Finland has purchased three more Buk-M1 air defense missile complexes, a representative of the weapons' Yekaterinburg manufacturer announced on September 12. The deal was said to be worth 1 billion Finnish markkaa ($185 million). The Finns acquired several of the Russian medium-range systems last year... MORE

The Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya gazeta, which is controlled by financier Boris Berezovsky, has published an all-out attack on First Deputy Prime Minister Anatoly Chubais. The article, written over the pseudonym "Ulyan Kerzonov" (Julian Curzonov), is a sustained and closely-reasoned outpouring of vitriol remarkable even by... MORE

A new group has been set up in the Russian Duma with the aim of sponsoring legislation to protect the interests of Russia's armed forces. It is led by Gen. Lev Rokhlin, chairman of the Duma's Committee on Defense, who last week left the pro-government... MORE

The Russian-Chechen commission on drafting a full-scale treaty between Moscow and Grozny met over the weekend in Dagomys, close to Sochi, and decided to set up three working groups. In addition to the treaty itself, these groups will be responsible for drafting agreements on a... MORE

Although representatives of the two sides hailed the results, a meeting of Russian and NATO ambassadors in Brussels on September 11 appeared to mark a less than auspicious beginning for the newly created Russia-NATO Permanent Joint Council. According to Western reports, Russian ambassador to NATO... MORE

According to a September 13 report, the U.S. Air Force agency that monitors seismic data world-wide for evidence of nuclear explosions believes that the August 16 "seismic event" near the Russian nuclear test site at Novaya Zemlya was probably an earthquake, as the Russians have... MORE

Led by Prime Minister Valery Pustovoytenko, a Ukrainian delegation to the Central European Free Trade Association's joint meeting in Portorozh, Slovakia, on September 12-14 secured an agreement on a framework for Ukrainian accession to CEFTA. (Ukrainian agencies, September 12, 14) Accession would mark an important... MORE

Eurobond issues totaling up to $500 million are likely to be issued by the Kazakhstani government and two of Kazakhstan's leading banks by the end of the year. While these issues reflect the deepening of Kazakhstan's financial system and the government's progress in reducing inflation,... MORE

President Boris Yeltsin appealed to the Russian people in his weekly radio address this morning to buy their vodka from official outlets. He said illicit alcohol production is costing the state dearly in lost revenues and is now Russia's most profitable illegal business, after corrupt... MORE

Scientists in St. Petersburg estimate that the poor quality of the drinking water in Russia's second city knocks between 12 and 15 years off the average life expectancy of city residents. (Vechernyaya Moskva, September 10) Chubais Ally to be Investigated for "Royalty Payment."