“A Russian ship believed to be carrying helicopters and missiles for Syria has been effectively stopped in its tracks off the coast of Scotland after its insurance was cancelled at the behest of the British government.

British security officials confirmed they had told Standard Club that providing insurance to the shipment was likely to be a breach of European Union sanctions against the Syrian regime.”

“Under the legislation, people could be fined for taking part in unsanctioned protests, or for violations during sanctioned ones.

“A military source quoted by Interfax said the new ICBM used a ‘new type of fuel that helps reduce the time required to operate the propellants in the active stage of the rocket’s trajectory’…Officials believe this makes it more difficult to detect and easier to manoeuvre.

‘This is one of the… measures being developed by Russia’s military and political leadership in response to the US deployment of a global anti-missile system,’ former strategic forces director Viktor Yesin told Interfax.”

“Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov also warned that talks between Moscow and Washington on the U.S.-led NATO missile defense plan in Europe are ‘close to a dead end.’ Moscow rejects Washington’s claim that the plan is solely to deal with any Iranian missile threat and has voiced fears it will eventually become powerful enough to undermine Russia’s nuclear deterrent.”

“At least 12 people have been reported killed in two explosions on the outskirts of Makhachkala, capital of Russia’s restive Dagestan region.

The attack began when police stopped a vehicle on the road to the city of Astrakhan to check the driver’s identity papers. The car exploded.

Less than 20 minutes later, a second blast went off, this time in a van packed with explosives. It caused further casualties.

Dagestan, a predominantly Muslim, multi-ethnic republic which borders Chechnya, has seen some of the worst militant violence in the North Caucasus in recent years.”

“Russian President Vladimir Putin says he’ll talk with Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Beijing.

The Putin-Ahmadinejad talks in Beijing come as the Russian president prepares to host the so-called “P5+1” group — the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany — this month in a round of negotiations on aimed at halting Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons program.

The Kremlin made the announcement Sunday through Yuri Ushakov, a former ambassador to the United States who advises the Russian leader on foreign policy, RIA Novosti reported.”

“Russian President Vladimir Putin is beginning a three-day visit to China, with energy and foreign policy expected to dominate the agenda.

Mr Putin said ahead of the trip that he wanted to further boost booming bilateral trade, which reached $84bn (£55bn) last year.

The Syrian crisis is also expected to be discussed during the talks.

Some 17 major business and trade deals between Russia and China are expected to be signed in Beijing, Mr Putin’s aides say.

But it remains unclear whether this will include a long-awaited gas agreement that would allow Moscow to supply some 70bn cubic metres of gas to its neighbour.”

“Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his government to continue pressing NATO to provide a firm pledge that U.S. missile interceptors planned for fielding in Europe will not be aimed at Russian ICBMs, RIA Novosti reported on Monday.

The Kremlin fears next-generation U.S. interceptors planned for deployment in Europe over the next eight years could be aimed at undermining the Russian strategic deterrent. The United States and NATO insist their envisioned ballistic missile shield is focused on protecting against a possible medium-range missile strike from the Middle East.”

“The judge ‘opened a Pandora’s box’ by issuing the first such ruling, he said, adding that he will appeal and plans to contest the law at the Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights…The controversy has also caused diplomatic tensions: the US State Department in February said it was deeply concerned the bill would restrict freedom of assembly for gays. American pop singer Madonna, who has a huge gay following, promised to raise the issue at her concert in the city in August.”

“Russia has said it will block a draft UN Security Council resolution calling for a transfer of power in Syria because it “leaves open the possibility of intervention

France says 10 of the 15 countries on the Security Council now support the text calling for President Bashar al-Assad to hand power to a deputy.”