RUSSIAN BUDGET SEQUESTER UNPOPULAR.

The VCIOM organization conducted a nationwide poll to test attitudes toward the government’s budget sequestration plan. Thirty-six percent of respondents thought that the government should increase tax rates or improve tax collection rather than cut spending. Only 12 percent favored taking on more international loans, 4 percent favored cutting spending, and a mere 1 percent approved delays in wages and pensions as a means of balancing the budget. (Interfax, 11 May)

Japanese Minister to Visit Moscow.