Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Iran must take part in a proposed international conference to end Syria's civil war, but that Western states wanted to limit the participants and possibly predetermine the outcome of the talks.

• May 17, 2013

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the southern Russian city of Sochi for talks centered on the crisis in Syria.

• May 17, 2013

Yesterday, May 15, the second meeting of the Dialogue on Trade Issues, established in accordance with the "Memorandum on cooperation in trade between the Eurasian Economic Commission and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine" was held in Kyiv.

• May 16, 2013

Nuclear talks between Iran and the UN atomic agency failed yet again Wednesday, as a top US diplomat said she expected the IAEA to report Tehran to the UN Security Council soon.

• May 16, 2013

China warned the European Union on Thursday that imposing duties on Chinese solar panels would "seriously harm" bilateral trade ties, upping the tone of its criticism a week after the EU said it would move ahead with hefty penalties in June.

• May 16, 2013

A Snapshot of Key Developments in the External Relations of the Russian Gas Sector
By Jack Sharples, EGF Associate Researcher on the external dimensions of Russian gas

Key points:

• Negotiations between Russia and Lithuania over their gas relationship and the unbundling over LietuvosDujos continue; Polish Treasury Minister and PGNiG Chief Executive are sacked as a result of a EuRoPolGaz-Gazprom agreement to investigate the possible expansion of the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline
• Gazprom boycotts a high-level roundtable held by Ukrainian and EU representatives on the future management and development of Ukraine’s gas transport system, and warns European energy companies against reselling Russian gas back to Ukraine, as Ukraine continues to seek alternatives to Russian gas imports
• Gazprom and Gasunie agree to investigate the possibility of expanding the Nord Stream gas pipeline, with Gazprom eyeing an increase in gas exports to the British market, despite the current under-utilisationof the existing Nord Stream pipeline
• Gazprom announces that the spatial planning and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports for South Stream in Slovenia are almost complete and that construction could begin next year; Bulgarian government announces a review of South Stream, but pledges to continue with the project; Construction of the Serbian section of South Stream could start by the end of 2013, rather than in 2014 as planned
• Gazprom announces its 2012 financial results; Rosneft continues to challenge Gazprom in the sphere of gas exports by announcing talks with ExxonMobil over the construction of an LNG export terminal in Russia’s Far East; Beltransgaz to be renamed Gazprom Transgaz Belarus to reflect Gazprom’s takeover

• May 16, 2013

The first contingent of Kurdish rebels leaving Turkey as part of a peace deal with Ankara has arrived in the Harur area of Iraqi Kurdistan.

• May 15, 2013

According to the Russian media, the subject of talks will be the situation in Syria, which recently has been discussed in Russia by British Prime Minister James Cameron as well

• May 15, 2013