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Main News of October 29

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A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours 29.10.2013, Sputnik International

2013-10-29T19:59+0000

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Main News of October 29

19:59 GMT 29.10.2013

A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours

RUSSIA

* Russia has piled the pressure on Ukraine with ominous warnings that it could begin demanding upfront payment for natural gas deliveries unless outstanding debts are settled

* President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman said that media reports claiming that Russian special services tried to spy on foreign delegates during a recent G20 summit were an unsubstantiated attempt to divert attention away from more pressing espionage allegations against Washington

* Bolshoi Ballet star soloist Pavel Dmitrichenko pleaded not guilty to masterminding an acid attack on the theater’s ballet artistic director, RAPSI legal news agency reported from the Moscow courtroom where the trial opened

* A Moscow court postponed hearings in the Anna Politkovskaya murder trial for the sixth time in a row as a medical quarantine regime at a detention facility housing one of the defendants remains in force

* Opposition leader Alexei Navalny is facing fresh charges of embezzlement over an alleged scheme to defraud a local branch of cosmetics manufacturer Yves Rocher, investigators said

* A former Russian Defense Ministry research institute director and his deputy have been arrested on suspicion of embezzling 500 million rubles ($15.7 million) in state funds, the Investigative Committee said

* A Russian rights organization that promoted public initiatives said that it was suspending operations because it is unable to pay a $9,000 fine imposed for failing to register as a “foreign agent”

* Russian airborne assault forces and military transport aviation units have conducted an exercise in the Arctic, a senior defense official said

* The Russian Foreign Ministry said that its diplomatic academy had bestowed an honorary doctorate upon former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who is currently on a visit to Russia

WORLD

* Russia and Ecuador are expanding their investment collaboration with about $1.5 billion worth of new projects, Russian President Vladimir Putin said

* A prototype “space plane” that is being developed to transport American astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) sustained damage during its first free-flying test after its landing gear failed to deploy properly, according to US media reports