Admiral Kazuya Natsukawa, Japan's topuniformed officer, continued his week-long visit to Russia yesterday as heheld talks in Moscow with Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeev. (Kyodo,June 2) Natsukawa, chairman of the Japanese Self Defense Forces' Joint StaffCouncil, is the highest-ranking Japanese officer to visit Russia in... MORE

A Russian Foreign Ministryspokesman yesterday reiterated Moscow's objections to the launching by NATOof military operations outside the borders of its member countries withoutsanction by the UN Security Council. (Russian agencies, June 2) Thestatement out of Moscow follows up remarks by Russian Foreign MinisterYevgeny Primakov made... MORE

An E-3A airplane of theAtlantic Alliance, dubbed Flying Radar, exercised yesterday in Lithuanianair space and landed at Siauliai airbase. Lithuanian fighter planesparticipated in the exercise as escorts to the E-3A. According to Russiansources, the plane carries an early-warning radar system capable ofmonitoring movements hundreds of... MORE

Interviewed inyesterday's Nezavisimaya gazeta, Latvian President Guntis Ulmanis urgedMoscow to engage in a political dialogue with Latvia "without preconditions"and to end the "unfounded accusations" against the country. Ulmaniscautioned Russia's leadership against the possible consequences of its"loud, ill-conceived declarations...which entangle the Russian population[of Latvia] in political... MORE

The Belarusan Ministry of Justice yesterdayrevoked the attorney's license of Harry Pahanyayla, the leading human rightslawyer in Belarus. In an earlier step, the authorities had used self-awardedpowers to expel Pahanyayla from the Minsk bar. Yesterday's measure meansthat he will no longer be able to defend... MORE

President Leonid Kuchma ismoving decisively to restore state authority and curb organized crime in theregion and city of Odessa. In recent days, Kuchma has used his legal powersto appoint an acting mayor in the city, as well as replacing the head of theregion's administration. The... MORE

At a news conference yesterday,Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze accused Russian "peacekeeping" forcesof having loaned fourteen tanks and armored vehicles to the Abkhaz for usein the recent fighting in Gali district. Similar charges, also mentioningartillery, were leveled yesterday by Georgia's delegate to the meeting ofInternal Affairs... MORE

Azerbaijan and foreignpartners signed yesterday the contract for the development of the Kurdashioffshore oilfield, comprised of three blocks in the southern part ofAzerbaijan's Caspian shelf. Situated at sea depths ranging from 50 to 600meters, Kurdashi is estimated to contain approximately 100 million tons ofoil. The... MORE

Also yesterday, Azerbaijan signed two relativelysmaller contracts for the development of its onshore oilfields. A contractworth US$800 million includes the British-Canadian Commonwealth Oil with a40 percent interest, the U.S. company Union Texas Petroleum with another 40percent, and SOCAR with 20 percent. The other contract, worth... MORE

Kazakhstan'smacroeconomic reforms received welcome endorsement at a May 28 meeting inAlmaty between President Nursultan Nazarbaev and IMF Managing DirectorMichel Camdessus. While Kazakhstan has borrowed a total US$500 million fromthe IMF since 1993, it has not drawn on the US$420 million Extended FundFacility approved by the... MORE