The reason why Russia may have opted out of the WTO
01 Jul 2009: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin recently announced that Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan had abandoned their separate talks to join the World Trade Organization. Instead, they would seek to enter the world trade body as a single customs union. InRussia gets cold feet on Iran S-300 delivery?
19 Mar 2009: A source familiar with Russian military ties says the delivery of the Russian S-300 air defense system to Iran is conditional. Reports surfaced earlier in March, suggesting that Moscow might decide to postpone the delivery of the powerful S-300Russia and Japan discuss island row
19 Feb 2009: Japan's prime minister and Russia's president have expressed optimism about improving ties over their decades-long territorial dispute over the Kuril Islands. Taro Aso and Dmitry Medvedev met at the launch of a major liquefied natural gas (LNG) complex onTwo Satellites Collide 500 miles over Siberia, Putting Space Station at Risk
12 Feb 2009: In a space first, two communications satellites collided and were destroyed yesterday about 500 miles above Russia, NASA reports. Officials told Spaceflight Now that the International Space Station did not appear to be threatened by the giant debrisRussia, Ukraine bid to end gas row
17 Jan 2009: Russian and Ukrainian officials will meet in Moscow in a bid to resolve a contract dispute that has cut gas supplies to much of Europe for more than two weeks in the depths of winter. Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, said on Friday after talksEurope left to beg and rage as Russian gas row drags on
15 Jan 2009: Russia's refusal to pump gas to Europe and Ukraine's reluctance to let any gas through left European leaders spluttering in impotent fury yesterday, alternately pleading with the Kremlin to resume supplies and accusing the Russians of duplicity. With noRussia-Ukraine deal on gas for Europe hits trouble
11 Jan 2009: MOSCOW/KIEV, Jan 12 (Reuters) - A deal to restore Russian gas supplies via Ukraine to Europe appeared on the verge of collapse after Moscow rejected additions by Kiev as a 'mockery of common sense'. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev appealed to EU leadersPutin calls for gas 'observers'
07 Jan 2009: Vladimir Putin, Russia's prime minister, has said Russia will only resume gas supplies to Europe via Ukraine when a mechanism is agreed for deploying international observers. Moscow and Kiev have accused each other of cutting supplies to EuropeanCourting the bear
27 Nov 2008: Russia's struggle to become a respected player in world affairs moved forward tentatively this past week with a Russian-European Union summit in Nice. Participants said Friday that the meeting underlined improved relations. The European tradeslashnews
Major quake shakes eastern city of Van
A 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit eastern Turkey yesterday, triggering the collapse of buildings and killing many people, according
to officials and experts. At least 50 people were taken to the single hospital in the city of Van, Anatolia news agency said,
The wretched scandal of Gaza
Past bombed suburbs and scrubland stands the house on the frontier of hell. Once, Abdullah Wahdem's home was a pleasant villa set
in the citrus groves of northern Gaza. Now its cream stucco frontage is pitted by the bullets and artillery salvos that
From Hate to Love -
Story of Adiy ibn Hatim
In the ninth year of the Hijrah, an 'Arab king made the first positive moves to Islam after years of feeling hatred for it. He
drew closer to faith (iman) after opposing arid combating it. And he finally pledged allegiance to the Prophet, peace be on him,
Microsoft Bing in search deal with China’s
Baidu
Microsoft has signed a deal with China’s top search engine, Baidu, to provide the site with censored web search services in
English. Baidu, which dominates 83 per cent of the local market and whose success is built on its Chinese language services, said
