PROTESTS CONTINUE IN VLADIVOSTOK.

Russian interior minister Anatoly Kulikov flew to Vladivostok yesterday as street protests continued over power cuts of up to 20 hours a day that have been plaguing the city. Police clashed yesterday with protesters who had blocked main roads in the city for the third consecutive day; a state of emergency is in force. Kulikov, who is in the region for talks with tax-collection officers, was forced to hold his meeting outside the city since the main road was blocked by protesters. (NTV, May 14) Meanwhile, the Russian government announced that it was sending emergency financial aid to pay wage arrears of power workers in Primorsky krai, of which Vladivostok is the capital. But Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Sysuyev acknowledged that the real problems run deeper and that the emergency funding would not resolve them. (RIA, May 14)

A Day in the Life of a "New Russian."