The Grand Prix stage will be held in China for the first time “The union of forces turns rocks into precious stones; the unity of hearts turns clay into gold,” says the old Chinese proverb. The new Shanghai International circuit, which will host the Formula 1 World Championship for the first time, is a clear confirmation of this wisdom.

He had to extinguish the political crisis from his hospital bed Yesterday, Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt was discharged from hospital, where he ended up on Wednesday night after a car accident on the road from Brussels to Ghent. The Audi official car, driven by the prime minister's driver, crashed into a concrete barrier. Mr. Verhofstadt suffered two broken ribs and the driver one broken vertebra. Police are investigating, but the cause of the accident is unknown at this time.

Kuchma fired the head of the Ukrainian military department Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma accepted the resignation of Defense Minister Yevgeny Marchuk yesterday. Kuchma announced this during a visit to the Pavlograd chemical plant for the disposal of ammunition, the third largest in the country.

Police captain arrested for releasing suicide bombers Yesterday, in the investigation of the terrorist attacks committed on the TU-134 and TU-154 aircraft, a third person was arrested - Captain Mikhail Artamonov, the anti-terrorist officer of the Domodedovo police department. The court chose a preventive measure for him in the form of detention.

"Fahrenheit 9/11" by Michael Moore on Moscow screens Due to its specificity, Michael Moore's film could well remain a local American sensation. But from the moment the Cannes jury, led by Quentin Tarantino, awarded Fahrenheit the Palme d'Or, this film became part of world culture, automatically ranking with The Cranes Are Flying and La Dolce Vita, Blow-Up and Taxi Driver ", "The Apocalypse of Our Days" and "Pulp Fiction".

The Prosecutor General's Office of Tajikistan completed the investigation into the case of former Minister of Internal Affairs Yakub Salimov and transferred the materials to the Supreme Court. He was charged under six articles of the Criminal Code: treason, sabotage, committing especially serious crimes, banditry, abuse of power, illegal storage, carrying and trafficking in weapons.

Hurricane Jeanne kills hundreds of Haitians About 700 people, according to the Red Cross, died in Haiti after rainfall and river flooding caused by Hurricane Jeanne. The neighboring Dominican Republic reports 11 deaths. Over a thousand people went missing. The water level in some places exceeds four meters, and as it recedes, new victims are discovered. The situation is especially difficult in the north-west of the island, where half of the territory is still under water.

On the Russian gas market, where until now only the powerful Gazprom and a few small independent companies existed, a serious foreign investor has appeared, with whom not only the gas monopolist, but the entire Russian economy will have to reckon. The French Total, ready to invest $1 billion in the Russian company, finally announced its choice yesterday: it will own 25% plus one share of the independent gas company NOVATEK, the largest shareholder of which is Leonid Mikhelson.

Theater season 2004/05: defeats and hopes These notes are a continuation of a conversation started recently (Vremya Novostei, September 7) in the genre of the jeremiad. The article “In Order of Decline” mourned the irreparable theatrical losses.

Oligarch faces new charges The list of crimes incriminated against Boris Berezovsky has been supplemented with one more. Yesterday, the prosecutor's office of the Moscow region announced that the disgraced oligarch had been charged with fraud.

Fights for the chess crown have always been dramatic “Chess is not for the faint of heart,” said the first world champion, Wilhelm Steinitz. Indeed, the path to the top of the chess Olympus is conquered by champions not only thanks to the strength of the game, but also the strength of spirit. There are plenty of examples of this in matches for the chess crown. In fact, the history of championship fights is woven from small and large dramas and feats.

According to the World Bank, poverty in Russia will be overcome by economic growth and targeted assistance Yesterday the World Bank presented its report on assessing poverty in Russia. The picture that emerges is bleak. According to World Bank estimates, every fifth Russian is poor. True, “there is no extreme poverty that threatens starvation in Russia,” notes the report’s author, Radwan Shaban.

Aeroflot can't wait to build Sheremetyevo-3 Aeroflot yesterday announced the decision to begin the long-delayed construction of a new airport terminal at Sheremetyevo-3. True, a few hours later this statement was actually disavowed by Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin. He recalled that the fate of Sheremetyevo-3 should be decided by the government of the country, but it has not yet said its last word on this matter.

A state monopoly may appear in the pension market The government is ready to create another supermonopoly. Now as part of the pension reform. The idea belongs to the Minister of Economic Development and Trade German Gref.

Soslan Boradzov conquers Japan at a record pace Until recently, Japanese national sumo wrestling was nothing more than exotic for Russia. And even individual amateur tournaments held in our country, one of which was given the rank of a continental championship, could not change the attitude towards sumo - an outlandish Japanese pastime, in which Europeans suddenly decided to take part, completely far from their ancestors and legislators in terms of skill level fashion in this sport.