Putin is doing this to scare you. He wants you to be afraid even to mention Alexei and gradually forget his name’

As the drone whirrs into the sky, something unusual trails behind it: a fibre optic cable barely visible to the naked eye.

Oil prices jumped more than 4% on Friday, with global benchmark Brent breaking $80 per barrel for the first time since October on fears that tougher U.S. sanctions on Russia will disrupt crude supplies.

After three years of war, strict sanctions, and dwindling oil prices, the odds are stacked against the Kremlin in 2025, a think tank fellow argues.

Britain has imposed new sanctions on Russian oil majors Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegaz , the foreign ministry on Friday.

The Group of Seven democracies have sought to crimp Russia’s oil export earnings that help fund the war against Ukraine.

Oil prices jumped more than 4% on Friday, with global benchmark Brent breaking $80 per barrel for the first time since October on fears that tougher U.S. sanctions on Russia will disrupt crude supplies.

Germany charged that a heavily loaded tanker adrift off its northern coast Friday was part of the "shadow fleet" Moscow uses to avoid sanctions on its oil exports. In response, Russia has relied on tankers with opaque ownership or without proper insurance to continue lucrative oil exports.

President-elect Donald Trump said late Thursday he is ready to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that the meeting is currently being arranged, though he gave no timeline for when it might take place.