Official opinion US State Department spokesman Mark Toner, during a briefing in Washington, confirmed the existence of a blacklist of Russian officials who are prohibited from entering the United States due to their alleged involvement in the death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.

A working group has been created to solve the problem of defenders’ access to their clients The St. Petersburg Bar Association (AP) has created a working group that will study the problem of defense attorneys’ access to their clients in the city’s pre-trial detention centers. Lawyers claim that they have to be on duty at night at “Kresty” in order to get to a meeting with their client in the morning, or lose almost the whole day in line, getting to the client only at the end of the working day.

Bankia wants to transfer the rights to Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka to the ECB as collateral. The Spanish banking group, which provided loans to Real Madrid to buy football players, needs money. According to Kommersant FM economic observer Oleg Bogdanov, this indicates the deplorable state of European financial institutions. This is a very clear indication of the state of disrepair in the European banking system, and in particular the Spanish banks.

Today, July 29, the State Statistics Service reported that the gross domestic product (GDP) of Ukraine in the second quarter of 2011 increased by 3.8% compared to the second quarter of 2010. According to her data, compared to the first quarter of this year, taking into account seasonal factors, GDP increased by 0.5%. Earlier, the State Statistics Service reported that in the first quarter of this year, compared to the first quarter of last year, GDP growth amounted to 5.3%.

Yesterday, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation faction in the Oryol City Council disrupted the holding of an extraordinary session of parliament, at which new holders of the title “Honorary Citizen of Oryol” were to be elected. Of the 18 communist deputies, only Vice Speaker of the City Council Artem Levkovsky came to the meeting, however, only to voice the decision of fellow party members not to participate in the vote on honorary citizens.

"Kharkovoblenergo" Eavex Capital Investment Company has assigned a Hold recommendation to shares of Kharkovoblenergo (ticker: HAON). The company is a monopolist in the transmission and distribution of electricity in the Kharkov region. This situation provides it with a stable increase in revenue due to an increase in electricity consumption by the population, as well as due to rising prices for it.

Today, July 29, Poland released the final report of the government commission of inquiry into the Tu-154 crash of former President Lech Kaczynski, in which it accused airport controllers in Smolensk of providing incorrect commands to the aircraft crew. “The dispatcher gave erroneous instructions,” the report states. “There was no automatic go-around option. The plane was technically sound until it collided with the ground,” the Polish report says.

In the United States, the trial of the owner of the Salander-O'Reilly gallery, Lawrence Salender, and his assistant Lee Morse has ended. Over the course of several years, the couple fooled 26 collectors. Now Selender faces imprisonment, and Morse faces a fine and stays in prison on weekends. Dmitry Butkevich found out the details of the high-profile case. In the United States, the process that was called the “case of antiquarians” has finally ended.

Private investors are interested in creating a fish hatchery in Primorye Primorye scientists have substantiated the possibility of building a private plant for the industrial reproduction of salmon. The enterprise will be able to produce up to 10 million juveniles. Fishermen hope that the implementation of the project will increase the catch of valuable fish. Experts believe that to organize profitable industrial fishing, it is necessary to build at least 10–15 similar enterprises.

Varya tore off the petals of a chamomile, going over with them the simple words “loves - loves not.” She learned this a few days ago from a girl she knew. A simple game now fascinated her more than any other. - Who are you trying to guess about, daughter? — I was wondering what a five-year-old child would answer. - About you, about myself, about Fedya. About everyone. I was missing one petal. So that everyone loves everyone. - But that doesn’t happen.

In Chile, once peaceful student protests are turning into violent clashes with police. To disperse the demonstrations, law enforcement officers already had to use water cannons and tear gas. During the protest that took place on July 28, clashes could not be avoided: several police officers were injured, and dozens of demonstrators were arrested. Student protests in Chile began in May 2011 and continue to this day.

Australian dollar** 879.0450 British pound** 1300.7130 Belarusian ruble* 0.0161 Hungarian forint*** 42.3823 Danish krone** 152.5824 U.S. dollar** 797.1200 Euro** 1136.6931 Icelandic krona** 3.9196 Kazakh tenge** 5.4552 Canadian dollar** 840.6872 Norwegian krone** 147.1543 Polish zloty** 283.1116 Russian ruble* 2.8891 Turkish Lira** 474.5118 Czech crown** 46.9417 Swedish krona** 125.2761 Swiss frank** 993.8735 Japanese yen*** 102.5341 * For 10. ** For 100. *** For 1000. According to the NBU

On July 28, the international dance competition Burgos-New York opened in Spain, which annually attracts modern groups and single performers from different countries. The genre of modern dance presented at the competition often involves the use of poles, slings, and acrobatic harnesses. Thus, the dancers performing a dance called Turigo, which was created by the Spanish choreographer Samuel Delgado, hung from ropes fixed above the stage during the action.

Former vice-governor sentenced The Kurgan City Court yesterday convicted former vice-governor of the region Dmitry Bektimirov and his accomplices. The court found that officials illegally appropriated Medservice OJSC, owned by regional authorities, using budget funds. In addition, Mr. Bektimirov was accused of illegally paying from budget funds for flights to Austria, which were registered as business trips. The defendants, who have maintained their innocence, intend to appeal the verdict.

A law on silence has been adopted in the Ulyanovsk region At a meeting on Thursday, deputies of the Legislative Assembly of the Ulyanovsk region adopted a package of laws regulating the provision of silence at night.