Moscow has expressed its annoyance to Tehran over an Iranian air defence exercise near a Russian-built nuclear plant, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said today.

Russia complained today about a “long delay” in the British response to a request to send investigators to London for inquiries into the poisoning of former spy Alexander Litvinenko.

The EU has today spoken out against the execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

President Vladimir Putin today condemned the North Korean nuclear weapons test, Russian news agencies reported, as Russia demanded North Korea rein in its nuclear programme.

Russia today condemned the Israeli attacks on Lebanon and in Gaza, and called for the release of Israeli hostages.

The world erupted in outrage today over a series of North Korean missile tests, with wary nations denouncing the launches as provocative, threatening sanctions and vowing to seek UN Security Council action.

Russia today asked the militant group Hamas to immediately release a captive Israeli soldier, news agencies reported.

Russia today said the Iranian nuclear crisis must be solved under the direction of the UN nuclear watchdog agency, and it called on Iran to co-operate more fully with the organisation.

Iran came under increasing international condemnation yesterday – including from allies Russia and China – after announcing it enriched uranium for the first time, but it insisted it will push ahead to dramatically expand the program that the United Nations had demanded it scrap.

IRAN intends to enrich uranium on a scale hundreds of times larger than its current level, the country's deputy nuclear chief said yesterday.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry today criticised Iran after its president said Tehran had successfully enriched uranium for the first time, a potential step toward developing nuclear weapons, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported.

The Russian Foreign Ministry today said it had received Slobodan Milosevic’s letter complaining of inadequate treatment and asking for help in getting permission to undergo treatment in Moscow.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is scheduled to discuss Tehran’s nuclear programme with European Union leaders in Vienna this week, ahead of talks with Iranian negotiators in Moscow.

Russia today renewed its call for Iran to resume its moratorium on nuclear activities.