The Moscow Times

Business: RenCap Cuts RTS '08 Target to 2,350
Renaissance Capital on Monday slashed its year-end forecast for the benchmark RTS Index from 3,000 to 2,350 and increased its equity risk premium for the country from 4 percent to 5.5 percent in a sign of continued investor jitters.

News

Putin Backs Medvedev for President
By Nabi Abdullaev / Staff Writer President Vladimir Putin on Monday backed the candidacy of First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in the March presidential election -- the first time Putin has publicly supported a presumed successor.

VTB Banker's Body Found Bound in Pool
By Catrina Stewart, David Nowak / Staff Writers Authorities opened a murder investigation Friday into the death of a senior executive at state-run bank VTB, who was found dead with his legs bound, in a swimming pool at his luxury dacha outside Moscow.

One Week To Wait For Putin's Anointed
By Nabi Abdullaev / Staff Writer The mystery surrounding whom President Vladimir Putin will back as his preferred successor will end on Dec. 17, a mere 74 days before the presidential election. But until then, the name promises to be kept as a larger-than-life secret.

Renault Looking To Revive AvtoVAZ
By Anna Smolchenko / Staff Writer Renault has emerged the winner to buy a 25 percent stake in AvtoVAZ as the French carmaker looks to reinforce its position in what will soon become Europe's largest car market and help the Russian giant resuscitate its troubled Lada brand.

Bus Blast Kills 2 in Stavropol
Reuters A blast on a bus in southern Russia killed two people on Sunday, emergency services said, less than a month after five people died when a bomb exploded on a bus in a neighboring region.

Russia-Belarus Union Presidency Dismissed
Combined Reports A Kremlin source has dismissed as ""sheer speculation"" reports that President Vladimir Putin plans to create a new role for himself heading a union of Russia and Belarus.

Reporter to Be Freed From Clinic
Combined Reports A reporter who wrote critical articles about military actions in Chechnya has been ordered released from a Yaroslavl region psychiatric hospital where he was kept against his will for nine months.

Metropolitan Kirill Praises Papal Talks
The Associated Press A prominent official in the Russian Orthodox Church described a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI as ""very positive,"" and said Catholics and Orthodox must work together to promote Christian values while continuing efforts aimed at unity.

Think Tank Comes Under Fire
Reuters The Foreign Ministry has accused The Jamestown Foundation, a U.S. think tank, of spreading anti-Russian propaganda by hosting a debate on violence in Ingushetia.

Wary of Vote but Eager for Energy
The Associated Press Hungary will continue to seek closer ties with Russia despite doubts about the fairness of the State Duma elections there, the Hungarian prime minister said.

Shield Talks Planned for This Week
Reuters The United States and Russia will hold senior-level talks about missile defense in Budapest on Thursday, the U.S. State Department said.

Rice Fails to Convince Lavrov on Iran
By Matthew Lee / The Associated Press U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has failed to persuade Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the urgency of new sanctions for Iran, and the two have clashed over the future of Kosovo.

National Bolshevik Activist Awarded $22,000 by Court
The Moscow Times The European Court of Human Rights has ordered Russia to pay 15,000 euros ($22,000) to an activist with the banned National Bolshevik Party who was convicted of seizing a presidential administration reception office, the activist's lawyer said.

58 One-Way Streets
The Moscow Times Fifty-eight centrally located streets are to become one-way streets amid an ongoing struggle by City Hall to ease traffic congestion, Pavel Kozlov, head of City Hall's center for organization of road traffic, said Friday.

Kasyanov Chosen Kremlin Hopeful
By Francesca Mereu / Staff Writer Despite having difficulties with holding a congress the night before, the Russian People's Democratic Union managed to select its leader, Mikhail Kasyanov, as its candidate in the March presidential election.

Communists to Rally Against Vote Dec. 22
Combined Reports The Communist Party is planning demonstrations nationwide this month to protest ""flagrant violations"" during the State Duma elections, a senior party official said.

News in Brief
German Embassy Visa FraudTymoshenko Vote NearsSerbs Arrest BusinessmanKyrgyz Activist InvestigatedPoles to Air Belarussian TV

Cleanup Starts in Aftermath of South Korea's Biggest Oil Spill
The Associated Press Thousands of people used shovels and buckets Sunday to clean up a devastating oil spill at a scenic beach on South Korea's western coast, some battling headaches and nausea from the stench.

NATO Captures 2 Taliban Leaders
Reuters Afghan and NATO-led forces have captured two senior Taliban leaders during an offensive to retake the insurgents' most important stronghold in Afghanistan, the Afghan Defense Ministry said Sunday.

Europe Leaders to Stop Seeking Negotiated Solution to Kosovo
Reuters EU leaders are expected to agree this week that efforts to reach a negotiated solution to the Kosovo problem are exhausted and offer to take responsibility for security and justice in the Serbian province.

Africa Rejects EU Trade Deals
Reuters Most African leaders on Sunday rejected new trade deals demanded by the European Union, dealing a blow to efforts to forge a new economic partnership at the first EU-Africa summit in seven years.

Suicide Bombing Kills 8 in Pakistan
The Associated Press Eight people were killed, including two children, when a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden car into a police outpost Sunday in Pakistan's Swat valley, the site of an ongoing military operation against militants loyal to a fugitive cleric.

Inquiries Promised In CIA Scandal
By Pamela Hess / The Associated Press The U.S. Justice Department and the CIA's internal watchdog have announced a joint inquiry into the spy agency's destruction of videotaped interrogations of two suspected terrorists, as the latest scandal to rock U.S. intelligence gathered steam.

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