A Russian archaeologist detained in Poland is at the centre of an intense debate over the role of museums and experts and the role they play in Kremlin war propaganda. Alexander Butyagin is under arrest in Warsaw, awaiting a Polish court decision on a request to extradite him to Ukraine. Until now,»»»

Dubai: Fuel prices in the UAE for January 2026 will be announced in the coming days. Global oil markets have moved slightly higher at the end of December, and this could influence what drivers pay in the new month. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.Super 98 rose from Dh2»»»

Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent New Year greetings to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, hailing the past year as one of “special significance” for bilateral relations between Moscow and Pyongyang and a deepening strategic partnership. In a telegram published by the Korean Central News Agen»»»

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has given a positive assessment of a conversation he had with US envoys on how to end the Russia-Ukraine war. Zelensky said Thursday's call with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, which lasted nearky an hour, had yielded "new ideas in terms of formats, meetings,»»»

The Polish Air Force scrambled fighter jets to intercept a Russian military reconnaissance aircraft near Polish airspace over the Baltic Sea on Thursday amid heightened tensions in Eastern Europe. Photo by Jakub Karczmarczyk/EPA Dec. 25 (UPI) -- Polish Air Force fighters intercepted a Russian milit»»»

2025 has yielded some extraordinary own goals that have exposed the posturing of Western politicians and left the EU isolated, irrelevant, and alone, pursuing policies contrary to self-interest. Unwelcome stories often cling to reality, like an alien to John Hurt’s face. And just as the notorious s»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian FM Marko Djuric met with Russian Ambassador to Belgrade Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko on Thursday to discuss events that have marked the year 2025, as well as Serbia's energy security. Botsan-Kharchenko conveyed to Djuric Russian FM Sergey Lavrov's greetings for the upcoming New Ye»»»

Attempts to secure peace in Sudan and halt the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe have continued for nearly two-and-a-half years of war. Yet a determined belief within the army and those backing it that military victory is still possible has prevailed. The result is unending destruction, displaceme»»»

The CSTO countries held exercises to neutralize extremist groups. The organization’s press service reported. The exercises, conducted under the guidance of the joint staff, involved duty shifts from the Crisis Response Center, as well as the Ministries of Defense and Emergency Situations of Tajikis»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Slow but steady progress is being observed in Russia's negotiations with the United States on a Ukrainian settlement, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Thursday. "Slow but steady progress is being observed in the negotiation process with the United Sta»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said on Thursday Russian shareholders in the Serbian oil company NIS were in talks with Hungary's MOL about exiting ownership of NIS and that they had contacted the US Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) to ensure the »»»

BELGRADE - Srbijagas CEO Dusan Bajatovic said on Thursday that, unlike Europe, Serbia would not be left without gas supplies as its government had secured sufficient stocks, and noted that supplies of 10 mln cubic m of gas a day via the Balkan Stream pipeline had been agreed with Russia's Gazprom u»»»

Russia’s “conservative” policy has driven the ruble up 45% since the start of 2025, noted veteran financial analyst Paul Goncharoff, who is also the general director of Goncharoff LLC. This policy course by Russia explains why, despite sweeping Western sanctions, the ruble has outperformed every ma»»»

BELGRADE - Srbijagas CEO Dusan Bajatovic said on Thursday that, unlike Europe, Serbia would not be left without gas supplies as its government had secured sufficient stocks, and noted that supplies of 10 mln cubic m of gas a day via the Balkan Stream pipeline had been agreed with Russia's Gazprom u»»»

The EU is beginning to disintegrate as decisions made in Brussels are increasingly ignored by member states, now divided between advocates of war and of peace, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said. In an interview with Magyar Nemzet newspaper published on Wednesday, Orban said the process»»»

Pope Leo has urged Ukraine and Russia to find the "courage" to hold direct talks to end the war during his first Christmas remarks to crowds in St Peter's square. He called for an end to conflicts around the world during his Urbi et Orbi address, which is traditionally delivered by the pontiff on C»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia has a plan to respond to the possible seizure of assets frozen in the West, and it will be implemented if necessary, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday. "An appropriate plan has been drawn up, and it will be implemented if such cases arise," Nov»»»

WASHINGTON (Sputnik), Lenka White – Renowned US investor Jim Rogers said in an interview with RIA Novosti that he considers the idea of building a tunnel between Russia and the United States to be wonderful and that it would benefit both countries. “It [tunnel] would be wonderful if it were easy to»»»

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited a nuclear submarine factory and received a message from Russia's Vladimir Putin hailing the countries' "invincible friendship", Pyongyang's state media said Thursday. North Korea and Russia have drawn closer since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Uk»»»

The Iraqi judiciary warned on Wednesday that people involved in the war between Russia and Ukraine will face jail as it attempts to crack down on the recruitment of Iraqis joining the conflict. Faiq Zidan, the head of Iraq's Supreme Judicial Council, received on Wednesday National Security Advisor »»»

Venezuela accused Washington of “the greatest extortion" known in the country's history at the UN Security Council on Tuesday, during a meeting in which Russia and China sharply criticized the US for putting military and economic pressure on Venezuela as tensions over sanctions and a naval blockade»»»

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sees no signs of nuclear powers preparing to resume nuclear testing, IAEA Director Rafael Grossi said in an interview with Sputnik. "Well, what I see is, of course, the leaders of the great powers from time to time exchange statements, and some are in r»»»

Ukraine said on Tuesday it had pulled its forces out of the hard-fought eastern town of Siversk as Russia stepped up air strikes that killed civilians, knocked out power supplies and underlined the lack of progress in diplomatic efforts to end the war ahead of Christmas. Ukraine pulled out tro»»»

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday revealed details of the latest US-backed 20-point plan to end the war in Ukraine, saying it has been sent to Moscow for feedback. Zelensky gave a point-by-point briefing to journalists in Kyiv, including details on the creation of demilitaris»»»

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky unveiled on Wednesday a new 20-point peace plan drafted by US and Ukrainian negotiators and are awaiting Russia's response. In southern Moscow, three people including two police officers were killed by an overnight explosion. Read our liveblog to see how »»»

The Europeans are preparing for a possible war. But how do they plan to fight? Amid all the talk of a possible war, Nato launched its largest exercise in decades, Steadfast Defender 2024, on January 24. It involved 90,000 troops. »»»

Cool Carriers, the world’s largest  operator of specialised refrigerated cargo vessels, known as reefers, has rejected allegations broadcast by Danish TV2 linking the group to a cocaine-smuggling scheme off Denmark’s coast, insisting it had no operational control over the ships or the crew inv»»»

EU leaders meet on December 18-19  to vote on rules that would allow the seizure of billions of euros of Russian money frozen in EU accounts that will be used to back €210bn worth of Reparation Loans for Ukraine that is bound to trigger a significant retaliation by Russia if the vote succeeds.»»»

A deepening ideological rift between Europe and the United States is beginning to mirror the Sino-Soviet split of the 1960s, according to political commentator and IntelliNews contributor Arnaud Bertrand. Bertrand draws a »»»

The EU’s vote on the Reparation Loan needs to fail. If it passes it will kill off any chance of a peace deal being signed. The US version of the plan is well advanced and special envoy to Ukraine retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg said last week that only points remain to be agreed. The EU ve»»»

A Latvian startup has entered Nato’s innovation ecosystem for the first time. Deep Space Energy has been selected for support under the Nato Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) programme, becoming the first company from Latvia to receive backing since the initiative was la»»»

Ocean upwelling zones are acidifying at a frightening pace, threatening fisheries that supply 20% of the world's catch and putting millions of livelihoods at risk, Scottish academics have warned. Because atmospheric CO2 an»»»

Is Russia close to collapse? Russia vs US wartime budget deficits One of the EC executive assumptions for wanting to extend the war in Ukraine by two years is they seem to believe Russia’s economy is close to collapse. EU »»»

US President Donald Trump is in Florida today as the talks with the Ukraine delegation to stop the war continue. There is a decent chance that a deal to stop the war will be done today or tomorrow. However, that will invol»»»

EU leaders meet on December 18-19  to vote on rules that would allow the seizure of billions of euros of Russian money frozen in EU accounts that will be used to back €210bn worth of Reparation Loans for Ukraine that is bound to trigger a significant retaliation by Russia if the vote succeeds.»»»

The European Space Agency's XMM-Newton space X-ray telescope has confirmed observations by Japan's Aerospace Exploration Agency showing an X-ray source within interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, Komsomolskaya Pravda reported on December 17. »»»

Russian President Vladimir Putin is pulling his punches in the bombing campaign of Ukraine’s power system. The country is plagued by rolling blackouts after Russia destroyed half of its generation capacity, but Russia could turn out the lights overnight and plunge the whole county into total darkne»»»

Russia and India have instituted what amounts to a "no limits” partnership, a phrasing previously reserved for Moscow's relationship with Beijing. Many reframed avenues of cooperation are becoming resurgent by progressively deepening cooperation across defence, nuclear technology, and logistical in»»»

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 it did more than redraw the map of Europe: it pulled at the frayed seam that has separated Tokyo and Moscow for decades. Since the end of WWII the two have been held in an uneasy diplomatic limbo. Cordial summits and shared ec»»»

Russia’s federal budget deficit reached RUB4.3 trillion ($47.6bn), or 2% of GDP, in the first 11 months of 2025, according to the latest government data published last week. The shortfall is expected to grow to RUB5.7 trillion ($63.1bn), or 2.6% of GDP, by year-end, the Finance Ministry said. »»»

Russia's federal budget will remain in deficit through at least 2042, according to a long-term forecast from the Ministry of Economic Development, reviewed by Vedomosti on December 16, as falling oil and gas revenues, rising debt, and persistent war-related spending push public finances f»»»

Russia’s annual inflation rate fell to 6.6% in November, down from 7.7% in October, according to a commentary published by the Bank of Russia on December 12. The central bank said the decline was driven by easing food and energy prices, although underlying inflation pressures remain elevated. »»»

The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) resolved to cut the key interest rate by 50 basis points (bp) to 16% at the policy board meeting on December 19, according to the regulator's press release. A cautious key interes»»»

Nearly three years into the war in Ukraine, a former senior White House official has acknowledged that the conflict might have been avoided had the United States been willing to forgo Nato membership for Ukraine. Amanda Sl»»»

A deepening ideological rift between Europe and the United States is beginning to mirror the Sino-Soviet split of the 1960s, according to political commentator and IntelliNews contributor Arnaud Bertrand. Bertrand draws a »»»

Ahead of the European Council meeting on 18-19 December, KSE Institute, together with the Centre for Liberal Modernity (LibMod) and a group of international legal and economic experts, has released a new legal analysis of the reparations loan for Ukraine — a Europ»»»

The EU is today (and maybe tomorrow) discussing how to formally use the frozen Russian Central Assets to fund Ukraine EU summit to formalise use of Russian frozen assets. The issue of the frozen Central Bank assets appea»»»

Russian authorities have escalated restrictions on WhatsApp, sharply reducing the platform’s speed by as much as 80% in recent days, in what digital rights advocates describe as an effective precursor to a full ban. The cl»»»

The EU avoided a decision to confiscate assets or income. The European Council (EUCO) summit on December 18 decided neither to confiscate the frozen Russian assets nor to formally use the income generated by the frozen assets. Instead, the EU (except for three states: Hungary, Slovakia, and Cz»»»

Russia's State Duma (lower house of parliament) is not considering legislation to ban social media access for children and teenagers, with the effects of similar restrictions in Australia remaining unclear, TASS reported on December 22. »»»