EU countries on Thursday formally adopted a 19th package of sanctions against Russia for its war against Ukraine that includes a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas imports.

Russian state news agency Izvestia has reported two explosions at an "enterprise" in the city last night and that 12 people were killed. As yet the cause of the blast is unconfirmed. The footage we've seen indicates the explosions occurred at the munitions plant, which is located near to the city of Chelyabinsk in the Urals region.

The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies found Russia’s growth has slumped due to sky-high interest rates.

The European Union on Thursday formally adopted sweeping sanctions targeting Russia's energy sector, a day after the United States announced punitive measures against the Kremlin's oil industry.

But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday dismissed the idea of halting the conflict at the current contact line. Moscow was only interested in "long-term, sustainable peace", Lavrov said, implying that freezing the front line would only amount to a temporary ceasefire.

Russia secretly used front companies to buy Western technology and erect a surveillance net in the Arctic where its submarines operate, an investigation shows.

A massive Russian attack pummeled Ukraine’s energy and port infrastructure on Oct. 22 as Moscow shows no sign of slowing down its plan to freeze out Ukrainians as winter draws closer. Emergency power outages were implemented in most regions of the country throughout the day as energy workers battled to repair damaged infrastructure,

Residents of Russia's Belgorod region say blackouts, air-raid sirens and the sound of gunfire aimed at incoming Ukrainian drones are becoming increasingly common, as Kyiv retaliates against repeated bombardments of its cities with cross-border strikes of its own.