MOSCOW / AP President Vladimir Putin on Thursday emphatically denied allegations of Russian meddling in the US presidential election and said Moscow would maintain hopes of improving relations while waiting for political infighting in Washington to stop. Putin also said he is ready to meet with President Donald Trump in Finland if that country hosts an Arctic leaders’ summit, ...

ANKARA / AP The United States and Turkey struggled on Thursday to resolve a deep dispute over the Kurdish role in the fight against the IS group, but appeared no closer to a resolution as US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson wrapped up his first trip to Turkey. As the US prepares an operation to retake the de facto IS ...

  BRUSSELS / AP NATO’s chief says the allies and Russia remain at loggerheads over the conflict in Ukraine but have exchanged briefings on their troop movements elsewhere in Europe to help ease tensions. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the “allies and Russia continue to have clear disagreements on the crisis in and around Ukraine.” Stoltenberg’s remarks came after ...

  GENEVA / AP The number of Syrians who have fled their country after six years of war has surpassed the 5 million mark, the UN refugee agency said on Thursday. UNHCR announced the milestone a year after participating countries at a Geneva conference pledged to “resettle and facilitate pathways for 500,000 refugees” from Syria — but that only half ...

  DUJIANGYAN / AP Failing eyesight, poor digestion, bad teeth, limbs no longer so limber: With captive giant pandas living longer than ever, the list of their physical and even emotional needs is growing. China, the pandas’ native home, is seeking to cater to those requirements with a special home for the old timers along with customized diets, exercise and other ...

  Bloomberg China’s state-owned enterprise regulator has asked coal mining giant Shenhua Group Corp. and power generator China Datang Corp. to discuss a possible merger, according to people with knowledge of the situation. The talks are at an early stage and there’s no guarantee of a deal, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information isn’t ...

  Bloomberg Signs of growing US fuel demand are propping up oil above $49 a barrel, with more refinery purchases seen helping ease a glut in American stockpiles. Futures in New York were holding gains after rising 2.4 percent on Wednesday, when US government data showed that gasoline inventories dropped more than expected. Additionally, refineries boosted the amount of crude ...

  Bloomberg As they guided Europe’s largest oil companies through the industry’s worst slump in two decades, the bosses of Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc had a simple message for investors: we’ll protect the dividend at all costs. Not everyone is convinced they’ll be able to keep their word. Even after they raised billions of dollars by cutting ...

  Bloomberg With Indonesia’s tax amnesty coming to an end, authorities are now setting their sights on those who didn’t participate and continue to evade taxes. Officials plan to scrutinize credit-card data from banks and compare those with tax reports after the amnesty program uncovered more than $355 billion in previously undeclared assets. While the participants in the amnesty would ...

  Bloomberg China’s central bank will keep a tight rein on money-market rates this year, raising the cost of short-term funds at least twice in moves that will pressure bonds. That’s the consensus view in a survey of 29 fixed-income traders and analysts, with 20 saying that the People’s Bank of China will increase open-market operation rates by 10 basis ...