The Baltic country is preparing to increase its defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product, up from 3.7% planned for 2026. This was announced by Prime Minister Kristen Michal.

Prosecutors in Georgia have launched a criminal investigation into five civil society organizations, accusing them of “sabotage” and ordering the freezing of their bank accounts in relation to their role in anti-government demonstrations. In a statement on Monday, the Prosecutor’s Office said the groups had funneled more than two million lari (650,000 euro) to finance “illegal activities,” including paying protesters’ fines and purchasing equipment. Authorities claim the groups bear responsibility for violence and destruction linked to recent demonstrations.

Poland and the three Baltic states of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia want to withdraw from the international treaty banning the use of anti-personnel mines. The four NATO countries say it is necessary to be able to mount an optimal defence against the growing threat of Russian aggression.

A court in Georgia has handed a further prison sentence to the jailed former president, Mikheil Saakashvili. Saakashvili was sentenced on Monday to four-and-a-half years behind bars for illegally crossing the border when returning to the country from exile in 2021, his lawyer said. He is already serving concurrent terms for embezzlement and abuse of power while in office, bringing his total sentence to more than 12 years.

The history of Iran's nuclear program coincides with the period of the Shah’s regime, when relations with the United States were significantly stronger than they are today. In 1957, during the reign of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Tehran signed a "civil nuclear cooperation agreement" with its ally, the United States. After the Islamic Revolution in 1979, and in the context of the events that followed, including the seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, relations between Iran and the U.S. sharply deteriorated. These events also had a negative impact on the steps taken within the nuclear program.

The US has launched what it called a decisive and powerful wave of air strikes on Houthi targets on Saturday as part of efforts to stop Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. Yemen's Houthi rebels say there have been fresh US strikes against them, with the number of dead rising to 53, including five children. Targets in the Al Jaouf and Hudaydah areas were hit early on Monday, according to the rebel group, while the US Central Command said its forces had continued operations throughout the weekend. Washington says some key Houthi figures are among the dead, but the group has not confirmed this.

The news, released simultaneously in Baku and Yerevan, that Armenia and Azerbaijan had successfully concluded negotiations on a peace agreement is very welcome. Negotiations had been going on for a long time, sometimes in person and sometimes by email, sometimes with the participation of third-party mediators, but most of the time bilaterally without third parties. Armenia and Azerbaijan should be congratulated. The EU, US, Russia and France were amongst the first to praise the sides for their success.

The U.S. and Israel have approached officials of three East African governments to discuss using their territories as potential destinations for resettling Palestinians uprooted from the Gaza Strip under President Donald Trump’s proposed postwar plan, American and Israeli officials told The Associated Press. The contacts with Sudan, Somalia and the breakaway region of Somalia known as Somaliland reflect the determination by the U.S. and Israel to press ahead with a plan that has been widely condemned and raised serious legal and moral issues, according to the exclusive report.

The European Union has congratulated the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan for finalising a peace deal and urged them to sign the treaty soon. The South Caucasus neighbours said on Thursday 13 March that they had concluded talks aimed at resolving their decades-old conflict, with both sides agreeing on the text of a possible treaty. European Council chief Antonio Costa wrote on X that it was "a decisive step towards the full normalisation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the opening of the region."