Prague, July 27 (IANS) In a telephone conversation, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico proposed a “technical” solution to his Ukrainian counterpart, Denys Shmyhal, to partially restart the transit of Russian company Lukoil’s oil via Ukraine.

Without disclosing any details, Fico’s office on Friday said that the proposed scheme would require the participation of several countries, including Slovakia, Xinhua news agency reported.

Restoring at least partial access to Russian oil is extremely important for the Bratislava-based Slovnaft refinery, as alternative sources of oil are more expensive and may not be technologically compatible, it said.

Slovakia’s Economy Ministry said last week that oil deliveries from Lukoil had stopped flowing to Slovakia via Ukraine following the company’s inclusion on Ukraine’s sanctions list. The move has heavily affected Slovnaft.

Intensive negotiations will take place at the highest political and technical levels in the coming hours and days, reported the News Agency of the Slovak Republic (TASR), citing government sources.

Slovak President Peter Pellegrini said on Wednesday that his country might take retaliatory measures against Ukraine for its decision to cut off oil supplies from Lukoil to Slovakia.

Slovakia’s Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar, together with Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto, on Monday asked the European Commission to intervene in this matter.

–IANS

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Ramallah, July 27 (IANS) The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) added an archaeological site in the Gaza Strip to its list of World Heritage in Danger, the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism has said.

Palestine succeeded in the emergency registration of the Monastery of Saint Hilarion in Gaza on the list of World Heritage in Danger during the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee held in India, Xinhua news agency quoted the ministry as saying in a statement on Friday.

The urgent and emergency registration comes to preserve the Palestinian cultural heritage in Gaza in light of the Israeli war on the enclave, which destroyed more than 100 heritage, archaeological and cultural sites, completely or partially, said the Palestinian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Hani Al-Hayek in the statement.

The Monastery of Saint Hilarion, one of the oldest sites in the Middle East, was founded by Saint Hilarion and was home to the first monastic community in the Holy Land, according to UNESCO on Friday.

Situated at the crossroads of the main routes of trade and exchange between Asia and Africa, it was a centre for religious, cultural and economic exchanges, illustrating the prosperity of desert monastic sites in the Byzantine period, it added.

Inclusion on the list of World Heritage in Danger automatically opens the door to enhanced international technical and financial assistance mechanisms to guarantee the protection of the property and, if necessary, to help facilitate its rehabilitation, according to UNESCO.

–IANS

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Kampala, July 27 (IANS) Norway has officially closed its embassy in Uganda, marking the end of 19 years of diplomatic presence in the east African country.

The embassy posted on its official handle on X, formerly Twitter, Friday, saying that the country’s flag had been formerly lowered.

“It is with mixed emotions as we lower the Norwegian flag for the last time. The Embassy is now closed, but Norway remains engaged in Uganda,” the embassy posted. The lowered flag was handed to Norwegian Ambassador to Uganda Kristin Hermansen.

According to the embassy, the flag was raised in Uganda in 2005.

At an earlier function, Uganda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Odongo Jeje Abubakher emphasised the “strength and tangible results of the Uganda-Norway relationship over the years, expressing Uganda’s deep appreciation for this partnership”, Xinhua news agency reported.

“He acknowledged Norway’s sovereign decision to close its embassy in Kampala while welcoming the assurance that bilateral relations will persist and flourish,” an embassy statement posted on X said.

Norway shut down five missions in 2022. The closure of its embassy in Uganda, which was also overseeing Rwanda and Burundi, was first announced last October, signalling that several changes were underway in the country’s diplomatic presence abroad.

Norway supports a variety of projects in Uganda, including education, health, agriculture, and assistance to refugees.

–IANS

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Washington, July 27 (IANS) Former US President Donald Trump on Friday pledged to bring peace to West Asia if re-elected to the White House and that he will stop the spread of anti-Semitism in America.

In a statement released by the Trump campaign after his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the former President also expressed solidarity with Israel on the “heinous” October 7 attack. The former President pledged that “when he returns to the White House, he will make every effort to bring peace to the Middle East and combat anti-Semitism from spreading throughout college campuses across the United States”.

The Trump campaign said the Israeli Prime Minister “thanked President Trump and his Administration for working to promote stability in the region through, among many historic achievements, the Abraham Accords, moving the United States Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, eliminating Qasem Soleimani, ending the horrific Iran Nuclear Deal, as well as combating anti-Semitism in America and abroad”. Soleimani was the head of Iran’s Quds Force who was killed in a US drone strike in 2020.

Trump welcomed Netanyahu and his wife Sara Netanyahu warmly at his Mar-a-Lago in Florida, a video of which was posted on Truth Social, a social media platform he owns.

Trump and Netanyahu had shared a close bond going back to the former President’s first term, when he had moved the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, in recognition of a long-standing Israeli demand for the world to consider Jerusalem as the capital, despite its status as a city party claimed by the Palestinians. Trump had also recognised Golan Heights as a part of Israel, which had captured the territory from Syria in the 1967 war. The former President had capped his tight embrace of Israel by brokering the Abraham Accords that paved the way for the normalization of ties between Israel and Bahrain and Israel and the UAE.

They fell out in early 2021 when Netanyahu became one of the first world leaders to call and congratulate President Joe Biden, whose election Trump has continued to dispute to this day.

Netanyahu is a close observer of US elections and has inserted himself into US politics several times over the years. He has recently quarrelled with Biden over military supplies for Israel and could be preparing himself for Trump’s return to the White House, a possibility that is being considered in capitals around the world.

–IANS

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Washington, July 26 (IANS) Former US President Donald Trump welcomed Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, calling out “Come on in, come on in”.

Netanyahu was accompanied by his wife Sara Netanyahu, who were both greeted warmly by Trump, in a video the former President posted on Truth Social, a social media platform he owns.

Trump and Netanyahu had shared a close bond going back to the former President’s first term, when he had moved the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, in recognition of a long-standing Israeli demand for the world to consider Jerusalem as the capital, despite its status as a city party claimed by the Palestinians.

Trump had also recognised Golan Heights as a part of Israel, which had captured the area from Syria in the 1967 war.

The former President had capped his tight embrace of Israel by brokering the Abrahamic Accords that paved the way to the normalisation of ties between Israel and Bahrain and Israel and the UAE. They fell out in early 2021 when Netanyahu became one of the first world leaders to call and congratulate President Joe Biden, whose election Trump has continued to dispute to this day.

No details were available at this time of the meeting on Friday.

Netanyahu is a close observer of US elections and has inserted himself into US politics several times over the years. He has recently quarrelled with Biden over military supplies for Israel and could be preparing himself for Trump’s return to the White House, a possibility that is being considered in capitals around the world.

The Israeli Prime Minister addressed a joint meeting of the US Congress on Wednesday and met President Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris in the White House on Thursday.

–IANS

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