In the conflict between Russia and Georgia, diplomats are trying to take the place of the military After a five-hour conversation, Condoleezza Rice persuaded Mikheil Saakashvili to sign a document on the principles of settlement, which was agreed upon in Moscow by the presidents of Russia and France on August 12, and signed by the presidents of South Ossetia and Abkhazia Eduard Kokoity and Sergei Bagapsh on August 14 .

CLUBS Viva Cuba. Salsa, merengue, cha-cha-cha, mamba, rumba. Caribbean dance evenings at the Union of Composers club, 20.00. Crazy Rhythm: Alexander Nadein (guitar), Sergey Vasiliev (double bass), Pavel Timofeev (drums). Jazz. Jazz Town , 21.00. Raisa Nur. Bard song classics, personal classics and new songs. “The Wood Grouse’s Nest” , 20.00. " Ivan Kupala " (St. Petersburg). Folk rock. "Tin" , 21.00. THEATERS "Chapaev and Emptiness". Based on the novel of the same name by Victor Pelevin.

The dollar has risen in price in Russia by another 20 kopecks Sharp fluctuations in the exchange rate of the ruble against the dollar continue in the foreign exchange market. Last Friday, the official dollar exchange rate increased from 24.29 to 24.5 rubles. The euro fell in price in Russia by 0.1%, from 36.19 to 36.14 rubles. The value of the bi-currency basket against the ruble decreased by 0.5%, from 29.68 to 29.82 rubles.

An alternative version of the Unified Social Tax reform was proposed by former Deputy Minister of Finance Alexei Kudrin, and now Minister of Health and Social Development Tatyana Golikova. For Ms. Golikova’s department, the redrawing of the social tax is not an end in itself, but only a means for carrying out a new pension reform. Which in turn would correct the consequences of the 2002 reform, when people who retired during Soviet times suffered the most.

St. Petersburg artists are trying to “talk” to the residents of a psychoneurological boarding school In St. Petersburg, in the foyer of the theater-festival “Baltic House”, a joint exhibition of paintings by the Green Dog partnership of young artists and residents of psycho-neurological boarding school No. 3 in Peterhof opened.

July 15 -- August 15, 2008 “Politicians Through the Eyes of the Media,” a joint project of Vremya Novostei and the Medialogia company, are ratings of the political figures most actively discussed in the Russian media.

The festival of short films, documentaries and animations has ended in St. Petersburg The fourth Open Cinema festival of short, documentary and animated films has ended in St. Petersburg. If we take into account that one of the St. Petersburg complexes is precisely the absence of a “big” film festival, then it is clear that “Open Cinema” demonstrates complete freedom from it.

Ukraine is preparing to pump Caspian oil to Poland since 2009 Ukraine continues to insist on using the Odessa-Brody oil pipeline in obverse mode (that is, in the forward direction). At the end of last week, the country's President Viktor Yushchenko instructed the government to prepare the pipeline for such work by the end of the year.

American singer Renee Fleming’s book “The Inner Voice” has been published. Among professional musicians there is a joke as old as time: a good singer must be absolutely brainless so that the wind, as they say, can blow through his head, because his (her) head resonator must work well. A joke is a joke, but, judging by the singing of many domestic nightingales, it contains a dangerously large percentage of truth.

Russia and Germany have different views on the conflict in Georgia The Russian authorities are convinced of the legality of their actions on the territory of South Ossetia and, if necessary, are ready to act in the same way again.

Experts discussed the impact of the war in South Ossetia on the Russian economy The military conflict in South Ossetia will have negative consequences for the Russian economy. In particular, Russia will almost certainly not become a member of the World Trade Organization in the foreseeable future, and the influx of Western investment into the country may be significantly reduced. Representatives of the Russian expert community came to this conclusion at a round table at the RIA Novosti agency.

Sergei ALEXASHENKO’s book “The Battle for the Ruble” was written hot on the heels of the August crisis and was published in 1999. The author, who held the post of First Deputy Chairman of the Bank of Russia in 1995-1998, was part of a kind of anti-crisis team - one of those who worked out key decisions at that time, including those announced on August 17. Martin GILMAN, who was then the permanent representative of the International Monetary Fund in Russia, was also in the very center of events.

United Russia has found a new ideologist United Russia has found a new ideologist in the person of the recently deceased outstanding writer, public figure and Nobel laureate Alexander Solzhenitsyn. The idea of ​​a new spiritual leader came to United Russia at a joint meeting of the party's three discussion clubs.

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt broke the world record in the most prestigious discipline Over the three days of athletics competitions that began on Friday, a dozen sets of awards were played out in the Beijing Olympics program. The Russians have already won four medals. The victorious initiative was made by walker Valery Borchin, who won the 20-kilometer distance; yesterday Gulnara Samitova-Galkina finished first in the steeplechase (3000 m with obstacles), setting a world record.

The war on the Internet was no less fierce than in real life On August 8, after the start of hostilities on the territory of South Ossetia, several websites of the unrecognized republic were attacked. The main South Ossetian resources turned out to be inaccessible - they were overloaded as a result of DDoS attacks, which these days have become the most popular weapon of hackers “warring” in the Caucasus.