5 Russian soldiers killed in Chechnya

Militants have killed five Russian soldiers in the troubled North Caucasus region of Chechnya, officials say.
The gunfight broke out on Thursday night in forested mountains south-west of the region's capital Grozny, Russia's interior ministry said.
Russia's Itar-Tass news agency said six more soldiers were wounded in the skirmish against some 15 militants.
Unrest continues in Chechnya despite Russia saying last year normality had returned after a decade-long campaign.
The troops' platoon commander, the section commander and a sniper were among those killed, in one of the worst single incident death tolls suffered by Russian security forces in recent months.
Five insurgents were also killed in Thursday night's gunfight, according to pro-Moscow officials in Chechnya.
Russian forces have fought two wars against separatists in the mainly Muslim republic of Chechnya since 1994. The conflicts claimed more than 100,000 lives and left the region in ruins.
Although Chechnya has in recent years been more peaceful, sporadic violence continues, and President Dmitry Medvedev says violence in the North Caucasus remains Russia's biggest domestic problem.
In recent years the fighting has spread to nearby Dagestan and Ingushetia, where correspondents say a violent Islamist insurgency is growing.

Russia signs new military doctrine

MOSCOW -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has signed the country's new military doctrine regulating the stance the country takes in conflict situations.
The doctrine, which Russia is adopting through 2020, does not include a provision for pre-emptive nuclear strikes, as officials had previously suggested might have been present.
The document says Russia reserves the right to use nuclear force in response to a nuclear attack or one of equivalent magnitude.
Russia's conventional military forces are in dilapidated shape, increasing Moscow's dependence on its Cold War-era nuclear arsenals.
The expansion of Western military alliance NATO is named first in a list of main external threats to the country.

Nevsky Prospect - Russia breaks up protest with riot police

Russia breaks up protests with riot police

Russian police broke up anti-Kremlin protests in Moscow and St. Petersburg on Sunday, and detained more than 100 demonstrators, including several opposition leaders.
In Moscow, several hundred demonstrators gathered in a central square, defying a ban imposed by authorities.
They denounced the policies of President Dmitry Medvedev and his predecessor and mentor Vladimir Putin, who continues to wield broad powers as Russia’s powerful prime minister.
Protesters shouted “Shame!” and “Down with Putin!” as Moscow police in riot gear pushed them into buses. Police quickly dispersed a similar rally in St. Petersburg, detaining most of several dozen protesters who gathered on a downtown Nevsky Prospect. Some of the demonstrators were beaten with truncheons.