The arrest of Sputnik Lithuania’s editor-in-chief is a violation of international norms of freedom of speech and the rights of journalists, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday. She called on international organizations to react appropriately to Latvia’s “overreach” in arresting Marat Kasem.

A cessation of hostilities in Ukraine ordered by President Vladimir Putin on the eve of Orthodox Christmas took effect on Friday morning. Russia intends to observe the truce for 36 hours, from 12:00 local time on January 6 until midnight on January 7.

Governments across Europe will have a hard time filling up storage facilities given the dearth of Russian supplies, Equinor head Anders Opedal has said The European energy market is likely to remain tight this year despite the current drop in gas prices, Anders Opedal, the CEO of Equinor, Norway’s largest energy company, told Bloomberg in…