The State Duma of the Russian Federation included in the agenda of the meeting on February 9 the issue of no confidence in the government, which was initiated by the Communist Party faction. Parliament Speaker Boris Gryzlov announced this, as reported by RIA Novosti .

In May, a radar designed to search for underground water sources will begin operating in Mars orbit. One of the main instruments on Mars Express, the first European spacecraft sent to Mars, was scheduled to begin sounding in April 2004. However, fears that the radar antenna could damage the skin of the device during deployment required a lengthy simulation of this process on Earth.

Using the results of the Plasma Crystal experiment, which is being conducted by the International Space Station (ISS) crew of Salizhan Sharipov and Leroy Chiao, scientists expect to create a new generation nuclear battery. "Plasma Crystal" is held jointly by Russia and Germany. The cost of the experiment is more than one million euros per year. As told RIA Novosti , the first results of the experiment have already been obtained.

President George H. W. Bush may have contributed to President Nixon's resignation. It was he who, in the 1970s, was the mysterious official who secretly informed newspaper reporters about the details of the Watergate scandal, which caused the resignation of President Nixon in 1974. This sensational statement was made by writer Adrian Havill in his book. This was reported on the website of the Guardian newspaper. Until now, the real name of this man remained a secret behind seven seals.

Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, taken hostage in Iraq, is killed. This statement appeared on February 8 on one of the Islamist websites, reports the Italian news agency ANSA. Agency sources taking part in the operation to search and free Giuliana Sgrena expressed doubts about the reliability of the statement about the execution of the hostage. The statement was made on behalf of the hitherto unknown organization “Mujahideen Brigades in Iraq”.

09.02.2005, 12:47:33 version Print | PDA/PDA Mahmoud Abbas and Ariel Sharon. Photo and editing by Reuters Winds of change in the Middle East Ariel Sharon and Mahmoud Abbas agreed on a truce between Israel and the PA The quadripartite summit meeting, held on Tuesday, February 8, in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh, demonstrated in the best possible way how great the role of an individual can be in history.

Russian human rights activists intend to wean law enforcement officers from assault. As the daily newspaper Vremya Novostei reports , on February 10, the “Lue Yours from the State” campaign will begin in a number of Russian regions. Human rights activists will help victims of police beatings for free to prepare claims demanding compensation for harm caused to health. Claims are expected to exceed the "average" amount.

RIA "Novosti". Lithuania provides military assistance to the countries of the Transcaucasus on the initiative of the Ministry of Defense. Since 2001, Vilnius has paid for the internship of officers from Georgia at the Baltic Military College in Tartu.

Rumors that the Chechen field commander Shamil Basayev has died may be spread by Basayev himself or his closest circle, RIA Novosti reports . “These are most likely rumors that were spread on the instructions of Basayev himself,” a source in the security forces of the Chechen administration explained to reporters. “Apparently, in this case the goal is to give him and his bandit group a temporary respite.” The source did not rule out that Basayev may currently be outside Russia for treatment.

Former manager of the affairs of the President of Belarus Galina Zhuravkova was sentenced to four years in prison with confiscation of property, RIA Novosti reports . In addition, she is prohibited from holding leadership positions in the government apparatus for the next five years.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kabardino-Balkaria announced a search for the eight-month-old daughter of the leader of the Wahhabi jamaat "Yarmuk" Muslim Atayev and Sakinat Katsieva, who were killed during a special operation in Nalchik on January 27, 2005, the Kommersant newspaper wrote on Tuesday. Militants of the Yarmouk jamaat were blocked in house 19 on Northern Street on the evening of January 25. It was initially reported that three terrorists had taken several women hostage.

The British Prime Minister supported George Bush, calling Iran a sponsor of terrorism, France Presse reports. Tony Blair also demanded that the Islamic republic meet the demands of the European Union and abandon attempts to create nuclear weapons. Speaking to parliamentarians, Blair said: "It (Iran) of course sponsors terrorism.

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Alexander Yakovenko, said that Russia “welcomes the results of the summit held in Egypt,” ITAR-TASS reports . According to him, the results of the summit “form the conditions for the full restoration of the peace process and progress towards a fair Palestinian-Israeli settlement.” “We highly appreciate the effective and useful role in the preparation and conduct of the meeting between Egypt and Jordan,” Yakovenko noted.

In the fall of 2005, a call for volunteers will be announced to participate in an experiment to simulate a manned flight to Mars. This was announced by the head of the department of the Institute of Medical and Biological Problems, Mark Belakovsky, reports RIA Novosti . According to him, the recruitment will be announced after the congress on space biology and medicine, scheduled for September, is held in Berlin, at which the experimental design and its implementation will be discussed.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko intends to hold a capital amnesty to bring the country's economy out of the shadows. According to the Ukrainian News agency , the head of the republic announced this while speaking at a meeting of the Kiev city administration. “I’ll tell you frankly that we are ready to agree to a capital amnesty, we are ready to agree to a fiscal amnesty. In return, we offer de-shadowing,” Yushchenko said.