The governor of the Khabarovsk Territory is surprised by the haste of the Chinese On the eve of President Vladimir Putin’s official visit to Beijing, authorities in the Chinese province of Heilongjiang bordering Russia began dismantling the protective dam on the Amur River near Khabarovsk, built last December after an accident at a Chinese chemical plant in Jilin. Then hundreds of tons of nitrobenzene entered the Sungari River, a tributary of the Amur.

Londoners say goodbye to the cat who caught mice from three prime ministers A prosperous and decent bourgeois life, apparently, can be so boring and uneventful that even an insignificant incident can sometimes be perceived as outstanding news. And even more so when it comes to our smaller brothers. Once again, this pattern was confirmed by the residents of Foggy Albion, who recently published an obituary in London print media about a cat who lived in the residence of the British Prime Minister.

The Taliban are waiting for warmer weather In Afghanistan, in areas bordering Tajikistan, there are 50 laboratories producing heroin. The head of the national drug control agency under the President of Tajikistan, police lieutenant general Rustam Nazarov, told reporters about this yesterday. He said that in 2005, as a result of joint operations with Afghan colleagues, 600 kg of heroin were seized.

Russia and the EU discuss corporate governance standards This week an international round table “Corporate Governance: Harmonization of Russian and EU Standards” will be held in London.

The North Atlantic cyclone brought snowfalls, blizzards, and gusty winds to the northwest and center of European Russia, and returned winter cold after the spring, sunny weather. The cyclone thoroughly covered the ground with wet snow. Following the cyclone, cold Arctic air rushed into the center of European Russia. In the coming days, temperatures in the middle zone will continue to drop noticeably. In the central regions, temperatures down to -10°C are expected this coming night.

Palestinian president finds control over Hamas The chairman of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), in fact the president of the autonomy, Mahmoud Abbas, yesterday handed over the list of the cabinet that intends to form the Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS) to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) for consideration.

Former presidential adviser Andrei Illarionov once again criticized Russia's presence in the G8. This time, one of the most radical domestic liberals was quoted by the British Financial Times. Mr. Illarionov believes that Western countries, by supporting the Russian presidency of the G8, are engaging in a policy of connivance. In his opinion, the presence of representatives of seven developed countries at the St.

Wine and glass are shown in the capital's museums Last Friday, the Italian Ambassador and his wife had the chance to be in the shoes of an art critic, daily jumping from opening day to opening day in an illusory desire to be the main arbiter of the modern artistic process. The ambassador moved from the Historical Museum to the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. He performed an honorable mission - he was present at the openings of new exhibitions prepared with the participation of Italian institutions.

Policemen caught cheating customers The Zamoskvoretsky Court of Moscow yesterday sentenced a group of Moscow police officers accused of scams involving expensive foreign cars. Their scheme was simple - the scammers sold an expensive foreign car purchased on credit, declared it stolen, and then confiscated it from the buyer.

The Rodina brand becomes political As the Rodina party prepares for its congress, scheduled for March 25, its leader Dmitry Rogozin may have one more thing on his mind. A long-standing problem related to brand ownership has come to light. Back in 2003, the Socialist United Party registered the trademark “Motherland” for itself.

Moscow congratulated Lukashenko, and Washington promises repeat elections The world reacted differently to Alexander Lukashenko's victory in the presidential elections in Belarus. According to preliminary data from the Central Election Commission of Belarus, the current president received 82.6% of the votes. His main opponent Alexander Milinkevich - only 6%. Two more candidates, Sergei Gaidukevich and Alexander Kazulin, received 3.5% and 2.3% of the votes, respectively.

Federer wins major tournament in Indian Wells The first racket of the world, Swiss Roger Federer, won another title, the ninth in his career, at the prestigious Masters series tournament. In the final match in Indian Wells, the undisputed leader of men's world tennis defeated American James Blake - 7:5, 6:3, 6:0. Federer's opponent missed a great opportunity to take the first set, after which his game completely went wrong and he stopped offering decent resistance.

Lakshmi Mittal fulfills all obligations for the development of Krivorozhstal, except for increasing salaries After the sale of Krivorozhstal in October last year for $4.8 billion, the favorite topic of speculation among the Ukrainian opposition was reproaches to the new owner of the country's main steel plant, the owner of the world's largest metallurgical corporation Lakshmi Mittal, for failure to fulfill competition obligations.

The story about how the presidential elections in Belarus ended should begin with the solemn statement of their winner, Alexander Lukashenko, which he began to read, standing, yesterday in the Minsk Palace of the Republic. The words he spoke were filled with sincere pathos. “The revolution, which was talked about so much, failed in Belarus. It could not have been otherwise. The elections were held in accordance with the constitution, fairly and democratically.

The Central Bank called on the Prosecutor General's Office to deal with the investment company The conflict between the Bank of Russia and the Finam investment holding continued. The Central Bank yesterday turned to the Prosecutor General's Office with a request to check the company for evidence of illegal banking activities. Market participants, however, do not expect that this could seriously harm the company's business.