Therefore, a more thorough preparation for the vote should take place. But critics say the delay is an effort by Acting Mayor Yury Kopylov to avert sharing power with the council as long as possible. The mayoral elections were canceled so as not to coincide with the countrywide presidential vote on March 26 because by law, the two elections occur at different times. A pet dog in the poor coal-mining village of Tavrichanka attacked a toddler, biting all over her face and body Monday. She attempted to run away, but the snarling animal caught her and bit.
Police intend to sue the dog owner.
The German ambassador flew to Vladivostok January 14 to introduce his country's honorary consul in the city, Manfred Brokmann, who is a pastor at local St. Paul's Lutheran Church. He married a Russian and speaks the language. The pastor is also a musician whose skills in playing the violin were demonstrated at several concerts in Vladivostok. On top of that, for the first time in the division's history, border guards confiscated a Taiwanese boat for illegally fishing saury. Still, Tsapko said the level of border-related crime dropped by 20 percent.