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RUSSIA * A Russian Topol strategic missile test-launched from the Plesetsk space center has successfully hit a designated target on the Kamchatka... 28.08.2008, Sputnik International

2008-08-28T18:05+0000

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Main news of August 28

18:05 GMT 28.08.2008

RUSSIA

* A Russian Topol strategic missile test-launched from the Plesetsk space center has successfully hit a designated target on the Kamchatka peninsula, a Strategic Missile Forces spokesman said

* Russia's Black Sea Fleet has stepped up security at its facilities in Ukraine to deter possible provocative acts, a senior navy official said

* Russia's Azov amphibious warfare ship has returned to its base in Sevastopol, in Ukraine's Crimea, after international naval exercises, the Black Sea Fleet said

* Russia's Mir-1 and Mir-2 minisubs resumed their research into the world's deepest lake after a powerful quake hit south Siberia causing scheduled dives to be postponed, a Russian scientist said

WORLD

* Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin blasted the United States for its inability to keep Georgia from attacking South Ossetia, and said that this had damaged bilateral relations

* Russia's prime minister uggested the Georgia conflict may have been provoked to give an advantage to "one of" the U.S. presidential candidates

* EU countries are considering imposing sanctions on Russia over the Georgia crisis, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said

* Georgia's parliament voted unanimously on a resolution urging the government to sever ties with Russia, which recognized the Caucasus state's two breakaway regions earlier this week

* China and the other members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) voiced their support for Russia's actions in Georgia and South Ossetia following the recent conflict, but stopped short of backing Moscow's move to recognize Georgia's breakaway provinces

* The Belarusian ambassador to Moscow said Belarus would in the next day or two recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia following Russia's suit

* Abkhazia plans to sign a treaty establishing diplomatic relations with Russia within a week, the foreign minister of the Georgian breakaway region now recognized by Moscow said

* NATO denied accusations by Russia that the military alliance is building up its presence in the Black Sea, saying on its website a group of four ships deployed there were not related to the conflict in Georgia

* The British Ministry of Defense has decided to postpone indefinitely its September joint military exercise with Georgia due to Tbilisi's recent conflict with South Ossetia, a ministry's spokesman said

* The head of Russia's air navigation service recommended that Russian air carriers avoid Georgian airspace, which he said was too dangerous for civilian flights

* Serbia's prime minister said the recent events that led to Russia's recognition of two Georgian breakaway republics were a knock-on effect of Western powers' recognition of Kosovo's independence

* Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced he would allocate $240 million for rescue and relief operations following floods in northern India

* Maintaining foreign forces in Afghanistan and Iraq fails to ensure security and prevents regional development and integration, Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said

* The Turkish Cypriot leader said he hoped the Cyprus problem would be resolved by the end of the year

* The International Space Station's orbit has been adjusted to avoid a cluster of space garbage, Russia's Mission Control Center (MCC) said

* Ukraine's Vitali Klitschko has announced his comeback to the ring and will square off with current WBC heavyweight world champion Samuel "The Nigerian Nightmare" Peter on October 11 in Berlin, Germany

* China has unveiled the world's third-tallest skyscraper in Shanghai, where tourists will be able to survey the city from the highest observation deck in the world, Xinhua news agency reported

* A Georgian unmanned reconnaissance plane was shot down over the South Ossetian capital, a local Interior Ministry official said

BUSINESS

* Russian mining giant Mechel's decision to cut coal prices by 15% was positive, but not sufficient, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said

* LUKoil and U.S. energy giant ConocoPhillips have put into operation an oil deposit in northern Russia, the country's leading crude producer said

* The net profit of Russia's second-largest mobile operator VimpelCom calculated to U.S. GAAP grew 30.9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2008 to $470 million, the company said