The Kremlin said Thursday that Ukraine was running out of options to strike a deal to end almost four years of war with Russia, as thousands were without heating in Kyiv in -12C temperatures following waves of Russian strikes on the country's energy grid.

"The situation is deteriorating day by day for the Kyiv regime," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, including AFP, adding that Ukraine's "corridor for decision-making" was "narrowing".

Western diplomats have reportedly failed to secure a firm promise from Hezbollah to stay out of a potential conflict between the U.S. and Iran.

A media report claimed that diplomats have sought guarantees from Hezbollah in recent weeks but only received a vague answer and no guarantees.

Russia said it was seriously concerned by the arrival of NATO military personnel in Greenland, a mineral-rich island in the Arctic that U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to seize.

"The situation unfolding in the high latitudes is of serious concern to us," the Russian embassy in Belgium, where NATO is headquartered, said in a statement published late Wednesday.

Oil prices plunged on Thursday after fears over instability in Iran were eased by comments from U.S. President Donald Trump.

West Texas Intermediate dropped 3.0 percent to $60.16 per barrel while Brent crude was down 2.93 percent to $64.57, after Trump said he had been told the killings of protesters in Iran had been halted.

French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian addressed in his visit to Lebanon "the reinforcement" of the committee monitoring the year-long ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which France is a part of, French foreign ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux said.

The main aim of the visit was to discuss the details of a conference that France will host in March to raise funds for the Lebanese army.

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said Wednesday Xabi Alonso has a great future in football despite Real Madrid replacing him at the helm this week.

Iran's deadly crackdown on protesters and U.S. warnings of intervention are being closely watched by neighboring countries in the Middle East.

Here is how the crisis is regarded by some of the region's key players:

Some personnel have been told to depart the United States' Al Udeid military base in Qatar, two diplomatic sources told AFP on Wednesday, after Washington threatened to respond to a government crackdown on protests in Iran.

A number of personnel were asked to leave the base by Wednesday evening, one source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter. The second source confirmed the information, also on condition of anonymity.

The planet logged its third hottest year on record in 2025, extending a run of unprecedented heat, U.S. researchers and EU climate monitors said Wednesday.

The last 11 years have now been the warmest ever recorded, with 2024 topping the podium and 2023 in second place, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service and Berkeley Earth, a California-based non-profit research organization.

Greenhouse gas emissions in the United States rose last year, snapping a two-year streak of declines as cold winter temperatures drove demand for heating fuel and the AI boom led to a surge in power generation, a think tank said Tuesday.