Russian 5th-generation fighter to have 2,000 test flights - Putin

20:27 01/03/2010

Russia’s fifth-generation jet fighter, the T-50, is to undergo more than 2,000 flight tests before full-scale production starts, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Monday. "Before the jet’s serial production is launched, it should complete over 2,000 test flights," Putin said.

MOSCOW, March 1 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20100301/158055532.html

 Russia, India to develop joint 5G-fighter by 2016

15:03 02/03/2010

A Russian-Indian fifth-generation fighter jet could be developed by 2015-2016, a Russian defense industry official said on Tuesday. Moscow and New Delhi are expected to sign a contract on a joint development of the new fighter in the near future, focusing on the design concept and technical requirements put forward by India. "I hope that we will be able to build a joint fifth-generation aircraft in the next five to six years. It is a time-consuming and complex project," said Alexander Fomin, first deputy head of the Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation. The new aircraft will be most likely based on Russia’s T-50 prototype fifth-generation fighter, which has already made two test flights and is expected to join the Russian Air Force in 2015. India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) was reported to be seeking a 25% share in design and development in the project. Fomin said the fighter for the Indian Air Force could incorporate several integrated on-board systems developed by third parties. "The integration is good because we will not have to invent a bicycle and can use the things that our neighbors already have, but it is also a difficult task because we will have to combine all the elements in a unified system," the official said. The new fighter for the Indian Air Force is expected to feature a two-seat cockpit, advanced electronics and could be armed with BrahMos supersonic missiles. Russia has been developing its fifth-generation fighter since the 1990s. The current prototype, known as the T-50, was designed by the Sukhoi design bureau and built at a plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, in Russia’s Far East. Russian officials have already hailed the fighter as "a unique warplane" that combines the capabilities of an air superiority fighter and attack aircraft.

MOSCOW, March 2 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20100302/158065429.html

 Russia, France open ’exclusive talks’ on sale of 4 Mistral warships

23:44 01/03/2010

Russia and France have started "exclusive talks" on the purchase of four French Mistral-class amphibious-assault ships, President Nicolas Sarkozy said after talks with his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev. A source in the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday that Moscow and Paris have yet to clinch a deal on the purchase of the French warship, adding that nothing would be signed during the Russian president’s three-day visit to France, which began on Monday. "Starting from today, exclusive talks on the issue of four Mistral helicopter carriers will be held," Sarkozy told a press conference. "The Mistral is a helicopter carrier we will create for Russia without military equipment." Sarkozy linked the Mistral sale to Russia to mutual trust between the two states, and Medvedev said: "I hope the talks will end in success." The French president said two of the four Mistral-class ships under discussion could be built in Russia. "Two plus two seems a rather equal, balanced decision to me," he said. The Russian military earlier announced that it was considering buying one of the Mistral-class amphibious assault ships, worth 400-500 million euros (around $540-$675 million), and potentially building three or four vessels of the same class in partnership with the French naval shipbuilder DCNS. A Mistral-class ship is capable of transporting and deploying 16 helicopters, four landing barges, up to 70 armored vehicles including 13 battle tanks, and 450 personnel. Many Russian military and industry experts have questioned the financial and military sense of the purchase, and some believe that Russia simply wants to gain access to advanced naval technology that could be used in the future in potential conflicts with NATO and its allies.

PARIS, March 1 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20100301/158057156.html

 India set to buy 42 more Russian Su-30 fighter jets

16:05 02/03/2010

India and Russia are negotiating a new contract on the delivery of 42 Su-30MKI to the Indian Air Force, an Indian newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing military sources. According to the Daily News and Analysis newspaper, the new deal, which is reportedly worth more than $3 billion, has been in the works for several months. The new air-superiority fighters will come on top of the 230 already contracted from Russia in three deals worth a total of $8.5 billion. "The [new] order is being placed due to the insufficient number of fighter squadrons in the Indian Air Force and would allow us to eliminate potential threats," a source in the Indian Defense Ministry told RIA Novosti. India originally ordered 50 Su-30MKI aircraft from Russia in 1996-98 and an additional 40 planes in 2007. Hindustani Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) was also contracted to build 140 aircraft in India between 2003 and 2017 under a licensed production agreement. The Indian Air Force currently has about 100 Su-30MKIs, mainly deployed at airbases close to the borders with China and Pakistan. Analysts believe that India will remain the main purchaser of Russian-made combat aircraft for the next 15 years under existing and future contracts, as the country desperately needs to upgrade its fighter fleet, which includes Su-30MKI and MiG-29 fighters, but mainly consists of obsolete Soviet MiG-21 models.

NEW DELHI, March 2 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20100302/158066242.html

 Russia reaffirms commitment to destroy chemical weapons by 2012

16:20 03/03/2010

Russia will complete the construction of chemical weapon destruction plants in 2011 and will destroy all chemical weapons stockpiles by 2012, a government official said on Wednesday. Russia signed the Chemical Weapons Convention banning the development, production, stockpiling, transfer, and use of chemical arms in 1993, and ratified it in 1997. The country has destroyed 18,000 metric tons, or 45% of its chemical weapons stockpiles as of December 2009. Gen. Nikolai Abroskin, head of the Federal Agency for Special Construction, said during a collegiate meeting at the agency that despite the recent financial crunch Russia would meet its obligations and destroy the remaining 22,000 metric tons of chemical weapons by 2012. The country has allocated $7.18 billion from the federal budget for the implementation of the program, and has so far built five chemical weapon destruction plants - in Gorny (Saratov Region), Kambarka (Republic of Udmurtia), Nizhny Novgorod, the Maradykovo complex (Kirov Region), and Siberia’s Kurgan Region. Another two are under construction. Abroskin said the completion of chemical weapon destruction facilities remained a priority in 2010. "We should be able to launch the first stage of the facility in Pochep [Bryansk Region], and second stages of the facilities in Leonidovka [Penza Region] and Shchuchiye [Kurgan Region]...which will allow us to finish the construction of all chemical weapon destruction plants in 2011 and destroy all chemical weapons by 2012 in line with the federal program," he said. By 2016-2017, Russia aims to finish all the remaining work under the project, including decontamination and equipment dismantlement, the official said.

MOSCOW, March 3 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20100303/158080146.html

 Yanukovych vows to resolve issue of Hero of Ukraine Bandera

21:31 01/03/2010

President Viktor Yanukovych pledged on Monday to address the issue of Ukrainian nationalist leader Stepan Bandera, seen by many as a Nazi collaborator during World War II, being given the country’s top individual honor. Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, known for his promotion of Ukrainian nationalism, often at the expense of relations with Russia, awarded Bandera the Hero of Ukraine title in late January. Ukrainian news agency Unian reported that during a meeting on Monday with European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek, Yanukovych discussed the issue in relation to a February 25 resolution of the Ukrainian parliament asking the president to reconsider Bandera’s Hero of Ukraine award. "This issue is being considered in Ukraine both at the political level and in court cases, and we will find a solution soon," Yanukovych said. Yushchenko’s move fueled fierce debate in Ukraine, where Bandera is a controversial figure, with many in the more nationalist west of the country considering him a hero. Yushchenko was swept to power by the 2004 pro-Western street protests, known as the "orange revolution." He was succeeded by opposition leader Yanukovych who was elected Ukrainian president in the February 7 runoff vote.

KIEV, March 1 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100301/158055942.html

 No change in Ukraine-NATO relations - Yanukovych

14:36 01/03/2010

Ukraine’s relations with NATO will remain unchanged, President Viktor Yanukovych said on Monday. He also said the former Soviet republic would maintain its partnership with NATO, adding that Ukraine’s neutral status would be unaltered. Yanukovych said earlier this week his administration would not continue with former president Viktor Yushchenko’s bid to take Ukraine into NATO, and would prioritize long-established relations with Russia and other former Soviet states. Yushchenko’s attempt to take Ukraine into NATO was strongly backed by the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush. But despite Washington’s enthusiasm, it was turned down at a 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest due to pressure from Germany and France, who were concerned that the move would antagonize Russia. However, NATO has stated that the country could join at an unspecified date in the future. Opinion polls conducted in Ukraine show that the majority of people are against the country’s accession to NATO.

BRUSSELS, March 1 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100301/158051301.html

 Ukrainians want to enter EU, not NATO, poll shows

19:1102/03/2010

A slim majority of Ukrainians favor joining the European Union but almost two thirds oppose NATO membership, according to an opinion poll published on Tuesday. The poll, carried out by Democratic Initiative foundation and Ukrainian Sociology Service pollster in December 2009, showed that if a referendum on accession to the European Union, 51 percent of the Ukrainian electorate would vote to join, while only 27 percent would object. The inhabitants of western Ukraine were mostly for EU membership, while half of the population in eastern Donbas region and the Crimean Peninsula were opposed to the idea. According to the poll, only 61 percent of respondents said they would have taken part in such a referendum, down from 78 percent in 2008. “Ukrainians have dramatically lost interest in politics because of the volatile political environment in the country,” Irina Bekeshkina, the head of Democratic Initiative foundation, said at a news conference on Tuesday. Sixty percent said they would have participated in a referendum on Ukraine accession to NATO, with a majority of 60 percent opposing membership. Twenty-one percent backed joining the Western military alliance, while 19 percent gave no opinion. Bekeshkina said there were three main reasons why Ukrainians are against joining NATO. First, they see it as an aggressive political bloc, second, it could involve Ukraine in military operations, and third, joining NATO could spoil relations with Russia. The opinion poll showed that 58 percent would favor Ukraine joining the Customs Union with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. The poll was held on December 12-26 among 2,010 respondents with a 2.3% margin of error.

KIEV, March 2 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/world/20100302/158069130.html

 Yanukovych to discuss Ukraine-Russia gas issues on Moscow visit

14:04 02/03/2010

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said on Tuesday he intended to discuss gas issues with the Russian leadership during his upcoming visit to Moscow. Ukraine’s leader is due in the Russian capital on Friday, his second foreign trip as president following Monday’s talks with the leadership of the European Union in Brussels, where the gas issue was also discussed. In an interview with the BBC Ukrainian service, Yanukovych said the price of natural gas supplied to Ukraine by Russia must be fair for Kiev, and the issue should be discussed in a broader context involving Ukraine’s access to Russian and Central Asian gas deposits and the creation of a gas transportation consortium to manage the Ukrainian gas pipeline network. Yanukovych said Ukraine wanted to be a full-fledged partner in all gas issues with both Russia and the European Union. Yanukovych, who was inaugurated on February 25, said during his election campaign that he would seek better terms for Kiev in gas contracts signed with Moscow last year. Russia and Ukraine have long fought over natural gas deliveries, jeopardizing supplies to Europe, which gets around a quarter of its gas from Russia. In the latest row at the start of 2009, Russia halted all deliveries via Ukraine’s pipeline system for two weeks. Last year’s gas conflict was resolved when a deal on gas imports and transit was agreed by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Yulia Tymoshenko, who lost to Yanukovych in the February 7 presidential election runoff. Yanukovych also earlier pledged to involve Russia in a gas consortium to modernize and manage the Ukrainian gas transportation system to ensure uninterrupted gas supplies to Europe. Ukraine’s gas transportation system is Europe’s second largest gas pipeline network and the main route for Russian natural gas supplies to European consumers. Back in early 2000, Kiev and Moscow discussed the possibility of creating a gas transport consortium with the involvement of European partners to manage and modernize Ukraine’s Soviet-era gas pipeline network. However, when West-leaning President Viktor Yushchenko came to power in Ukraine as a result of the so-called "orange revolution" in 2004, the project was put on hold. Russia has consistently tried to get a stake in the Ukrainian gas pipeline network to modernize the system and ensure uninterrupted gas supplies to Europe. Ukraine has so far resisted these attempts, saying this would jeopardize its sovereignty. Meanwhile, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said on Tuesday the Russian energy giant had not yet received any proposals from Ukraine on a gas consortium.

KIEV, March 2 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100302/158064734.html

 Putin calls for closer economic cooperation with Ukraine

19:43 05/03/2010

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called on Friday for an improvement in Russian-Ukrainian economic relations. "We know that in engineering, aviation, energy and agricultural spheres we strongly depend on each other. We have a lot to do to make up lost ground," Putin said during a meeting with new Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in Moscow. Earlier on Friday, Yanukovych discussed bilateral relations with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Putin said Russian-Ukrainian trade turnover had decreased by almost 40% in 2009. He said the two neighboring states could develop joint projects, including in the energy sphere, in third countries. The prime minister also expressed hope that a new Ukrainian parliament coalition would be created in the near future, which would allow Yanukovych, who has pledged to seek for closer ties with Moscow, to push through his policies. "We expect the creation of a coalition in the Ukrainian parliament and, as a consequence, a [new] government in Ukraine, our main partner, with which we hope to build normal, constructive relations," Putin said. The Ukrainian parliament majority coalition led by Yulia Tymoshenko, who narrowly lost last month’s presidential elections to Yanukovych, was disbanded on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the parliament dismissed Tymoshenko’s government, with 243 members of the 450-seat legislature voting to oust the prime minister. Ties between Moscow and Kiev deteriorated during former Viktor Yushchenko’s presidency over his Western-leaning policies, including a bid to take Ukraine into NATO.

MOSCOW, March 5 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/russia/20100305/158107142.html

 Yanukovych praises Russian ’political stability’

19:39 05/03/2010

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said on Friday that Russia’s "political stability" gave it an advantage over Ukraine, which has lurched from one crisis to another in recent years. Yanukovych was sworn in on February 25, succeeding Viktor Yushchenko, a leader of the 2004 pro-Western "Orange Revolution." Yushchenko frequently criticized Russia’s political system as undemocratic. "This political stability enabled Russia to have some advantages over Ukraine," Yanukovych, said on Friday during a joint press conference with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Ukraine has witnessed seemingly endless political turmoil over the last five years, with political infighting and power struggles hindering the country’s development. Yanukovych has pledged to steer a more balanced policy towards Russia than Yushchenko, whose policies, including a bid to take Ukraine into NATO, saw a rapid deterioration in bilateral ties. The new Ukrainian leader also said that "by actively cooperating with each other in all areas," Russia and Ukraine could make a return to the good relations they "always had."

MOSCOW, March 5 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100305/158107108.html

 Nationalists hold rally in Kiev to defend Ukrainian language

17:59 07/03/2010

Ukrainian nationalist association Svoboda (Freedom) is holding a rally in the ex-Soviet state’s capital Kiev to defend the Ukrainian language, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported Sunday. "After Viktor Yanukovych was elected Ukraine’s president, the threat to the Ukrainian language has multiplied," Andriy Mohnik, a deputy head of Svoboda, said while opening the several-dozen-strong rally. Yanukovych, sworn in February 25 following the February 7 presidential election runoff which he narrowly won from then prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, has a friendly attitude to Russia and the Russian language rather than his predecessor Viktor Yushchenko whose pro-Western policies, including a bid to take Ukraine into NATO, saw a rapid deterioration in bilateral ties. The new Ukrainian leader, whose power base is in the mainly Russian-speaking eastern and southern industrial parts of the country, has pledged to take steps to assure the right of Ukrainians to speak Russian, something his predecessor had suppressed. Yanukovych has vowed to restore the damaged ties with Russia and in particular consider extending the Russian navy base’s stay in the country, as well as to set up a natural gas consortium to deter fresh disputes affecting transits to Europe. Rally speakers said Sunday they would try to prevent the new president from canceling Yushchenko’s decree to heroize onetime Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera. Yanukovych said after Friday’s talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow that the controversy over his predecessor naming Bandera a national hero would be settled before this year’s Victory Day. Bandera’s Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists briefly allied with Nazi Germany during the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. The Soviet authorities accused Bandera, who fought both the Nazis and the Soviets in his quest for an independent Ukraine, of numerous acts of murder and terrorism. He was assassinated by the KGB in Munich, Germany, on October 15, 1959.

KIEV, March 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100307/158121279.html

 Viktor Yanukovych to gain points from Bandera controversy - expert

20:55 07/03/2010

It will be easy for Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to cancel his predecessor Viktor Yushchenko’s January decree to award, amid much media hysteria, the honorary title of Hero of Ukraine to onetime Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera, a Polish analyst said Sunday. Warsaw University’s Andrzej Szeptycki said the cancelation would bring Yanukovych additional points in the European Union and Russia and would make it possible for him to "annoy" Yushchenko. Yanukovych, sworn in February 25 following the February 7 presidential election runoff that he narrowly won from then prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, said after Friday’s talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow that the Bandera controversy would be settled before this year’s Victory Day. "This is a concession Yanukovych will find easy to make," Szeptycki was quoted by the Unian news agency as saying. Yanukovych has a friendly attitude to Russia rather than Yushchenko whose pro-Western policies, including a bid to take Ukraine into NATO, saw a rapid deterioration in bilateral ties. Bandera’s Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists briefly allied with Nazi Germany during the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. The Soviet authorities accused Bandera, who fought both the Nazis and the Soviets in his quest for an independent Ukraine, of numerous acts of murder and terrorism. He was assassinated by the KGB in Munich, Germany, on October 15, 1959. In Ukraine Bandera is a controversial figure, with many in the more nationalist west of the country considering him a hero. Yanukovych’s position "shows that [Yushchenko] is no longer president," Szeptycki said, adding that Yanukovych is ready to sacrifice potential western Ukrainian support to the benefits he would have from good relations with the EU and Russia. EU parliamentarians on February 25 condemned Yushchenko’s decree and called on Yanukovych to revise the decision.

KIEV, March 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100307/158122298.html

 OSCE mission reports violations during Tajik parliamentary polls

13:35 01/03/2010

Parliamentary elections in Tajikistan failed to meet many international requirements, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said in a statement on Monday. The observers said numerous irregularities took place during Sunday’s elections, including "a high prevalence of family and proxy voting and cases of ballot box stuffing." "I’m happy that election day took place in a generally good atmosphere, but I’m even more disappointed that these elections failed on many basic democratic standards," Pia Christmas-Moeller, Special Coordinator of the OSCE short-term observers, said in the statement. "There is still a long way to go, and hopefully the new parliament will take up this challenge," she said. A total of 3,102,073 voters voted at 3,067 polling stations in Tajikistan. Tajikistan’s top election body declared the election in the ex-Soviet republic valid, with the country’s electoral threshold being 50% plus one vote. The polls were monitored by more than 25,000 local and about 540 international observers, representing the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Preliminary results of the elections will be announced later on Monday and the final official results within 10 days.

MOSCOW, March 1 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100301/158050351.html

 Tajik president’s ruling party increases majority of parliamentary seats

09:44 05/03/2010

Tajik ruling People’s Democratic Party led by President Emomali Rakhmon has received 54 of the 63 seats in the Parliament after elections on February 28, Tajik Central Election Commission said on Friday. The People’s Democratic Party has received 70.6% of the votes, according to the Central Election Commission. Tajikistan’s top election body declared the election in the ex-Soviet republic valid, with the country’s electoral threshold being 50% plus one vote. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said in a statement that parliamentary elections in Tajikistan failed to meet many international requirements, citing numerous irregularities during Sunday’s elections, including "a high prevalence of family and proxy voting and cases of ballot box stuffing." The polls were monitored by more than 25,000 local and about 540 international observers, representing the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The People’s Democratic Party is the largest among the eight officially registered political parties in Tajikistan, numbering 85,000 members. Previously it held 52 of the 63 seats in the parliament. Rakhmon, who has ruled the impoverished Central Asian nation of 7.5 million for almost two decades, was re-elected leader of the People’s Democratic Party in December 2009. Rakhmon’s eldest son, Rustam Emomali, believed to be his father’s possible successor, is running for a deputy seat in the Dushanbe city council.

DUSHANBE, March 5 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/world/20100305/158099142.html

 Georgian opposition leader Burdzhanadze visits Moscow

14:12 03/03/2010

Nino Burdzhanadze, a leading Georgian opposition figure, has flown to Moscow to seek to improve ties broken off after the August 2008 war between Russia and Georgia, a Georgian news agency reported on Wednesday. Novosti-Georgia said the former parliamentary speaker - a key ally of Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili in the 2003 Rose Revolution but now a bitter critic of the government as head of the Democratic Movement-United Georgia - flew to Moscow on Tuesday. “Political dialogue with Russia plays a crucial role in Georgian unity,” Burdzhanadze said before leaving Tbilisi. “While Georgian opposition parties mull a joint candidate for the upcoming mayoral polls in Tbilisi, and the authorities wage smear campaigns against the opposition, I am engaged in high politics.” “Georgian society has no idea about real Georgian-Russian relations and the ways of reconciling the two countries,” she added. After Russia, she intends to visit Europe and the United States. Tbilisi broke off diplomatic relations with Moscow after their five-day war over South Ossetia in August 2008. Russia later recognized the independence of South Ossetia and another former Georgian province, Abkhazia, in a move described by Georgia as “annexation.” A growing number of Georgian opposition leaders consider the political dialogue between Russia and Georgia a paramount task for Georgia’s future, and former Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Nogaideli has visited Moscow several times in recent months. “The main obstacle to a normal political relationship between the two countries is Saakashvili’s policy. Only a change in the political situation in Tbilisi could ease the situation,” he said late last year in an interview with Rossiiskaya Gazeta.

TBILISI, March 3 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100303/158078515.html

 Putin views reopening of Russia-Georgia border as positive sign

20:54 04/03/2010

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the reopening of the only land border crossing between Russia and Georgia was a sign of improving ties between the two countries. "This is a new facility, it creates good new opportunities for direct contacts between people... This is the first stage, an act symbolizing the development of Russian-Georgian ties," Putin said at a meeting with Georgian opposition leader Nino Burdzhanadze. The former speaker of the Georgian parliament, once an ally of President Mikheil Saakashvili, came to Moscow for talks with Russian political leaders, saying that such dialogue was crucial for Georgia. "I believe that in this complicated situation, the steps that ease the life of ordinary people are very important, and they should be taken," Burdzhanadze said. Russia closed the Verkhny Lars checkpoint on the border with Georgia for reconstruction in July 2006. Tbilisi called the move an "unfriendly act." The checkpoint was reopened Monday. Burdzhanadze is one of a growing number of Georgian opposition leaders seeking to start political dialogue between Russia and Georgia, calling it crucial for Georgia’s future. Former Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Nogaideli has visited Moscow several times in recent months. However, Georgian parliamentary deputies loyal to Saakashvili have already accused Burdzhanadze of "treason" over her Moscow visit.

MOSCOW, March 4 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/russia/20100304/158095118.html

 Riga legislature bans Waffen SS demonstration

05:58 06/03/2010

The Latvian capital’s legislature, the Riga Duma, banned a demonstration by Waffen SS veterans and their supporters, the Duma’s press service reported. Latvia annually holds demonstrations by former legionnaires of the Latvian Waffen SS legion on March 16. The Baltic state’s president said two years ago that he did not consider the legionnaires, many of whom participated in mass killings of Jews, to be Nazis. The country’s antifascist organizations and opposition parties hold protests and try to prevent demonstrations which sometimes results in clashes. The Riga Duma banned all events dedicated to the anniversary of the Latvian Waffen SS legion’s establishment after being advised to do so by law enforcement agencies.

RIGA, March 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100306/158110752.html

 Latvian ruling party to appeal against ban on Waffen SS march

15:46 07/03/2010

Latvia’s ruling New Era party said on Sunday it would appeal against a decision by the Latvian capital’s legislature to ban a demonstration by Waffen SS veterans and their supporters on March 16. The decision to ban the Waffen SS veterans demonstration was made by the Riga Duma on Friday. The New Era party argued on its web site that the ban on the Waffen SS march violated the fundamental democratic rights of the freedom of meetings, incited national strife and exacerbated relations in Latvian society. Latvia annually holds demonstrations by former legionnaires of the Latvian Waffen SS legion on March 16. The Baltic state’s president said two years ago that he did not consider the legionnaires, many of whom participated in mass killings of Jews, to be Nazis. The country’s antifascist organizations and opposition parties hold protests and try to prevent demonstrations, which sometimes results in clashes. The Riga Duma banned all events dedicated to the anniversary of the Latvian Waffen SS legion’s establishment after being advised to do so by law enforcement agencies. The WWII continues to be a contentious issue in relations between Russia and both Estonia and Latvia, over the Baltic states’ perceived glorification of Nazi collaborators. Parades in honor of Waffen-SS veterans, involving veterans from the Latvian Legion and the 20th Estonian SS Division and their supporters, are held annually in the two Baltic states. In April 2007, Tallinn was hit by mass protests after the Estonian authorities ordered the removal of a Soviet WWII monument, along with the graves of Soviet soldiers who fought against Hitler’s forces.

RIGA, March 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://www.en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100307/158120469.html