Moscow - Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov signed a decree Tuesday restricting alcohol sales in the predominantly Muslim Russian republic to two hours per day, Russian news agencies reported.

"The fight against alcoholism is as pressing an issues as the fight against illegal armed groups," said Kadyrov, 32, an ex-Chechen rebel fighter who switched sides and is backed by the Kremlin since Russia quelled separatists fighters in the two wars in the 1990s.

The decree bans all sales of alcohol proof over 15 per cent to be sold except from 8 to 10 o'clock in the morning, Kadyrov said.

Moscow - In the first visit ever by a Bolivian leader to Moscow, President Evo Morales on Monday secured agreements from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev for investment in the gas sector and to help fight drug trafficking in Moscow.

Morales said he was seeking Russia's help in fighting drug cultivation. He said Bolivia, the third-largest producer of cocaine- making plants, was in need of Russian helicopters and other aircraft, since the United States stopped supporting efforts to eradicate illegal coca farming.

Moscow  - A fire in a dilapidated wooden building in southern Russia killed at least 16 persons, with the blame being quickly placed on a drunken woman resident, the Interfax agency reported Sunday, citing investigators.

The fire occurred late Saturday in a village near the Volga River city of Astrakhan. Around 50 residents were rescued and were given shelter in a school.

Moscow  - A fire in a dilapidated wooden building in southern Russia killed 14 persons, the Interfax agency reported Sunday, citing public prosecution officials.

The fire occurred late Saturday in a village near the Volga River city of Astrakhan. Seven other persons were taken to hospital for treatment for injuries, the report said.

Around 50 residents were rescued and were given shelter in a school. The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

Moscow - At least 6 people were killed in the conflict-torn Northern Caucasus Thursday when Russian special police tried to arrests suspected Islamist militants in the republic of Ingushetia.

An explosion during the clashes in the central Ingushetian city of Nazran led to the collapse of the residential building where the suspects were staying.

Four members of the Russian special unit (OMON) died and the bodies of two suspected rebels were found buried in the rubble, Interfax reported, citing Ingushetian President Yunus Bek-Yevkurov. The militants had been suspected of preparing suicide attacks.

Moscow - Russia on Wednesday hailed US President Barack Obama's "fresh" approach on Iran, in the latest sign of a thaw in US- Russian ties.

"We are paying particular attention to the declared intention of the new (US) administration to begin a direct dialogue with Iran," Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, was quoted by news agency Interfax as saying at a press conference with EU officials.

The United States and many western European countries suspect Tehran's civilian nuclear energy programme of serving as cover for ambitions to build atomic weapons.