China and Russia signed a $400 billion gas supply deal on Wednesday, securing the world's top energy user a major source of fuel and opening up a new market for Moscow as it risks losing European customers over the Ukraine crisis.

• May 23, 2014

Russian President Vladimir Putin hopes to sign a multi-billion dollar gas agreement with China during a two-day visit that kicks off on Tuesday, ending more than a decade of false starts and wrangling over a deal seen as vital to both sides.

• May 20, 2014

China has used diplomatic channels to warn North Korea against conducting a fourth nuclear test, multiple China-based diplomatic sources told Reuters, after the reclusive state renewed its threat of "counter-measures" against perceived U.S. hostility.

• May 19, 2014

Iran and six world powers are making little progress in arduous talks on ending their dispute over Tehran's nuclear program, a senior U.S. official said on Friday, fanning doubt about the prospects for a breakthrough by a self-imposed July deadline.

• May 16, 2014

Rioting broke out at industrial zones in southern Vietnam during protests by thousands of workers angered by Chinese oil drilling in a contested area of the South China Sea, officials said on Wednesday.

• May 14, 2014

China's foreign ministry blamed the United States on Friday for stoking tensions in the disputed South China Sea by encouraging countries to engage in dangerous behavior, following an uptick in tensions between China and both the Philippines and Vietnam.

• May 9, 2014

China's imports of major commodities rose strongly in April, although a rise in crude oil and copper imports was attributed to stockpiling as a rebound in manufacturing in the world's second-biggest economy remained modest.

• May 8, 2014

The European Union called on Saturday for an independent investigation into the deaths of at least 42 people in southern Ukraine after a riot ended with dozens of pro-Russian protesters killed in a burning building.

• May 3, 2014