People in eastern Ukraine are waiting to see if action will be taken against pro-Russian militants occupying government buildings in the region.

Ukraine’s prime minister has told the UN Security Council that Russia had carried out “military aggression” in Crimea, and dramatically switched from English to Russian to ask Russia whether it wants war.

President Vladimir Putin has pulled his forces back from the Ukrainian border yet said Moscow reserves the right to use all means to protect Russians in Ukraine.

Ukraine’s United Nations ambassador has asked an emergency session of the world body’s Security Council “to do everything possible now” to stop Russian “aggression” as troops took over the strategic Crimea region.

Gay rights activists confronted Russia’s UN ambassador and tried to hand over a petition with more than 340,000 signatures.

The Security Council has agreed to end the UN military observer mission in Syria in the face of an escalating civil war.

Kofi Annan delivered blistering criticism of world powers’ failure to unite over Syria’s escalating violence as he submitted his resignation as special envoy to the country.

Kofi Annan has submitted his resignation as special envoy to Syria, saying he plans to step down on August 31.

The future of the 300-strong United Nations observer mission in Syria was in limbo today after Russia and China again vetoed a Western-backed resolution aimed at pressuring President Bashar Assad’s government to end the escalating civil war.

Russia and China have again vetoed a Western-backed UN resolution threatening non-military sanctions against Syria.

The United Nations Security Council will vote today on a resolution authorising the deployment of the first wave of military observers to monitor a ceasefire between the Syrian government and opposition fighters.

Syrian tanks and troops have massed outside the resistance stronghold of Homs for a possible ground assault that one activist warned could unleash a new round of fierce and bloody urban combat even as the Red Cross tried to broker a ceasefire to allow emergency aid in.

Diplomats claimed considerable progress today towards overcoming Russian objections to a United Nations Security Council resolution aimed at halting the violence in Syria.

Fourteen members of the United Nations Security Council pointed a collective finger at the United States for blocking condemnation of Israel’s stepped-up settlement programme in Palestinian territory.

Russia has urged Nato to investigate civilian deaths in Libya from its bombing campaign, saying the alliance’s claim that there were no non-military casualties is untrue.

Russia and China have vetoed a European-backed UN Security Council resolution that threatened sanctions against Syria if it did not halt its military crackdown against civilians.

European nations dropped an explicit threat of sanctions against the Syrian regime of President Bashar Assad to try to win Russian support for what would be the first UN resolution condemning his military crackdown on civilian protesters.

The European Union expanded its sanctions against Syria, imposing asset freezes and travel bans against five more military and government officials.

European nations seeking to increase pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime yesterday presented a revised resolution to the United Nations condemning the country’s government for its deadly crackdown on peaceful protesters.

The UN Security Council called for the demilitarisation of camps for hundreds of thousands of displaced people in Darfur and unhindered access for aid workers the UN says are facing increasing harassment and violence.

Key Western powers have sent Russia and China a revised proposal for new sanctions against Iran, United Nations diplomats said.

The United Nations Security Council expressed concern at the findings of an investigation that accused Israel of gross negligence and recklessness during the war in Gaza, but indicated it planned no action against the Jewish state.

Russia and key Western nations remained at odds today over a United Nations resolution aimed at bringing peace to Georgia.

US AMBASSADOR Zalmay Khalilzad exchanged sharp remarks with the Russian ambassador yesterday, accusing Moscow of resisting attempts to make peace with Georgia after days of fighting have left hundreds of civilians dead.

Russia and Georgia tonight declared themselves ready to make peace in the battle over the breakaway province of South Ossetia.

Georgian troops today pulled out of the capital of the breakaway province of South Ossetia under massive Russian shelling.

Diplomats called for a second emergency session of the United Nations Security Council seeking to prevent an all-out war between Russia, Georgia and the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia.

Russia tried to block Kosovo's independence today during an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council, saying it is deeply concerned about the fate of Serbs in the province.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon received a report yesterday confirming a deadlock in negotiations between Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian leaders and Serbia over the future status of Kosovo.

Moscow opposes new UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations said today, warning that new punitive measures could increase tension and would probably be counterproductive.

The United Nations Security Council has voted to immediately close down its inspection bodies that played a pivotal role in monitoring Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction programmes under Saddam Hussein’s regime.

The UN nuclear agency’s confirmation that Iran has expanded its uranium enrichment program set the stage for difficult negotiations on new UN sanctions, with Britain, the United States and France again likely to seek tougher measures than Russia and China will accept.

Security Council members are optimistic that a key meeting next month on the Israel-Palestinian conflict will help revive the stalled peace process, Russia’s UN ambassador said.

Negotiations on an Iran sanctions resolution were postponed unexpectedly early today as Russia exploded at the US for raising the plight of a Belarusian opposition leader in the United Nations Security Council.

The US has objected to a proposed Russian statement expressing grave concern at Georgia’s recent provocative actions, including the arrest of four Russian officers for alleged spying and deploying troops in part of the breakaway province of Abkhazia.

Senior diplomats from around the world scrambled today to wrap up a UN Security Council resolution aimed at ending the month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, amid hopes that they could adopt a text by the end of the day.

The five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council have reached a deal on a resolution that would give Iran until the end of August to suspend uranium enrichment or face the threat of economic and diplomatic sanctions.

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council neared a deal today on a resolution that would give Iran until the end of August to suspend its uranium enrichment or face the threat of economic and diplomatic sanctions.

Russia and China remained at odds with the US, Britain and France today over a resolution on Iran, demanding that the measure focus on diplomacy and overseeing Tehran’s nuclear programme instead of threats of possible sanctions.