Belarus Financial News

abusive content such as deepfakes. While acknowledging the growing use of AI-generated deepfakes in elections globally, including in countries like India, the United States, Pakistan, and Indonesia, Smith reassured that Microsoft has not detected significant attempts to exploit AI in the European Parliamentary elections.Highlighting instances of deepfake videos surfacing during India's general election, where Bollywood actors criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Smith underscored the potential threat posed by AI-generated disinformation.

Hungary’s top diplomat has visited Belarus for talks on expanding ties despite the European Union’s sanctions against the country

Russia and Uzbekistan have signed an accord for Moscow to build a small nuclear power plant in the Central Asian country

Top news of the day: On 24 May, a series of events are set to take place right from politics to business. Election Commission of India said that the 58 seats voting today saw 57.70% approximate voter turnout till 5 pm. The IMD has issued warnings against severe cyclonic storm Remal, which is moving towards West Bengal and is expected to make landfall on May 26.

Almayadeen quoting Alexander Lukashenko.“I mean, first of all, the sanctions. These scoundrels had no right to impose sanctions against ships, against planes, helicopters that transport people… They banned their companies from servicing [Raisi’s helicopter].

India will soon start negotiations for concluding a free trade agreement (FTA) with Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) that will give the country a smooth access to markets of five resource-rich post-Soviet states. Indian exporters from sectors such as engineering goods, electronics and agriculture will get a boost from the agreement, experts on the EAEU said. The EAEU comprises Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Poland is investing about $2.5 billion to step up security and deterrence on its borders with Russia and its ally Belarus, the prime minister said Saturday. Donald Tusk said work on the Shield-East project which includes building proper military fortifications has already begun. Poland is on the eastern flank of NATO and of the European Union and Tusk stressed it bears additional responsibility for Europe's security. «We have taken the decision to invest into our safety and first of all, into a safe eastern border, some 10 billion zlotys ($2.5 billion),» Tusk said.

Lithuania is holding a presidential election on Sunday at a time when Russian gains on the battlefield in Ukraine are fueling greater fears across all of Europe about Moscow's intentions

tariff concessions under its proposed free trade agreement (FTA) talks with the five-member Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Engineering goods, electronics and agriculture are expected to benefit from the agreement and the government asked the industry to identify restrictions, if any, that they face in the five members of the EAEU including Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia. «The two sides have met and discussed initiating formal talks for the pact,» an official said, adding that in the light of this development, inputs have been sought from industry on barriers and products in which the country wants to achieve self-reliance. New Delhi's concerns stem from the fact that India's exports to the union in April-January FY24 were $3.7 billion while imports were $51.7 billion due to crude oil imports from Russia. Moreover, the bloc has signed free trade pacts with China, Vietnam, Serbia and Iran, which could impact Indian industry's competitive position in any of the EAEU markets.

Pakistan of «potential risk of sanctions,» adding that they will continue to disrupt and take actions against proliferation networks considering business deals with Iran. Emphasising the US imposing sanctions on suppliers to Pakistan's Ballistic Missile Program, US State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said «We're going to continue to disrupt and take actions against proliferation networks and concerning weapons of mass destruction procurement activities wherever they may occur...Just let me say, broadly, we advise anyone considering business deals with Iran to be aware of the potential risk of sanctions. But ultimately, the government of Pakistan can speak to their own foreign policy pursuits.»

Poland's president says the NATO member would be ready to host the nuclear weapons of the military alliances's other members in response to Russia's moving its nuclear weapons to neighbouring Belarus. President Andrzej Duda made the comments in an interview published Monday in the Fakt tabloid. Russia is «recently relocating its nuclear weapons to Belarus,» Duda said, in a reference to Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko's announcement in December. «If there were a decision by our allies to deploy nuclear weapons within the nuclear sharing also on our territory in order to strengthen the security of NATO's eastern flank, we are ready,» Duda said.

Iran-Israel lesson: Effective missile defence is costly and could be risky too Xi’an Longde Technology Development Company Limited, supplied missile-related equipment, including a filament winding machine, to Pakistan’s long-range ballistic missile programme that we assess was destined for NDC. Filament winding machines can be used to produce rocket motor cases.

United States on Friday said it has imposed sanctions on three China-based companies and one from Belarus for allegedly supplying missile-applicable items for Pakistan's ballistic missile programme, including long-range weaponry. The companies are Xi'an Longze Technology Development, Tianjin Creative Source International Trade and Granpect Company Ltd from China and Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant from Belarus. «The Department of State is designating four entities pursuant to Section 1(a)(ii) of Executive Order 13382, which targets proliferators of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery,» said state department spokesperson Matthew Miller.

Georgia’s parliament has voted in the first reading to approve a proposed law that would require media and non-commercial organizations to register as being under foreign influence if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad

Paris, while France will get a major host-nation bump from eighth to third, according to a forecast 100 days out from the opening ceremony. The Gracenote virtual medals table, which is compiled using results data from key global and continental competitions since the Tokyo Olympics, has the U.S. on top both on gold medal count (39) and total medal count (123). The U.S. will host the next Olympics after Paris in Los Angeles in 2028.

Ukrainian and Polish leaders say they have made progress on regulating Ukraine food imports that have led to farmer protests in Europe

International Olympic Committee (IOC) has mandated a vetting process for Russian and Belarusian athletes who have qualified successfully for the Paris 2024 Olympics. This decision comes following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 after which the IOC worked on issuing a ban from participating in IOC-affiliated competitions including the upcoming Paris Olympics. However, the IOC later allowed them for qualifying at the Paris Olympics but they will be allowed to participate after following a vetting process. They will also be called for participation on the basis of individual neutral athletes which will see them participating in the Olympics without their country's flag, emblem or anthems.

The European Union’s executive arm is proposing to member countries to impose tariffs on grain imports from Russia and Belarus

The European Commission wants to prevent Russia from using agriculture products as a tool to wreak havoc on the EU market and will impose tariffs on grain imports from Russia and Belarus

BRUSSELS—In a big shift, the European Union is planning to impose tariffs on Russian grain, part of an effort to curb Moscow’s export revenue and appease European farmers who are angry about imports of cheaper agricultural products. The plan—the bloc’s first push to restrict food products from Russia during the war—comes amid protests over Ukrainian agricultural imports by farmers who have at times set up blockades at border crossings.