The latest: Russia, Italy Send Aid to Quake Ridden Iran

02.04.2006
Russia, Italy Send Aid to Quake Ridden Iran
Italy and Russia sent tents, blankets and other supplies Saturday to help 21,000 Iranian families left homeless by strong earthquakes that hit in quick succession, killing 70 people. Tehran remained silent on whether it would accept an American offer of aid amid tensions over Iran’s nuclear program.

02.04.2006
Southern Russian Official Attacked in Moscow
A senior culture official of the southern Russian province was savagely beaten in eastern Moscow on Saturday evening. Zaur Titov, Culture Minister of Kabardino-Balkaria, suffered injuries in the fight with a group of drunken youngsters who shouted racist insults at him.

02.04.2006
Russia Sends First Uranium Shipment to Indian Nuclear Plant
India has received an initial shipment of enriched uranium fuel from Russia for a nuclear power plant in the western state of Maharashtra.

02.04.2006
U.S. Researcher Released in Russia’s Southern Province After Days of Questioning
U.S. university researcher and freelance journalist Kelly McEvers was to leave for Moscow on Sunday after four days of police questioning in the volatile southwest Russian province of Dagestan, the woman’s lawyer said.

02.04.2006
Russia’s Former PM Kasyanov Warns Kremlin Builds Dictatorship
A former Russian prime minister has warned that his country is slipping into a dictatorship similar to the harsh regime in neighboring Belarus. Mikhail Kasyanov, sacked by Putin in 2004 said the Kremlin had become so despotic that people increasingly lived in fear.

02.04.2006
Ukraine’s Yushchenko Reminds Would-be Coalition Partners He Is Still in Charge
Ukraine’s President Viktor Yushchenko tried on Saturday to reassert his authority after an election defeat, warning estranged ally Yulia Tymoshenko she could only head a coalition government on his terms.

02.04.2006
Schroeder Govt Guaranteed Credit for Russia’s Gazprom, Report Confirmed
The former German government of Gerhard Schroder guaranteed a credit of one billion euros ($1.2 billion) for the Russian gas group Gazprom’s Baltic pipeline project, a German daily reported in its Saturday edition. The German economy ministry has confirmed the reported, while Schroeder denied it.

02.04.2006
Kuznetsova Strips Sharapova of Miami Title
Former U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova has cruised past fourth seeded Russian countrywoman Maria Sharapova 6-4, 6-3 to win the 6.9 million dollar WTA and ATP Miami hardcourt title.