'It was an institutional conspiracy,' officials said of the World Anti-Doping Agency's report that over 1000 Russian athletes were involved in a plot that ran until last year.

A package that would include sanctions and covert action is being finalized.

A bear wearing a ridiculous costume attacked a young woman who was ironically filming a TV show about the dangers of wild animals.

Here are five unlikely black swan events that might catch everyone unawares in the coming year.

A black box has been found in the wreckage of a Russian military plane that crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday.

Stranded on a train track for 2 days, this terrified dog faced certain death. But thanks to her loving companion, Lucy survived the horrifying ordeal.

Russians agonise over how to remember the 1917 revolutions.

Donald Trump explicitly declared that he was ready for a new nuclear arms race with Russia and claimed that the United States would win it.

One might expect Russian President Vladimir Putin to take a victory lap after a lucky 2016. But Putin looks more tired than triumphant.

Both Turkish and Russian officials labelled the assassination of Andrey Karlov, Moscow's envoy to Turkey, in Ankara as a "terrorist" attack.

A look at the two main players in the killing of a Russian diplomat in Ankara, Turkey.

A top ally of Vladimir Putin claims secret services of a Nato country is "highly likely" to have been behind the assassination of ambassador Andrei Karlov.

Turkish police have detained the sister and mother of the gunman who shot dead the Russian ambassador at an art gallery in the Turkish capital.

Sweden's towns and villages have been ordered to prepare for a possible military attack.

The Russian leader is winning because the post-Cold War order he has railed against has been thrown into chaos.

Donald Trump has attacked his own nation's intelligence agencies amid a growing furore over Russia's influence on his election victory.

Legislators held in their hands a classified letter summing up a secret, new CIA assessment of Russia's role in the 2016 presidential election.

"Rasputin? Sure, just a few doors down, he's in the house with the smoking chimney."

A book has shed light on a Cold War skirmish in the skies, which could have sparked a major diplomatic crisis between the West and USSR.

New Zealand is leading a bid to get UN Security Council members to agree to resumption of a ceasefire in Syria.

GRAPHIC WARNING: A 10-year-old girl who chewed her hair when she was nervous has had surgery on her abdomen to remove a hair ball

Nato has accused Russia of stoking tensions in Europe with the deployment of anti-ship missiles to its westernmost Baltic region.

Vladimir Putin knows how to send a message. There is far more to Russia's military movements than meets the eye.

Prime Minister John Key is hoping to speak to Russia's President Vladimir Putin at the Apec summit in Lima today

A Russian presidential plane carrying journalists was chased across Swiss skies by fighter planes amid tensions between Putin and the rest of Europe.

Just a day after Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin vowed to fight terrorism together, Russia has unleashed a major offensive against the country.

Trump has talked about working more closely with Russia while China has threatened to cut the sale of big-brand US goods if Trump launches a trade war.

In a phone conversation, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have vowed to work together on 'strategic economic issues' and Syria.

Russian government officials had contacts with members of Donald Trump's campaign team, a senior Russian diplomat said today

US President-elect Donald Trump has promised everything. But what does he stand for? These are his key policies.