Russia has called for political transition in Syria but reiterated that Syrians themselves should decide about the future of their country without outside interference.

• January 12, 2013

Reclusive Turkmenistan will launch a privatisation of state-held assets in its tightly regulated economy in coming months but looks set to keep control of the vital oil and gas industry, officials said on Saturday

• January 12, 2013

Tension continued to simmer and prevail along the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan. The military activity has been increased mainly in Kashmir and Jammu, APA reports citing RIA Novosti.

• January 12, 2013

Japan is planning to increase its defense budget this year for the first time in 11 years, the Defense Ministry's revised budget request showed on Friday, amid a bitter territorial dispute with China.

• January 11, 2013

Russian and U.S. diplomats plan to hold a meeting with the international mediator for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, on Friday in Geneva, Interfax news agency cited Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov as saying on Wednesday.

• January 11, 2013

Lithuania supports Georgia's political course on European and Euro-Atlantic integration, the European Club president under the Lithuanian Parliament Petras Auštrevičius said today.

• January 11, 2013

Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry has published a commentary on future cooperation with Russia at the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Thursday.

• January 10, 2013

Nabucco gas pipeline project's shareholders, Nabucco Gas Pipeline International Gmbh (NIC) and the partners on Azerbaijani Shah Deniz gas condensate field development and Nabucco project's potential investors (SOCAR, BP, Statoil and Total), have agreed on Equity Option and Funding Agreement.

• January 10, 2013