An international conference opened Tuesday in Moscow on the problems of refugees in the Commonwealth of Independent States. Participants were told that the number of refugees people categorized as refugees is surprisingly large: a total of 2,486,620 persons as of last January. Russia bears the... MORE

"Countries bordering on the Caspian Sea have no legal right to develop its resources until the sea's new status has been determined," Russian deputy foreign minister (responsible for western and central Asia) Albert Chernyshev told a Moscow seminar yesterday. The Foreign Ministry's legal department director... MORE

On the economic front, Kuchma told US business leaders on Tuesday that Ukraine will not be introducing its currency, the hryvna, in 1995 because certain preconditions have not been met. He said that what is needed first of all is monetary reform to attain financial... MORE

NATO's Supreme Commander for Central Europe, General Helge Hansen, confirmed yesterday that Belarus is eliminating combat hardware as mandated by the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE). On October 15 resumed the destruction of excess inventories, and is on its way toward meeting its... MORE

Lithuania faces a Russian claim in the eastern sector of its offshore zone, where Russia claims a potentially attractive oil deposit known as the D-6 area. Negotiations were resumed on October 24 at the Foreign Ministry in Moscow, after having been suspended in the summer... MORE

With New York as the backdrop, Leonid Kuchma spoke out forcefully on October 25 against Russian policies toward Ukraine and, in particular, Boris Yeltsin's decree of September 14 outlining the reassertion of Russian supremacy in the near abroad. "Ukraine wants to be equal partners with... MORE

Latvian prime minister Maris Gailis told his Lithuanian counterpart Adolfas Slezevicius yesterday by telephone that Latvia will delay signing an oil exploration agreement with the US Amoco Oil company in a disputed offshore area, until the two Baltic countries sign a treaty defining their mutual... MORE

. Eduard Baltin, Russian commander of the disputed Black Sea Fleet, told journalists on October 25 that he intends to run for election to the Duma on the "Fatherland" party list. (9) He thus joins scores of other candidates who hope to represent the Russian... MORE

Russia's deputy chief negotiator in Chechnya and prominent political figure, Arkady Volsky, has berated the Russian military in Chechnya for failing to identify, let alone stop, the mysterious airplanes which bombed Roshni-Chu village October 8, reportedly killing more than 20 Chechen civilians. Volsky revealed in... MORE

Russia and Canada plan to agree this week on joint construction of a new atomic power plant in the Primorye territory of Russia's far east, according to Atomic Energy Minister Viktor Mikhailov. Canada's participation in this project will help to attract Western investments amounting to... MORE