With help fromthe United States, Armenian authorities have established a specialprogram to certify that all food raised in that country is notradioactive, the Noyan Tapan news agency reported June 26. Thisannouncement will do little to reassure those who believe thatthe reopening of the Metzamor atomic... MORE

The Russian foreign ministry has sharply criticizedthe Russian judicial authorities for failing to take up the caseof a Russian citizen recently convicted in Turkmenistan for plottingto assassinate the president of that country, Moscow radio reportedJune 25. The foreign ministry also criticized the Turkmenistanauthorities, citing the... MORE

More than 400,000 ethnicGermans have left Kazakhstan in recent years, and most of theremaining 641,000 want to go, Moscow's Ostankino television reportedJune 25. Local Germans told the station that they had no hopeof being able to develop their own national culture there or ofhaving a... MORE

In Kyrgyzstan, morethan 40,000 children aged 12 to 16 are not attending school, Pravdareported June 23. The paper said that they had dropped out becauseof cash shortages in that country's educational budget. Anotherlikely cause is that some Kyrgyz parents are pulling their daughtersout of school... MORE

Russian firmsregularly discriminate on an ethnic basis, Kommersant-Dailyreported June 15. Few will hire anyone from the Caucasus,some won't hire Ukrainians or Jews, and even someone with a strangelast name is likely to have difficulties, the paper said. Thepaper reported on one case where an employer... MORE

Duma speaker Ivan Rybkin told Russian radio June 25 that theparliament was unlikely to vote against Prime MinisterViktor Chernomyrdin in the upcoming vote. He suggested thatthe meeting of the Russian Security Council two days aheadof the voting will resolve the issues bothering mostdeputies, an apparent... MORE

Saying that hewould go to Grozny himself if necessary, Prime MinisterViktor Chernomyrdin told his negotiators June 25 that theymust resolve the issue peacefully, Russian radio reported.Apparently, there has been less progress at the talks thanhad been assumed in the initial euphoria. Each side hascriticized the... MORE

Russia's atomicenergy minister Viktor Mikhailov said that Moscow wouldcancel its deal with the West on the sale of enricheduranium unless the US increased its price from $600 to $800a kilogram, Interfax reported June 26. Possibly anegotiating tactic--Russian and American officials are tomeet on June 28... MORE

One more reason why Dumamembers may not want to face the voters and possible defeatis that they would lose their parliamentary immunity fromcriminal prosecution. Russian prosecutors told Ogonek (no.23) that they had asked parliamentary immunity to be liftedin 334 cases during the last two years.... MORE

At a joint pressconference in Moscow, Chinese Prime Minister Li Peng said"we will not allow anyone to teach us how to live andwork," Interfax reported June 26. Echoing the Chineseposition was Russian PM Viktor Chernomyrdin. He said that"we will decide for ourselves how to live."... MORE