RUSSIA - Many have been surprised by the lack of public response by Russia to the ongoings in Ukraine. Aside from some comments by Siluanov, the response has been concerning in its absence from the iron fist. However, quietly and with little new coverage, RiaNovosti reports that the combat capability of Russia’s naval task force in the Mediterranean will increase significantly - for the first time in decades - following the first deliveries of Varshavyanka-class submarines (with advanced stealth technology dubbed "black holes in the ocean") to the Black Sea Fleet.

VATICAN - We are galloping toward a one-world melding of religions, and the ramifications are staggering. Pope Francis has now sent a video message to Word of Faith father Kenneth Copeland, urging reconciliation between Catholics and Charismatics.

CANADA - What are we going to do about those little monsters called children? They won’t be quiet, won’t sit still and won’t pay attention. They aren’t succeeding in school, and no matter how many drugs we pump into them, they don’t seem to get any better.

VATICAN - The Vatican bank is one of the world's most secretive financial institutions. A new department at the Vatican has been created by Pope Francis to oversee its finances following scandals at the institution. The new ministry would study the "organisational and economic problems of the Holy See", said the Vatican. An auditor will also oversee the department's dealings, it said. In January, Italian police reported a senior Italian cleric was charged with laundering millions through the Vatican Bank. But the change would not immediately affect the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), said a spokesperson. The IOR is one of the world's most secretive organisations. It has 114 employees and 5.4 billion euros of assets.

USA - US doctors are warning of an emerging polio-like disease in California where up to 20 people have been infected. A meeting of the American Academy of Neurology heard that some patients had developed paralysis in all four limbs, which had not improved with treatment. The US is polio-free, but related viruses can also attack the nervous system leading to paralysis. Polio is a dangerous and feared childhood infection. The virus rapidly invades the nervous system and causes paralysis in one in 200 cases. It can be fatal if it stops the lungs from working.

MIDDLE EAST - Lawmakers from Hamas on Sunday warned Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas against recognizing Israel as part of the ongoing peace process. The lawmakers said that recognition of Israel as a Jewish state would be a “death sentence” against the PA. Ibrahim Dahbour, one of Hamas’s representatives in the Palestinian Legislative Council, warned Abbas against giving up any of the "fundamental principles of the Palestinian people" in the negotiations with Israel, in particular with regards to the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state.

USA - Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel has unveiled plans to shrink the US Army to its smallest size since before World War Two. Outlining his budget plan, the Pentagon chief proposed trimming the active-duty Army to 440,000-450,000 personnel, down from 520,000 currently. Cold War-era Air Force fleets - the U-2 spy plane and the A-10 attack jet - will also be retired. However, the plan requires approval from Congress, which could change it. The US military is under pressure to downsize after two costly foreign wars.

USA - Liberal internationalists, including people like Chase CEO David Rockefeller and former Undersecretary of State and an architect of 1960s American trade policies George Ball, began pressing for reductions in non-tariff barriers, which they perceived as the next set of trade impediments to pull down. But the idea behind getting rid of these barriers wasn’t about free trade; it was about reorganizing the world so that corporations could manage resources for “the benefit of mankind”. These agreements are about getting rid of national sovereignty, and the people who first pressed for NAFTA were explicit about it.

UKRAINE - Ukraine borders the Russian Federation to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest, and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast, respectively. It has an area of 603,628 km2 (233,062 sq miles), making it the largest country entirely within Europe. Ukraine has long been a global breadbasket due to its fertile conditions. As of 2011, it was the world's third-largest grain exporter with that year's harvest being much larger than average. Ukraine is one of ten most attractive agricultural land acquisition regions. Additionally, the country has a well-developed manufacturing sector, particularly in the area of aerospace and industrial equipment. The country is home to 44.6 million people.

UK - Britain has offered to help fund an international financial rescue package for Ukraine amid mounting fears that Russia may intervene following the country’s revolution. George Osborne, the Chancellor, said that Britain and other countries will be ready “with a chequebook” to help “rebuild” Ukraine following the bloody violence that has seen 88 killed and hundreds more injured. Amid growing fears that Russia could send troops into the country and mystery over the whereabouts of Viktor Yanukovych, the ousted president, Mr Osborne joined American and European leaders in pledging financial support to Ukraine.

UKRAINE - And they win the award by having a much larger crisis overall. Russia has suspended financial aid to Ukraine. There are rumours of runs on banks and long queues at ATMs. There are rumours of Ukraine possibly splitting into two countries.

RUSSIA - Russia sees merit in the advice against use of force in Ukraine which US National Security Adviser Susan Rice voiced, but believes it was wrongly directed towards Moscow. Washington would be a more appropriate recipient of the piece of wisdom. “We have noted the expert assessment of Susan Rice based on multiple cases when American troops were sent to various places of the world, especially those where the US administration believed the norms of Western democracy were in danger, or where the local regimes were getting out of hand,” a Russian Foreign Ministry source told news agencies on Monday. The source added that, “We expect that national security adviser would be giving to the US leadership the same advice on the mistaken path of the use of force if it decides to conduct a new intervention.”

UKRAINE - A senior Obama administration official warned Russian leaders Sunday not to send armed forces into Ukraine to restore what they see as a compliant government, urging them to reject a Cold War view of the tumult in Ukraine as a struggle between East and West. “That would be a grave mistake,” President Barack Obama’s National Security Adviser, Susan Rice, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “It’s not in the interests of the Ukraine or of Russia or of Europe or of the United States to see the country split. It’s in nobody’s interest to see violence return and the situation escalate. This is not about the US and Russia. This is about whether the people of Ukraine have the opportunity to fulfil their aspirations and be democratic and be part of Europe, which they choose to be.”

UKRAINE - "There is no money in Ukraine's Treasury account," exclaimed 'Interim President' Oleksandr Turchynov to the Ukrainian parliament; adding that the Ukraine economy is in a "catastrophic state." Hardly surprising given the months of protest; but with Russia 'conditionally' postponing its EUR 2 billion 'loan', the Europeans are riding to the nation's aid with promises of EUR 20 billion (if Ukrainian authorities meet certain conditions). But a great deal of the nation's wealth lies in the eastern (pro-Russia) region.

EUROPE - Unremarked, the EU is about to hold its first federal elections. The European Parliament has been quietly sucking in more power for decades, but has so far lacked the supreme attribute of a federal legislature, namely the right to appoint a federal government.