RUSSIAN-CHINESE TRADE REFLECTS IMPROVED RELATIONS.

Bilateral trade between Russia and China in the first six months of 1996 reached $3.27 billion dollars, up more than 41 percent from the same period last year, a top Chinese official said in Moscow on September 1. According to Chinese state councilor Li Tieying, additional unregistered "shuttle" trade taking place over the border between the two countries probably pushed actual trade volume well above the official figures. The Chinese official added that bilateral relations between Russia and China were now at one of "the most favorable stages in their entire history." (Itar-Tass, September 1)

Chechnya: The Putative Accord…