Russia's Sukhoi Design Bureau unveiled its new Su-37 fighter on July 31. Described by a Russian air force spokesman as a warplane for the next century, the aircraft reportedly boasts reversible thrusters that greatly enhance its maneuverability. Russian sources claim that the plane is without... MORE

The Georgian authorities have confirmed that a Russian national suspected of having killed the popular Russian TV personality Vladimir Listyev last March in Moscow has been arrested and transferred to the Russian security services. (Itar-Tass, August 2) More Ukrainian Arms Sales.

In the wake of this week's deal with Pakistan for delivery of more than 300 Ukrainian modern T-80 UD battle tanks (see Monitor, August 1), First Deputy Minister for the Military Industry Viktor Zabara said today that Ukraine has also agreed to sell a new,... MORE

Belarus president Aleksandr Lukashenko, prime minister Mikhail Chyhir, and other officials conferred in Minsk with Iran's foreign minister Ali Akbar Velayati on ways to expand bilateral economic ties. They discussed possible barter exchanges of Iranian crude oil for Belarus industrial products, including tractors and "dual-use... MORE

Coalminers in Rostov oblast in south-western Russia and in Chelyabinsk oblast in the Urals yesterday joined the two-week strike underway among miners in Primorsky krai in the Far East and Krasnoyarsk krai in southern Siberia. Leaders of the 800,000-member Union of Coal Industry Workers will... MORE

Air and missile attacks yesterday triggered a new wave of refugees in southern Chechnya, with one stream headed for Dagestan. Faced with this growing problem, Grozny officials complained publicly yesterday that Moscow is failing to deliver promised funds for refugee resettlement. Duma deputy Ibrahim Suleymenov,... MORE

In Poland, former president Lech Walesa appealed to fellow-Nobel laureates to condemn "genocide against the Chechen nation." Walesa said that Chechnya is no longer an internal problem of Russia but a "world problem," and that "governments which pursue such policies have no place among civilized... MORE

There is renewed speculation in Moscow today over the state of President Yeltsin's health after one of his aides said he was suffering "colossal weariness" from the rigors of the election campaign. In an interview published today in the newspaper Segodnya, Georgii Satarov denied that... MORE

On a private visit to the U.S., Belarus Popular Front chairman Zyanon Paznyak and vice-chairman Syarhi Naumchik yesterday applied for political asylum there. The Belarus authorities had issued an arrest warrant against them in connection with the April 26 pro-independence mass rally in Minsk. Paznyak... MORE

Tajik Authorities Block UN Observers as Fighting Continues.