Vatican: Papal trip to Moscow a possibility due to improved relations with Russian Orthodox

August 21st, 2009 Doctors remove cast from pope's broken wristVATICAN CITY — Doctors on Friday removed Pope Benedict XVI's cast five weeks after he broke his right wrist in a fall and said they were pleased with how the fracture has healed. The cast was taken off and an X-ray done at the clinic of the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, a hill town southeast of Rome.

July 28th, 2009 Reputed Russian 'godfather' wounded in MoscowMOSCOW — Moscow police say a gunman has wounded Vyacheslav Ivankov, whom U.S. prosecutors have called a godfather of Russian organized crime.

July 27th, 2009 Russian Patriarch calls for unity with UkraineKIEV, Ukraine — The leader of the Russian Orthodox Church led solemn prayers in Kiev on Monday, the first day of 10-day visit aimed at reasserting Moscow's dominance over church leaders in Ukraine. Patriarch Kirill led the service on the sacred St.

July 27th, 2009 Russian Patriarch calls for Ukraine church unityKIEV, Ukraine — The patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church has arrived in Kiev for a 10-day visit aimed at reasserting Moscow's dominance over the church's leaders in Ukraine. Patriarch Kirill said Monday he would pray for the two nations' "unbreakable spiritual and church unity." The statement was a reference to Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko's efforts to establish an independent Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

July 27th, 2009 Patriarch Kirill: No independent church in UkraineKIEV, Ukraine — The head of the Russian Orthodox Church rejected calls from Ukraine's president to create a local Orthodox church that would be independent from Moscow, saying he firmly supports the status quo. Patriarch Kirill arrived in Ukraine for a prolonged visit, which observers say is aimed at reasserting Moscow's religious and political influence over this predominantly Orthodox nation of 46 million, which is trying to integrate with the West.

July 10th, 2009 Obama meets with Pope Benedict XVIVATICAN CITY — President Barack Obama is meeting with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican. Shaking hands with the pope, Obama said it was "a great honor" to meet him.

July 10th, 2009 MOSCOW - Eighteen years after St Petersburg shed its Soviet-era name of Leningrad, the Leningrad railway station in Moscow is to be renamed. According to The Scotsman, the Russian state railway company said yesterday that the station would be called Nikolayev Station in honor of Russia's last Tsar Nicholas I, who initiated its 19th-century construction.

July 10th, 2009 Obama at Vatican to meet with Pope Benedict XVIVATICAN CITY — President Barack Obama has arrived at the Vatican for a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. Obama's motorcade arrived at the Holy See on Friday, greeted by Swiss Guards in their colorful uniforms.

July 9th, 2009 Russia: US-Russian summit was 'groundbreaking'MOSCOW — A high-level Russian diplomat says the recent U.S.-Russia summit was "groundbreaking" for relations between the old Cold War adversaries. U.S. President Barack Obama visited Moscow on Monday and Tuesday with the goal of resetting ties.

July 7th, 2009 MOSCOW - US President Barack Obama began his first meeting with Vladimir Putin Tuesday morning at the Russian prime minister's country residence outside Moscow. Obama, on his first visit to Russia since becoming president, held extensive talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev Monday, resulting in a framework agreement for a new strategic arms reduction treaty.

July 5th, 2009 Greek, Russian Orthodox leaders show unityISTANBUL, Turkey — The spiritual leaders of the Orthodox Christian churches in Istanbul and Russia led Sunday prayers together in a show of unity after years of jostling for influence. Istanbul Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I said the two churches must overcome differences, though he stressed his church's status as "first among equals" with the historic role of coordinating between the various Orthodox branches, of which Russia's is the largest.

July 5th, 2009 Russian president: We want better Vatican tiesVATICAN CITY — Russia's president says Moscow plans to improve its ties with the Vatican. Tensions between the Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches over property disputes and other issues have so far made it impossible for any pope to visit Moscow.

April 27th, 2009 Lukashenko visits pope after EU travel ban liftedROME — Belarus' authoritarian president met with the pope Monday on his first trip to Western Europe since the European Union lifted a travel ban imposed a decade ago over his dismal human rights record. President Alexander Lukashenko, condemned in the West for stifling dissent, met with Pope Benedict XVI at the Apostolic Palace and later met the Vatican secretary of state.

February 16th, 2009 MOSCOW - The Iranian defence minister, now visiting Moscow, is seeking advanced surface-to-air missiles that could help Iran counter air strikes, a Russian newspaper reported Tuesday. Mostafa Mohammad Najjar met with his Russian counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov on 'current and future issues of bilateral military relations', the Russian defence ministry said.

January 21st, 2009 MOSCOW - US President Barack Obama could pay a visit to Moscow in April, a Russian business daily said Thursday. Obama was sworn in Tuesday as the 44th president of the US.