U.S. protecting Syria jihadist group, Russia's Lavrov saysSeptember 30, 2016 - 16:44 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The U.S. is trying to spare a Syrian jihadist group in case it is needed to unseat President Assad, the Russian foreign minister has told the BBC, the news agency reports. Sergei Lavrov said the U.S. had broken its promise to separate the powerful Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (formerly known as al-Nusra Front) and other groups such as Islamic State from U.S.-backed moderate rebel groups. "They still are not able or willing to do this... we believe the plan was to spare Nusra," he said. He was speaking on the first anniversary of the beginning of the Russian air campaign in Syria. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide. Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed. Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham). Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |