The move comes as Minsk faces further isolation by the European Union after the incident involving a routine flyover of its airspace.

Disputes over water use increased after the collapse of the Soviet Union as countries of the region failed to create an efficient regional approach to replace Soviet-era systems of water management.

Ukraine's Energy Ministry banned electricity imports from Russia and Belarus, saying neither country was a member of the Energy Community of South-East Europe.

This transformation of the city is somewhat remarkable, and change has always been a constant here. It has had six names since its first mention in 1830 and four in just the last three decades.

The funds will be used to take urgent measures to fight coronavirus and reinforce the Central Asian nation’s health system.

As the crown jewel of the Caucasus and Central Asian Tsarist Empire, it was a perfect place for the arts to flourish – a multi-ethnic land of not only Azeris but also Russians, Persians, Armenians, Georgians, Jews and many other ethnicities.