On the eve of the elections, Vuk Draskovic came to Moscow The visit to Moscow of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Union State of Serbia and Montenegro (S&M), which began last night, is noteworthy for three reasons. Firstly, because of the personality of the minister himself - the Serbian “king of squares” Vuk Draskovic (pictured) , who took over as head of the Foreign Ministry this spring.

Russians consider our membership in the G-8 an indicator of the greatness of a power On the eve of the opening of the G8 summit, the Public Opinion Foundation tried to find out whether Russians know what this G8 is and why Russia needs it? To the question, “Do you know, have heard, or are you now hearing for the first time the expression “G8?”, a quarter of those surveyed answered that they were hearing such a name for the first time.

This year's Moscow International Festival promises “good” films At yesterday's press conference, the Moscow International Film Festival finally announced its program. Quentin Tarantino, the most iconic director of all time, who “ditched” the festival two years ago, this time firmly promised to personally present the second part of “Kill Bill” at the opening. And the pride of the organizers cannot even belittle the fact that this film is being released in wide release on June 18.

Manufacturers of low-quality weapons will be separated from government orders The number of complaints about Russian defense products on the domestic market has increased tenfold in recent years. On the outside, where customers are stricter, - at 20.

The Germans will be able to get to St. Petersburg by water The Finnish company Silja line will begin regular ferry flights between the German port of Rostock and St. Petersburg from June 17. The cargo-passenger ferry Finnjet, which will serve the new route, belongs to the “ice” class of sea vessels and can simultaneously carry 1,780 passengers and 400 cars.

Our riders are participating in the most prestigious race in Europe for the first time The most prestigious race in the Old World, the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans marathon, will start this coming weekend. And for the first time, Russian racers will participate in it - pilots of the Yukos-Freisinger team Alexey Vasiliev and Nikolay Fomenko. To say that participating in this 24-hour marathon is an honor for any racer is to say almost nothing.

Tskhinvali asks Moscow for help Tomorrow in Moscow, the State Duma committees (on CIS affairs and relations with compatriots, on international affairs and on security) will discuss the situation around South Ossetia at a closed meeting. Among the guests is Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Moscow must respond to the calls of the unrecognized republic not to leave it alone with Georgia.

As part of the Stars of the White Nights festival, the program “The Age of Balanchine” was held The program included six ballet evenings, a scientific conference, an exhibition, and finally, a luxuriously published album.

The former chief police officer of Kalmykia was punished with a ruble Yesterday, the Supreme Court of Kalmykia sentenced the former head of the republican Ministry of Internal Affairs, Major General Timofey Sasykov. Despite the fact that the prosecutor's office accused him under four articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the defendant got off with only a fine of 250 thousand rubles. They say that Mr.

Gas will be supplied to Belarus on Russian terms Negotiations between the team of Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov in Minsk began with a gift. It was generously presented by the president of the host country.

Yesterday, the annual summit of the G8 leaders, which includes Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Canada, Russia, the USA, France and Japan, opened in the US state of Georgia on the resort island of Sea Island. In addition to participating in collective meetings, Vladimir Putin plans to talk with the host of the summit George Bush, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin and King Abdullah II of Jordan, who is invited to the summit as a guest.

Latvia gets rid of Varangians in high positions The Latvian Seimas should soon render a verdict on the right of persons with dual citizenship to hold high government positions. There are plenty of happy holders of two passports among the bureaucrats. Even the director of the country's main intelligence service, Janis Kazocins, is a citizen of Latvia and Great Britain at the same time, and his second passport does not prevent him from having access to secrets.

Ostarbeiters' money went into cement Following the United States, trials in scandalous cases in which Ukrainian politicians may be involved began in Germany. The ex-head of the Ukrainian Gradobank Viktor Zherditsky received five years and ten months in prison, and his companion, the former head of Naftogaz of Ukraine Igor Didenko, received four years and three months.

The Russian President was greeted with nesting dolls at the G-8 summit The real work of the next G8 summit on the American island of Sea Island began early this morning, Moscow time. Yesterday, distinguished guests were welcomed all evening at Hunter Air Force Base near Savannah. The plane of Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin landed there first - at 18.00 Moscow time.

The Kursk Regional Duma wants to force all candidates for people's representatives to undergo a medical examination Today the State Duma plans to consider an amendment to the law “On Elections of Deputies”, proposing to subject all candidates for people's representatives to a mandatory medical examination. The Kursk Regional Duma came up with this initiative, which could find a response in the souls of many voters.