Kazakhstan (Asia)

A Russian Soyuz spacecraft carrying a Russian, a Belarusian and an American en route to the International Space Station (ISS) was launched on Saturday from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan

U.S. astronaut Rubio, who broke the record for the longest continuous space flight by an American, and two Russian cosmonauts landed in the steppe of Kazakhstan after more than a year on the ISS.

Kazakhstan will hold a referendum to decide whether to build its first nuclear power plant, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said on Friday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that despite difficulties, he felt Azerbaijan and Armenia were moving towards a settlement.

The UK published plans to ban imports of Russian diamonds, copper, aluminium, and nickel on Friday and announced new sanctions against Russia.