BRAZAUSKAS HINTS HE WILL NOT SEEK REELECTION.

Interviewed in the Polish daily Rzecz Pospolita while on an official visit to Poland, Lithuanian president Algirdas Brazauskas stated that "the time of politicians of my age is drawing to a close" and asked rhetorically "whether politicians of my generation ought to get in the way of younger generations." Brazauskas, 65 and in office since 1992, was responding to questions about whether he would seek another term of office in Lithuania’s presidential election, scheduled for next December. Parliament chairman Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuanian-American ecologist Valdas Adamkus, and several others have stated their intention to enter the race. Adamkus, who tops the opinion polls, faces legal hurdles owing to his foreign citizenship and residency. Landsbergis and Adamkus are in approximately the same age bracket as Brazauskas. (International agencies, BNS, June 23)

Ukraine Takes First Real Step Toward Reducing Dependence on Russian Oil.