At a Moscow briefing, Russian defense minister Pavel Grachev expressed interest in getting Israel's assistance in the modernization of some of Russia's Soviet-era weapons systems. Grachev stressed that he was not proposing joint development of new weapons. He said that any deal would presuppose a... MORE

While visiting Bulgaria, Russian ultranationalist leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky said that Russia must create an "Eastern Slavic Bloc" comprised of Ukraine, Belarus, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, and Macedonia, to counter NATO, which is "ready to attack Russia and turning Bosnia into a testing ground for weapons aimed... MORE

The first of the Duma's three planned solidarity delegations has in recent days conferred with rump Yugoslavia's top leaders in Belgrade and with Krajina Serb representatives in Eastern Slavonia, and then headed for meetings with Bosnian Serb leaders in Pale. The delegation, one of whose... MORE

Russian defense minister Pavel Grachev claims that some unnamed countries supply military aid to Croatia and to Bosnian Moslems. Ostensibly in response, Grachev warns that "it can not be excluded that Russia will also render aid, including to the Bosnian Serbs," He said that the... MORE

The Belarus government has officially invited the U.S. to participate in the investigation of the September 12 incident, in which two U.S. citizens aboard a hot-air balloon taking part in an international competition were killed as Belarus air defense shot down their balloon. (1) Russia... MORE

In 1990, all member countries of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) , including the Soviet Union, signed the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE), which mandates compliance by November 1995 with significantly lowered conventional force ceilings. In 1992, after the... MORE

Professing satisfaction that the Bosnian Serbs have made a substantial start on the withdrawal of their heavy weapons from around Sarajevo, and in order to allow them time in which to complete the operation, NATO and the United Nations will refrain for an additional 72... MORE

Russian human rights activist Sergei Kovalev said on Sunday night that Russia's democracy is on increasingly shaky footing. Kovalev spoke out in Germany, where he is being honored as the first recipient of the Nuremberg International Human Rights Peace Prize. "The danger that Russia will... MORE

At a conference in Moscow September 14, Customs Departments heads of the CIS member countries discussed simplification and standardization of customs documents and of cargo inspection procedures, a unified system for the classification of traded goods, and harmonization of software programs being used for recording... MORE

In separate statements September 13, Estonian president Lennart Meri and Lithuanian chief delegate to the Council of Europe Algirdas Gricius said that their countries deemed Ukraine qualified for full membership in the Council of Europe and were urging the CE to admit Ukraine in the... MORE