moscow news

Alfa Bank is to invest around $240 million...

Alfa Bank is to invest around $240 million in Mirax Group to continue construction of a Moscow skyscraper, planed as one of the world"s tallest buildings, a Russian business daily said on Monday.

MOSCOW, June 14 (RIA Novosti) - A top Russian...

MOSCOW, June 14 (RIA Novosti) - A top Russian military medical official said Thursday that some 25-30% of conscripts were unfit for military service for health reasons. Despite a gradual shift to contract enlistment a large part of the Russian Armed Forces will still be manned by conscripts in the future, and only units on constant combat readiness will be fully manned by contract servicemen. "Although a certain positive trend in conscripts" health conditions has been registered in recent years, the improvement process is rather slow," said Igor Bykov, the defense ministry medical department head. He said mental, musculoskeletal and drug-related illnesses, as well as TB and AIDS, topped the list of diseases that make young men unfit for military service. Bykov called for the adoption of a federal law to ensure a thorough and mandatory examination of all conscripts for HIV, a procedure only applied to contract servicemen. The official also urged that health requirements be toughened in some branches of the military. "We need stricter requirements in the nuclear weapons sector, the Navy and the Strategic Missile Forces," he said.

At least five suspected militants were killed...

At least five suspected militants were killed in Pakistan"s restive tribal zone on the border with Afghanistan during a U.S. drone attack on a militant hideout, the Press Trust of India said on Saturday.