Sergeev's optimistic remarks on February 22 about the state of the Russian armed forces would be disputed by many, however, and not merely by the Kremlin's political opposition. The Russian army's continuing woes were most recently and most spectacularly highlighted, for example, by a U.S.... MORE

Yeltsin's 1996 pledge had been directed not merely at improving the army's professionalism, but also at addressing widely held concerns among the Russian population over the dismal--and at times dangerous--conditions which confront the country's conscript soldiers. Brutality in the barracks--called "hazing"--has been a much publicized... MORE

Russia and China yesterday reaffirmed their commitment both to a strategic partnership and to continuing improvements in their bilateral relations. Delegations from the two countries also signed eleven agreements, many aimed at boosting falling levels of bilateral trade. The documents included an agreement on economic... MORE

In remarks made on the eve of Russia's February 23 military holiday (see the Monitor, February 24), Defense Minister Igor Sergeev suggested that, despite many difficulties, the military leadership had in recent years begun rebuilding Russia's armed forces. Sergeev told a Kremlin gathering that "we... MORE

The Russian and Georgian ministers of internal affairs, Sergei Stepashin and Kakha Targamadze, signed in Moscow yesterday a cooperation agreement for the period 1999-2000. Aside from the usual clauses on combating organized crime, the agreement creates a joint "collegium" (high-level policy and management board) of... MORE

Eight months before Ukraine's presidential elections, which are scheduled for October 31, incumbent President Leonid Kuchma leads other prospective candidates in a poll conducted jointly by Gallup and Ukraine's Democratic Initiatives Fund. The poll--a follow-up to one taken in January--revealed that popular support for Kuchma... MORE

Ukraine's Oil and Gas State Committee and its Romanian counterpart have signed an agreement to lay a connecting pipeline from Khust in Ukraine's Carpathians to Satu Mare in Romania's Transylvania. The 60-kilometer link will plug Romania into the main line which carries Russian gas across... MORE

Aiset Dadasheva and Fatima Taimaskhanova, who were sentenced to long jail terms for the bombing of the railway station in Pyatigorsk, have been moved from Stavropol to Vologda (Kommersant daily, February 24). The authorities in Moscow took the step after rebel Chechen field commander Salman... MORE

The Moscow prosecutor's office announced yesterday that it had instituted criminal proceedings against Aleksandr Barkashov, leader of the neo-Nazi Russian National Unity movement (RNE). The charge against Barkashov is threatening violence against a public official. As local prosecutors see it, Barkashov, in organizing a January... MORE

Closed-door Russian-consultations earlier this week in Moscow appear to have done little either to warm chilled relations between the United States and Russia or to narrow differences between the two countries on a number of key issues. Led by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe... MORE