Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez starts on Monday an 11-day foreign trip that will take him to Russia, Belarus, Syria, Algeria, Libya and Iran.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 05:12 GMT

One of two militants killed in a shootout with police in the Russian North Caucasus republic of Dagestan late on Sunday was an Algerian member of al-Qaeda, a security official told RIA Novosti.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 05:28 GMT

Andrei Arshavin may miss Russia's upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Liechtenstein and Wales after suffering an injury during Arsenal's 2–1 loss to Manchester United on Saturday.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 05:37 GMT

The Discovery space shuttle has docked with the International Space Station (ISS), delivering more than seven tons of cargo and a new crew member, NASA said on Monday.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 06:01 GMT

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has contracted swine flu, regional media reports said

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 06:05 GMT

Last year's surprise Premier League champions Rubin Kazan opened up a four-point lead at the top of the table with an emphatic 3–0 win over second-placed Spartak Moscow in the Russian capital on Sunday.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 06:27 GMT

Another body has been retrieved at the site of a recent Siberian hydropower plant disaster, bringing the official death toll to 73, a source at the dam said on Monday.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 06:42 GMT

General Motors' plant in St. Petersburg resumed work on Monday after a two-month halt, while Ford Russia suspended production at its plant in nearby Vsevolozhsk through September 11.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 07:37 GMT

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso announced on Monday he would resign as chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party following the party's crushing defeat in Sunday's general elections.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 07:40 GMT

The swine flu virus has claimed the lives of over 2,900 people worldwide, Russia's trade and sanitary inspection authority said on Monday, citing data from World Health Organization regional bureaus.

// Aug. 31, 2009 - 07:58 GMT