Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russian troops to withdraw to their permanent bases after military exercises in Rostov region near the border with Ukraine, the Kremlin said, in a sign of some tension easing before a key meeting next week.

• October 12, 2014

Statements by NATO's new chief do not raise hopes of a rapid improvement in relations between Russia and the military alliance, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said on Thursday.

• October 9, 2014

Ukraine warned the European Union on Wednesday not to accept pro-Russian rebels carving out a de facto state and said that unlike other "frozen conflicts" in the former Soviet Union it could destabilize all of Europe.

• October 9, 2014

Russian President Vladimir Putin could hold talks with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko next week on the sidelines of a summit of Asian and European leaders in Milan, the Kremlin said on Thursday.

• October 9, 2014

Bulgaria on Wednesday rejected Russian accusations that it was betraying its former Soviet-era ally by considering replacing its ageing Russian warplanes with ones built in the West.

• October 8, 2014

China and the European Union are closing in on a deal to resolve a long-running telecoms dispute by the end of the month, people close to the matter say, potentially putting an end to one of the most divisive issues between the two big trade partners.

• October 8, 2014

NATO's plan to beef up its military presence in eastern Europe does not violate a post-Cold War deal struck with Russia on military force levels in the region, new alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg said on a visit to Poland on Monday.

• October 6, 2014

Islamic State raised its flag on a building on the outskirts of the Syrian frontier town of Kobani on Monday after an assault of almost three weeks, but the town's Kurdish defenders said its fighters had not reached the city centre.

• October 6, 2014