Diplomacy

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a surprise three-day ceasefire from May 8-10, coinciding with Moscow's World War II Victory Day commemorations, the Kremlin said on Monday. Moscow said it expected Kyiv to issue a similar order, and that it stood ready to respond to any violations of the possible halt in fighting.  Putin made a similar order to stop combat over Easter, a truce that both sides accused the other of violating hundreds of times, but did lead to a temporary reduction in fighting.

Since Armenia gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, normalizing relations with Turkey has been one of the country’s top foreign-policy priorities. The rationale behind this has been both economic, to end the blockade and facilitate access to Turkish Mediterranean ports, and political, to drive a wedge in the Azerbaijan–Turkey strategic partnership. Armenia took steps towards normalization in 2008 and 2009. As a result of intensive negotiations, Armenia and Turkey signed two protocols in Zurich in 2009 to open their borders and establish diplomatic relations. However, Turkey did not ratify them, under intense pressure from Azerbaijan.

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s (OSCE) Secretary General Feridun Sinirlioğlu is in Tbilisi this week, in his first visit since the October parliamentary elections widely seen as flawed. The OSCE/ODIHR’s own observer mission had criticised the government’s handling of the October 2024 elections. On Wednesday, Sinirlioğlu met with the Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze.

US President Donald Trump said a deal to halt the Ukraine war was "very close" but hit out at Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky over his refusal to formally cede Crimea to Russia. Trump's comments came as Vice President JD Vance warned that the United States would "walk away" unless Russia and Ukraine agree a peace deal, and as envoys from Washington, Kyiv and European nations gathered for downgraded talks in Britain.

On April 9, at an international conference in Baku, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev delivered a statement on the ongoing peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United States. Reaffirming Azerbaijan’s steadfast commitment to Ukraine’s territorial integrity, Aliyev sharply criticized proposals that urge Ukraine to cede parts of its territory in exchange for a ceasefire. “No country, at least in my understanding, will agree to compromise on territorial integrity, and to expect Ukraine to agree that they will sacrifice their internationally recognized territory in exchange for peace is not fair and not realistic,” he declared.

US envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to visit Russia this week, a Kremlin aide said Tuesday, as US President Donald Trump seeks a speedy deal to end the three-year Ukraine conflict. Trump, who promised on the campaign trail to strike a deal between Moscow and Kyiv in 24 hours, has failed since his return to office three months ago to wrangle concessions from Russian President Vladimir Putin to halt his troops in Ukraine.

Since February 2020, it is not uncommon for the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan to appear on the same stage at international events – or at least at the Munich Security Conference. The same has not been true for their foreign ministers. That changed on April 12 at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, a notable moment just weeks after the finalisation of a long-overdue treaty aimed at normalising relations between the two countries. While the road ahead remains uncertain, the meeting carried clear symbolic significance.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday that Russia will host a special Russian-Arab summit later this year. The announcement came during Putin's meeting at the Kremlin with the Omani sultan, Haitham bin Tariq Al-Said, the first-ever state visit of the Arab country's sultan to Russia.

The new Syrian leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, made an important appearance on the world stage in the last days, visiting Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates. This was not al Sharaa’s first international outing since overthrowing the Baathist regime, led by Bashir al-Assad, in December. In February he visited Saudi Arabia and made short stops in Türkiye and Egypt. But this time round the visits appeared better prepared. In Türkiye, al Sharaa participated in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum where he met some of the world leaders and delegations present. He also met with Turkiye’s President, Recip Tayib Erdogan. From Antalya, al-Sharaa flew to Abu Dhabi for meetings with the UAE President, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, and other Emirati officials.