Russian defense spending to surge 27% in 2009;

Russia withdraws from (most of) Georgia

Russian navy to flex muscles in South America...;

...and renovate port in Mediterranean

Cheney praises Georgia, the end of the Soviet Union;

Russia considers playing Iran card

Medvedev lays out "

guiding principles"

of foreign policy;

Revising history in Russian textbooks

SCO fails to endorse Russian position on Georgia...;

...but Venezuela gladly backs its new ally in Moscow