Russia

Ingushetia opposition criticizes "political killing" of journalist

Now, Russia stakes claim to its “privileged” sphere of influenceMoscow- Opposition leaders in Russia's southern region of Ingushetia on Monday slammed the death in police custody of a journalist critical of the Kremlin and called for a full inquiry.

"We do not believe in coincidences," a spokesman for the opposition was quoted as saying by the news agency Interfax, a day after Magomed Yevloyev died from a policeman's bullet.

Authorities in the Ingushetia capital of Nazran said an investigation showed the journalist died when he tried to grab the officer's gun.

Most Poles want sanctions against Russia

Poles spend record amount in getting ready for 2008 OlympicsWarsaw - A majority of Poles wants the European Union (EU) to introduce political and economic sanctions against Russia at its emergency summit on the Caucasus crisis, according a poll published Monday in the daily Dziennik.

Australia questions uranium sales to Russia

Sydney - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir PutinEvents in Georgia show Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin can't be trusted to abide by an undertaking not to use Australia uranium to make nuclear weapons, a Canberra parliamentary committee said Monday.

"I don't know if you've looked on the TV into Vladimir Putin's eyes," Treaties Committee chairman Kelvin Thomson said. "He's one tough son-of-a-gun and I don't think he cares about what we think. Recently he's taken South Ossetia and another province off Georgia, and there's no real come-back over that."

Francois Fillon: Sanctions against Russia not on the agenda

French Prime Minister Francois FillonParis - French Prime Minister Francois Fillon has said that sanctions against Russia are not on the agenda for Monday's EU emergency summit in Brussels. Fillon instead called for dialogue with Moscow.

The meeting, due to begin at 3 pm Brussels time (1300 GMT), had been called to find a common EU position on the issues arising from in the Georgia conflict in August. Sanctions had been widely discussed as one way to reign in an increasingly assertive Russia.

However, Fillon said "Russia is a very large country that matters."

Federation of German Industries against sanctions on Russia

Berlin - The Federation of German Industries (BDI) said Monday it was opposed to sanctions being imposed on Russia over the conflict in Georgia and called for dialogue rather than confrontation.

The BDI issued its call as European Union (EU) leaders prepared to hold an extraordinary summit in Brussels to discuss the bloc's response to the crisis in the Southern Caucasus.

Proposals to put Russia under pressure through sanctions or to halt World Trade Organization (WTO) accession talks or partnership with the European Union (EU) "lead in the wrong direction," BDI President Juergen Thumann said.

"We would all lose if this were to happen," Thumann said.

Russia calls for arms embargo on Georgia until Saakashvili ousted

Moscow - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday called for an international weapons embargo on Georgia until President Mikheil Saakashvili is ousted from office, the Interfax news agency reported.

"If the US and its allies have failed to learn lessons and were to give further (military) support to Saakashvili's regime, that would be a mistake of historic proportions," Lavrov said.

Lavrov said the international community should halt all arms shipments to Georgia until "the country is under a normal government."

US officials last week said Washington would move to give Georgia new military assistance in the wake of Tbilisi's defeat in last month's war with Russia over the Georgian separatist province Ossetia.

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