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Russia announces ‘spaceroach’ grandchildren

Russian space scientists announced on Thursday a new breakthrough in a long pedigree of firsts: the birth of 30 grandchildren of a "space cockroach" who spent 12 days in orbit.…

Algeria in new talks on Russian warplanes

Algeria has started negotiations with Russia on receiving SU-30 fighter jets in exchange for a consignment of faulty MiG-29 warplanes it returned in 2006, Interfax news agency…

Russia accuses Georgia of plans to invade Abkhazia

Russia accused Georgia on Tuesday of planning to invade the breakaway republic of Abkhazia and said it was sending more troops to the region. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said…

Gazprom: Ukraine preparing to divert gas

Russian gas monopoly Gazprom accused the Ukraine on Wednesday of planning to siphon off gas that Russia transits through Ukrainian territory to the European Union, as a payment…

Doubts cast over Medvedev’s landslide triumph

The West cast doubt on Russia’s presidential election on Monday after Dmitry Medvedev won a landslide victory and vowed to follow the course set by outgoing leader Vladimir…

Putin deploys new weapon — his judo master

He has been accused of bullying the neighbours, turning off Europe’s gas supply and — as one diplomat appalled by Russia’s treatment of the British Council put it — ”punching a…

Russian envoy: ‘Now we really have a crisis’

The diplomatic stand-off with Russia entered a dangerous new phase on Wednesday as British officials denounced ”a pattern of intimidation” by Russia’s security services against…

UK warns Russia after council staff summoned

Britain warned Russia on Wednesday that any attempt to intimidate staff of its cultural arm was ”completely unacceptable” after Russia’s state security service summoned local…

Russia leads race to put man on Mars, says scientist

Russia is leading the race to complete a manned mission to Mars and could land a Russian on the Red Planet by 2025, a leading scientist was quoted as saying on Tuesday. ”We have…

Russia will supply new anti-aircraft missiles for Iran

Russia is to supply Iran with a new and lethal anti-aircraft system capable of shooting down American or Israeli fighter jets in the event of any strike on Iran’s nuclear…

Russia warns the West over Kosovo independence

Russia warned on Monday that Kosovo could slip into ”uncontrollable crisis,” ahead of a United Nations Security Council showdown over the Serbian province’s push for…

Russians vote for Parliament, Putin’s future

Russians voted on Sunday in a parliamentary election expected to hand President Vladimir Putin’s party a crushing majority and boost his bid to retain authority after leaving the…

Putin suspends Russian adherence to arms treaty

President Vladimir Putin on Friday signed into law Russia’s suspension of a Cold War treaty limiting military forces in Europe as a senior lawmaker warned that other…

Georgian troops deployed in state of emergency

Troops were deployed in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, on Thursday and news programmes taken off air as international concern grew over President Mikheil Saakashvili’s imposition…

Thirty die in Russian retirement-home fire

Fire tore through a retirement home in central Russia, killing 30 people while two others are still missing, a senior local official was quoted as saying on Monday. The home near…

Russian bus blast blamed on terrorists

A bomb on a bus in the Russian car-making city of Togliatti killed at least eight people and injured 50 on Wednesday in what authorities called a terrorist attack. The blast,…

Hawkish Putin announces ‘grandiose plans’

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced ”grandiose” military plans, including development of a new nuclear weapon, and attacked United States policies in Iraq and…

Gas blast kills more than a dozen in Ukraine

Thirteen people were killed and 23 others injured in a natural-gas explosion at an apartment building in eastern Ukraine, the Emergency Situations Ministry said on Sunday,…

The prince, the waitress … and ‘a fairy tale come true’

It is an unlikely setting for romance. And when Sheikh Sayyid bin Maktoum al-Maktoum arrived in Belarus last month for a clay pigeon shooting competition, his only thought was…