Main News of December 14

A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours

WORLD

* Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has dismissed two top officials suspected of being involved in a crackdown on protesters last month, the presidential press service reported

* Ukraine appeared to be on the brink of signing economic agreements next week that may well spell the end of a deal that would bring Kiev closer to Europe, following announcements by the country’s premier that it was ready for a deal with Moscow

RUSSIA

* Two Russian Air Force crew members ejected to safety when their MiG-31 interceptor crashed on Saturday in the Far Eastern Primorye region, local authorities said

* Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has described the EU’s reaction to the Ukrainian decision to reject an economic association agreement with the union as “bordering on hysterical”

* Representatives of the Russian-led Customs Union are in talks over creation of a free trade zone with New Zealand and some non-EU European nations, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said

* The orbit of the International Space Station was raised on Friday to ensure safe docking of a Russian spacecraft early next year, said a spokesman for Russia’s mission control

POLITICS

* Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has criticized Washington for its reaction to Russian diplomats’ alleged law violations in the United States