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Muslims across the world are welcoming in the start of the holy month of Ramadan on Wednesday and Thursday (22 and 23 March). Muslims believe that Ramadan is the month in which the first verses of the Quran were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad more than 1,400 years ago. Throughout the month, observing Muslims fast from just before the sunrise prayer, Fajr, to the sunset prayer, Maghrib. The fast entails abstaining from eating, drinking, smoking, and sexual relations to achieve greater "taqwa", or consciousness of God. Some people are however exempt from observing Ramadan, including children who have not yet reached puberty, the young or elderly who are not physically or mentally capable of fasting, as well as pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and travellers. At the end of Ramadan, Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr. In Arabic, it means "festival of breaking the fast". Depending on the new moon sighting, Eid al-Fitr this year is likely to fall on 21 April. On the occasion of the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan the editorial team of commonspace.eu extends its best wishes to all our Muslim readers, subscribers and contributors across the world. Ramadan Mubarak!

The Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Moscow for face-to-face talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday (20 March). Both the Kremlin and China foreign ministry have been tight-lipped about the purpose of the trip, revealing only that Xi and Putin will discuss a "comprehensive partnership and strategic co-operation", adding that Xi will be in Moscow until Wednesday. The visit comes only days after the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued Vladimir Putin with an international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes, namely the unlawful deportation of people, including children, from Ukraine to Russia. Xi Jinping is scheduled to have lunch with the Russian President before an informal one-to-one meeting this afternoon, while formal talks with delegations are planned for tomorrow. Ever since 24 February 2022, China's stance over the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has been somewhat ambiguous. China has neither openly welcomed the war, nor openly criticised Russia. Less than a month ago China also published its own 12-point peace plan to bring the war in Ukraine to an end, calling for peace talks and respect for national sovereignty.