* Moscow hopes that the agreement between the Ukrainian political leaders on holding early parliamentary elections will help ease tension in the country, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said
* The talks between Iran's top nuclear negotiator and the European Union's foreign policy chief will be held on May 31, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said
* Iran complies with its obligations under the Bushehr nuclear power project and is prepared to assist Russia in completing the NPP construction, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said
* The Belarus opposition gave up the idea of a single leader at the 2008 parliamentary elections, following the results of its congress
* Police detained 31 persons, including two citizens of Italy, during an unauthorized action in support of a gay parade in the Russian capital, the Moscow interior department said
* One person was killed after unidentified persons broke into a branch of commercial bank Zernobank in the city of Barnaul in West Siberia, stealing more than 10 million rubles ($390,000), the interior department said