From: VIZNYUK@MPS.OHIO-STATE.EDU
Newsgroups: talk.politics.soviet
Subject: News from Sovok
Date: 15 Apr 92 00:29:00 GMT
Reply-To: "talk.politics.soviet via ListServ" <TPS-L@indycms.bitnet>

Among recent reports from Sovok:

On the Congress of People's Deputies of Russia
some "consensus" was reached today. Yesterday
goverment proposed resolution on the reforms
in Russia which failed to pass with majority of
only 2 votes out of ~1000. Today the same
resolution was discussed by points and tommorow
deputies are expected to vote on it again.
Goverment agreed to include in resolution
demands to increase spending on social programs, though
with reservation "according to opportunities",
while parlament appeared stepping back from its
demands of resignation of goverment. Yeltsin was
reported as preparing to give a final speach
tomorrow.

The scandal is growing around Chairman of Russian
Parlament Ruslan Khazbulatov. Yesterday he was
accused of undecent behavior during parlament
session when he didn't find anything better to
say in response to goverment's threat to resign
than to shout "We are not afraid of anybody". In
addition he gave interview to Italian newspaper
"Republica" where he said that he is spitting
on "a Shakhrais and other worms from goverment".
As a result, today, Sergei Shakhrai (deputy prime
minister ?) declared that he is going to file a
lawsuit against Khazbulatov. Today it was also
announced that newspaper Izvestia is filing a lawsuit
against Khazbulatov, charging him of attempt to lay down
his hands on free media, after Khazbulatov accused
Izvestia of non-existing debt of "several billions" to
goverment and demanded Izvestia to return to under the
control of parlament. Giving today interview to Russian TV
Khazbulatov claimed that he "has never heard about such
newspaper as Republica" and "never gave any interview
to it".

Today the spokesmen for defense ministry of Russia
announced on a press-conference in Moscow that they
plan to create Russian military structures until
the end of May. It was also announced that the
Russian Army would consist of about 1.5 million men.

Yesterday the defense minister of Ukraine Morozov
was visiting US where he tried to assure US defense
secratary Cheney that "one should not trust Russia".
It seems that the main result of his visit was that
he was ordered to resume shipment of tactical nukes
to Russia or face economic sanctions against Ukraine.

There were sporadic shootings in Moldova, while it
seems that in general the cease-fire agreement is still
holding. Russian envoy on special assignments Poluectov
is conducting negotiations in Kishinev. Earlier it was
reported that National Guards of Pridnestrovskaya Republic
took over several armed vehecles and other ammunition
made in Romania.

Today Eduard Shevardnadze announced that "Georgia will
never join CIS", and appealed to Russia for help saying
that "Georgia would not survive without Russia".
The situation in South Osetia (East of Georgia) was reported
as normalizing.

Turkmenistan was reported as refusing to resume the
delivery of natural gas to Ukraine until Ukraine would
not pay the negotiated price for already delivered gas.
Today it was annouced that Turkmenistan and Iran signed
an agreement that Turkmenistan would export gas to
Europe through Iran "in detour" Ukraine, whose goverment
shut down all pipelines by which Turkmenian gas was exported
to Europe.

Today the Chairman of Surprime Soviet of Nagorno-Karabakh
"republic" was found shot down by unknown terrorists in
his apartment in Stepanakert.

Azeri sources claimed that Armenians took hostage more
than 500 civilians for the past three days.

Armenian sources reported that about 100 people were killed
in Stepanakert as a result of GRAD shelling for the past
weekend.

04/14/92
S.V.