By the end of 2006, the volume of mortgage loans in Russia will be approximately 110 billion rubles, said first Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. At the current rate, this is about $ 4 billion. For comparison, in the UK, according to the official data of the Bank of England, only in February 2006 the volume of bank loans provided to citizens for the purchase of housing amounted to about 8 billion pounds or, in terms of $ 14 billion.

The leadership of the right -wing parties “Likud” and “Our House of Israel” (“Israel Batein”) turned to the leader of the “Workers' Party” (“Avoda”) Amir Peresu with a proposal to head the coalition, without the participation of the Kadim party, the head of the government of Ehud Olmert, who won the parliamentary elections. This was reported by the Israeli newspaper "Gaorets".

The first quarter -final matches of the Champions Football League in two pairs were held in Milan and Lyon. "Lyon" (France) - "Milan" (Italy) - 0: 0 "Inter" (Italy) - "Villarreal" (Spain) - 2: 1 The return matches will take place on April 4.

The head of the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, German Gref, believes that negotiations with the United States on the issues of joining the WTO can be completed within a month or a month and a half, news agencies report. Negotiations on this topic are difficult, he said. However, Russia hopes for progress. According to Gref, US President George Bush recently sent a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which about 10 points were formulated as staged problems.

Yulia Tymoshenko announced the need for the speedy consolidation of all the forces of the "Orange Coalition" Today, the results of the elections in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will become known. The vote count will be completed, and the data of the ballots will begin to be entered into the computer system. As they say in the Central Election Commission of Ukraine, the results that will announce today still cannot be called final.

The Constitutional Council of France approved the new law on youth employment, which caused mass protests in the country. The decision was made on Thursday - in response to a petition of opponents of the law. Thus, the final word is now behind President France Jacques Shirak. The President may return the law to the parliament for a review or sign it. In the latter case, France is almost certainly waiting for new massive protests and strikes.

The program is conducted by Nikita Tatar. The Radio Liberty correspondent in Rome Veronika Ostrinskaya takes part. Nikita Tatarsky: In Italy, two weeks before the parliamentary elections, the struggle between the two main candidates for the premiere was hardened - the current head of the Government Silvio Berlusconi and Levocentrist Romano Prodi, the former head of the European Commission.

In the Irkutsk region, all 18 tourists who fell under the snow avalanche today were delivered to Irkutsk by helicopter. Three people who have received injuries of varying severity are hospitalized. The avalanche went the night before in the vicinity Mount Munk Sardyk in Buryatia.

The Traibek film festival, which is held annually in New York, will open up to the premiere of the film "United 93". This is a chronicle of the capture of the fourth aircraft on September 11, 2001, which, according to the plan of terrorists, was to crash into the White House, but fell in Pennsylvania. The picture was shot by the British director Paul Greengrass, who decided to restore an hour and a half, which the passengers of the aircraft spent alone with the terrorists.

In Ingushetia, the abductors of the local parliament deputy Magomed Chakhkiev - the crack of the President of the Republic of Murat Zyazikov - nominated a number of demands. This, in particular, is about the resignation of Zyazikov and the chief prosecutor of the Ingushetia Mahmud Ali Kalimatova. The statement of the abductors, according to the correspondent of Radio "Freedom", appeared on the website of the Chechen separatists "Caucasus Center".

Computer video games can distract people from unpleasant sensations associated with chronic diseases or painful procedures. This conclusion was reached by researchers from Jesuit University Jesuit University. Video games for children and youth are especially effective.

The Russian government at a meeting on Thursday approved the proposals of the Ministry of Defense to reduce the list of deferrals from service in the army. The military department proposed to cancel 9 out of 25 existing deferrals. In particular, citizens engaged in the carriage of close relatives-disableds of the first and second groups, young people with children under 3 years of age, as well as students of vocational schools and technical schools will not be released from the army.

First Deputy Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Ivan Melnikov, will talk about the political plans of the Communist Party of Russia.

The program is maintained by Andrei Shari. Oleg Yakhontov and Lyubov Chizhova take part. Andrei Shary: Today, in the City Court of St. Petersburg, a verdict was announced to adolescents accused of attacking the Sultonov family. It was not possible to prove that it was precisely one of these adolescents who killed the 9-year-old Tajik girl, as well as the fact that the crime was committed on national grounds.