Philippine speeds up repatriations from SyriaSeptember 4, 2012 - 09:26 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario has flown to Syria to speed up the repatriation of more than 1,000 Filipino workers trying to escape the increasing violence there, The Associated Press reports. Some of the obstacles the government faced until recently was having to pay refunds to Syrian employers for unfinished contracts and fees levied by the Syrian government. Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez said Tuesday, Sept 4 that the Philippine government has now obtained waivers from employers. Del Rosario said in a statement Tuesday that President Benigno Aquino III wants to ensure Filipinos' safety and repatriate as many of them as possible. Del Rosario left for Syria late Monday. More than 2,100 were repatriated since last March. Hernandez said a rapid response team from the embassy in Damascus is helping extract Filipinos from conflict areas. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. 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". Partner news | About 173 million drams and more than 30 beneficiary funds. "The Power of One Dram" is 4 years old In June 2020, the exclusive joint corporate social responsibility initiative of Idram and IDBank "The Power of One Dram" was launched. CSTO budget “to be adjusted due to Yerevan’s non-payment of contributions” The CSTO budget for the current year requires adjustments due to the refusal of Yerevan to pay their share of contributions. Russia sends note of protest to Armenia over envoy’s trip to Ukraine’s Bucha Russia has sent a note of protest to Armenia over the visit of Vladimir Karapetyan and Tigran Ter-Margaryan to Bucha. Armenia: Protesters march to parliament, some spend the night on street The protesters did not disperse despite heavy rain that began at around 2 a.m. local time. |