United Tajik Opposition (UTO) chairman Saidabdullo Nuri yesterday suspended the work of the National Reconciliation Commission, which he chairs. The NRC, a joint government-opposition body, is empowered to supervise the implementation of the peace agreements signed in Moscow in June 1997. Nuri's statement accused the... MORE

President Nursultan Nazarbaev gave an upbeat account of his country's economic performance last week, telling a meeting at Kazakhstan State University that GDP grew 2.5 percent in 1997 compared to that of the year before. This, he said, gave Kazakhstanis the highest per capita GDP... MORE

In the presence of Israel's political elite, Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze received yesterday in Jerusalem the prize of Israel's Democracy Institute. He was awarded the prize in recognition of his support for Jewish emigration from Soviet Georgia and the USSR to Israel, and for his... MORE

In a joint communique yesterday, Azerbaijan's Internal Affairs and State Security Ministries, together with the General Prosecutor's Office, accused the former chairman of parliament, Rasul Guliev, of plotting terrorist actions from abroad in order to seize power in the country. The statement claimed that Guliev... MORE

Coal miners throughout Kemerovo Oblast held a one-day warning strike yesterday to protest wage arrears of up to 13 months and to call for greater state support for their beleaguered industry. Union officials said that work stopped in all 54 working pits in the region,... MORE

In a speech yesterday, Belarusan president Alyaksandr Lukashenka described as "authentic" and "alarming" alleged evidence that the opposition is planning a coup d'etat with Western financial support. Intimating that the evidence had been leaked from opposition circles to his security services, Lukashenka hinted that the... MORE

Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov sought to deflect speculation about his presidential ambitions yesterday when he told interviewers that he intends to run for re-election as mayor in 2000. The Moscow election is due to take place during the summer of 2000, at the same time... MORE

A Russian government spokesman has denied yesterday's western media reports that Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin had been taken ill. The spokesman conceded that Chernomyrdin was not at work yesterday, and that First Deputy Premier Anatoly Chubais chaired a government meeting in his place. But he... MORE

Russian defense minister Igor Sergeev, in the midst of an official visit to France, yesterday proposed that Russian reconnaissance aircraft might replace the American U-2's currently operating over Iraq. Sergeev supplied no details as to either the type of aircraft he was proposing be used... MORE

President Boris Yeltsin's chief spokesman said yesterday that the Russian leader believes it is time for the country's parliament to ratify the START II nuclear arms treaty. According to Sergei Yastrzhembsky, Yeltsin believes that ratification will improve U.S.-Russian relations, while further delays will hinder both... MORE