A few months ago, I attended a lecture given at St. Antony's College, University of Oxford, by Irina Yasina, the deputy chair of the Open Russia foundation, whose mission is to support nongovernmental agencies in Russia.

A historic event took place in Moscow on June 5, though no one seemed to notice. For the first time in 15 years, a major international forum produced criticism of the state of press freedom in Russia that merited consideration.

As the 2006 World Cup got underway in Germany, tourists and football fans were being joined at the various competition venues by denizens of an international world of crime where human beings are bought and sold for profit.

As an American, I now realize that the United States went into Iraq without a plan. It must not try to leave without one.

With the aid of an amended law on land distribution, the construction industry is hoping to stimulate the St. Petersburg residential market, which faces both a deficit of new projects and surging real estate prices.

Banks Lobby for Gazprom Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein are lobbying the British government over Gazprom's plans to invest in energy supplier Centrica, The Observer reported, without saying where it got the information. Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller is interested in expanding in Britain, the paper said. The company's expansion is controversial because Britain may eventually rely on gas for as much as 80 percent of its energy needs, the paper said. British Prime Minister Tony Blair is open to a takeover, saying that government interference would deny customers the best deal, the paper said. Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown has indicated a deal may be blocked, the paper said. (Bloomberg) Centrica Seeks Stake in Field LONDON -- Centrica, Britain's largest energy supplier, is seeking a stake in a Siberian gas field owned by Gazprom, the world's biggest natural gas company, The Business reported, citing a source close to Centrica.

President Vladimir Putin said Friday that the country's nuclear energy reforms were ""close to completion,"" signaling that the Kremlin would soon put forward long-awaited legislation to modernize the industry into a market-driven corporation.

As Sistema-Hals readies to become the country's first foreign-listed developer, IPOs seem to be far off for the firm's local rivals.

German construction company Hochtief is to build Spartak Moscow football club's new stadium in northwest Moscow, a source at IFD Capital, which owns 90 percent of the club, said last week.

Russian, American, European and Japanese officials are negotiating over whether Russia should be allowed greater latitude to invest in utilities, pipelines, natural gas facilities and other infrastructure in the United States and Europe.