Estonia marked its independence day with a military parade featuring NATO hardware and troops on its eastern border with Russia amid heightened east-west tensions over Ukraine.
Russia voiced confidence that world powers and Iran would be able to reach a comprehensive accord over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme by a June 30 final deadline.
French President vowed to introduce tougher penalties for "racist, anti-Semitic or homophobic" remarks in the wake of last month's militant attacks in Paris.
Despite pressure from sanctions and a high-level Franco-German mediation, the conflict in east Ukraine shows little sign of ending, Lithuania's foreign minister said.
The International Monetary Fund on Monday approved a 1.2 billion euro ($1.4 billion) credit line for Serbia to support its structural and economic reforms.
WBA Super, IBO and WBC Interim middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin, 32, gave the final press conference before the fight against Martin Murray, 32, in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
Chocolate lovers take heart: a steamy greenhouse near London is helping to ensure that cocoa crops globally remain disease-free and bountiful to cope with the growing appetite.
Poland's "Ida," about a young nun who discovers a dark family secret dating back to the years of the Nazi occupation, won the best foreign language movie Oscar.
Moody's cut Russia's debt rating by one notch into 'junk' territory, saying the Ukraine crisis and the fall in oil prices and the ruble will further undermine Russia's economy.
Thousands of Ukrainians gathered for an emotional ceremony on Kiev's Independence Square to mark one year since scores of demonstrators were gunned down.