Russia's regional elections are proceeding at full tilt. In Perm oblast, where voters will go to the polls on December 8 to elect an oblast governor and the mayor of the provincial capital, campaigning is at its height. The incumbent governor, Gennadi Igumnov, is respected... MORE

But whereas the gubernatorial election in Perm oblast is proceeding with relative calm, the campaign for the mayor of Perm is mired in scandal. It all began when a local newspaper accused the incumbent mayor, Vladimir Fil, of links with organized crime. Fil responded to... MORE

President Boris Yeltsin has regained the number one ranking among Russia's politicians following his recovery from surgery, the Moscow Tribune said yesterday. The newspaper cited a monthly opinion poll by Russian political analysts as placing Yeltsin first on the list of Russia's 100 leading politicians.... MORE

Russian defense minister Igor Rodionov's press spokesman yesterday denied reports that his boss had postponed a planned visit to the U.S. because of upheaval atop the military command over the recent, unexpected sacking of Ground Forces Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Semenov. Instead, the spokesman attributed Rodionov's last... MORE

"We will form state bodies based on Islamic law. So-called Roman law is unnatural to Chechens. Many do not accept it and therefore it is often broken. We must base legislation on something people will accept. Islam is a suitable basis for the Chechen people.... MORE

President Algirdas Brazauskas yesterday approved the composition of Lithuania's new government, formed by a conservative coalition around Fatherland Union, which won last month's parliamentary election. FU's Gediminas Vagnorius is the new prime minister, the Christian-Democrat Algirdas Saudargas foreign minister, his colleague Ceslovas Stankevicius defense minister,... MORE

In a spate of press interviews in recent days, Georgian state security minister Shota Kviraya, his first deputy, Avtandil Ioseliani, and refugee leader Tamaz Nadareishvili have acknowledged that Georgian guerrilla groups have begun operating in Abkhazia. All three officials stated that the groups are comprised... MORE

In a three-day battle, Tajik insurgents have repulsed a government OMON battalion's attempt to retake the central town of Garm, and have managed to trap that OMON unit, Dushanbe military officials acknowledged yesterday. The insurgents are offering to allow the battalion to hand over its... MORE

According to presidential spokesmen in Washington and Moscow, Presidents Bill Clinton and Boris Yeltsin will hold talks in 1997, probably in the first half of the year. It would be their first meeting since April; both have since been reelected. Agreement on the 1997 meeting... MORE

Russian bankers are an endangered species. Over the past three years, 118 have been murdered. In 1994, the total was 28; in 1995, it was 41; and in the first eight months of this year it was 49. (Argumenty i fakty, No. 48, November 1996)... MORE