RUSSIA

Mikhail Khodorkovsky

Who is Mikhail Khodorkovsky?

In October 2003, Russian security agents' seized the country's richest man at gun point on the tarmac of a Siberian airport. ''Weapons on the floor or we'll shoot!'' the agents shouted. Then the man was dragged away to spend years in solitary confinement at a Soviet-era labor camp in the Chita region of eastern Siberia. His assets were seized by the state; his opulence was wiped out and his family left almost fractured.

Russian oil tycoon Khodorkovsky found guilty

Russian oil tycoon Khodorkovsky found guilty
Former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his business partner Platon Lebedev were declared guilty of fraud by the Moscow's Khamovniki court on Monday. Both men were accused of embezzling 218 tons of oil via their oil company Yukos and laundering over $97.5 million (3 billion rubles) in revenues.
South Korea warns North of strong 'counter-attacks'

South Korea's Lee Myung-bak warns North of strong 'counter-attacks'

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, called on the country's military to strike with strong 'counter-attacks' on the North. Lee visited the front-line army units in Yanggu of Gangwon Province on Thursday. Despite domestic opposition, Seoul's hard-line government is holding the one of its largest-ever military at Pocheon, 20km south of the North Korean border. The country so far conducted 47 drills in the past year.
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Is South Korea's live-fire mega drill a futile exercise?

US diplomats in Washington once dubbed North's Korea's military drills as 'fish-killing' activities. Yet the South, backed by the Obama administration, has been continuously holding live-fire drills in the disputed zone of the Korean Peninsula. With a continual military activity, the coming months could only witness a deteriorating situation in the peninsula, unless both sides are pressured to engage in a dialogue.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney D-NY speaks at a news conference near Ground Zero to show support for the 9/11 health responders legislation known as the Zadrogra bill on December 11, 2010.

Backers of 9/11 health bill rally

Sponsors and supporters of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act were in Washington, D.C. today to urge the U.S. Senate to get past partisanship and pass the measure that will bring permanent healthcare and compensation to the approximately 20,000 Americans who are suffering from illnesses contracted while working at Ground Zero in the weeks following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan.
Democratic Senator John Kerry (R) speaks with Republican Senator Jon Kyl as they depart the Old Senate Chamber after a closed session about the new START treaty on Capitol Hill in Washington December 20, 2010.

Start Treaty set to pass, clears key hurdle

The nuclear-arms reduction treaty between the United States and Russia cleared a key hurdle in the Senate on Tuesday as Senators voted by a significant margin to advance the bill for a final vote.
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Gold Coin Buying & rising ETF Demand boost Gold price

The world's largest exchange traded gold fund - the New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore-listed SPDR Gold Trust - added 15 tonnes to its holdings on Friday, the largest one-day addition since the height of the Greek deficit crisis in May.
A riot policeman chases an opposition protester in Minsk

Belarus polls 'seriously flawed': International observers

International observers slammed the Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko, alleging that fraud and violence were widespread in Sunday's polls. They maintained that the results were 'seriously flawed' and at least six of the nine presidential candidates were arrested and reportedly beaten up by the police.
South Korean marines patrol on Yeonpyeong Island

South Korea begins live-fire exercises on Yeonpyeong Island, North alerts army

The South Korean military has begun live-firing exercises on Yeonpyeong Island, the country's defense ministry announced on Monday. Local residents were ordered to move into air raid bunkers ahead of the drills. The move comes at the time of heightened tensions in the region and constant threats of retaliation from the North.
Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko

Belarus vote set to extend President Lukashenko's 16-year rule

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is set to be voted in for his fourth consecutive term, exit polls suggest. Local media has reported that Lukashenko is likely to win a massive 72 per cent of the votes while his rival Andrei Sannikov is predicted to get 6.33 per cent. Opposition had already voiced allegations of election fraud by the ruling party in the country. Lukashenko is running against nine opposition candidates.
Ethnic tensions simmer in Russia

Ethnic tensions simmer in Russia, 'radical nationalism' on the rise

The angry mob battling the police in their riots gear at the heart of Moscow screamed, Russia for Russians! The slogans spread to the Country's second largest city of St. Petersburg. In rather a dramatic fashion, the death of one Russian football fan sparked riots that soon engulfed the whole of the country. Local media has been reporting that city centers have been shut time and again and roads were frequently blocked, over the past couple of days, following sporadic incidents.
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Gold Tops Hedge-Fund Strategies

Nerbrand's team at HSBC reckon that Gold Investment accounts for just 0.14% of the average global portfolio today. If this figure increases, as we expect, the Gold Price could rise significantly...We believe asset allocators are likely to increase their weighting in gold over the next ten years if they focus on risk management
Chernobyl power station in Kiev

Chernobyl - World’s worst nuclear disaster site to open its doors to tourists

Visitors will be able to tour the sealed zone around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, where Chernobyl reactor No. 4 exploded on April 26, 1986, contaminating a large part of Northern Europe including Belarus and Russia, with harmful radiations. The tragedy left many dead and the city was evacuated within a radius of 48 kilometers.
Singapore

Singapore officials disparaged Asian neighbors: WikiLeaks

Singapore's top government officials spewed venom towards the political leaders of some of its Asian neighbors, according to U.S. diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks and provided to an Australian newspaper, The Sun Herald.
U.S. President Barack Obama holds a meeting with the President's Export Council in the Eisenhower Executive Office building near the White House in Washington December 9, 2010.

U.S. proposes relaxed rules to boost export sales

The Obama administration is seeking to give its allies and U.S. exporters a boost, proposing new rules that will ease trade in items that could prove to be security risks if they fell into the wrong hands.

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