A bewildering "concertina of four pages" is how one Western observer described the ballot paper that will confront Russia's voters on December 17. As unveiled yesterday by the Central Electoral Commission, the ballot displays party slates in the order in which they were picked last... MORE

President Yeltsin has nominated former acting finance minister Sergei Dubinin as chairman of the Central Bank, a member of the State Duma lower house of parliament said on Tuesday. Neither Yeltsin's office nor the Central Bank could immediately confirm that Dubinin had been nominated to... MORE

In a televised interview Tuesday, a smiling, robust-looking President Boris Yeltsin ridiculed Western and Russian press reports of his ill health, and said he remains firmly in control of the country. "I am at the helm of the large ship that is Russia, and I... MORE

Russia's energy and fuel minister Yuri Shafrannik regards the LukOil company's sizable share in the project to develop Azerbaijan's "Karabakh" oilfield in the Caspian Sea as a big political plus for Russia. According to Shafrannik, "this is a serious victory of Russia's oil complex and... MORE

Tajikistan government troops' loss include six killed, 17 wounded, and more than 40 disabled by frostbite in a positional fight with resistance forces in the Tavil-Dara district, according to military sources in Dushanbe. The resistance in Tavil-Dara seeks to establish a zone free of government... MORE

Presidential and parliamentary elections and a referendum on the country's new constitution were held in Azerbaijan yesterday. A total of 587 candidates competed on party slates and in single-mandate constituencies for the 125 seats of Azerbaijan's Milli Majlis. Eight parties, including the Popular Front of... MORE

Mediated by Russia and the OSCE, a new round of negotiations between Armenia, Karabakh, and Azerbaijan toward settling the Karabakh conflict has been in progress in Moscow since November 8. The Azerbaijani delegation's opening position remains, as before, to demand the withdrawal of the Karabakh... MORE

Russian president Boris Yeltsin discussed the future of Russian troops in Moldova among other subjects at his November 10 meeting at the hospital with Defense Minister Pavel Grachev. According to the presidential press office, Yeltsin approved proposals submitted by the Defense and Foreign Ministries to... MORE

The prospects for settling the conflict over Abkhazia appear to be dim at the latest round of Georgian-Abkhaz talks in Moscow. On November 9, Russian deputy prime minister Aleksei Bolshakov met with the head of the Abkhaz delegation to the talks, Sokrat Dzhindzholia, to discuss... MORE

Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma warned on November 11 that Ukraine might have to stretch out plans to shut down the Chernobyl nuclear power station by the end of the century, unless Western countries provide more financial help. In talks earlier this month, experts from the... MORE