Russia has filed a $22.5 billion lawsuit against the Bank of New York through its Federal Customs Service last Thursday. The lawsuit alleges that the Bank of New York participated in a money laundering scheme that eventually caused the Russian Federation 22.5 billion dollars of loss.

Part of the down side of the economic boom that is fueling major development in the Russian capital is the loss of many historic building in Moscow. Not only are the buildings historic, but they also are architecturally significant.

The recent rise in tension between the United States and Russia is causing potential delays for American couples looking to adapt Russian babies. There are currently no U.S. adoption agencies open in Russia and officials in Moscow aren’t talking about how long it may be for the accreditation process to complete.

The Russian oil company Rosneft has just become the country’s largest by its purchase of the Yukos oil unit, Tomskneft on Thursday. A Rosneft subsidiary, Neft-Aktiv,В won a bidding war against a mystery bidder that was though to be related to Gazprom by submitting a $6.8 billion bid which was only $350 over the starting price. [...]

The famed Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich died in Moscow on Friday, just one month after celebrating his 80th birthday. He was also known as a conductor and human rights crusader. It was not immediate known what the cause of death was. The musician had been getting treatment at the country’s lading cancer clinic over the [...]