Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Russia never asked to be allowed back into the Group of Eight (G8) and considers the Group of Twenty (G20) as the most promising format for the future.

"We never asked to be allowed back," Lavrov said on Russia's Channel One, Interfax reports. He said that when Western partners decided that Russia would be excluded from the summit and that they would return to the G7 format, Moscow accepted "their decision."

"We have been working well in …

During the TV program News on Saturday with Sergey Brilev, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he expects US President Donald Trump to fulfill his campaign promise regarding the improvement of Russian-American relations, Interfax reports.

“One of the [campaign] promises was to improve Russian-American relations,” Putin stated. “I hope that it will also happen. We are ready for this. The ball, I think, is on the American side, it is in their court.”

Putin stressed: “We are ready for the …

The US Air Force dispatched four Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker tankers to the airport near Lviv to participate in the exercises, the US Air Force website in Europe and Africa reports.

In addition to the aircraft, about 150 aircrew and ground support personnel arrived in Ukraine. "The KC-135 deployment to Ukraine is a part of the US strategy to defend European Allies, enhance security in Eastern Europe and increase the level of military understanding between Allies and partners," the statement …

The Russian Foreign Ministry (MFA) will demand the withdrawal of forces from Stanytsia Luhanska and the documentation of the Steinmeier formula at a meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Normandy Four on June 11.

"Without implementing the process in Stanytsia Luhanska, Ukrainian security forces are significantly strengthening their positions near the settlements of Zolote and Petrivske, from which them and the Donbas militia withdrew troops and equipment in the autumn of 2016," stated the …

On Saturday, Dmitry Peskov stated that in March, Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump discussed the possibility of meeting, and Vienna was mentioned as a prospective location.

Peskov, who is accompanying Putin in the regional summit in Qingdao, China, noted that the decision for both meeting and location has not yet been decided.

  According to the Kremlin’s press secretary, there have been no specific arrangements or negotiations made yet.

Russian presidential aide …

Ukraine’s Naftogaz Board of Directors has awarded Andriy Kobolyev, Chairman of the Board, and Yuriy Vitrenko, Commercial Director, a combined total of $13.9 million from the award earned in the company’s legal victory over Gazprom in the Stockholm Arbitration Court, reported the newspaper Dzerkalo Tyzhnia, citing its own sources.

In total, the Supervisory Board decided to award employees nearly $37 million. This amount will be distributed among 41 employees who "directly or indirectly made a …

Turkish Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli has attended talks with US Defense Secretary James Mattis in Brussels, during which he discussed the disagreement surrounding the purchase of S-400 systems  from Russia.

According to the minister, Turkey’s deal with Russia on the S-400 anti-air missile systems does not constitute a threat to NATO, but the Alliance really does have causes for concern.

Canikli explained that the S-400s have extremely powerful radars, which could transmit information …

On Saturday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone.

Poroshenko’s website reported that the presidents discussed the release of the Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia and the separatist-held territories.

“The head of the Ukrainian state drew attention to the Ukrainians’ hunger strike, and expressed concern regarding the deterioration of their health. An agreement was reached that human rights commissioners from both countries would …