GOVERNMENT DISCUSSES 1998 BUDGET.

At a government meetingon June 5, Russian first deputy finance minister Vladimir Petrovpresented the government’s draft budget for 1998, and was sharplycriticized by Interior Minister Anatoly Kulikov for proposingfurther cuts in social spending. First Deputy Prime Minister AnatolyChubais, who chaired the meeting, warned that the national debthas reached $100 billion, and that allowing debts to rise furtherwould mean spending one third of the federal budget on debt servicing.Petrov will prepare a final draft of the 1998 budget by August10, which will then be submitted to the Duma. (Interfax, RTR;RIA Novosti, June 5)

Russian State Duma Blasts Privatization Program.