RUSSIA

New Jersey Nets owner Mikahil Prokhorov told reporters on Monday that he plans to challenge Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in the March presidential election.

People across the globe are increasingly concerned about unemployment according to a survey conducted by BBC World Service.

President Dmitry Medvedev ordered an investigation on Sunday into allegations of fraud in Russia's parliamentary election, one day after tens of thousands of protesters demanded it be annulled and re-run.

Here are five classic videos from the era when rock ruled the airwaves -- ranked from least to most favorite. Enjoy.

A private company will make a trial cargo run to the International Space Station in February, a key step in a new U.S. program to buy spaceflight services on a commercial basis, NASA said on Friday.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Russia on Saturday to demand an end to Vladimir Putin's rule and a rerun of a parliamentary election in the biggest opposition protests since he rose to power more than a decade ago.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's opponents hope to bring large numbers of people out onto the streets across Russia on Saturday for rallies that will test their ability to channel outrage over allegations of election fraud into a powerful protest movement.

Oh, irony, your sweet breath sends chills down my spine! Now Hilary Clinton called the Russian Election rigged and is urging the Occupy Kremlin crowd to speak up...Say nyet, she urges foreign protestors, to corruption and cronyism that infects the Putin government and its one percenters. But silence, near as I can tell, to cracking down on ours.

Oh, irony, your sweet breath sends chills down my spine! Now Hilary Clinton called the Russian Election rigged and is urging the Occupy Kremlin crowd to speak up...Say nyet, she urges foreign protestors, to corruption and cronyism that infects the Putin government and its one percenters. But silence, near as I can tell, to cracking down on ours.

Britain's luxury jewellers are opening outlets in China, where demand for jewellery is set to grow while appetite wanes in western markets.

The striker has also attracted attention from Italy and Russia.

McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) reported a bigger-than-expected rise in November sales at established restaurants across the board, led by big gains in Japan, China and a strong showing in its top revenue market of Europe.

McDonald's keeps beating the economy, unveiling strong identical-store November sales numbers in an earnings report Thursday.

The Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, accused the U.S. of encouraging protests over the country's recent Parliamentary elections. He said hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign funds were used to influence the vote.

With a number of protests targeting the ruling party in Russia and alleging them of election fraud, the past few months have been less than smooth for the Russians. Whatever the case may be, the F-word is probably the last thing one would expect to appear on Twitter, particularly in the feed of a top international leader, in this case President Medvedev.

It is, arguably, the saddest day in U.S. military history -- certainly in modern U.S. military history: the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Sunday, December 7, 1941 -- a shocking event in U.S. history that ushered the United States into World War II.

After 18 years of negotiations, the World Trade Organization is expected to approve Russia's bid for entry, during its Dec. 15-17 conference.

The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: Mitcham Industries, China Medical Technologies, ModusLink Global Solutions, Clearwire, and Carrizo Oil & Gas. The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Globe Specialty Metals, First Niagara Financial Group, Photronics, Vera Bradley, and Saia.

On Tuesday the Obama administration said it will use foreign aid to promote and protect LGBT rights around the world.

Irina Kristy, 74, who taught mathematics at two prestigious Boston colleges over the past two decades, now stands accused of dealing meth with her 29-year-old son, Grigory Genkin. The college professor, whom students describe as absent-minded and sweet, is charged with using the dangerous shake and bake method to deal meth near schools.

The growth rates of all four BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) economies have surpassed expectations in the decade since the term came into existence. However, India's record in terms of productivity, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and reform has been the most disappointing, according to Jim O'Neil, the Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, on Tuesday.