China investigates former official of Sichuan province over graft
A former vice governor of China's populous southwestern province of Sichuan has been put under investigation for suspected corruption, the ruling Communist Party's graft-busting body said late on Saturday.
Syrian PM says new Aleppo attack planned; opposition says truce near collapse
The Russian air force and Syrian military are preparing a joint operation to take Aleppo from rebels, the Syrian prime minister was quoted saying on Sunday, and an opposition official said a ceasefire was on the verge of collapse.
Kerry aims to ease crisis over Afghan unity pact during Kabul visit
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry suggested that Afghanistan's national unity government could continue beyond September, a step that could irk the opposition even as he attempts to avert a brewing political crisis.
Russian envoy sees no breakthrough in chilly NATO ties
Russian relations with former Cold War adversary NATO will not improve for as long as the alliance continues a "containment policy" toward Moscow, Russia's NATO envoy was quoted as saying on Saturday.
Islamic State nets up to $200 million a year from antiquities: Russia
Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq are netting between $150 million and $200 million per year from illicit trade in plundered antiquities, Russia's ambassador to the United Nations said in a letter released on Wednesday.
Syria talks to test if Assad can negotiate in good faith
Upcoming peace talks on a political transition in Syria will test whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad can negotiate in good faith, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday before a new round of negotiations in Geneva.
U.S. urges Russia to push Syria for aid access to starving people
The United States urged Russia on Tuesday to push the Syrian government to allow humanitarian access to besieged areas after a boy starved to death and three children died from landmine injuries in Madaya in the past week because they could not be evacuated.
Ties between Germany and Russia enter new chill
At an hour-long meeting in Moscow on March 23, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov irritated his German counterpart by raising the case of a German-Russian girl who said she was raped by migrants in Berlin earlier this year.
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