There will not be a war in Chechnya," Interior Minister Sergei Stepashin promised on March 16, following meetings in the Federation Council with heads of the North Caucasus republics. Stepashin thus disavowed his own statement that the Russia authorities were prepared to destroy guerrilla bases... MORE

One newspaper today said that the Kremlin had committed "one of the biggest mistakes in recent times" by trying to blackmail Prosecutor General Yuri Skuratov with the sex videotape. "In attempting to dismiss Skuratov using old and dear kompromat [compromising materials] methods, Boris Yeltsin was... MORE

In remarks to reporters yesterday in Moscow, however, Atomic Energy Minister Yevgeny Adamov appeared to downplay the report that Russia might be willing to curtail its nuclear cooperation with Iran. The Russian minister, a former head of NIKIET who has aggressively promoted the sale of... MORE

Tensions continued to build after yesterday's overwhelming Federation Council vote not to accept the resignation of Prosecutor General Yuri Skuratov. President Boris Yeltsin reportedly met with Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov yesterday after the decision. The Kremlin press service released a statement in the name of... MORE

The "New York Times" reported yesterday that Russia has offered to curtail its nuclear cooperation with Iran if the United States lifts sanctions against two Russian nuclear research institutes. But remarks made yesterday by Russian Atomic Energy Minister Yevgeny Adamov--said to be the author of... MORE

On March 14, at one of the roadblocks near the Chechen town of Gudermes, the father-in-law of field commander Khattab, Magomed Bidaev, was taken hostage. Khattab's bodyguard, who was accompanying Bidaev, was shot. Immediately after the abduction, Shamil Basaev announced on the local "Kavkaz" television... MORE

According to Russian Interior Minister Sergei Stepashin, the kidnappers of General Gennady Shpigun are likely to demand a ransom for his release. This view is shared by the Russian prosecutor general's authorized representative in Chechnya, Lema Tagirov. Stepashin claims that situation will develop along the... MORE

The vote not to accept Prosecutor General Yuri Skuratov's resignation will also probably be widely interpreted as a major slap in the Kremlin's face, given that there have been many rumors that Skuratov has collected a mass of "kompromat" (compromising materials) on high-level officials, particularly... MORE

The Federation Council, the upper house of Russia's parliament, has refused to accept the resignation of Yuri Skuratov, who stepped down as the country's prosecutor general at the beginning of February, ostensibly for health reasons. The members of the Council--called "senators," actually governors and regional... MORE

In his remarks yesterday urging START II ratification, Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov argued that quick approval of the treaty by Russian lawmakers would likely serve to discourage the United States from developing a strategic missile defense system incompatible with the 1972 ABM treaty. Yet... MORE