HOSTAGES TO BE RELEASED WITHIN A WEEK.

Russian deputy foreign minister Albert Chernyshev said yesterday that Moscow expected the release of seven Russian hostages in Afghanistan to occur "within a week." His statement followed the collapse of negotiations over the weekend to secure the return of the hostages, held since August 3 by Taliban rebels. Chernyshev suggested the earlier failure had resulted from a split between hard-liners and moderates within the Taliban ruling circle. The deputy minister did not specify why he believed the conflict had been resolved in favor of Moscow. (3)

Russia Without Aircraft Carriers?