Main News of December 9

A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours

WORLD

* Russia is in talks about providing safe transport of chemical weapons out of Syria, a deputy foreign minister said

* Interior Ministry troops in Ukraine’s capital on Monday repelled demonstrators from a position they had taken up outside the Cabinet office in a renewed effort to clear major protest sites

* Ukraine said late Sunday that its security services are investigating a forcible attempt to seize power in the former Soviet nation that has been convulsed by anti-government protests

RUSSIA

* The Kremlin announced Monday the dissolution of RIA Novosti, the country’s major state-run news agency, amid a significant reorganization of state-owned media assets

* Russian law enforcement officials are considering bringing new charges against jailed former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky and other figures over alleged money laundering, Vedomosti daily reported

DEFENSE

* Russia has begun testing a new radar designed to detect highly maneuverable aerial targets – including cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles – at a range of up to 3,000 kilometers (over 1,800 miles), allowing it to cover most of Europe

* A Russian fighter jet unit has arrived at a Belarusian airbase where it will be stationed on alert duty as part of an integrated regional air defense network, Belarusian news agency BelaPAN reported