MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia's lower house of parliament on Wednesday approved a move to withdraw from a landmark agreement with the United States aimed at reducing vast stockpiles of weapons-grade plutonium left over from thousands of Cold War nuclear warheads.

The Russian foreign ministry accused U.S. Senators of undermining the work of Moscow and Washington on the reunification of Ukrainian children with their families, an effort spearheaded by First Lady Melania Trump.

President Trump announced sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft, Russia’s two largest oil companies, while restrictions by the European Union included a ban on imports of Russian liquefied natural gas.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev was in the United States for meetings with Trump administration officials including special envoy Steve Witkoff, according to media reports on Friday.

Intelligence sharing is an intricate, delicate balance that hinges on trust—which was upturned for many of America's allies when President Donald Trump strode back into the White House at the start of the year.

The European Union on Thursday formally adopted sweeping sanctions targeting Russia's energy sector, a day after the United States announced punitive measures against the Kremlin's oil industry.

President Vladimir Putin's investment envoy outlined a plan for U.S.-Russia tunnel connecting Alaska and Siberia through Bering Strait within eight years at $8 billion cost.

LONDON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in London on Friday for talks with two dozen European leaders who have pledged military help to shield his country from future Russian aggression if a ceasefire stops the more than three-year war.

On Tuesday, Lavrov made it clear that Russia was not keen on agreeing to a ceasefire anytime soon, making it the “basic difference which is existing now between Russia and the United States,” Andrei Fedorov, former deputy foreign minister of Russia, told NBC News.