The authorities in Kiev lay blame for the heaviest fighting in nearly a year on the withdrawal of Russian officers who had acted as mediators.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/20/world/europe/ukraine-war-russia.html
Moscow is seeking to block U.S. trials of cybercriminals by trying to extradite them to Russia for crimes allegedly committed years before.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/20/world/europe/russia-extradition-levashov.html?_r=0
After the deal with OPEC, Russia’s energy minister is now as closely watched as his Saudi counterpart
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-12-20/putin-s-mr-opec-becomes-an-oil-market-player
https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/donbass-realii/28929756.html
http://www.dsnews.ua/politics/amerikantsy-napugali-zachem-putinu-predstaviteli-ldnr--20122017220000
https://politeka.net/reading/555901-novaya-igra-putina-zachem-vyvel-rossijskih-ofitserov-s-donbassa/
https://www.gazeta.ru/politics/2017/12/19_a_11501042.shtml
https://www.gazeta.ru/army/2017/12/20/11501570.shtml