* Including Ukraine and the Caucasus nations into a U.S. air-defense system could cause another internal political crisis in these countries, a senior Russian MP said
* Russian Air Force commander Vladimir Mikhailov said:
- the deployment of a U.S. anti-missile radar in the Caucasus would not affect Russia's defense capabilities, but the country might respond to the move nevertheless
- Russia's fifth-generation air defense missile system will be developed on the basis of existing S-300 and S-400 air defense complexes
* Ukrainian opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko has called for the president to be given back his powers, the press service of her eponymous bloc said
* Russia wants Israel, which has never admitted its nuclear status but is nevertheless believed to possess nuclear weapons, to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to establish a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said
* Israel's deputy prime minister said that Moscow should be pressured to stop supplying Russian weapons to Syria
* Israel's military raids on the West Bank towns of Nablus and Jenin only further aggravate the situation in Palestinian territories, a Russian diplomatic spokesman said
* Russia's agriculture watchdog said it will suspend imports of EU meat if the European Commission fails to provide documents certifying its quality
* Russia's veterinary watchdog suspended meat imports from the United States, France, Germany, Brazil and Uruguay over salmonella concerns, a news release said
* North and South Korea agreed to resume reconciliation efforts at their first high-level talks since Pyongyang conducted missile tests in the summer, Japan's Kyodo News agency said
* A Russian negotiator was optimistic about the results of a regular round of talks in Geneva on the country's accession to the World Trade Organization
* A new partnership agreement between the European Union and Russia will be signed only in three to four years, when the EU defines its priorities in relations with Russia, a Russian official said
* Russia and Belgium may build a major gas storage depot to transport gas to third countries, President Vladimir Putin said
* The parliament of Russia's North Caucasus republic of Chechnya approved Ramzan Kadyrov as president of Chechnya
* A leader of a non-governmental organization was given a two-year suspended sentence in a southern Russian region for libel against a local government executive, a court official said
* The Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches have begun improving relations and enhancing contacts since Benedict XVI was elected Pope, the bishop of Vienna and Austria said
* The board of Unified Energy System approved a final reorganization scheme for the Russian electricity monopoly, the UES press service said
* A pedestrian bridge across a railway platform in western Moscow collapsed, emergency services said
* Russia's environmental watchdog intends next week to hand over to the natural resources watchdog materials on the revocation of a number of licenses from a subsidiary of the bankrupt oil company Yukos, the watchdog's deputy head said
* Russia's Federal Property Fund said it would soon hold an auction to sell a 1.47% stake in the country's leading automaker, AvtoVAZ
* Russian Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref said:
- domestic gas prices in Russia are set to increase two-fold by 2010, to $100 per 1,000 cubic meters, against today's average price of $52
- Russia's inflation rate was 2.5% in the first two months of this year, with the annual inflation target set at 7-8%
