Bloomberg Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted his Syrian counterpart Bashar Al Assad in the Kremlin, backing the Syrian leader’s efforts to eliminate the last enclaves of rebels backed by the US and Turkey. Under Western sanctions, Assad has maintained strong ties with Russia, which sent planes and troops to back his government in 2015. The intervention helped turn the tide ...

Bloomberg Russian President Vladimir Putin will go into self-isolation after being exposed to several people in his entourage infected with Covid-19, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday. The 68-year-old leader is “absolutely healthy” and has tested negative for Covid-19, Peskov told a regular conference call. Putin will avoid in-person meetings for “some time,” he said. Plans to fly to ...

Bloomberg The number of workers on UK company payrolls climbed above its pre-pandemic level as vacancies hit a record high with firms battling staff shortages created by Brexit and lockdowns. The figures from Office for National Statistics (ONS) included a 35% surge in job openings in the quarter to 1.03 million, the first time they’ve risen above 1 million. That ...