MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s only independent pollster could be forced to register as a foreign agent under a law which President Vladimir Putin’s critics say is designed to tighten controls on groups that do not toe the official line.

If Russian media reports are confirmed, the Levada Center would be the latest independent group affected by a law which critics say condemns groups that work with foreign partners for the benefit of the Russian people as traitors and spies.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – More than 40,000 Russians have signed up to protest in Moscow on Saturday against a disputed election, dismissing Kremlin promises of political change that could ease Vladimir Putin’s grip on power.

The rally follows protests by tens of thousands of people across Russia on December 10 and is intended to pile pressure on the prime minister, who has responded with only minor concessions and seems confident of winning a presidential poll in March.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Vladimir Putin bills it as an economic union that could rival China and the United States, stretch from the Polish frontier to Pacific shores and reunite at least part of the Soviet Union.

The Eurasian Union, according to Putin, could recoup the potential lost when the Soviet empire collapsed 20 years ago and secure a group of like-minded countries by binding them together against any meddling by the West or China.

MOSCOW, Dec 22 (Reuters) – Vladimir Putin bills it as
an economic union that could rival China and the United States,
stretch from the Polish frontier to Pacific shores and reunite
at least part of the Soviet Union.

The Eurasian Union, according to Putin, could recoup the
potential lost when the Soviet empire collapsed 20 years ago and
secure a group of like-minded countries by binding them together
against any meddling by the West or China.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – To his admirers, he is the man who saved Russia from chaos and the clutches of Western imperialism, soothing its hurt pride and revitalizing its military might to restore it to greatness.

They see him as an “ideal man” who wins wars, puts the West in its place and ensures workers keep their jobs by preventing the closure of struggling factories – but also makes time to ride horses, dive for ancient treasure and ski down mountains.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Putin, stability and strength – three words united the few thousand demonstrators who staged a choreographed, if muted, answer on Monday to protests demanding Russia’s rulers resign.

Hundreds of people, many draped in the red, white and blue national flag, vowed they would not stand idly by if any opposition party tried to throw the country into turmoil again.

BRUSSELS, March 12 (Reuters) – Japan should not expect a
repeat of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster after an explosion blew
the roof off one of its nuclear power plants that had been
shaken in a huge earthquake, experts said on Saturday.

Japan’s Daiichi 1 reactor north of the capital Tokyo began
leaking radiation after the 8.9-magnitude earthquake triggered a
tsunami, and swiftly prompted fears of a nuclear meltdown.
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BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Greed, jealousy and ambition poisoned relations inside Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s family and often destroyed the careers of officials who got in the way, according to U.S. diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks.

The five Gaddafi children documented in the diplomatic assessments used threats and occasional violence to try to ensure their business and political interests won out in the major oil exporter.