44 die in Russian plane crash

STPETERSBURG, Russia - A Russian passenger jet crashed in heavy fog and burst into flames on a highway in northwestern Russia, killing 44 people, officials said. Eight people survived.

The Tu-134 plane, belonging to the RusAir airline, had taken off from Moscow and was moments from landing at the airport of Petrozavodsk when it slammed into the highway just before midnight on Monday, said Emergencies Ministry spokeswoman Oksana Semyonova.

The ministry said in a statement on its website that 44 people were killed, including four with dual US and Russian citizenship.

Semyonova said the plane slammed into the ground about 100 meters from a small village, but no casualties were reported on the ground.

Petrozavodsk is in Karelia, near the Finnish border, about 640 kilometers northwest of Moscow.

Russia's top investigative agency said bad weather, human error or a technical malfunction might have contributed to the crash.

A 9-year-old boy and his teenage sister were among eight people who survived the crash, the ministry said.

Anton Terekhin and his 14-year-old sister Anastasia Terekhina are being treated for severe injuries in hospital in Petrozavodsk.

The brother and sister feature on a list of survivors published by the Karelia branch of the emergencies ministry on its website. They are registered as residents of the Pacific island of Sakhalin.

A spokeswoman confirmed that the two were in hospital but that their mother Oksana was killed in the crash. A stewardess, named as Yulia Skvortsova, 23, also survived, the only one of the plane's crew who was not killed.

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http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2011-06/22/content_12748617.htm

China, Russia issue joint statement on major international issues

China and Russia on Thursday issued a joint statement on a broad range of key international issues.

The statement was signed by visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao and his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev.

Countries of the world have become increasingly interdependent against the backdrop of profound changes and major adjustments in the international situation as well as the emergence of global challenges and regional threats such as the international financial crisis, regional conflicts, natural disasters, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,terrorism and climate change, said the statement.

The two sides recognize the need to make concerted efforts to effectively cope with such global challenges and threats, it said.

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http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-06/16/c_13934280.htm

Ukraine wants $1b for new Chernobyl shelter

Chernobyl veterans walk along Kiev main Khreshchatyk street holding Ukraine's Chernobyl Union banner during a rally in Kiev, Ukraine, Sunday, April 17, 2011. Some two thousands of Chernobyl veterans and invalids protested government plan to cut their social benefits ahead of the 25th anniversary of the deadly explosion at Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Ukraine is seeking more than $1 billion in donations to help build a new concrete structure to seal the remains of the Chernobyl nuclear plant.

A makeshift shelter erected over the damaged reactor within eight months of the accident in 1986 has developed cracks and holes and is no longer considered reliable.

World leaders are gathering in the Ukranian capital Kiev for a conference marking 25 years since the Chernobyl disaster.

Ukraine also needs the money to fund a project to build safe storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel from the plant, which still contains radioactive magma and fuel rods after it exploded during a planned test by engineers.

The projects are administered by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and have jointly already raised more than 1.1 billion euros in international funding.

Yesterday the Ukrainian minister of emergency situations told journalists touring the power station he expected delegates at the Kiev conference to offer "historic" contributions.

"We expect to collect the most part of this amount at tomorrow's conference," Viktor Baloga said.

"We hope each participant of this historic conference will make a historic contribution."

Ukraine did not issue a list of delegates, although French prime minister Francois Fillon was confirmed as coming.

Organisers said Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin and Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev were also expected.

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http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/04/19/3195744.htm?section=justin

BRICS Urge More Commodity Market, Capital Flow Supervision

(L-R) India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev, China's President Hu Jintao, Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff and South African President Jacob Zuma attend a joint news conference at the BRICS Leaders Meeting in Sanya

SANYA, China (Dow Jones)--Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, collectively known as BRICS, Thursday called for greater supervision of commodity markets and international capital flows, as the countries look to boost their influence in debates about how the world's major economies should address such issues.

BRICS officials have warned that developing countries face risks from capital inflows caused by loose monetary policies in developed nations. BRICS trade officials on Wednesday said they still face economic overheating issues like inflationary pressures and asset bubbles, and agreed they need to boost coordination in the Group of 20 industrial and developing nations, and in areas like climate change negotiations, to ensure the interests of developing countries, according to Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming.

"We call for more attention to the risks of massive cross-border capital flows now faced by the emerging economies," the five countries said in a joint statement Thursday after their leaders met in China's southern island province of Hainan.

"Excessive volatility in commodity prices, particularly those for food and energy, poses new risks for the ongoing recovery of the world economy," the statement said. "The regulation of the derivatives market for commodities should be accordingly strengthened to prevent activities capable of destabilizing markets."

The five nations also said they support reform of the international monetary system leading to "a broad-based international reserve currency system providing stability and certainty," an apparent reference to a diminished role for the U.S. dollar as the world's primary reserve currency.

The state development banks of the five countries Thursday agreed to open credit lines in their national currencies to each other, the latest concrete step by developing nations to reduce their reliance on the U.S. dollar. The framework credit-line agreement was signed by Russia's Vnesheconombank, Brazil's Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Economico e Social, China Development Bank Corp., Eximbank of India, and the Development Bank of South Africa. However, details and regulations, as well as the projects eligible for such financing are yet to be defined in the framework deal.

China Development Bank plans to issue around CNY10 billion of yuan-denominated loans this year to other BRICS nations, CDB Chairman Chen Yuan said at a news briefing, adding most of these loans will fund oil and gas projects.

CDB is in talks with Brazilian state-owned Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PETR4.BR), or Petrobras, regarding further loans for the oil company, Chen said.

"Both parties expressed interest in continuing cooperation and we are in talks regarding the next step of cooperation," Chen said, without elaborating on the size of potential loans.

China and Brazil reached a $10 billion oil-for-loan deal in 2009, under which Petrobras agreed to supply crude oil to China Petrochemical Corp. for 10 years in exchange for funding from China Development Bank.

Russia's Vnesheconombank is also in talks with CDB to borrow about US$1.5 billion worth of yuan for a currency swap between the two lenders, VEB's Chief Executive Vladimir Dmitriev said on the sidelines of the summit. He added that the BRICS countries are moving towards mutually trading each others' currencies, following Russia's launch of yuan trading in Moscow at the end of 2010.

The BRICS countries also said they welcome current discussions about elevating the role of Special Drawing Rights, a kind of synthetic reserve currency created by the International Monetary Fund, and discussions on changing its composition. Including the Chinese yuan in the basket of currencies that makes up the SDR is a reform currently being considered, although this wasn't specifically referred to in the BRICS countries' statement.

The five countries' leaders--Chinese President Hu Jintao, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, South African President Jacob Zuma and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff--on Thursday also discussed expanding the BRICS grouping's membership and agreed they should all support a country before it can join, Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Wu Hailong said at a news briefing. Wu reiterated other countries have expressed interest in joining BRICS, but didn't name any countries.

When asked if the leaders discussed the yuan's exchange rate, Wu only said the topic wasn't on the meeting's agenda. Developing countries like Brazil in recent months have begun following developed countries like the U.S. and France in expressing concerns about China's undervalued currency.

The BRICS summit Thursday was the first if its kind to include South Africa. A shared position among the BRICS members on economic issues like how to address commodity price fluctuations could boost their joint heft in talks at the G-20, an increasingly influential forum for global economic policy debate and setting.

South African Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies on Wednesday said capital inflows from developed countries have fueled a rise in South Africa's currency, the rand, and that the BRICS countries are likely to take their concerns about currencies and global economic instability to the G-20.

The statement Thursday also said nuclear energy "will continue to be an important element in future energy mix of BRICS countries." International cooperation is needed, however, to ensure nuclear energy is developed in strict observance of relevant safety standards.

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http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110414-704029.html

35 dead in blast at busiest Moscow airport

MOSCOW — A suicide bomber carrying a suitcase walked into Moscow's busiest airport and set off a huge explosion Monday, killing 35 people and wounding 180.

The international arrivals terminal at Domodedovo Airport was engulfed by smoke and splattered with body parts after the mid-afternoon terror attack sprayed shrapnel, screws and ball bearings at passengers and workers. Hundreds of people were in the loosely guarded area at the time.

President Dmitry Medvedev immediately ordered authorities to beef up security at Moscow's two other commercial airports and other key transport facilities. He also canceled plans to fly out Tuesday to Davos, Switzerland, where he was going to promote Russia as a safe, profitable investment haven to world business leaders.

"Attempts were being made to identify" the suspected male suicide bomber, Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said, adding that the attacker appeared to have been wearing the explosives in a belt. The bomb was packed with metal objects to cause maximum damage, according to law enforcement authorities.

Two unconfirmed media reports out of Russia suggested that security services were tipped off to a terrorist attack on a Moscow airport in advance of Monday's bombing and had suspects in their sights.

The U.K.'s Telegraph quoted a source from Russian-language site Lifenews.ru as saying authorities knew of a planned attack a week ago.

"A tip-off with a warning that something was being prepared appeared one week before the explosion," the Lifenews.ru source said according to the Telegraph. "Even the place, by the customs, was named."

A law enforcement source told RIA Novosti news service that the security services were seeking three suspects who were able to gain access to the airport, witness the explosion, then leave.

The latest attack on the Russian capital also called into question Russia's ability to safely host major international sports events like the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and the 2018 World Cup. It was the second time in seven years that terrorists had hit the Domodedovo Airport: In 2004, suicide bombers penetrated the lax security there, killing 90 people as they blew up two planes.

Large-scale battles in Chechnya ended years ago, following two devastating wars between Russia and the republic's separatists, but Islamic militants have continued to carry out suicide bombings and other attacks. Most of the attacks have been in Chechnya and other predominantly Muslim provinces in the southern Caucasus region, but some have targeted Moscow, including its subways, buses and trains.

In Washington, President Barack Obama condemned the "outrageous act of terrorism" and offered any assistance Russia might want. Those comments were echoed by British Prime Minister David Cameron, who spoke with Medvedev and assured him of his complete support.

The Emergencies Ministry said 35 people were killed, 86 hospitalized with injuries and 94 were given medical treatment. Two Britons were among the dead, Markin said.

The Russkaya aya Sluzhba Novostei radio station cited a traveler, identified as Viktor, as saying he heard a loud bang while he was waiting for a car outside the terminal.

"There was an explosion, a bang. Then I saw a policeman covered in fragments of flesh and all bloody. He was shouting 'I've survived! I've survived!'" he told the radio station.

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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41231668/ns/world_news-europe/

Russia Backs China’s Call for Six-Party Talks on North Korea

Russia supports China’s proposal to hold six-nation talks on military tensions stemming from North Korea’s Nov. 23 artillery attack on a South Korean island, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations said.

“We think that if everybody could come to those talks, they could be useful,” Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said in an interview today. “We sort of view this initiative as a positive one.”

China proposed on Nov. 28 that “emergency” talks to address the increasing tensions on the Korean peninsula be held early next month in Beijing. They would involve China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, North Korea and the U.S., a group that met several times, starting in 2003, to discuss North Korea’s nuclear program until the government in Pyongyang pulled out of the talks in April 2009.

The U.S., Japan and South Korea haven’t agreed to China’s proposal, saying they want to see more concrete action by North Korea to dismantle its nuclear program before restarting the talks.

Japan’s bid to bring the issue to the UN Security Council has run into resistance from China.

“We are trying our best,” Ambassador Tsuneo Nishida of Japan told reporters at the UN. “We have been really trying to form a consensus in the Security Council. You have noticed that the Security Council has not yet been in a position to do that.”

The U.S. and Japan, which has a seat on the Security Council until Dec. 31, have been holding bilateral talks with China, Russia and other panel members. The U.S. and Japan haven’t formally proposed action by the Security Council.

Russian Suggestion

Churkin suggested that Russia also would be open to Security Council involvement in the issue.

“It could be discussed in the Security Council,” Churkin said. “No one has brought it up.”

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov expressed similar willingness to back a Security Council position on the artillery attack during a Nov. 25 news conference in Moscow.

“I hope that soon the Security Council will express its opinion, which will help calm the situation,” Lavrov said, according to a transcript provided by the Foreign Ministry.

China, while not openly rejecting the call for Security Council involvement, is pushing hard for the six-party format.

Yang Tao, political director of China’s mission to the UN, called the six-party talks “one of the most useful platforms” and said it had “some success” dealing with the issue of North Korea’s nuclear program.

“It is very important for this platform to play its dual role,” Yang said in an interview.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-30/russia-backs-china-s-call-for-six-party-talks-on-north-korea.html