YELTSIN NAMES RUSSIAN TEAM TO DRAFT DOCUMENTS WITH BELARUS.

Russia’s president Yeltsin has named the members of the Russian team that will draft the final details of the charter of union between Russia and Belarus. Leading the group will be Deputy Prime Minister Valery Serov, who was one of those who drafted the original charter, a watered-down version of which Yeltsin signed with his Belarusan counterpart at the beginning of the month. Another member is presidential adviser Sergei Shakhrai, who shared the original drafting work with Serov; he and Serov are both strong supporters of unification. Other members include presidential staffers Mikhail Krasnov, Aleksandr Livshits, Ruslan Orekhov, and Sergei Prikhodko, as well as First Deputy Foreign Minister Boris Pastukhov. (Itar-Tass, April 23)

Leaders of Russia’s National Republics Query Union with Belarus.