The hand of history lies heavily on the beaches of Normandy, where next week the leaders of the World War II allies will pay tribute.

China has signed a long-awaited deal for Russian natural gas, giving China a new energy source and Russia a diplomatic boost.

Prince Charles is facing calls to ‘abdicate’ from a British Labour MP after he reportedly compared Vladimir Putin to Adolf Hitler in relation to his actions in Ukraine.

Prince Charles has compared Vladimir Putin to Adolf Hitler over Russia's actions in Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin made a triumphant visit to Crimea yesterday, as one of the bloodiest days of the conflict in eastern Ukraine pushed the country further toward civil war.

They left in groups of threes and fours, soaked in the pouring rain and punching the air victoriously.

The mayor of Ukraine's second-largest city was fighting for his life after a daylight assassination attempt as the country's east is dragged toward chaos.

I'm no apologist for Russia but it's long overdue for a more balanced perspective on events and an end to the constant unfair abuse, writes Bob Jones.

Heavily armed pro-Russian gunmen last night seized another town in east Ukraine, storming the town hall in Kostyantynivka and setting up barricades.

A pregnant journalist is recovering in hospital today after a pro-Kremlin political leader in Russia told two male aides to 'violently rape' her at a press conference.

Defeating grim expectations of a failure, talks on the Ukrainian crisis have led to a deal aimed at hauling the region back from the brink.

Jews have reportedly been told to "register" with pro-Russian forces in the east Ukrainian city of Donetsk, in a move condemned by the US as "grotesque and beyond unacceptable".

Ukraine's armed forces and government suffered a public humiliation yesterday after pro-Russian separatists seized six of their armoured personnel vehicles and paraded them through the streets.

A prolonged and increasingly vicious confrontation in eastern Ukraine turned into armed conflict yesterday.

An Auckland man who went to the other end of the earth to find his biological parents in Russia has chanced upon another person from the same orphanage living in New Zealand.

Poland has asked Nato to station 10,000 troops on its territory as a visible demonstration of the alliance's resolve to defend all its members after Russia's seizure of Crimea.

Russian and American officials were preparing for talks in Paris to address the crisis in Ukraine.

After a rush of emergency meetings to frame its strategy, the West is now scrutinising the impact of a first volley of sanctions against Russia but doubts persist whether Europe will swiftly follow the United States in hiking up the pressure.

Russian forces have completed their takeover of the Ukrainian navy's assets in Crimea with the storming of the minesweeper Cherkessy.

Concern is growing that Western pressure, including a suspension from the G8, has failed to dent Russian President Vladimir Putins military ambitions.

Jolted by a sense that history has changed course, Western leaders meet this week to ponder a strategy for neutralising the threat of virulent Russian nationalism.

Russian armour smashed into a base of Ukrainian troops yesterday in the first serious military action in the confrontation over Crimea.

New Zealand's modest travel sanctions over Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine are largely symbolic, says Foreign Minister Murray McCully.