| December 2009 |
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Russia on Tuesday expressed concern over a surge in violence in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
The president of Turkmenistan ordered on Tuesday the allocation of $9.7 billion for the exploration of the country's South Eleten gas field, national television reported.
The Estonian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday it had decided to scrap the practice of supplying soldiers over 190 cms in height with additional food.
The League of Arab States has called for Switzerland to reconsider its decision on banning the construction of new minarets in the country.
Further sanctions against Iran have until recently not been an option, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Tuesday. 
Moscow is calling on Israel to scrap plans for further settlement construction in East Jerusalem, a spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
Russia and the United States have not halted talks on a new arms reduction treaty to replace a landmark deal that expired on December 4, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Tuesday.
Iranian authorities need to determine whether to retort to more repressive measures or to democratic methods in order to bring opposition protests back under control, a Russian expert said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will take part in an international conference on Afghanistan in London on January 28, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Tuesday.
RIAN News Service looks back at the main events of the outgoing year; below a month-by-month review of 2009 continues with October

Officials have reported 26 crewmembers are on board the British-flagged chemical tanker St. James Park seized earlier by Somali pirates northeast of Seychelles, according to the EU anti-piracy operations Atalanta website.
Somali pirates have seized a Greek cargo vessel northeast of Seychelles, a Greek Coastal Guard spokesman said on Tuesday.
Russia and Ukraine have settled their oil transit dispute that threatened supplies to the EU, agreeing to hike tariffs by 30% in 2010, an official for Ukraine's national energy company Naftogaz said on Tuesday.
Russia's government will gradually move to a floating ruble exchange rate, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.
Russia will continue developing offensive armaments to counter U.S. missile defenses, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told reporters on Tuesday.
Beijing is disappointed by London's reaction to the execution of a British drug smuggler, Chinese Foreign Ministry official spokeswoman Jiang Yu said on Tuesday.
China Investment Corporation is considering the purchase of shares in Russia's aluminum giant RusAl worth $300 million, the Zhongguo Wang news service said on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday he hopes Ukraine will meet its obligation to transit Russian oil to Europe despite a dispute on transit fees.
The first same-gender wedding in Latin America has been held in Argentina after municipal authorities issued a permit for a gay couple to get married despite the civil court's ban, local media said on Tuesday.



