Egypt's interior ministry denied on Saturday making any arrests in connection with the crash of a Russian passenger plane in Sinai last October that killed all 224 people on board.

• January 30, 2016

Russia said on Thursday that OPEC's largest producer Saudi Arabia, had proposed oil production cuts of up to 5 percent in what would be the first global deal in over a decade to help clear a glut of crude and prop up sinking prices.

• January 28, 2016

NATO defense cuts slowed sharply in 2015, alliance data showed on Thursday, also revealing a split between big-spending eastern European nations fearful of Russia and others such as Italy that are still reducing their budgets.

• January 28, 2016

Russian officials have decided they should talk to Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries about output cuts to bolster oil prices, the head of Russia's pipeline monopoly said on Wednesday, remarks that helped spur a sharp rise in world prices.

• January 27, 2016

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told French business leaders on Wednesday that Iran was open for investment as he started a visit in France to revive business ties despite diplomatic differences.

• January 27, 2016

The head of Russia's Security Council said in a newspaper interview published on Tuesday that the United States wanted a weakened Russia so as to gain access to its vast mineral resources.

• January 26, 2016

The United Nations invited Syria's government and opposition to peace talks in Geneva on Friday, but Saudi-backed opponents of President Bashar al-Assad have yet to decide whether to drop their objections to taking part.

• January 26, 2016

OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia and top non-OPEC producer Russia are showing signs of flexibility about agreeing to tackle an oil glut that has pushed prices to 12-year lows, the oil minister of Iraq said on Tuesday.

• January 26, 2016