Russia and Ukraine are set to hold their first direct peace talks in three years, but hopes for a breakthrough are still dim after Russian President Vladimir Putin spurned an offer by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to meet face-to-face in Turkey.

A dozen leaders from Europe and Canada are in Ukraine to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion and discuss support with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Federal workers all over the country have responded with anger and confusion Friday toward President Donald Trump's aggressive effort to shrink the size of the federal workforce.

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says his government will take the “strongest action possible” if Russia has harmed an Australian who was taken prisoner while fighting for Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has clashed indirectly with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at an annual security meeting, accusing the West of risking escalation to the war over Ukraine but walking out before Blinken and other speakers could respond.

Russia’s top diplomat met his North Korean counterpart for talks amid reports that Pyongyang has sent thousands of troops to Russia to support its military in the war in Ukraine.

The French foreign ministry says it has summoned Russia’s ambassador over the deaths of two French nationals working for nongovernmental organizations in Ukraine.

Shelling in the center of the Russian border city of Belgorod killed at least 21 people, including three children, local officials have reported.

Russia has accused Ukraine’s Western allies of helping plan and conduct last week’s missile strike on the Black Sea Fleet’s headquarters in Crimea.

Russia unleashed a missile and drone barrage across parts of Ukraine that officials in Kyiv say killed six people, as Moscow followed through on its promise to retaliate for a Ukrainian drone attack on a Russian tanker in the Black Sea near Crimea late Friday.

Moscow has promised retaliation after Ukrainian drones hit a Russian tanker in the Black Sea near Crimea, the second sea attack involving drones in one day.

Russia has angrily rejected the Moldovan president’s claim about an alleged plot by Moscow to overthrow her government, accusing Moldova’s authorities of trying to distract public attention from the country's own domestic problems.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry is warning that if the U.S. delivers sophisticated air defense systems to Ukraine, those systems and any crews that accompany them would be a “legitimate target” for the Russian military.

Russia's top diplomat says he’s open to a call with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to discuss a possible prisoner swap involving American basketball star Brittney Griner.

The spokesperson for Russia’s Foreign Ministry says the United States has shown disrespect for Russian law by characterizing basketball star Brittney Griner’s jailing on drug charges as “wrongful detention.”.

The Biden administration is warning that Russia might seek to use chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine as the White House rejected Russian claims of illegal chemical weapons development in the country it has invaded.

Finland and Sweden have brushed off warnings from neighboring Russia that their possible joining NATO would trigger “serious military-political consequences” from Moscow.

Russia has warned that a number of U.S. diplomats will have to leave Russia before the end of next month, the latest salvo in a diplomatic tug-of-war between Moscow and Washington.

The Russian Foreign Ministry says it could renew a visa for a BBC journalist to let her resume work in Moscow if British authorities give a visa to a Russian journalist.

Russia has refused to renew a visa for a BBC journalist in Moscow — an effective expulsion amid simmering tensions with Britain.

The Czech Foreign Ministry has summoned Russia’s ambassador to Prague to request full compensation for damages from a huge ammunition depot explosion allegedly caused by Russian spies.

The Czech Republic has ordered 63 more Russian diplomats to leave the country.

(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)BELGRADE A social media post by Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman apparently ridiculing Serbias president after he signed a U.S.-sponsored agreement between Serbia and Kosovo has triggered a rare spat between traditional allies Moscow and Belgrade. Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova posted a photo showing Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic sitting across from U.S. President Donald Trump at his Oval Office in Washington. Zakkharova mocked Vucic in a comment on the Facebook post, saying he was invited to the White House to be interrogated. This president did not say a single bad word against Russia, not even in that place (the White House.) Although formally seeking membership in the European Union, Serbia under Vucic has been forging close political, economic and military ties with Russia and China.

MOSCOW Russia's Foreign Ministry said Thursday that Moscow has never delivered weapons to the Taliban movement in Afghanistan, countering U.S. allegations. Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova rejected the claim by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said Wednesday that he had repeatedly raised the issue during his talks with the Russians. Russia has only supplied weapons to the legitimate government of Afghanistan, which is well known, Zakharova said at a briefing. Zakharova didn't comment Thursday on reports that Moscow offered bounties for killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan, but other Russian officials have denounced them as fake. Earlier this week, Zamir Kabulov, a top Russian diplomat who serves as Russian President Vladimir Putins representative on Afghanistan, described the bounty allegations as a reflection of the U.S. political infighting, and charged that they could have been spread by forces that dont want to leave Afghanistan and are willing to justify their failure.

MOSCOW Russia's Foreign Ministry on Thursday welcomed President Donald Trumps reported plan to withdraw more than a quarter of U.S. troops from Germany, saying it would help bolster security in Europe. Trump has reportedly signed off on a plan to cut the number of troops stationed in Germany from 34,500 to no more than 25,000. German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer told reporters earlier this week that Berlin hadnt yet been informed of any U.S. troops pullout. Moscow has described the deployment of NATO forces near Russian borders as a top security threat. Zakharova strongly warned Washington against redeploying some of the troops from Germany to Poland, saying it would further exacerbate tensions and undermine prospects of dialogue between Russia and NATO.