- Tehran may give an answer to proposals advanced by a group of nations trying to resolve the Iranian nuclear problem by the end of the month
- Russia would support UN Security Council sanctions against Iran if the Islamic Republic were to be found in breach of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty
- The Iran-6 had proposed suspending discussions of a draft UN Security Council resolution on Iran if Tehran re-imposed a moratorium on uranium enrichment
- Russian contracts currently being implemented in Iran, including construction of the Bushehr nuclear power plant, were not threatened by the Iranian nuclear problem
- "Unfriendly" acts in Ukraine's largely Russian-speaking Crimea region could lead to a deterioration in bilateral relations
- Ukraine or Georgia joining NATO could lead to a colossal shift in global geopolitics
- Israel and Palestine should resume negotiations to break the long-standing deadlock in the Middle East peace process
* Romano Prodi, Italy's prime minister, will visit Russia on June 20 on the invitation of President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin press service said
* The Ukrainian parliament announced it would prolong until June 14 its two-week recess that started on May 25, fuelling further speculation over its future
* Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said Vladimir Zhirinovsky, a deputy speaker of the lower chamber of parliament and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, had been denied entry into the country
* Russia's Foreign Ministry said a decision made by Ukraine to deny entry to senior Russian lawmakers was a serious and unfriendly act
* Ukraine's Deputy Foreign Minister Anton Buteiko hit back at Russian criticism of his country's plan to join NATO, saying Russian lawmakers had no grounds for their disapproval of the plan
* Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, condemned the kidnapping of Russian diplomats in Iraq as a crime against Muslim traditions and pledged assistance to secure their release
* Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref said Russia's nuclear agency would complete construction of three power units for nuclear power plants in the country and would start building another one
* Russia's Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko said the government was seeking to develop a liberalization mechanism for the domestic electricity market in a bid to accelerate reforms in the electric power sector
* Rosneft is planning to launch its initial public offering in mid-July on two bourses in Moscow and London, Nikolai Yegorov, director of the National Depositary Center said
* Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said Russia's gas companies should be taxed more heavily as the price of gas rises
* Russia's Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov denied rumors that Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref could be about to resign
* The Russian government approved a forecast for the country's social and economic development in 2007-2009 and limits for natural monopoly tariffs
* Russian Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref minister said the country's gross domestic product in 2006 would exceed the 1991 level for the first time
* Anatoly Chubais, chief executive of Russia's electricity monopoly Unified Energy System, said the number of new power generating units would be increased 50% in 2010-15 as compared with 2006-10
* Russia's Central Bank said it had revoked the operating licenses of Moscow Region-based Mosprombank and Moscow's European Clearing Bank over breaches of banking legislation
* Mikhail Gorbachev, the architect of perestroika and the Soviet Union's sole president, said he had bought a 49% stake in an independent newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, but pledged to put no pressure on editorial policy
