Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called for the advancement of negotiations between the United States and Iran, Xinhua news agency reported.

China has been making efforts to resolve the current conflict, Wang Yi told reporters after presiding over a high-level open debate of the Security Council on upholding the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and strengthening the UN-centered international system.

China has maintained communication and coordination with the main parties involved, as well as important regional and international partners, the Chinese FM said.

“We believe that the sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of all countries in the region must be respected, that civilian and non-military targets must be protected, that the security of passages and energy infrastructure must be safeguarded, and that the provisions of the nuclear non-proliferation regime must be implemented,” he said.

The key issue concerning the Iran situation is the negotiations between Washington and Tehran, he said.

“We support the active mediation by Pakistan and other countries, and also support efforts made by the United States and Iran, respectively,” he said.

A longstanding issue cannot be resolved overnight, the foreign minister said. However, every step forward in the negotiations brings more hope for peace, he said, adding that the earlier the conflict ends, the fewer civilian casualties there will be.

“We hope that the parties concerned can stay committed to pursuing a ceasefire and continue to meet each other halfway, so that peace can return to the Middle East as early as possible,” the Chinese FM added.

Russian air defense units in the port of Sevastopol in Crimea downed over 20 Ukrainian drones early on Wednesday, the city administration reported on Telegram.

There were no injuries according to preliminary data, Governor of Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev said, adding that a few buildings were damaged in the attack. He said Ukraine also used Storm Shadow missiles.

Russia, which took over Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, has previously summoned the British and French ambassadors to protest Ukraine’s use of the weapons, as Storm Shadow missiles are made by a Franco-British consortium.

Separately, two people were wounded in the southern Russian port city of Taganrog after Russia downed a missile early on Wednesday, Taganrog Mayor Svetlana Kambulova said on Telegram.

Overall, Russia downed 140 drones overnight, Russian state media Interfax reported, citing the defense ministry.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported, citing Ukrainian authorities, that Russian strikes on Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions wounded 21 people.

Airspace for flights has been temporarily closed in various regions of Russia.

Kyiv considers Crimea to be sovereign Ukrainian territory that was illegally occupied and annexed by Russia in 2014. The Ukrainian government does not recognize Russia’s control over the peninsula and has repeatedly stated that Crimea should be returned to Ukraine. Moscow views the peninsula as Russian territory following a disputed 2014 referendum.

The Canadian government said Tuesday that travelers from Ebola-affected regions will be required to self-isolate for 21 days, and that immigration authorities are temporarily suspending decisions on applications from Congo, South Sudan and Uganda, The Associated Press reported.

Luc Brisebois, director-general for the Centre for Border and Travel Health at the Public Health Agency of Canada, said the measures are being implemented out of an “abundance of caution” and will stay in place until Aug. 29.

Travelers who have symptoms will be transferred to hospital for further medical assessment. The stricter border measures are being implemented starting Saturday, and those who do not have somewhere to isolate will be provided with a place.

Canadian officials also said that starting Wednesday, they are pausing final decisions on immigration applications for people from affected countries for 90 days, though that could be extended or lifted based on the evolution of the outbreak.

The outbreak is centered around northeastern Congo and is of a rare type of Ebola that is outpacing response efforts, the World Health Organization says, with more than 900 suspected cases and more than 220 deaths.

The United Nations Security Council has condemned the ‌attack on Barakah Nuclear Plant in the United Arab Emirates, adding that ⁠the attack constituted a violation of international law, Reuters reported, citing the UNSC statement. 

The council did not attribute blame for the attack.

The UAE said last week that six drones had been launched ‌against ⁠it from Iraq, including one that at the nuclear power plant ⁠in the Gulf state.

Iraq is home to powerful Iranian-backed ⁠militia groups which have claimed attacks against “enemy bases ⁠in Iraq and the region” during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, according to Reuters.

The treaty is part of Starmer’s efforts to deepen cooperation with the European Union, which the UK voted to leave in 2016 following a divisive referendum campaign, Euronews reported.

The document will cover a wide range of issues, including border security, the fight against organised crime, the strengthening of collective defence and deeper cooperation with the European Union. The British prime minister’s office said the countries also intend to jointly develop new air defence systems, including the launch of joint production of medium-range anti-aircraft missiles.

Ahead of his visit to London, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stressed that the deepening of the defence alliance between London and Warsaw is aimed at countering a potential threat from Russia.

Tusk also confirmed that the purpose of concluding the bilateral agreement is to secure faster mutual defence guarantees in the event of an attack, despite the existence of the collective defence mechanism within NATO.

Parliament once again failed to convene its plenary session on Wednesday as the required number of lawmakers were absent.

Deputy Speaker Hakob Arshakyan said that, pursuant to the rules of procedure, registration will remain open for up to four hours.

Aside from Arshakyan, only two MPs were present – Hovik Aghazaryan and Hakob Aslanyan.

The MPs are busy campaigning ahead of the parliamentary elections. Parliament failed to ensure a quorum earlier on Tuesday as well.

UEFA has revealed the schedule for the European competition qualifiers for the 2026–2027 season.

According to the schedule, Armenian Premier League champions Ararat-Armenia will begin their European campaign in the first qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League.

Armenian Cup winners Noah will enter the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa Conference League. Alashkert and Pyunik will start in the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa Conference League.

Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) has repaid another portion of its loan obligations to international banks, amounting to around $9 million, the company’s interim administrator Romanos Petrosyan said in a statement.

Petrosyan noted that the company’s current loan portfolio stands at approximately $347.6 million.

He said that ENA’s loan portfolio has been reduced by more than $50 million during the period of interim management.

The Armenian government enacted emergency legislation in 2025 to take over management of ENA, owned by Samvel Karapetyan’s Tashir Group, accusing the power distributor of mismanagement. It then revealed plans to nationalize the company through eminent domain law.

“In recent days, Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) has repaid another portion of its loan obligations to international banks, amounting to around $9 million.

As of July 2025, at the time when the head of the Public Services Regulatory Commission initiated administrative proceedings against ENA, the company had total loan obligations to international and local banks, as well as issued bonds (including accrued interest), of about $396.8 million, of which around $123.3 million was owed to international banks (with the company’s 100% shares pledged as collateral). At present, ENA’s loan portfolio stands at approximately $347.6 million, of which $93.2 million is in international loans.

Accordingly, during the period of interim management, the company’s financial obligations to international and local banks have been reduced by about $50 million (including early repayments),” Romanos Petrosyan said in a statement on social media, adding that the payments were made exclusively from ENA’s own funds, alongside normal financial and operational activity, without involving any additional financing.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said that the agenda of meetings to be held within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union in Kazakhstan on May 28 will not be easy due to the situation surrounding Armenia.

“Beyond integration-related topics, you know that the situation concerning Armenia is not simple. Armenia’s integration with the European Union is incompatible with membership in the Eurasian Economic Union. Armenia has chosen a course toward integration with another bloc. These are mutually exclusive processes. Yerevan, in accordance with Armenian legislation, must orient itself toward the European Union. A corresponding law has been adopted in Armenia, which essentially legally obliges the government and all levels of state administration to orient themselves toward European integration,” the Russian state agency TASS quoted Peskov as saying.

The Kremlin spokesperson also said that membership in the European Union is not a near-term prospect even for countries that hold candidate status. He cited Türkiye as an example, stressing that despite having been an EU candidate country for decades, Ankara has still not come close to joining the bloc.

At the same time, Peskov emphasized that the benefits Armenia receives from the EAEU are guaranteed, while whether similar guarantees could come from European integration is for Armenians themselves to decide.

“It is not for us to judge what dividends European integration may bring Armenia, but we can point to the dividends Armenia receives from membership in the Eurasian Economic Union. This amounts to annual GDP growth of several percentage points. Whether the European Union can ensure the same is probably something Armenians themselves, not us, should decide,” Peskov said.

He added that no one can convince Armenia not to leave the Eurasian Economic Union, but stressed that clarifications will nevertheless be needed.

“Of course, no one can ask Armenia otherwise, especially since it has already legally oriented itself toward the European Union. But, naturally, some clarifications will be necessary. For us, it is important that the actions of any country do not harm integration processes within the Eurasian Economic Union, because this integration is of paramount importance to us – it is an absolute priority,” Peskov underlined.

He also said it would be wrong to claim that Armenia’s fate would be decided at the May 28 meeting of EAEU member-state leaders in Kazakhstan, which Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will not attend due to the election campaign.

“Armenia remains a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, and in any case the country will participate in the EAEU summit at the working level. The country’s top leadership is occupied with the election campaign, which is understandable,” he said.

Peskov also noted that no contacts are currently planned between the Armenian prime minister and Russian President.

“There have been contacts recently. At the moment, there are no such plans,” the Kremlin spokesperson said.