Fifty years after Josef Stalin died, felled by a brain hemorrhage at his dacha, an exhaustive study of long-secret Soviet records lends new weight to an old theory that he was actually poisoned, perhaps to avert a looming war with the United States.

Yamadayev Killed MOSCOW (MT) -- A prominent supporter of Chechnya's pro-Moscow leader Akhmad Kadyrov was killed Wednesday in a gun battle with rebels. Dzhabrail Yamadayev, deputy military commandant of Chechnya, died when a mine exploded in the house where he was staying along with three bodyguards in the village of Dyshne-Vedeno, news agencies reported. The commander belonged to the powerful Yamadayev brothers' clan based in the Chechen city of Gudermes. The clan fought along with Kadyrov against federal troops in the first war, but then switched sides. EU Visit on Kyoto BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) -- European Union environmental officials traveled to Moscow on Wednesday to encourage Russia to follow through on its pledge to ratify the Kyoto protocol on climate change. ""The world is waiting for Russia to demonstrate that it is ready and willing to become a major player in the multilateral efforts to combat climate change,"" EU Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom said.

More than 3,000 Communist supporters joined party leader Gennady Zyuganov in a solemn procession to Stalin's grave next to the Kremlin wall on Red Square.

The United States' top military officer said the Pentagon's war plan for Iraq entailed shocking the Iraqi leadership into submission in an attack ""much different"" from the 43-day Persian Gulf war in 1991.

The United States and Asian countries have begun to accept the idea of a nuclear-armed North Korea, according to officials and analysts here and in Washington.