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

Most major world economies are continuing to show stable growth momentum, but within the euro zone Germany and Italy are losing steam, the OECD said on Wednesday.

• 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

After three days trapped in a cellar by shelling, Svetlana and Sergei Divenko left their home in eastern Ukraine and fled to Russia with their two children and a single bag.

• October 7, 2014

The International Monetary Fund cut its global economic growth forecasts for the third time this year on Tuesday, warning of weaker growth in core euro zone countries, Japan and big emerging markets like Brazil.

• October 7, 2014