Avtovaz is on the brink of bankruptcy, Sergei Stepashin, the head of State Audit Chamber has informed Reuters.  Russia's government has stepped up the pressure on Renault to assist its embattled partner to stay afloat.  According to Ria-Novosti, the Industry Ministry has concluded that the government should not bail out the Lada-maker.  Industry and Trade Minister Viktor Khristenko has apparently said that sales of passenger cars may drop by 60% this year.  Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin has been quoted in Forbes as saying that the ruble is likely to remain stable over the next three years, but the issue of joblessness will prevail for at least a year.  The Federal Court Marshals Service is teaming up with Sberbank to create a new way of facilitating debt payments - allowing individuals to pay off loans via ATMs.  Kraft Foods has ...

TODAY: Conflicting voices on air base deal; US hits back at Shuvalov's comments on WTO accession; fears of new Russian incursion prevalent in Georgia; priests find new role in crisis; Communists present Stalin as economic inspirationThe Kremlin claims that the US deal with Kyrgyzstan to continue using the Manas air base was approved by Russia in 'support all steps aimed at stabilizing the situation in Afghanistan'.  A Russian diplomat would appear to differ; saying that the news was 'a very unpleasant surprise for us -- we did not expect such a trick'.  The US has hit back against Igor Shuvalov's claims that Washington and the EU were to blame for Russia's decision to back out of ...

A World Bank report has said that the Russian economy is contracting more than expected and 'damaging waves' are rippling through the whole of the ex-Soviet Union.  Vladimir Putin has signed a second anti-crisis plan to prepare for the 'post-crisis' period.  Russia's unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped for the first time in a year last month.  The New York Times reports on the imminent sale of Telenor's stake in Vimpelcom.  The Federal Court Marshals Service has ordered the state to auction the 26.6% share.   Bad debts within VTB could reach $9 billion by June 2010.  The Kremlin has decided to make recapitalization funds available to only Russia's biggest banks.  Transport Minister Igor Levitin has retained his place as chairman of Aeroflot's board of directors.  The airline is planning redundancies to save money.  Avtovaz has ...

TODAY: Medvedev interview for Novaya Gazeta; North Korea should return to talks says Foreign Ministry; cluster munitions reportedly used in Georgia; Medvedev concerned about unemployment; transport spending to increaseUnlike his predecessor, President Dmitry Medvedev has granted an interview to Novaya Gazeta, in an apparent gesture of 'moral support' to the newspaper, which 'has suffered many losses' - two of its reporters murdered in three years.  Comments in the interview about 'democracy' and 'prosperity' seem to distinguish the Prime Minister from his ally Putin, reports the New York Times.  The Just Russia candidate in the Sochi election, Viktor Kurpitko, has been removed from the race, leaving the United Russia candidate and Boris Nemtsov as the forerunners. The New York Times reports upon an ...