Russia on Wednesday reacted angrily to the EU economic sanctions, threatening to increase energy prices.

The European Union blacklists two of Vladimir Putin’s closest “cronies” and freezes assets of the Russian weapons company that made missiles used to shoot down the doomed Malaysian Airlines flight.

The U.S. Is Seeking Support From China, South Korea, Singapore and Japan.

The US on Tuesday (29 July) announced a widening of its own Russia sanctions to match the EU's economic sanctions adopted just a few hours previously.

Representatives from all parties said to be meeting in Cairo in fresh attempt at agreeing a ceasefire after heaviest Israeli attack on Gaza yet.

Western policy makers have shifted from asset freezes and travel bans to moves to exclude Russia's biggest businesses from international capital markets.

The leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and the US held a conference call on Monday (28 July) and agreed to impose economic sanctions on Russia as it continues to support the war in eastern Ukraine.

An armoured British battle group of 1350 troops and 350 vehicles will join Nato military exercises in Poland to reassure Eastern alliance members.

In an escalation of tensions, Obama administration accuses Russia of conducting tests in violation of a 1987 nuclear missile treaty.

"NATO should return to effectively ensuring the possibility of collective defence for its members," the president said, remarking that it was essential to strengthen NATO's eastern border.

The latest EU blacklist on Russia sheds light on the command structures and composition of Vladimir Putin’s east Ukraine forces.

Economic sanctions causing divisions in Russia despite Vladimir Putin's attempts to show world a united front, according to German intelligence reports.

Chuck Hagel sent a letter to congressional leadership requesting $225 million in additional US funding to accelerate production of Iron Dome to ensure Israel will have adequate stockpiles to protect itself.

China's defense ministry has revealed that the People's Liberation Army test-fired a new type of air defense missile with similar capability to the American Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system on July 23.

EU ambassadors in a marathon meeting added 15 more individuals, nine companies and nine institutions from Russia and east Ukraine to an existing blacklist of 72 individuals and two firms linked to the annexation of Crimea.

State Department warn the Kremlin may be furthering arming separtists as they say they have evidence Russia is firing artillery into Ukraine.

Putin could seize assets of British oil companies, Russian diplomat warns, as war of words over sanctions intensifies.

EU ambassadors meeting in Brussels at 9.30 local time on Thursday (24 July) are set to discuss a raft of new sanctions on Russia, as Moscow has shown no signs of wanting to meet an EU ultimatum over Ukraine.

Now that the U.S.-Russia relationship has broken down, Moscow could throw a wrench into the teetering nuclear negotiations with Iran.

Two Fighter Jets Shot Down Over Separatist Territory as Kiev Presses Offensive.

The French government still has not chosen its official candidate to become Commissioner.

EU foreign ministers yesterday unanimously agreed to “accelerate the preparation” for targeted measures (asset freezes and travel bans) on certain Russian individuals and entities.

Allies of Vladimir Putin are understood to be moving assets after British demands to punish the Russian president’s 'cronies' in the wake of the Malaysia Airlines disaster in Ukraine.

EU foreign ministers on Tuesday (22 July) gave Russia a few days to stop arming Ukrainian rebels, believed responsible for the downing of the Malaysia Airlines plane, or face sanctions on its financial, high-tech, and defence industries.

In his strongest intervention since the Malaysia Airlines disaster, which killed 298 people, the Prime Minister compares Russia’s aggression to that of Nazi Germany.

Russia's billionaires are "increasingly frantic" that the Kremlin's actions over Ukraine could prompt punitive measures which would cripple them financially - but no one wants to say so publicly.

The Obama administration expanded its case Sunday accusing Ukrainian separatists and Russian forces of working hand in hand to acquire and operate a missile battery believed to have shot down a Malaysia Airlines jetliner.

As David Cameron tells Vladimir Putin he is partially responsible for MH17 catastrophe, relatives of victims describe treatment of their loved-ones' bodies as 'horrific'.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday (18 July) said Russia must acknowledge its share of responsibility in the Ukraine plane disaster.

Moscow-backed rebels accused of removing some of the corpses, taking their possessions and destroying evidence.

Twenty killed in Saturday morning airstrikes on Gaza Strip as Israel prepares to step up ground offensiveю

Members of Duma have proposed as a response to the expansion of US sanctions against Russia to unilaterally suspend the(New START) and the agreement on the Afghan transit.

Jaime Caruana says investors are ignoring prospect of higher interest rates in the hunt for returns.

Israel attempts first boots-on-the ground operation as 22 members of same family killed in air strike.

Commandos strike rocket launch sites as Palestinian death toll rises to 165.

Portugal’s regulator suspends trading of Banco Espirito Santo after its share price crashes 17pc, reviving worries about the health of Europe’s banks.

Iskander-E [NATO reporting name: SS-26 Stone] is ready for deliveries to other countries, as well as S-400 Triumf [NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler], but the state authorities need to approve it first.

The Secretary General said that current global threats require a global network to deal with them effectively.

Moscow says that Ms Savchenko entered Russia with no documents as a refugee, while Kiev says that she was kidnapped.

Gaza suffered one of its bloodiest days in recent years, with at least 22 people, including nine children and six women, killed in airstrikes in day two of Israel's Operation Protective Edge.

At the Wales Summit, NATO will reaffirm its commitment to collective defence and take further steps to ensure that the Alliance is prepared to face any threat, with the right resources, capabilities and training.

Officials familiar with the case confirm role of Central Intelligence Agency in latest spy scandal to damage relations between Washington and Berlin.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen called on America and Europe to renew their commitment to shared security in light of the new threats the world is facing, in a speech delivered at the Atlantic Council of the United States in Washington.

Israeli army launch offensive dubbed 'Operation Protective Edge' against targets in Gaza after wave of rocket attacks.

Ukraine neared a final showdown with pro-Russia rebels, after Kiev forced insurgents to retreat to the last major cities they control and Moscow showed no signs of intervening to help them.

The Israeli prime minister's close associates fear he could be brought down as Avigdor Lieberman, his foreign minister, prepares to end a formal pact.

Budapest Declaration of the Visegrбd Group Heads of Government on the New Opening in V4 Defence Cooperation.

International Monetary Fund chief warns "lacklustre" investment could lead to slower growth.

Deadliest day since 2012 for Hamas after Israeli military reports direct hits on terror sites in response to recent rocket attacks against southern Israel.

Four NATO ships entered the Black Sea in a regularly scheduled deployment to enhance NATO solidarity and readiness in the region.

Rebel fighters abandoned their most important stronghold in the Donetsk region, according to reports in local media.

A new chapter has begun for the Royal Navy, says Admiral Sir George Zambellas, First Sea Lord, as Queen officially names 65,000 ton HMS Queen Elizabeth.

France has sunk into an economic malaise and could take years to climb back out.

During a visit by Rasmussen in Berlin, Merkel reacted with caution to calls for permanent deployment of allied troops in Eastern European countries, amid fears of Russian retaliation in several member states.

Last month I wrote to NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, urging a plan by which the alliance would collectively purchase or lease the warships as a common naval asset.

Italy's prime minister has urged Britain to stay in the European Union - as Nigel Farage promises that an exit is imminent.

Former French president says the scandals surrounding him are only political and that there is a 'desire to humiliate' him.

The re-election of Schulz via a secret ballot following a backroom stitch-up between the main centre-right and centre-left blocks.

Europe needs to shift its focus from open borders to "protection", while avoiding interference in areas where national governments can better act alone, EU Council chief Herman Van Rompuy has said.

Poland on Monday narrowed the field for a lucrative missile-defence contract, short-listing bids from Raytheon and a French-led consortium.

George Soros told an audience in Brussels' Fine Arts Museum that the EU is a model of international governance which needs to support "new Ukraine" in its struggle against Putin's "new Russia".

Bulgaria, already grappling with a severe political crisis, is now trying to deal with what the government has called an organised attempt to destabilise its financial system.

The City of London will be in the front-line of economic sanctions against Russia after the European Union pulled back from measures that would hit a French defence deal or harm Germany's engineering exports.

The Coalition has no foreign policy and no solutions to offer in the growing chaos of a world without moral leadership.

Speech by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen at the Atlantic Council of the United States in Washington.

Rory Stewart calls for more investment as the Defence Secretary says he 'hopes' to keep defence spend at 'around' the current 2 per cent commitment beyond 2015.

EU ambassadors on Tuesday (29 July) approved economic sanctions on Russia which are expected to enter into force on Friday.

Britain and its NATO allies will be asked to transform a military base in eastern Europe to help the alliance respond faster to any threat posed by Russia.

Combined sanctions by the US, Europe, Japan and the OECD bloc pit a $35 trillion colossus against a $2 trillion midget.

The exact cause of the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 remains uncertain, but seems most likely to be the result of a firing of either the SA-11 (Gadfly 1979) or SA-17 "Buk Mk. 2" missile (Grizzly 2007).

But the United States has the power to impose crippling unilateral sanctions on Russia, especially through the banking system. If the Ukrainian government can act without the permission of France and Germany, so can the United States.

Senators slammed State, Defense, and Treasury department officials Wednesday for not acting on U.S. threats to further sanction Russia if Moscow didn't help calm the crisis in Ukraine and stem the flow of arms across its border.

“I am particularly grateful for the support the United States has provided in response to Russia’s unacceptable actions in Ukraine,” the Secretary General said.

Most of the EU’s top arms exporters have imposed a quiet ban on sales to Russia, but Ukraine’s military embargo is likely to have a bigger impact on the crisis.

Petro Poroshenko said today (1 July) government forces would renew offensive operations against rebels and "free our lands", hours after a ceasefire to allow for peace talks with the pro-Russian separatists had expired.