Andrei Kozyrev, Russian foreign minister since 1991, resigned his post January 5. He will assume his seat in the newly elected Duma when that body convenes January 17. (1) See "Perspective" below. ...Leaving Sergei Krylov In Charge.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman said January 5 that Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Krylov would temporarily take control of the Foreign Ministry. First Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, who outranks Krylov, was said to be on vacation and will return early this week. It is unclear... MORE

1. Interfax, January 4 2. Reuter, January 5 3. Interfax-Ukraine and Interfax, January 4 4. Interfax-Ukraine, January 3 and 4 5. Reuter, January 4 6. Rossiiskaya gazeta, January 4; Interfax, January 3 and 4 7. Interfax-Ukraine and Interfax, January 4 8. Interfax, January 4 9.... MORE

In a press interview yesterday, Moldovan president Mircea Snegur expressed concern over Russian proposals to confer a peacekeeping mandate on Russia's Operational Group of Forces in Moldova (formerly the Russian 14th Army). Snegur said the mandate would amount to granting Russian forces basing rights in... MORE

The Ukrainian Media Club, which represents independent journalists, yesterday complained of an "assault on press freedoms" after a popular current affairs program, Pislyamova (Epilogue), was prevented from airing on state television on New Year's Eve. Journalists said officials had retaliated against Epilogue's recent reporting of... MORE

Six leading pro-reform deputies of the newly elected Belarusian Supreme Soviet have founded the Civic Action ("Hramadzyanskae dzeyanne") parliamentary faction. The faction was created in advance of the legislature's opening on January 9 and is headed by Stanislau Bahdankevich. Bahdankevich resigned in September as chairman... MORE

A statement issued yesterday by 135 deputies of the newly elected Belarusian parliament -- fully one-half of its members -- accused President Aleksandr Lukashenko and officials of his government of violating the Constitution's provisions on the separation of powers. The statement specifically condemns presidential chief... MORE

Lithuanian prime minister Adolfas Slezevicius admitted at a news conference yesterday that he had made "a moral and political mistake" by withdrawing his personal deposits from the LAIB bank two days before the bank was declared insolvent. Slezevicius said he would consider contributing the money... MORE

In a press interview yesterday, Estonian foreign minister Siim Kallas discussed evidence that Russian government agencies responsible for foreign policy plan to increase pressure on Estonia in 1996. Kallas added that the success of political forces hostile to Baltic independence in the Duma elections would... MORE

Chechnya's "head" Doku Zavgayev, speaking on Russian television, called for election of a Chechen People's Assembly by early spring. Russia's nationalities and regional policy minister Vyacheslav Mikhailov and top representative of the federal government in Chechnya Vladimir Zorin praised the initiative as a step that... MORE