The head of Syria's al Qaeda branch said militants will attack the West in retaliation for U.S.-led air strikes in Syria and Iraq, and President Barack Obama acknowledged U.S. intelligence had underestimated the rise of Islamic State fighters.

• September 29, 2014

NATO has observed a significant withdrawal of Russian forces from inside Ukraine, but many Russian troops remain stationed nearby, an alliance military spokesman said on Wednesday.

• September 24, 2014

Russia will increase its Black Sea fleet with more than 80 new warships by 2020 and will complete a second naval base for the fleet near the city of Novorossiysk by 2016, its commander said on Tuesday.

• September 23, 2014

Russia criticized the U.S.-led airstrikes against Islamic State's positions in Syria on Tuesday, saying they should have been agreed with its ally Damascus and would fuel tension in the region.

• September 23, 2014

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed with his Security Council on Monday potential cooperation with other countries on fighting against Islamic State, Russian news agencies cited the Kremlin's spokesman as saying.

• September 22, 2014

Ukrainian government forces prepared on Monday to withdraw artillery and heavy armoured vehicles within a proposed 30-km (19-mile) buffer zone after detecting a lessening of fire from Russian-backed separatists, a military spokesman said.

• September 22, 2014

Islamic State urged its followers on Monday to attack citizens of the United States, France and other countries which have joined a coalition to destroy the ultra-radical group.

• September 22, 2014

The Ukrainian city of Donetsk was rocked by blasts on Saturday, even as government forces and pro-Russian separatists prepared to create a buffer zone to separate the warring sides.

• September 20, 2014