The Ukrainian government said it wants to allay European concerns over natural gas supplies by serving as a regional energy hub. Conclusions reached during a roundtable discussion in Brussels last week said Kiev deserves to be lauded for its diversification and gas transit modernization efforts.

• May 7, 2013

Russia and Syria have discussed Israel's airstrike on a military complex near the Syrian capital.

• May 7, 2013

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton will meet with Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Said Jalili, in Istanbul on May 15, EU officials said.

• May 4, 2013

A well-known Central Asia expert from Russia's Oriental Studies Institute, Aleksandr Knyazev, has been banned from reentering Kyrgyzstan.

• May 4, 2013

A well-known Central Asia expert from Russia's Oriental Studies Institute, Aleksandr Knyazev, has been banned from reentering Kyrgyzstan.

• May 4, 2013

The United States should be just as concerned as other countries about a rise in Japanese nationalism, China's ambassador to Washington said, hinting that the United States should not offer Japan encouragement in its dispute with China over a group of islets.

• May 4, 2013

Moscow and Beijing reject UN plans to inspect camps in Jordan, citing possible bid for "foreign intervention" in Syria.

• May 3, 2013

From May 15, 2013 Ukraine will receive European gas via one more reverse route via Slovakia, Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Eduard Stavytsky has said.

• May 3, 2013