Mikhalkov is not a decree for Ural filmmakers Despite the obvious pressure from Nikita Mikhalkov, the Ural Union of Cinematographers insisted on its own. Its chairman, director and actor Vladimir Makeranets, was re-elected for the next term, and the activities of the board were recognized as satisfactory. 93 out of 132 voters voted for Makeranets, reports the website Nakanune.RU.

Alexander Lukashenko was invited to Europe Today, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko will address his annual message to parliament, in which he will undoubtedly touch upon the prospects for dialogue with the West. It is possible that Lukashenko will also announce whether he intends to personally participate in the Prague summit of the European Union on May 7.

The government forces banks that received state aid to lend to businesses and citizens The state is trying with all its might to prevent a credit squeeze in the economy, including using administrative resources for this. Yesterday, at a meeting in the White House, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin drew up a scheme for almost direct state regulation in the field of lending. Financial institutions will be required to issue loans in an amount no less than that which they received from the state.

Scientists have explored the crust of neutron stars American astronomers have concluded that the crust of a neutron star is 10 billion times stronger than steel. Neutron stars are astronomical bodies consisting of a neutron core and a thin crust. The thin crust of these stars consists mainly of material rich in iron and nickel.

CLUBS Thomas Anders. The vocalist of the most popular band Modern Talking in the 80s will present a new album in Moscow. Kremlin Palace , 19.00. Marimba Plus. The group defines the style of its creativity as art-fusion. The basis of the Marimba Plus music program is the original works of the group’s leader, the only jazz marimbaphonist in Russia, Lev Slepner. Igor Butman Club , 20.00. James Weidman (piano, jazz, USA). "Union of Composers" , 20.30. Sinead O'Connor.

The IMF left China and India among the leaders in economic growth The global economy will fall by 1.3% this year and grow by 1.9% next year. This forecast is contained in the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook report. According to the fund's economists, even if global financial authorities act successfully, economic recovery will occur very slowly. Full restoration may take about five years, with China and India becoming the driving forces.

At the conference in Geneva a resolution was adopted The UN conference in Geneva on the fight against racism, which will conclude its work tomorrow, was nevertheless crowned with success - the final document has already been adopted on the basis of consensus.

Russia will try to keep up with developed countries in biofuel production Against the backdrop of a sharp decline in prices for the main energy resources - oil and gas, as well as gas wars that constantly arise due to inconsistency in the positions of states, the most developed countries of the world are actively working to create alternative energy sources. It is also important for Russia not to lag behind this process, so as not to find itself on the sidelines of the global economy.

Zvonareva will miss the Fed Cup semi-finals World number six Vera Zvonareva will not take part in the semi-finals of the Fed Cup, which will be held in the Italian Castellaneta Marina this weekend. The reason for this was an ankle injury, due to which the Russian woman was forced to withdraw from the tournament in Charleston, America. This week Zvonareva flew to Moscow to undergo a medical examination.

Small businesses are promised to be gradually equal in taxes to large ones The All-Russian Forum on Small and Medium Enterprises, organized with the support of Vnesheconombank - Development Bank, the Ministry of Economic Development and the public organization OPORA, became a real celebration of small business. And it began with congratulations to the permanent president of OPORA Sergei Borisov, who was awarded the Order of Friendship by presidential decree.

Extortionists tried to get a million dollars from Senator Pugachev The Tagansky District Court of Moscow yesterday issued a warrant for the arrest of two general directors of capital advertising agencies - 34-year-old Andrei Markov and 40-year-old Nikolai Ivanov, detained in the case of extorting a million dollars from a member of the Federation Council from the Republic of Tuva, Sergei Pugachev.

The World Cup starts tomorrow in Switzerland Experts call only two teams - Russia and Canada - the favorites of the World Hockey Championship, which will be held in Switzerland. The rest of the teams should serve as a background and, judging by the lineups, they are quite happy with this. Only the home team can present a surprise - it plans to finally win medals of some merit. But all attention will be focused on the team of Vyacheslav Bykov and the North Americans. Favorites Russia.

"Adrenaline: High Voltage" on Moscow screens Three years ago, Chev Chelios (Jason Statham) fell from a helicopter. He crashed - but came back to life under the scalpels of Asian organ dealers, who replaced his very real heart with a time bomb, which must be constantly recharged using improvised means, including such accessories that not every sadomasochist would dare to use in his games.

North Korean fighters are angry Today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrives in Pyongyang with the goal of convincing the DPRK to return to six-party negotiations on the nuclear issue. North Korea has flatly refused to discuss the topic in response to the UN Security Council's mid-April condemnation of its April 5 missile launch. The visit comes against the backdrop of worsening relations between Pyongyang and Seoul.

What's going on in the Russian jazz community? Everything is as usual: people study music, work, write, organize bands, go to jams, go to festivals, accompany pop musicians, that is, in general, they survive from bread to kvass. There are few records coming out. On decent quality CDs, the names of Russian musicians can be found, but they are always written in Latin, something like Alex Sipiagin or Boris Kozlov, because the discs are American, they end up here as imports.