Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his government to continue talks with Ukraine on economic and trade relations and to consult foreign partners including the IMF and the G8 on financial aid, a statement on the Kremlin's website said.

• February 28, 2014

China and Japan must ease tension in the disputed East China Sea to avoid severe "unintended consequences", U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke said on Thursday, days before he steps down as Washington's first Chinese-American envoy in Beijing.

• February 27, 2014

Credit Suisse's chief executive will hit back at allegations the Swiss bank was a willing accomplice in U.S. tax evasion on Wednesday, blaming instead a small group of its private bankers for helping Americans conceal their wealth.

• February 26, 2014

President Vladimir Putin put Russian combat troops on high alert for war games near Ukraine on Wednesday, the Kremlin's most powerful gesture yet after days of sabre rattling since its ally Viktor Yanukovich was toppled as president in Kiev.

• February 26, 2014

Germany is set to accelerate away from France and Italy in 2014 as the fragmented euro zone economy gradually recovers from its worst crisis, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

• February 25, 2014

A mild winter in Europe means the continent is less reliant on Russian gas pumped through Ukraine than in past years, easing worries that the crisis in Ukraine could hurt supplies.

• February 24, 2014

An expected acceleration in euro zone business activity failed to materialize this month and firms cut prices again to drum up trade, which may further stoke fears of deflation in the currency bloc, surveys showed.

• February 22, 2014

Ukraine's parliament voted on Saturday to remove President Viktor Yanukovich, who abandoned his Kiev office to protesters and denounced what he described as a coup after a week of fighting in the streets of the capital.

• February 22, 2014