Putin turned 60 the official retirement age in the country he has dominated for the past 12 years, as critics snickered that his image of an energetic, young macho leader no longer corresponds with his age.
The defeat in Georgia's parliamentary polls of Russia's bitter foe President Mikhail Saakashvili may remove some poison from venomous bilateral relations, but Moscow should not expect major policy changes from Tbilisi.
A Russian court on Monday hears the appeal of jailed punk rockers Pussy Riot against a two-year prison camp sentence for performing an anti-Kremlin song in a cathedral.
A court in Russia's region of Chechnya has banned the anti-Islamic film that sparked deadly protests across the Muslim world, a ruling that in theory should be observed across Russia.
Five orphans from a children's home and two adults, killed when a drunken driver slammed into them at a Moscow bus stop, had just collected a handicrafts prize for disabled children.
The United States has asked Russia for more time to shutter the activities of USAID, after Moscow gave it less than three weeks to close down two-decade old programs.
Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, on a landmark visit to the United States, called Thursday for the release of jailed members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot.
Belarus was bailed out of last year's dire economic crisis by its giant neighbour Russia but as the ex-Soviet state heads to parliamentary polls the economy is once again flirting with disaster.
Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich enjoyed "privileged access" to Russian President Vladimir Putin but held no significant influence over him.
Yoko Ono, the artist and widow of Beatles musician and songwriter John Lennon, will bestow a peace award in the couple's name to Pussy Riot, the Russian punk rockers.