MOSCOW – The first big test of whether Russia’s president-elect, Dmitry Medvedev, is really in charge will come when he tries to appoint his own allies into key Kremlin jobs occupied by Vladimir Putin’s loyalists.

ST PETERSBURG, Russia – A Russian opposition activist jailed for two months for taking part in anti-Kremlin protests has gone on a hunger strike, his liberal Yabloko party said on Wednesday.

KIEV – Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko pledged on Wednesday that Ukraine would stand by its obligations to export Russian gas to Europe and remain a “reliable partner”.