The Russian Information Agency Novosti begins Hotline coverage for Thursday, June 3, 2004.
SOCHI
* Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, who is to pay a routine visit to Russia.
MOSCOW
* Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov will preside at a cabinet meeting.
* An international conference "Corporate management and economic growth in Russia" will open in Moscow. It is organized by the National Corporate Management Council, the World Bank and the Organization for Economic cooperation and Development. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov. World Bank President James Wolfensohn, OECD Secretary General Donald Johnson, and President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Jean Lemierre will participate in the conference.
* The Russian Interior Ministry will host a briefing on the results of the 33rd Interpol European regional conference in Kiev.
* The Interfax agency will host a press conference with World Bank President James Wolfensohn on his visit to Russia and participation in the "Corporate management and economic growth in Russia".
* Russian-German conference entitled "The opening of the second front and its role in World War II" will be held in the Union of Russian Women. It is dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the landing of the anti-Hitler coalition forces in Normandy. The conference is organized by Russia-Germany Society, the Union of Russian Women, and the Rosa Luxemburg foundation.
* The New Opera theatre will host the awarding ceremony of the 3rd annual Russian innovation contest. The contest is sponsored by the Russian Education and Science Ministry, the Federal Atomic Energy Agency, and the government of the Moscow region.
* The Komsomolskaya Pravda publishing house will host a press conference with chairman of the Council of Russian Oil and Gas Industry Union Yuri Shafranik entitled "An OPEC extraordinary conference. Consequences for Russian economy".
* The center of strategic developments will host a press conference with its head Mikhail Dmitriyev and director of the department of the social-economic reforms strategy of the Economic Development and Trade Ministry Saeed Batkibekov on the results of the visit to Tbilisi to hold consultations and give expert assistance to the Georgian in tax and social spheres.
* The Russian Information Agency Novosti will host the following press conferences:
- with chairman of the Moscow Duma commission for veterans Alexander Kovalev entitled "Tajikistan: is the withdrawal of Russian border guards inevitavle?"
- on the presentation of the documentary "Winter in God's Land. Kosovo and Metohija in 1998-2003. The Years of Fear" with filmmaker Ninoslav Randjelovic.
- with well-known Israeli writer and public figure Israel Shamir entitled "The Palestinian-Israeli conflict. A look from inside".
* President Hotel will host an inter-ethnic and inter-religious conference "Islam against terrorism". Representatives of the presidential staff, Russian government, cultural centers and public organizations, State Duma and Federation Council deputies, religious leaders and ambassador of some Muslim countries will participate in the conference.
ST. PETERSBURG
* A roundtable "Russia-NATO: international security and military cooperation agenda" will take place in the St. Petersburg international cooperation center. It is organized by the Baltic research center and the local branch of the Konrad Adenauer foundation. Russian and NATO politicians and military men, experts and journalists will take part in the roundtable.
TASHKENT
* Russian Security Council Secretary Igor Ivanov will arrive in Tashkent to participate in the meeting of security council secretaries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member-states. It will be held on Friday as part of preparations for the SCO summit.
DUSHANBE
* A joint US-EU group will arrive in Tajikistan to assess the situation on the Tajik-Afghan border. The group is to determine the volume of assistance, which is needed to consolidate the Tajik-Afghan border.
BALTIC SEA
* The naval manoeuvres Baltone-2004 involving 50 battleships of 15 countries, including the Russian Baltic Sea fleet, will start on Thursday.
OSLO
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will attend an oil platform on the North Sea shelf and observe the activities of the largest Norwegian oil-producing concern Hydro as part of his visit to Norway. After that, the minister will meet with Norwegian parliamentarians. On Thursday night the Foreign Minister will return to Moscow.
BEIRUT
An extraordinary 131st conference of oil and energy ministers of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will open in Beirut.
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