Russia's inflation has reached 9.5% this year, according to new weekly data showing that the consumer price index rose by 0.33% in the week leading up to Dec. 23, the statistical agency Rosstat reported on Wednesday.

Russia's economy will be under major strain in 2025, economists told BI. One said stagnation was similar to the USSR at the start of the 1980s.

Kharkiv is under massive rocket fire" with "ballistic missiles heading towards the city" mayor Igor Terekhov warned.

Ukrainian officials say Russia has launched a massive missile barrage targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

Pope Francis has called for negotiations between Ukraine and Russia to end the war triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In his traditional Christmas Day address, the Pope said "boldness [was] needed to open the door" to dialogue "in order to achieve a just and lasting peace" between the two sides.

A Russian court case involving a compensation claim against Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) will continue in the second half of January, judicial authorities and the lender said on Wednesday.

Gene Spector faced espionage charges in August 2023, filed by a Moscow court, though the specifics of the allegations remain undisclosed.

Russia is ready to continue gas exports to Europe through several routes just as a contract to transit the fuel via Ukraine is expected to end this year, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said.

Pope Francis appealed for weapons to be laid down in global conflicts and for the reconciliation between enemies in a Christmas Day message.

MOSCOW: A Russian cargo ship that ran into trouble on Monday (Dec 23) in the Mediterranean Sea and later sank was rocked by a series of three explosions in "an act of terrorism," state news agency RIA cited the vessel's owner as saying on Wednesday.

Russia’s economy is bracing for a massive blow as Ukraine’s gas transit deal is set to expire on December 31st. President Zelenskyy has vowed not to renew the agreement unless Russia stops profiting from the pipeline while waging war on Ukraine.