TheRussian parliament passed on second reading a bill which wouldforce employers to pay interest along with back pay to any workerwho did not receive his wages on time, Segodnya reportedJune 24. Many Russian firms, and even the Russian government,have tried to cope with their economic... MORE

Soldiersin a unit near Moscow no longer receive any bread, because thedefense ministry has failed to pay for it in the past, Moskovskykomsomolets reported June 23. According to the bakers, theMoscow military district alone is billions of rubles behind inits payments, and these arrears will... MORE

Ostankino televisionreported on June 26 that 36 percent of all young people in Russiaare now without jobs. The station's reporter sharply criticizedthe country's educational system for preparing young people forthe wrong jobs, and pointedly asked why young Russians seemedto be interested in receiving educations that... MORE

Officialsin the troubled Kuzbass mining region say that coal should bepriced according to its ability to generate energy rather thanby the ton, Russian television reported June 26. Because coalfrom the Kuzbass has three times the caloric potential of coalmined elsewhere, such an arrangement would dramatically... MORE

Russian ships willbuild a shield around a Soviet nuclear submarine which sank offNorway in 1989, Itar-Tass said June 24. The Komsomoletscarried at least two nuclear torpedoes, as well as a nuclear powerplant, and Scandinavians have pressed Moscow to take this stepto prevent any leakage of... MORE

Without waitingfor the Federation Council and Yeltsin to approve a Duma-passedmeasure which establishes firmer rules for foreign investors,Exxon and the Japanese Sodeco oil companies will sign an agreementto develop a major oil field off Russia's Sakhalin Island in thePacific, Russian radio reported June 26. Skokov... MORE

The leader of theUnion of Peoples of Russia electoral bloc, former Yeltsin advisorYuri Skokov, said that Russia drew its strength from the unityof Turkic and Slavic peoples, Russian television reported June25. Speaking at a conference of Russian youth organizations, Skokovsaid that such unity had "planetary... MORE

Duma foreign relationscommittee chairman Vladimir Lukin said that the United Statesand Germany, under the guise of a UN operation, are openly backingthe Bosnian Muslims, Russian radio reported June 26. Given thatmany in Russia--including the Cossacks--want to support the Serbsbut have so far refrained from doing... MORE

FederationCouncil chairman Vladimir Shumeiko visited Romania as part ofa Russian effort to block any expansion of the Western defensealliance, Itar-Tass reported June 27. Shumeiko told the news servicethat Bucharest shared Moscow's views on this issue and wonderedwhat the purpose of NATO expansion really was. Drug... MORE

More than one Russian in tenhas tried drugs and more than one in 100 is now a regular user,Itar-Tass reported June 26. The number of drug users in Russiais expected to double, the service said. As a result, drug-relatedcrime is rising rapidly: there were 74,000... MORE