U2/Bono asked for Russia's help in fighting AIDS

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev welcomed U2 frontman Bono to tea on Tuesday ahead of the group’s first ever Russian concert, and the Irish musician asked for Russia’s help in fighting AIDS.”Taking care of people is not just what politicians do,” self-proclaimed rock music lover Medvedev told Bono, adding that U2’s music has united generations of people.Their meeting on the sun-drenched veranda of Medvedev’s summer residence on the Black Sea comes a day before U2 take to the Moscow stage for their first ever performance in Russia.Earlier this month in Italy, U2 resumed their 360 Degree Tour following a two-month absence while Bono recovered from a back injury.

Bono, sporting his trademark sunglasses and single earring, asked Medvedev to find a Russian firm to team up for his “Red” campaign, which raises money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.Brands Nike, Microsoft, Apple and Starbucks have sold red products and donated part of the proceeds to the charity.

“Maybe you can find a Russian company, a Red Russian company, it’s your color,” Bono told Medvedev, an apparent reference to the red flags and stars used by the Soviet Union.Medvedev said he would think how Russia, which experts say has at least one million people infected with HIV, could contribute to the Red brand.

The two men also shared jokes about their tastes in music, with Bono declaring: “I come here to cross the great divide between me, a Led Zeppelin fan, and you, the Deep Purple fan.”Medvedev, who has made much fuss of his devotion to the veteran British hard rock group, chuckled but replied in English that he also counted Led Zeppelin amongst his favorites.

Bono later said in a statement that he and the Kremlin chief had also discussed corruption as a means to ending poverty.Since coming to office two years ago, Medvedev has vowed repeatedly to tackle Russia’s endemic corruption, though analysts say they have seen very little change so far.(Reuters Life!)

Russia Launches New Submarine

MOSCOW Russia, Tuesday, launching a nuclear-powered attack submarines that require 17 years to make because of lack of funds after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Severodvinsk President Dmitry Medvedev said it would “increase our military strength and potential of our navy, and to strengthen Russia’s position in the world’s oceans.”

“Russia must modernize the navy simply, we must build ships very modern,” Medvedev said at a ceremony at the Sevmash shipyard on the White Sea port. Some observers warned that the ship has not been completed at all and still face trial.

“By placing it in the water does not indicate that the submarine is ready,” said Konstantin Makiyenko, deputy director at the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies is headquartered in Moscow. Some officials at the Sevmash said the submarine was 80 percent complete and that the trial will begin this summer, according to Itar-Tass news agency.

State-owned news agency RIA add to the size of Severodvinsk 119 meters (393 feet) it is Yasen-class submarines / Graney first, and designed to carry nuclear-powered cruise missile distance and other weaponry. RIA and Itar Tass reported that the Severodvinsk is expected to begin serving in 2011, and declared Makiyenko not very optimistic. According to him, the submarine was still requires three to five years.

He also said it was unclear whether Russia will have the funds to produce a few more submarines of the same class, if Severodvinsk successful. According to RIA, Russia plans to create at least six class submarines. Work was started last year in the making of the second submarine in the series, which was named after Kazan.

Making Severodvinsk started in 1993, but Makiyenko said making it effectively been frozen for about a decade due to lack of funds. Russian armed forces suffer from a shortage of money for more than a decade after the demise of the Soviet Union in 1991. Funds have been added, but still it was a problem financing.(AFP)

Soldiers from four NATO countries marched for the first time in Russia's annual Victory Day parade

MOSCOW, May 9 Soldiers from four NATO countries marched for the first time in Russia’s annual Victory Day parade marking the victory in World War II, observers said.Troops from Britain, France, Poland and the United States marched alongside 10,000 Russian forces while about two dozen world leaders attended the 65th anniversary, the BBC reported Sunday. The parade also featured tanks, ballistic missiles and a fly-over of 127 aircraft.Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told spectators lessons from World War II “urge us to show solidarity.””Peace is still fragile and it is our duty to remember that wars do not start in an instant,” Medvedev said. “It is only together that we shall be able to counter modern threats.”

Victory Day parades involving more than 102,000 service personnel and more than 200,000 veterans were conducted in 36 Russian cities, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported.Medvedev said the march on the Red Square “symbolizes our readiness to defend peace, to prevent the revision of the results of the war, to prevent new tragedies.”(UPI)

President Barack Obama will seek to build momentum with China in his push for sanctions on Iran as world leaders assemble in Washington on Monday

Obama will hold talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao before hosting high-level delegations from nearly 50 countries for the opening of the global conference, where the focus will be on how to prevent nuclear terrorism.In the one-on-one meeting with Hu, Obama hopes to cement China’s commitment to help ratchet up pressure on Iran over its nuclear program after Beijing agreed to join serious talks about possible new U.N. sanctions on Tehran.

The two leaders will also try to nurture a thaw in Sino-U.S. relations after tensions spiked in recent months over a range of issues. Financial markets will be seeking further signs of China giving ground over its currency valuation.The Washington summit is the culmination of a hectic week of nuclear diplomacy for Obama and comes a year after he laid out a vision of a world free of atomic weapons.It follows close on the heels of Obama’s unveiling of a revamped U.S. nuclear doctrine limiting the use of atomic arms and the signing of a landmark post-Cold War treaty with Russia pledging to cut their nuclear arsenals by a third.

At home, Obama’s conservative critics say his arms-control strategy is naive and could compromise U.S. national security.Despite that, the two-day summit the biggest U.S.-hosted assembly of world leaders in six decades — will be a test of Obama’s ability to rally global action on his nuclear agenda.Speaking on the eve of the conference, Obama said he expected it to yield “enormous progress” toward the goal of locking down loose nuclear materials worldwide.

“We know that organizations like al Qaeda are in the process of trying to secure a nuclear weapon, a weapon of mass destruction that they have no compunction at using,” Obama told reporters, calling it the biggest threat to national security.A draft final communique shows leaders will pledge to work toward safeguarding all “vulnerable nuclear material” within four years and take steps to crack down on nuclear smuggling.

NOT ON AGENDA BUT ON SUMMITEERS’ MINDS

Iran and North Korea are not on the guest list or the summit agenda. But their nuclear standoffs with the West are sure to figure heavily in Obama’s talks with Hu and other leaders like German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who will sit down with the U.S. president on Tuesday after the summit is over.With Obama pushing to get new sanctions in place against Iran within weeks, China — after months of delay — reluctantly agreed to join in crafting a U.N. resolution. But Obama has yet to completely overcome Beijing’s skepticism.

The West wants to deter what it sees as a covert drive by Iran to develop nuclear weapons, while Tehran says it has only peaceful intentions, focused on generation of electricity.The list of leaders in attendance will range from heads of state of traditional nuclear powers like Russia and France to nuclear-armed foes like India and neighboring Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani assured Obama in talks on Sunday his government has “appropriate safeguard” for its nuclear arsenal. Experts say Pakistan’s stockpile of weapons-grade material poses a high risk because of internal security threats from the Taliban and al Qaeda.

Missing will be Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who withdrew fearing Muslim leaders would use the summit as a forum to demand Israel give up its assumed nuclear arsenal.Still, nuclear-defiant Iran will be the summit’s sub-text.In Prague last week, Obama persuaded President Dmitry Medvedev to keep pressure on Iran, but the Russian leader made clear there remain limits to Moscow’s support for sanctions.

For its part, a defiant Iran has dismissed the summit’s chances for success “as long as some nuclear-armed countries … are constantly preoccupied with the idea of depriving other countries of the peaceful use of nuclear technology.”Hu’s decision to attend the summit is seen as part of a two-way effort to get relations back on track after months of bickering over China’s currency, its Internet censorship, U.S. arms sales to Taiwan and Obama’s meeting with the Dalai Lama.

Days after Beijing announced Hu’s participation, Washington said it would delay a decision scheduled for mid-April on whether to declare China a currency manipulator.China, meanwhile, has signaled it may be close to revaluing its yuan currency. In a pivotal congressional election year, the Obama administration has pressured Beijing to scrap its currency peg, saying it hurts U.S. business and jobs.(Reuters)

new U.S.-Russian treaty to reduce long-range nuclear weapons

PRAGUE has agreed to host the signing of a new U.S.-Russian treaty to reduce long-range nuclear weapons, the Czech Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.The announcement is the clearest sign yet that Washington and Moscow are close to completing the deal on an accord to replace the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START, which expired in December.

Ministry spokesman Filip Kanda said that Prague agreed to host the signing of the accord by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev when the negotiators reach a deal. He said negotiations have not been completed yet.

“As an ally, we have consulted with the U.S. side on an option for us to complete the signing when a deal is done,” Kanda said. “We’ve agreed,” he said.It was not clear if the plan for the signing ceremony had also been discussed with the Russian government.

The negotiations are still under way in Geneva. The treaty is likely to limit the number of deployed strategic warheads by the United States and Russia. Any agreement would need to be ratified by the legislatures of both countries and would still leave each with a large number of nuclear weapons, both deployed and stockpiled.

Both U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said following talks in Moscow last week that a deal was near – but not done.

The expired START treaty, signed by Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and President George H.W. Bush, required each country to cut its nuclear warheads by at least one-fourth, to about 6,000, and to implement procedures for verifying that each side was sticking to the agreement.

The two sides pledged to continue to respect the expired treaty’s limits on nuclear arms and allow inspectors to continue verifying that both sides were living up to the deal.

Obama and Medvedev agreed at a Moscow summit in July to cut the number of nuclear warheads each possesses to between 1,500 and 1,675 within seven years as part of a broad new treaty.

For Obama, signing the treaty in Prague would be a symbolic return to the city where he outlined his nuclear agenda in April and declared his commitment to “a world without nuclear weapons” in a sweeping speech before a crowd of many thousands.(AP)

1.500 anti-government protest as part of a series of demonstrations began done by the opposition in the city of Vladivostok

Vladivostok  Russian citizens approximately 1.500 anti-government protest as part of a series of demonstrations began done by the opposition in the city of Vladivostok. The plan will be protests across the whole of Russia today. The critics of this government declared a national protest against the Russian government failed to overcome the worst economic crisis experienced for a decade. Meanwhile, it also triggered a protest election results that show the area of government support decline.

In action, the protest leader read out the demands addressed to the government. Among those demands is to ask Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to resign from office. They also demanded direct election of governors, which is removed by the government in 2004. Similarly Reuters reported on Saturday (20/3/2010).

Some of the demands in these protests can not be separated from the citizens that the government wants President Dimitry Medvedev is more serious in its economic policy. Demands that include lowering the cost of public services, increasing pensions and cut taxes for the import of used cars that became the main industry in Vladivostok.

“People’s lives more difficult and they blame the government’s performance,” said one protest leader Alexander Krinitsky. “They (the people) there is no other option to voice their desires through protest,” continued Krinitsky.

Opposition parties continue to protest mushroomed in recent months, following the economic crisis experienced by Russia. Russia’s economic crisis was caused Russia’s economic growth rate continued to soar stalled over the last 10 years. In addition the unemployment rate continues to increase to nine percent.

While the protest that followed before approximately 1.500 people, the organizer of this action criticized the security effort to thwart protests. They accused the authorities have been preaching to the media if the protest this time is prohibited and confiscated leaflets call for this protest followed.

Police had not seen too much action this time guarding. Only a few members of the police watched the demonstrators that the action did not lead to the anarchists. (faj) – approximately 1.500 Russian citizens anti-government protest as part of a series of demonstrations began done by the opposition. The plan will be protests across the whole of Russia today.

The critics of this government declared a national protest against the Russian government failed to overcome the worst economic crisis experienced for a decade. Meanwhile, it also triggered a protest election results that show the area of government support decline.

In action, the protest leader read out the demands addressed to the government. Among those demands is to ask Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to resign from office. In addition they also asked for direct gubernatorial elections, which removed by the government in 2004. Similarly Reuters reported on Saturday (20/3/2010).

Some of the demands in these protests can not be separated from the citizens that the government wants President Dimitry Medvedev is more serious in its economic policy. Demands that include lowering the cost of public services, increasing pensions and cut taxes for the import of used cars that became the main industry in Vladivostok.

“People’s lives more difficult and they blame the government’s performance,” said one protest leader Alexander Krinitsky. “They (the people) there is no other option to voice their desires through protest,” continued Krinitsky.

Opposition parties continue to protest mushroomed in recent months, following the economic crisis experienced by Russia. Russia’s economic crisis was caused Russia’s economic growth rate continued to soar stalled over the last 10 years. In addition the unemployment rate continues to increase to nine percent.

While the protest that followed before approximately 1.500 people, the organizer of this action criticized the security effort to thwart protests. They accused the authorities have been preaching to the media if the protest this time is prohibited and confiscated leaflets call for this protest followed.

Police had not seen too much action this time guarding. Only a few members of the police watched the demonstrators that the action did not lead to the anarchists.

Russian president Dmitry Medvedev optimistic on arms deal with US

Dmitry Medvedev

MOSCOW Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday that nuclear arms control talks with the United States required some give-and-take on both sides and voiced optimism that a deal would be reached soon.The agreement succeeding the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty has required painstaking work and tough negotiations, Medvedev said. He added that Moscow and Washington had failed to strike a deal by Dec. 5 when the START treaty expired because of the talks’ complexity.“The issue is very difficult,” he said in a live interview with the heads of Russian television stations. “It’s a treaty that would determine the parameters of the development and reduction of the strategic offensive potentials of the two largest nuclear powers.”Between them, the two countries control 90 to 95 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons.At a summit in Moscow last July, President Barack Obama and Medvedev agreed to cut the number of nuclear warheads on each side to between 1,500 and 1,675 within seven years, as part of a broad new treaty.The 500-page START agreement contained a sprawling web of control measures seen as crucial for both nations to keep a wary eye on each other’s nuclear stockpiles. Russia now sees them as too intrusive and unnecessary.Medvedev said Thursday that both Moscow and Washington had to make some concessions in the arms control talks.Medvedev said that Obama’s call for a nuclear-free world is a “beautiful and right goal,” but added that movement toward it should be gradual and require other nations also to cut their nuclear arsenals.

Nevsky Express bounced out tracks in remote rural areas(elements of explosive)

Nevsky Express bounced out tracks in remote rural areas at the time the train was on its way between Moscow and St Petersburg.The investigators found “elements of explosives” at the scene, said the Russian federal investigation committee in a statement.A senior intelligence official said, a bomb made out of rail locomotives.Alexander Bortnikov, head of Russian domestic intelligence service, told Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that the bomb is equivalent to seven pounds of TNT detonated at the site, Reuters news agency said.There was no claim of responsibility for the attack.’The explosion kerasa’Russia’s chief prosecutor opened criminal investigation on charges of terrorism, said the Russian news agency reported.Hundreds of rescue workers and other workers worked all night at the crash site near the city of Tver region Bologoye.Some reports said as many as 39 people were killed.The train was carrying over 650 passengers. Over 90 people hospitalized, some of them transported by helicopter.Head of state-owned railway company, Russian Railways, Vladimir Yakunin, said investigators believed the accident on Friday night was caused by acts of terrorism.”In short, the terrorist attacks” is the main line of investigation pursued by the experts who are investigating the accident that left the tracks, Yakunin said on state television from the accident scene.Some passengers reported a large explosion sound occurred before the train left the tracks.A Russian television channels broadcast the recording mobile phone conversations between the train engineer and kemenetrian emergency. Engineer said, there was an explosion in the train.Train named Nevsky Express was on his way in one of the busiest routes in Russia, and Friday nights are the hours the passengers crowded.In 2007, a bomb in the same railway carriage toppled causes, causes nearly 30 people injured.