MOSCOW OPTIMISTIC ON MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROSPECTS.

A Russian deputy foreign minister told an Arab-language newspaper July 5 that Moscow expects recently elected Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to moderate his attitude toward the Middle East peace process as he settles into office. According to Viktor Posuvalyuk, Moscow is not pessimistic about the prospects for peace because typically the "rhetoric of the election campaign differs from real action… and this is bound to happen with Netanyahu." (Reuter, July 5) Egypt’s Foreign Ministry announced yesterday in Cairo that Foreign Minister Amr Moussa will visit Moscow later this month for talks on the Middle East. (Reuter, July 7)

Power Struggle During "Interregnum".