19:23
VLADIMIR PUTIN WELCOMES U.S. DECISION TO RECOGNIZE RUSSIA AS MARKET ECONOMY
Vladimir Putin sees as positive the decision of the American administration to recognize Russia's market-economy status. At a press conference in St.Petersburg on Friday, the Russian president stressed that this decision is overripe but its adoption "has required the political will of American President George Bush". More details...

19:18
VLADIMIR PUTIN URGED MEMBERS OF THE SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANIZATION TO COOPERATE IN THE STRUGGLE AGAINST TRANS-BORDER CRIMINALITY
On Friday Russian President Vladimir Putin stated at the SCO summit meeting in Saint Petersburg that it was necessary for countries-members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to establish practical cooperation in the struggle against illegal drugs trafficking, illegal arms trade and other types of trans-border criminality. More details...

19:12
INDIA INTERESTED IN SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION
India is interested in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and "sounds the opportunity of closer acquaintance via the Foreign Ministry," Russian President Vladimir Putin told a press conference, following the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, which includes Russia, China and former Soviet republics - Kazakhstan, Kirghizia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. More details...

18:27
PUTIN: SCO READY TO COOPERATE WITH ANY STATE
"There is no state the Shanghai Cooperation Organization cannot cooperate with in one or another form," President Vladimir Putin said in St.Petersburg at a summit of the SCO incorporating Russia, Kazakhstan, Kirghizia, China, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. More details...

18:21
VLADIMIR PUTIN DOES NOT RULE OUT SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION FUTURE EXPANSION
Russian President Vladimir Putin does not rule out the future expansion of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, however, this issue was not practically considered at the summit in St. Petersburg. Putin announced this at a joint press conference with his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev, following the summit. More details...

16:52
RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT TO DISCUSS NEW FEDERAL PROGRAM "CHILDREN OF RUSSIA"
At one of the forthcoming sessions, the Russian government will discuss a new federal target program for 2003-2006, called "Children of Russia," announced Russian Vice Premier Valentina Matviyenko, addressing the Friday enlarged session of the Board of the labor and social development ministry. More details...

16:45
RUSSIAN PREMIER'S COMMENTS ON RAILWAY REFORM
The railway transport reform, already being realised by the Russia government, will lead to a better safety, higher quality of services offered to passengers and lower exploitation expenses, said Russia's Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov at a presentation of a new model of electric train, held at Kievskaya railway station on Friday. More details...

15:09
PRESIDENT PUTIN OPENS SCO SESSION IN EXTENDED FORMAT
Vladimir Putin has opened a session of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in an extended format. More details...

12:23
PRESIDENT PUTIN OPENS SCO SUMMIT IN ST. PETERSBURG
On Friday, Vladimir Putin opened a summit meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in St. Petersburg. The meeting of SCO leaders is staged in the dancing hall of the Grand Palace of Petrodvorets, a palace outside St. Petersburg that used to be a residence of Russian emperors. More details...

11:01
FRENCH ELECTIONS: DISINTEREST AND APATHY
The French legislative elections coming up on Sunday and on June 16th have been met with a wave of apathy after the excitement which saw Jacques Chirac votes back into the Presidency by an unconvinced 80% of the French population. More details...

21:42
WILL THE CONGRESS ALLOW BUSH TO PULL OUT FROM ABM TREATY?
As it is known, American President George Bush announced last December that the USA was going to pull out from the ABM Treaty of 1972 single-handedly. Pursuant to the terms of the treaty, a party, which is going to pull out from the treaty, is supposed to give a notification of that six months in advance More details...

13:46
PRESIDENT PUTIN LEAVES FOR ST. PETERSBURG TO ATTEND SCO SUMMIT
This week, the center of political activity moves from Moscow to St. Petersburg, which is now getting ready to host summit meetings of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Council of Baltic States, and a meeting between the presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan. On Thursday, Vladimir Putin leaves Moscow for the Northern Capital to attend these meetings. More details...

11:03
PORTUGUESE COMMUNIST PARTY: ALVARO CUNHAL HAILS WINDS OF CHANGE
The historic leader of the Portuguese Communist Party, Dr. Alvaro Cunhal, has spoken out against the orthodox wing and moves towards the reformists, claiming that the party needs to adopt a policy of broad dialogue to address its problems. More details...

11:00
BRAZIL: SERRA SEEKS HIS VICE, VERSA
Official government candidate for the forthcoming presidential elections, Jose Serra, seeks to woo the female vote by choosing his vice president from another party. Rita Camata has been known to criticise the government at every turn but with women making up 54% of the vote in Brazil, and trailing by 20 points in the polls, Serra will try anything for the privileged few to retain their positions. More details...

20:17
ALL RUSSIA'S LANGUAGES TO STICK TO CYRILLIC WRITING, SAYS NEW BILL
The State Duma, parliament's lower house, landslided in a first reading a bill which stipulates for the Cyrillic as the only alphabet to be used by all indigenous languages spoken in Russia. More details...

20:02
ARSENALS ALONE NO LONGER ENOUGH FOR SECURITY: PUTIN
Russia needs integration into the international security system, while firmly promoting its own stances. The country must be able to stand up for its interests today and in the future, pointed out President Vladimir Putin as he was addressing this afternoon's Russia concert hall gala on the 10th establishment anniversary of the federal Security Council. More details...

18:53
SPACE AGREEMENTS WITH UKRAINE, BRAZIL RATIFIED
The State Duma (the lower chamber of Russian parliament) has ratified agreements on space cooperation with Ukraine and Brazil. The one between the Russian government and the Ukrainian cabinet of ministers on the movement of goods within the framework of cooperation in space exploration and in the creation and service of space rocketry and the missile technology was signed in February 2001. More details...

18:31
KALININGRAD ISSUE TO BE DISCUSSED BY GOVERNMENT LEADERS OF BALTIC SEA STATES COUNCIL
The problems of the Kaliningrad region, Russia's western enclave, in the context of the EU expansion will be discussed at the meeting of the government leaders of CBSS, the Council of Baltic Sea States, due on June 10th in St.Petersburg, said Russian foreign ministry's official spokesman Alexander Yakovenko at a briefing on Wednesday. More details...

16:33
NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED IN RUSSIA HAS DECREASED
Russia's president Vladimir Putin met Russia's Minister of Labour Alexander Pochinok. During the first four months of this year the number of unemployed in Russia has decreased by 500,000 people, said the minister at a press conference following the meeting. He also said that about 700,000 new jobs were created at the same period. More details...

16:30
PRESIDENT PUTIN: KOFI ANNAN'S VISIT TO MOSCOW - ANOTHER STEP TOWARDS UN - RUSSIA INTERACTION
Vladimir Putin considers Kofi Annan's visit to Moscow as another step towards the strengthening of the UN - Russia interaction. This was disclosed by the Russian President on Wednesday in his opening speech of the meeting with the UN Secretary General. More details...

15:35
RUSSIA-USA: MOSCOW SUMMIT CHANGES THE ATTITUDE
So-called elite clubs have considerably contributed in formation of US�s policy concerning Russia and states situated on the post-Soviet territory. Such clubs are connected with diasporas and people coming from regions suffering from Russia�s oppression and colonial usurpation More details...

15:18
VLADIMIR PUTIN OFFERS INDIA AND PAKISTAN HELP IN SOLVING CONFLICT
At a meeting with President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraff, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that 'recent announcements of the leadership of this country concerning its relationship with India fill me with optimism'. More details...

14:21
SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION SUMMIT IN ST. PETERSBURG
The work of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation will be devoted to counter-terrorism, Russian Foreign Ministry's official spokesman Alexander Yakovenko told journalists. More details...

13:30
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY FORUM IN MOSCOW
The international forum "Topical Issues of International Security Provision" opened in Moscow. The forum is chaired by Russian Security Council Secretary Vladimir Rushailo. More details...

12:37
RUSSIAN LAW ON CITIZENSHIP COMES INTO FORCE
The head of the Russian Federal Migration Service, Deputy Interior Minister Andrei Chernenko, believes that this law has put "a reliable barrier to prevent the entry into the country of the HIV-infected and people having convictions." Andrei Chernenko said on Tuesday that he neither accepted and understood the criticism of the Russian Law on Citizenship. More details...

12:21
PRESIDENT PUTIN: CHINA, RUSSIA, THE WEST EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND THE UNITED STATES CAN FORM AN ARC OF STABILITY
The President of Russia believes that China, Russia, the West European countries and the United States can form an arc of stability. Vladimir Putin spoke about it in an interview he gave to the Beijing Renmin Ribao on the eve of the summit of the Shanghai Organisation for Cooperation. More details...

12:19
PRESIDENT PUTIN: RUSSIA IS NOT ALLERGIC TO TEMPORARY PRESENCE OF U.S. TROOPS IN CENTRAL ASIA
Russia is "not particularly allergic" to the temporary presence of US troops in the Central Asian region, said the Russian president in an interview with the Chinese newspaper Renmin Ribao. More details...

12:16
PRESIDENT PUTIN: RUSSIA AND USA CONDUCT DIALOGUE ON ISSUES OF INTERPRETING AND USING INTERNATIONAL LAW STANDARDS
Russia and the USA are conducting a "thorough and frank dialogue" on issues connected with the correlation of unilateral and multilateral actions, the "role and modality of using the power factor, the interpretation and use of international law standards." The Russian president said this in an interview with the Chinese Renmin Ribao newspaper. More details...

11:06
MALAGASY REPUBLIC FACED WITH HUMANITARIAN CATASTROPHE
As the Malagasy Republic takes its first steps towards a full-blown civil war, aid organisations warn of an impending humanitarian catastrophe. In a country of two presidents, armed factions have formed around the long-standing president, Didier Ratsiraka and the new president, Marc Ravalomanana. More details...

10:00
PUTIN�S YACHT REPAIRED FOR $ 1 MILLION
Official floating residence of Vladimir Putin, Kavkaz yacht has gone through �medical treatment� in a St Petersburg dockyard. Within 8 months, running gear of the vessel, radio navigation equipment, steering system were changed, a new condition system installed and interior renovated. More details...