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Russia returns Hungarian and Ukrainian POWs from Budapest, provoking Kyiv’s anger
Two ethnic Hungarian POWs?released by Russia and brought to Budapest?arrived in the country early on Thursday. Kyiv condemned them as "provocations" because they were dual citizens of Ukraine. Peter Szijjarto, Hungary's foreign minister, secured their release during a meeting on Wednesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in Moscow, just a day after Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orban had a telephone call with the Russian leader regarding the crises in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as energy supplies to?Hungary. The Ukrainians were furious, and the coordination committee for prisoner exchanges called it a "Russian provocation." It said that the transfer of two Ukrainian prisoner by Russia to Hungary was a grave violation of international human rights law. Putin and the Hungarian Foreign Ministry have both referred to POWs in terms of dual citizenship between Hungary and Ukraine. ETHNIC HUNGARIANS IN UKRAINE’S TRANSCARPATHIA RÉGION Ukraine is home for around 150,000 ethnic Hungarians. Most of them live in Transcarpathia. Orban's government has been at odds with Kyiv over the language rights of ethnic Hungarians for many years. Hungary continues to maintain warm relations with Moscow, despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It also continues to purchase Russian oil and natural gas despite EU sanctions. Szijjarto stated earlier on Wednesday that two ethnic Hungarian prisoner of war recently asked Hungary for help. Szijjarto posted on Facebook that he hoped more people would fly home after their talks than those who had come in this direction. Orban has made Russia's attack on Ukraine one of the key topics in his campaign to win the April 12th parliamentary elections, causing friction between Budapest and Kyiv. Budapest has accused Kyiv of conscripting ethnic Hungarians. The foreign minister summoned Kyiv’s ambassador to Budapest last Friday to protest the conscription. (Reporting and editing by Bernadette B. Baum; Additional reporting by Anna Pruchnicka, Anita Komuves).
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Ukraine increased grain shipments by 5.5% to ports in February, according to railway reports
State railways reported on Thursday that Ukraine increased grain exports to its Black Sea ports by 5.5% year-on-year in February, reaching a total of 2.3 million metric tonnes, despite Russian attacks on the transport infrastructure. Odesa, a Black Sea port, is the hub for 90% of Ukraine's exports. In a recent report, the state-owned?Ukrzalizhytsia rail company stated that "in February, we experienced an increase in shipments but were hindered by a deterioration in weather conditions and attacks on port infrastructure." The Ukrainian Farm Lobby UCAB announced this week that grain exports in Ukraine rose?1% from January to 3.4 metric tons. Corn was the dominant product. As of March 2, data?from the Ukrainian economy ministry revealed that the country had exported 22.3 million tons of various grains in 2025/26 season from July to June, compared with 29.6 millions a season before. (Reporting and Editing by Louise Heavens, Pavel Polityuk)
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Azerbaijan claims two people were injured by Iranian drones
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry lodged an official protest at the Iranian Embassy on Thursday, after a pair of Iranian drones crossed the border and injured two people in a Nakhchivan airport. The?foreign minister said that the attack on Azerbaijan's territory violates international law and its principles and contradicts them. "We demand the Islamic Republic of Iran to clarify the matter as soon as possible, provide an explanation, and take the necessary urgent measures in order to prevent similar occurrences in the future." Baku reported that the Iranian ambassador in Azerbaijan was summoned by Baku to receive an official protest note. Azerbaijan said it reserved the right to take "appropriate measures" against Tehran. Azerbaijan’s Ministry said that one drone landed on the terminal of the Nakhchivan?International?Airport which is located approximately 10 km (6miles) across the border from Iran. Another drone landed near a school in a village nearby. A source close to the Azerbaijani government said that a fire started after the incident. The?source shared video footage that showed black smoke rising near the airport, and damages to the skylight in the terminal building.
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European shares drop as Middle East conflict and tepid earnings weigh
European?shares dipped?on Thursday due to a?growing?Middle East Conflict, and a series of patchy corporate results. As of 8:10 AM GMT, the pan-European STOXX 600 index was down by 0.3% to 610.72. On Wednesday, the benchmark index had its best day for'more than three months. It recovered some of the earlier losses. The mining sector was the worst affected, with a decline of 1.5%. The U.S. and Israel war with Iran is now in its sixth day, but there's no quick resolution in sight. Iran launched another barrage of missile attacks on Israel earlier that day. And the U.S. Senate voted against a motion to stop the U.S. air campaign. Investors are also 'watching' for the speech of European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde due later that day, to get clues about the outlook for monetary policy. The markets are also waiting for the retail sales data from January in the Eurozone and the construction PMI of last month. Shares of Nexi, a payments company, were halted after a 11.3% drop, a record-low following its full-year results. DHL fell 5.4% after the German logistics group announced a 1.3% drop in operating profit for the fourth quarter, which was weighed down by their freight forwarding business.
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Sources say that India's MRPL has shut down its refinery units due to oil shortage.
India's Mangalore ?Refinery and Petrochemicals has shut ?a crude unit and ?some ?secondary units ?at its 300,000-barrel-per-day refinery due to oil shortage, three sources with knowledge of the matter said on Thursday. As a result of Iranian threats against shipping through the Strait of?Hormuz, crude oil flow has been disrupted. Strait of Hormuz is the conduit for a fifth of all crude oil consumed worldwide. Some Chinese refiners are already cutting runs. The state-run refiner shut from Wednesday evening the 100,000-barrel-per-day crude unit and secondary ?units, including a hydrocracker, at its complex in the southern state ?of Karnataka, two sources said. MRPL didn't 'immediately repond to a request for comment. The refiner who stopped buying Russian oil in late 2012 is mainly dependent on purchasing oil from the Middle East. MRPL has 'already suspended'refined fuel shipments due to the Middle East conflict. (Reporting and editing by Nidhh Verma)
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MSC charges a war surcharge for shipments to Africa, Indian Ocean Islands and the islands
Shipping company MSC announced on Thursday that it would implement a "war-surcharge" to impose a surcharge for cargoes going from the Indian subcontinent, Gulf countries and other parts of the world to African nations and Indian Ocean islands. This was after the maritime traffic in the Straits of Hormuz & Bab El-Mandeb had been disrupted. MSC announced that the surcharges would be effective on Thursday for cargoes from the Indian subcontinent, to East Africa and Somalia as well as to Mozambique, South Africa and Indian Ocean Islands. MSC announced that the surcharges for cargoes coming from India will be $500 for a 20-foot equivalent unit for dry containers and $1,000 for refrigerated ones. MSC said it would charge $2,000 per 20-foot container, $3,000 per 40-foot container and $4,000 for refrigerator containers on cargoes from Gulf countries to African nations.
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Russian drone strikes foreign cargo ship near Ukraine Black Sea port
The Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority reported late Wednesday that a Russian drone had damaged a civilian Panama-flagged ship transporting 'corn near the Ukrainian port of 'Chornomorsk' in the Black Sea Odesa area. The ports authority announced on Telegram that the vessel was struck while it was en route to leave the port, but did not specify the extent of damage. The Ukrainian Navy said that one crew member was injured?in an attack on the "BULL", which had left the port and was headed towards the Bosphorus Strait. A statement posted on social media stated that the captain refused to assist and evacuate the injured person, and instead continued along the designated route. Odesa is the hub port for 90% of Ukraine's exports. In recent months, Russia has attacked Ukraine's maritime export arteries. This includes ports that are vital for the country's foreign trade, and its wartime economic survival. The 'attacks' on port infrastructure, which caused a spike in logistics and freight costs, have hurt local businesses. They are now forced to lower their prices so that they can remain competitive on the international market. (Reporting and editing by Sonali P. Paul, Philippa Fletcher, Anna Pruchnicka)
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GAIL, India's gas utility, is considering reducing its supply to customers following the Petronet LNG forced majeure
GAIL (India), a subsidiary of India's GAIL, said it would 'assess' reducing supplies to its natural gas customers after receiving a notice of force majeure from its long-term supplier Petronet LNG due to constraints imposed on vessels resulting from the escalation in conflict in the Middle East. India's imports from Qatar of liquefied gas have been affected by the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. After some vessels were damaged by the fallout of the U.S. and Israeli?attacks against Iran, the transit of 'oil' and LNG through Strait of Hormuz has been brought to a halt. GAIL announced that, as of March 4, the allocation of LNG to GAIL from Petronet has been reduced from a maximum of 0 tonnes. GAIL said that LNG from other suppliers and sources is not currently affected, in a stock exchange statement. Petronet LNG is India's largest gas importer. It issued a notice of force majeure to its supplier QatarEnergy and to local buyers such as GAIL and Indian oil?Corp after?its LNG tanks were unable reach the LNG loading facility at Ras Laffan. GAIL and IOC have already reduced gas supply to industrial customers. According to government statistics, India imported 27 million metric tonnes of LNG in 2024/25. This is about half its total gas consumption. Qatar is the largest supplier of LNG. Sethuraman N R; Tom Hogue, Editor.
Snam, the Italian gas grid operator, plans to invest 14 billion euros by 2030
Snam, an Italian company, plans to invest 16 billion euros (14 billion euros) in the next five years, concentrating on its gas infrastructure. This includes storage assets and terminals for liquefied gas, according to a strategy it published on Thursday.
The gas grid operator is expected to divest non-core assets valued at 1.6 billion euros under its new CEO Agostino Scrnajenchi and make selective acquisitions of 1.2 billion euros.
Scornajenchi stated that "we are pragmatically addressing challenges in the current global context. Energy?demand is expected to increase in the medium to long term, and gas will continue to play an important role."
Snam's adjusted net profit for the full year rose 10.3% to $1.42 billion, in line with its previous guidance. It showed resilience in its regulated activities as well as discipline in its financial structure.
The group, which is controlled by the state, expects a profit of around 1,45 billion euros in 2026. As part of the new strategic plan, it is anticipated that net income will?grow by an average 4.5% per year?until 2020.
It also proposed that a?dividend of 0.3021?euro per share be paid out of last year's profits. Reporting by Mirko Milorelli in Gdansk and Francesca Landini, Milan; Editing Emelia Sithole Matarise
(source: Reuters)