... Medvedev ordered First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov to create and head a task force to fight financial crime, including money-laundering, according to a decree published Thursday. The task force will also seek to crack down on the financing of terrorism, tax evasion and those who cheat on customs duties, the Kremlin said on its web site. The new body will comprise of officials from law enforcement agencies, the Central Bank and the Federal Tax Service. Zubkov headed the government's financial...

... if necessary, an official said. However, there was no evidence that suspect Jamshid Muhtorov was plotting attacks inside the United States, authorities said. Muhtorov, 35, was arrested Saturday by members of the FBI’s Denver and Chicago Joint Terrorism Task Forces. Muhtorov, who goes by several other names, was indicted on charges of providing and attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. Prosecutors allege he planned to fight for the Islamic Jihad...

... Alexander Khloponin said Friday. "Today, unfortunately, I can certify that the North Caucasus Federal District is a leader in money laundering," Khloponin said at a police meeting Friday, Interfax reported. Khloponin said the financing of terrorism must be cut off to eliminate it in the region. The presidential envoy also said officials have not been able to "sever the merging of criminality and the authorities", Interfax reported. 179742

... "...it was explained to me that it's bad to put photographs of strategic buildings on the Internet. After all, terrorists will understand everything from these photos and blow [them] up," the article said. "After that, the fighter of terrorism named me around 10 last names, asked if I knew them. It was the first time in my life I had heard any of the names," the article said. Police asked him about people who broke into secret facilities and photographed them, Varlamov said....

... is the first of its kind to assess nuclear risks on a country-by-country basis and analyzes 176 countries in total, including a separate category of 144 states possessing less than 1 kilogram of nuclear materials. Its aim is to help prevent nuclear terrorism and encourage governments to take actions to reduce nuclear risks. Nine hundred analysts were consulted for the index. 179742

... financial services to Iran's lenders and companies under international sanctions for involvement in the country's nuclear and missile proliferation. The move "will deepen Iran's financial isolation," David S. Cohen, treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement. European Union foreign ministers on Jan. 23 also agreed to freeze the assets of Bank Tejarat's European branch in Paris. Belarus, which U.S. President George W. Bush described as "the last...

Ireland, one of the countries worst hit by the financial crisis, is looking to boost its economy by attracting Russian tourists to its shore, and Wednesday the Irish Embassy presented a sales pitch for its country to local tourist firms. Ireland, one of the countries worst hit by the financial crisis, is looking to boost its economy by attracting Russian tourists to its shore, and Wednesday the Irish Embassy presented a sales pitch for its country...

... Yemen, local leaders have refused to leave, despite massive, ongoing protests. Syria presents an even more chilling picture. Its rulers ordered soldiers to shoot unarmed protesters, provoking a full-scale civil war and allegedly resorting to outright terrorism to cling to power. In Libya, the civil war produced instability fed by armed and battle-hardened militias. Even where change came promptly, the outcome remains questionable. In Tunisia, a free election strengthened the hand of Islamists. In...

... competent" — and have eased the process for citizens to file complaints. But he said the most pressing problems remain in the North Caucasus, where abductions and regional officials' impunity are top concerns. The mainly Muslim region is plagued with terrorism and regular clashes between Islamist insurgents and security forces. "We feel that further action must be taken to ensure that counterterrorist actions are in line with human rights standards," he said. The North Caucasus features...

... West can change loyalties 180 degrees when it is expedient to do so. From 2003 to 2010, the West had normal relations with leader Moammar Gadhafi. In 2004, for example, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair hailed Gadhafi as a new ally in the war on terror while helping Royal Dutch Shell secure a deal in Libya worth $500 million. In addition, the United States restored diplomatic relations with Libya in 2006, and Gadhafi had a seat next to Silvio Berlusconi and Barack Obama at the Group of...

... Russia kept expanding while the divisions between state and society worsened. The violent methods used by Vladimir Lenin and Josef Stalin, while they secured the Bolshevik hold on power, also created long-term problems. A state that had been created by terror found that it was dependent on coercion for its survival. It was difficult for Stalin's successors to break with these methods, and this made it harder for them to respond creatively to social and political change — both at home and in the...