Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the United States had given Moscow its official blessing to appoint Alexander Darchiyev as its new ambassador to Washington. The American side had handed over an official note green-lighting Darchiyev's appointment during talks with Russia in Istanbul on Thursday,

Russia said on Friday it was sending a new ambassador to Washington, the latest sign of a thaw between the two countries as they try to mend their damaged relations and seek an end to the war in Ukraine.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has announced that Russia received agrément for the appointment of Alexander Darchiyev as ambassador to the United States. Source: Russian Foreign Ministry's website, as reported by European Pravda Details: The statement says that during consultations between Russian and US delegations on 27 February in Istanbul,

Two Russian tourists died while scuba diving, with one believed to have drowned and the other attacked by sharks, officials said.

Two Russian divers were found dead, one in the jaws of a shark, after a strong current separated them from their group in a popular Philippine scuba spot, a coast guard official said Friday. Four Russian men aged 18 to 57 were diving Thursday afternoon near the resort area of Batangas on the main island of Luzon when they and their dive master were pulled apart by the current,