Main News of February 26

A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours

RUSSIA

* Russia is planning to expand its permanent military presence outside its borders by placing military bases in a number of foreign countries, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said

* Russian President Vladimir Putin has reached his highest approval rating since he returned to the Kremlin in 2012, a new poll reported

* Russia is taking additional steps to ensure security at its naval facilities on the Crimean Peninsula amid the growing political unrest in Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said

* Snap combat readiness drills started Wednesday in two of Russia’s military districts

* A senior Russian anti-corruption police official has been detained over claims of bribery and abuse of office in a case the appears to highlight the challenges of fighting graft

WORLD

* Viktor Yanukovych, the deposed Ukrainian president, has been put on the international wanted list, Ukraine’s acting prosecutor general said

* The acting Interior Minister of Ukraine has announced that a riot police force deployed against anti-government protesters in the bloody unrest that culminated with the toppling of the president is to be disbanded

BUSINESS

* Russia’s largest truck maker KamAZ has signed a deal to sell and eventually assemble its vehicles in Indonesia, a company official told RIA Novosti