* An AN-140 jetliner crashed 40 kilometers away from Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, killing all 23 people on board

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 07:09 GMT

MOSCOW

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 07:26 GMT

A river-borne chemical slick in the east Russian city of Khabarovsk still contains acceptable levels of toxicity, as the bulk of the slick was approaching the city.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 07:55 GMT

MOSCOW, December 25 (RIA Novosti) – Russia launched a Proton-K carrier rocket with three satellites from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan at 8:07 a.m. Moscow time (5:07 a.m. GMT) to expand its global navigation satellite system GLONASS, the Russian Space Agency (Roskosmos) said Sunday.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 07:57 GMT

Russia has formally proposed to Iran that it move its uranium enrichment facilities to Russian territory, raising pressure on the Tehran regime to accept the Western-backed plan for restraining its nuclear program.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 08:10 GMT

Alexander Ovechkin, the 20-year-old Washington Capitals rookie, Alexei Yashin of the New York Islanders, Alexei Kovalev of Montreal, and goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin of Chicago are among the 19 NHL players on the Russian roster for the Turin Olympics.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 08:10 GMT

Maria Sharapova has pulled out the Australian women's hardcourt tennis tournament at Royal Pines due to a strained right shoulder.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 08:13 GMT

Russia is enlarging its orbital grouping with three spacecraft of the Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) at one go.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 08:28 GMT

A Cameroon student of a Russian has been killed in St. Petersburg, and another hospitalized in severe condition.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 08:57 GMT

1. Russia paid early more than a third of its debt to the Paris Club of Creditor Nations and repaid in full its debt to the International Monetary Fund.

// Dec. 25, 2005 - 08:57 GMT