Russian Prime Minister Sergei Kirienko and Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov are expected to meet tomorrow, though it is still unclear where. Russian government sources suggested that the meeting, like many earlier meetings between Russian and Chechen officials, would take place at President Ruslan Aushev's suburban... MORE

The Lithuanian government announced on July 29 the cessation of negotiations with Russia's LUKoil company on the sale of a 33 percent stock package in the country's oil sector. On the same day, the government signed a protocol of intent with the U.S. company Williams... MORE

In a statement issued yesterday, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov urged Russia's government, bicameral parliament and regions to support "loudly and firmly" the electoral bloc "For Human Rights in a United Latvia." Luzhkov described the bloc as "the only political force" that supports the rights of... MORE

Ukraine's newly appointed Prosecutor-General, Mikhaylo Potebenko, announced yesterday that the criminal investigation against former Prime Minister, now Hromada leader, Pavlo Lazarenko, is being energized. The investigative unit is receiving additional personnel and has been instructed to show results within three months. The investigation, Potebenko remarked,... MORE

Azerbaijani President Haidar Aliev stated in the presence of Ukrainian journalists in Baku that he favors Ukraine's proposal to transit Caspian oil to European markets. Azerbaijan considers the Ukrainian route as one of several required for the export of Caspian oil, Aliev said. He also... MORE

Vazha Lortkipanidze accepted yesterday (after a two-day "pause for deliberation") the post of State Minister, Georgia's approximate equivalent of a prime minister. Most ministers are likely to be changed as part of the government reform. Under the constitution, the president--not the state minister--nominates the cabinet... MORE

Tajik President Imomali Rahmonov and United Opposition leader Saidabdullo Nuri met yesterday to discuss the long-overdue appointment of opposition members to a government of national unity. Rahmonov rejected the opposition's top nominees: Muhammadsharif Himmazoda for deputy prime minister, Mirzo Zio for defense minister, and Amirhoja... MORE

Russian President Boris Yeltsin interrupted his Karelian vacation yesterday and returned to Moscow a few days earlier than planned. It was not immediately clear why he had cut short his holiday. Some reports said bad weather spoiled his vacation plans. Yeltsin himself announced on leaving... MORE

The Clinton Administration yesterday imposed sanctions on seven Russian enterprises believed to be aiding Iran in the development of ballistic missiles. The seven enterprises are the INOR scientific center, the Grafit and Polyus research institutes, Glavkosmos, the MOSO company, Baltic State Technical University and Europalace... MORE

South Korean Foreign Minister Park Chung-soo told reporters yesterday that Seoul has no intention of reinstating Oleg Abramkin, a Russian diplomat expelled from South Korea on July 8. Park's remarks appeared to contradict those made by Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov a day earlier. Following... MORE