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Austria to Purchase 12 Italian Fighter Jets

Austrian Chancellor and head of People's Party (OeVP) Karl Nehammer looks on as he is on his way to coalition talks with the head of Social Democrats (SPOe) Andreas Babler and head of NEOS party Beate Meinl-Reisinger in Vienna, Austria, December 20, 2024. (Reuters)
Austrian Chancellor and head of People's Party (OeVP) Karl Nehammer looks on as he is on his way to coalition talks with the head of Social Democrats (SPOe) Andreas Babler and head of NEOS party Beate Meinl-Reisinger in Vienna, Austria, December 20, 2024. (Reuters)
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Austria to Purchase 12 Italian Fighter Jets

Austrian Chancellor and head of People's Party (OeVP) Karl Nehammer looks on as he is on his way to coalition talks with the head of Social Democrats (SPOe) Andreas Babler and head of NEOS party Beate Meinl-Reisinger in Vienna, Austria, December 20, 2024. (Reuters)
Austrian Chancellor and head of People's Party (OeVP) Karl Nehammer looks on as he is on his way to coalition talks with the head of Social Democrats (SPOe) Andreas Babler and head of NEOS party Beate Meinl-Reisinger in Vienna, Austria, December 20, 2024. (Reuters)

Austria plans to buy 12 Italian-made M-346 FA fighter jets to replace Saab 105 planes which it decommissioned at the end of 2020, the government said on Saturday.

Citing military sources, newspaper Krone said a letter of intent was due to be signed on Saturday with the Italian Defense Ministry for the planes made by Italy's Leonardo.

The contract is currently being negotiated with the Italian government, the Austrian Defense Ministry said, confirming the planned purchase of the aircraft.

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said the deal showed the strength of cooperation between Italy and Austria.

"My special thanks go to (Italian) Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who made a significant contribution to the conclusion of this agreement," Nehammer said in a statement.

The total cost of the purchase has yet to be determined, but about 1 billion euros ($1.04 billion) has been budgeted for it, the newspaper said.

The jets will be used for pilot training, support for ground forces and air defense, the government said.

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Poland Will Not Send Its Troops to Iran, PM Tusk Says

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attends the government meeting at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister in Warsaw, Poland, 13 March 2026. (EPA)
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attends the government meeting at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister in Warsaw, Poland, 13 March 2026. (EPA)
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Poland Will Not Send Its Troops to Iran, PM Tusk Says

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attends the government meeting at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister in Warsaw, Poland, 13 March 2026. (EPA)
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attends the government meeting at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister in Warsaw, Poland, 13 March 2026. (EPA)

Poland ‌will not send troops to Iran as the conflict does not directly affect its security, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday, adding that the United States and other powers understood Warsaw's decision.

US President Donald Trump called on allies over the weekend ‌to help ‌secure the Strait of ‌Hormuz ⁠as Iranian forces continue ⁠attacks on the vital waterway amid the US-Israeli war on Iran, now in its third week.

Poland's government "does not plan any expedition to Iran, and this ⁠does not raise any ‌doubts on ‌the part of our allies," Tusk said ‌before a government meeting.

He said ‌this covered Poland's land, air and naval forces, which are still being built up in the face ‌of the conflict over the border in Ukraine.

Tusk said securing ⁠the ⁠Baltic Sea remained a central element of Poland's strategy.

A number of other US allies, including Germany, Spain and Italy, have said they have no immediate plans to send ships to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively shut with attacks and threats of attacks.

World

Oil Tankers ‘Starting to Dribble Through’ Strait of Hormuz, Says White House

Luojiashan tanker sits anchored in Muscat, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 7, 2026. (Reuters)
Luojiashan tanker sits anchored in Muscat, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 7, 2026. (Reuters)
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Oil Tankers ‘Starting to Dribble Through’ Strait of Hormuz, Says White House

Luojiashan tanker sits anchored in Muscat, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 7, 2026. (Reuters)
Luojiashan tanker sits anchored in Muscat, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 7, 2026. (Reuters)

Oil tankers are crossing the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's actions to choke traffic through the shipping route have not hurt the US economy, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett told CNBC on Tuesday, reiterating the Trump administration's position that the war should be over in weeks, not months.

"Already you're seeing tankers are starting to dribble through the straits, and I think ‌it's a ‌sign of how little Iran has ‌left," ⁠he said.

"We're very ⁠optimistic that this is going to be over in the short run, and then there will be price repercussions when it is over for a few weeks, as the ships make it to the refineries."

Hassett said there ⁠is concern that Asia may not ‌be exporting as much ‌refined oil to the US to handle a decrease in ‌supply from the Middle East.

"We're seeing ‌some signs that they might be pulling that back to make sure that they have enough energy for themselves. And we've got a plan for that," ‌he said.

Trump on Monday postponed his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping ⁠to focus ⁠on the war in Iran.

Hassett said the US action in Iran is in China's interest.

"This is one case where the objectives of both countries are aligned, that we want, you know, a stable world oil market," he said. "When this war is over, which will be sometime soon, I'm sure they'll get together and have a lot to talk about, and hopefully when the Chinese will express some gratitude."

World

Albania Designates Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as ‘Terrorist’

Iranians attend the funeral of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) commanders, army commanders and others killed in the early days of the United States and Israeli strikes on Iran, at Enghelab Square in Tehran on March 11, 2026. (AFP)
Iranians attend the funeral of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) commanders, army commanders and others killed in the early days of the United States and Israeli strikes on Iran, at Enghelab Square in Tehran on March 11, 2026. (AFP)
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Albania Designates Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as ‘Terrorist’

Iranians attend the funeral of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) commanders, army commanders and others killed in the early days of the United States and Israeli strikes on Iran, at Enghelab Square in Tehran on March 11, 2026. (AFP)
Iranians attend the funeral of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) commanders, army commanders and others killed in the early days of the United States and Israeli strikes on Iran, at Enghelab Square in Tehran on March 11, 2026. (AFP)

Albania on Tuesday designated Iran's Revolutionary Guards a "terrorist organization" and Iran as a state "supporting terrorism" as the Middle East war raged on.

The Balkan nation's ruling Socialist party used its parliamentary majority to adopt a resolution to designate the ideological arm of the Iranian military despite an opposition boycott.

"The Albanian parliament declares the Islamic Republic of Iran a state that supports terrorism and a state that uses terrorist means in the pursuit of its foreign policy objectives," the resolution said.

The document also condemned cyberattacks believed to be carried out by Iran-linked hackers against its institutions, including an incident earlier this month targeting its parliamentary IT system.

A cyberattack in 2022 triggered Tirana to sever diplomatic ties with Iran.

Albania has for years hosted several thousand members of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK), an exiled Iranian opposition group considered as "terrorist" by Tehran.

The United States has already designated the Guards as a "terrorist organization".

The European Union followed in January after the deadly crackdown carried out by the authorities against Iranian protesters.