid tensions ov
Regional * Abkhazia’s State Security Service has detained a Georgian on suspicion of espionage for Georgia. During a search of Shalva Khizanishvili’s home in the Gali (Gal) district, authorities reportedly found: three rifles with ammunition, a military backpack containing provisions, a Georgian identity document, cash, bank cards from Georgian banks, and a package containing an explosive device. The authorities reported that Khizanishvili had been filming a Russian Federal Security Service (F
Regional * European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed the US-brokered Armenia–Azerbaijan peace agreements during a meeting with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Copenhagen. They called the Washington summit a ‘crucial step’ toward regional peace and stability. Pashinyan reiterated that peace has already been established following his August 8 talks with President Ilham Aliyev hosted by President Donald Trump. * Pashinyan and Azerbai
Regional * Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has met with his Abkhazian and South Ossetian counterparts, Oleg Bartsits and Akhsar Dzhioev respectively, in Sochi. Following the meeting, both Abkhazia and South Ossetia signed a plan for consultations between their respective foreign ministries and the Russian Foreign Ministry for 2026–2027. * Lavrov also announced that a state programme for the socio-economic development of South Ossetia for 2026–2030 was being developed with Russian assis
