Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday granted fast-track citizenship to France's Gerard Depardieu after the movie star complained about the French Socialist government's proposed 75 percent tax on the rich.
In August, a group of Russian environmentalists were walking along a beach on the Black Sea, just outside the walls surrounding a majestic palace that has been linked to President Vladimir Putin.
Russia, one of the few powers to maintain links with the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad, has sent an invitation for talks to the head of the opposition Syria National Coalition.
A Syrian government delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Muqdad on Thursday began talks at the Russian foreign ministry on the crisis in the country.
Russia's upper house of parliament was due Wednesday to vote for a bill barring Americans from adopting the country's children, in retaliation for a new piece of human rights legislation in the US.
A bitter cold snap in Russia has claimed 123 lives in the past 10 days, an official said Tuesday, with the early freeze testing authorities in a country used to notoriously tough winters.
Russia said on Monday it would be "political suicide" for the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad if it used chemical weapons against the armed opposition.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks in New Delhi on Monday to tighten defence ties and boost trade with India, a traditional ally and one of Russia's top clients for arms sales.
Russian investigators on Monday opened a third criminal case against an opposition leader who poses one of the main challenges to President Vladimir Putin in opinion polls.