Major Western leaders will not attend a military parade in China next week to mark the end of World War Two, leaving President Xi Jinping to stand with leaders and officials from Russia, Sudan, Venezuela and North Korea at his highest-profile event of 2015.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will not attend events to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two in China next month, Japan's government spokesman said on Monday, amid concerns over China's military ambitions.
Japan on Saturday lodged a protest over Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's visit to one of four disputed Pacific islands which have strained ties between the two countries since the end of World War Two.
Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists accused each other on Wednesday of attempting to break a six-month-old peace agreement, with a rebel official warning of the threat of "a big war" if the ceasefire crumbles.
Russian government plans for mass destruction of banned Western food imports have provoked outrage in a country where poverty rates are soaring and memories remain of famine during Soviet times.
Russia's Athletic Federation will not act on allegations of widespread doping among its sports stars before the world athletics championships in Beijing later this month, the acting head of the body, Vadim Zelichenok, told Reuters on Monday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is a "tin pot despot" who personally ordered the 2006 poisoning murder of ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko in London, the lawyer for his widow said on Friday.
The Russian state must have been involved in the 2006 poisoning of ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko with a radioactive isotope, which amounted to "a nuclear attack on the streets" of London, an inquiry into the death was told on Thursday.
The United States imposed further Russia and Ukraine-related sanctions on Thursday, adding associates of a billionaire Russian gas trader, Crimean port operators and former Ukrainian officials to its list of those it is penalizing in response to Russia's actions in Ukraine.
Alexei Venediktov, one of Russia's most prominent journalists, does not go out without a bodyguard and does not answer mobile phone calls for fear of being tracked.
Russia is pushing for a greater U.N. role in an investigation into what caused the downing of a passenger plane in eastern Ukraine after dismissing a proposal by Malaysia, Australia, the Netherlands, Belgium and Ukraine for a U.N.-backed tribunal.
Kremlin critics say a climate of fear is growing in Russia after the upper house of parliament drew up a list of "undesirable" civil rights organizations and two similar groups decided to close.
Iran and six world powers were close to an historic nuclear agreement on Thursday that could resolve a more than 12-year dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions, but they remained deadlocked on the issue of Iranian arms and missile trade.
U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton accused China on Saturday of stealing commercial secrets and "huge amounts of government information," and of trying to "hack into everything that doesn't move in America."
Russian President Vladimir Putin called for dialogue based on equal treatment and mutual respect with the United States on Saturday in a congratulatory message to President Barack Obama marking U.S. Independence Day.
Syria's foreign minister said in Moscow on Monday Russia had promised to send political, economic and military aid to his country, where the army is coming under some of the heaviest pressure since the start of the civil war.
Troops from Russia and Mongolia will march together with Chinese forces in a parade in Beijing in September to commemorate the end of World War Two, the government and state media said on Thursday, confirming the first two foreign participants.
Western countries have a lack of appreciation about China's sacrifices and contributions during World War Two, a senior official said on Tuesday, as the government outlined plans for a military parade through central Beijing to mark the war's end.
The United States and its NATO allies are preparing militarily for the prospect that their rift with Russia could outlast President Vladimir Putin, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Sunday.
President Vladimir Putin reaffirmed Russia's support for Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad on Friday and said he opposed any use of external force to try to end the Syrian civil war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's confrontation with the West is "artificial" and aimed at protecting Russia's ruling elite and distracting attention from a corrupt system, a former Russian oil tycoon said on Wednesday.
