* Russia plans to end restrictions on flights to and from 52 countries after April 9, part of its plans to reduce measures taken to slow the spread of COVID-19, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said on Monday.
* Ukraine's imports and exports decreased significantly in March, the country's Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Sunday.
* Hundreds of people demonstrated in Madrid on Sunday to show their rejection of the conflict in Ukraine and NATO's intervention.
* Iran is ready to resume talks with Saudi Arabia to solve differences, the Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman announced Monday.
* Singapore's central bank is likely to tighten its policy settings at its review this month, the third time in a row, as inflationary pressures intensify due to global supply-side disruptions and an easing of the city-state's border controls.
* The coronavirus pandemic's grip on the US job market notably loosened in March, two years after a state of emergency was declared, as the number of people homebound by COVID-19 concerns hit a new low and fewer people reported having to work remotely.
* Mexico's government forecast economic growth of 3.4% for 2022, far below what the nation's President was aiming for, a finance ministry document showed, as Latin America's second-largest economy claws back losses from the COVID-19 pandemic.
* Turkey's annual consumer inflation leapt to a 20-year high of 61.14% in March, data showed on Monday, fuelled by rising energy and commodity prices as the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine conflict compounds the impact of the lira's plunge last year.
* Ecuador's government has retaken control of a prison in the city of Cuenca where 20 people were killed in a violent confrontation over the weekend, it said on Monday.
* More than 38,000 medics from 15 provincial-level regions nationwide have rushed to Shanghai to aid in the battle against the resurging COVID-19 epidemic in China's financial hub, according to the National Health Commission (NHC).
* The world's largest Muslim-majority nation of Indonesia welcomed the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan with a mass prayer at Jakarta's grand mosque on Saturday, with plateauing coronavirus cases allowing for eased restrictions this year.
* Brazilian health agency Anvisa issued a new set of rules for incoming international travelers, easing restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic as the health crisis subsides in the South American nation.
* China's transport ministry expects a 20% drop in road traffic and a 55% fall in flights during the three-day Qingming holiday due to a flare-up of COVID-19 cases in the country.
* Sweden will give a fourth shot of COVID-19 vaccine to people aged 65 and above to boost their defences against the disease, the health agency said on Monday.
* Children in Maltese schools will no longer be obliged to wear face masks in class from April 13, Health Minister Chris Fearne said on Monday.
