.Anti-monopoly service to discuss competition protection.

KAZAN, August 31 (Itar-Tass) - Russia's federal anti-monopoly service
will discuss at its meeting in Kazan on Monday how to protect competition
on the Russian market, the FAS press service told Itar-Tass.

The meeting will also focus "on the results of efforts undertaken by
the anti-monopoly service and its territorial agencies amid the global
crisis in the first six months," the press service said.
FAS chief Igor Artemyev stressed that "special attention will be paid
to the so-called second anti-monopoly package." The law that entered into
force on August 22 imposes restrictions on big monopolies.
These restrictions should "stop groundless price hikes as a result of
price collusion," he said.



.Turkmenistan to build naval base on Caspian.

ASHGABAT, August 31 (Itar-Tass) - Turkmenistan will build a naval base
on the Caspian Sea, President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov told a Security
Council meeting on Sunday.
"The country's naval force will be deployed at this base," he said
instructing the ministers in charge "to effectively fight contrabandists,
terrorists and other criminal elements on the sea."
Berdymukhamedov also called for "organizing a naval exercise that will
engage coastal motor boats, helicopters and special task forces of the
National Security Ministry and the Interior Ministry." He also instructed
the government "to draft proposals for creating a naval institute in the
port of Turkmenbashi."
"All these efforts should be completed by 2015," he said.
"We have a rather long sea border and it should be protected as safe
as the land border. Therefore we came to the conclusion that in the modern
conditions it is necessary to create a costal military infrastructure with
location and optical equipment," Berdymukhamedov said.
"At present, the situation in several countries of our region remains
tense. We see armed clashes and growing terrorism and extremism. Some
countries steadily increase their military budgets and purposefully reform
their armed forces. Terrorist organizations and criminal groupings engaged
in drug trafficking constantly operate in certain countries and they do
not give up intentions to break peace and order in our country. Such a
threat exists and we have to speak about this," the Turkmen leader said.
"In compliance with the Constitution and our military doctrine we have
the right to use our armed forces against aggression and other threats to
sovereignty and national security," he said.



.Moldova marking Native Language Day.

CHISINAU, August 31 (Itar-Tass) - Moldova marks the Native Language
Day on Monday. This day was established 20 years ago after the republic's
parliament proclaimed Moldovan as the official language and changed its
Cyrillic letters into Latin ones.
This law raised tensions in the society - the population of the
Dniester region and Gagauzia said their rights were infringed on and
demanded that the Russian language should be the second official language
in the This law raised tensions in the society - the population of the
Dniester region and Gagauzia said their rights were infringed on and
demanded that the Russian language should be the second official language
in the country. More than one third of Moldova's population speaks
Russian. Tensions escalated to erupt into the armed conflict and split the
country. In 2001 the Communist Party came to power pledging to grant the
status of the second official language to Russian. However, this pledge
failed over protests waged by the pro-Romanian opposition in Chisinau.
On this day different festivities will be organized countrywide.
Chisinau will host an international book fair in memory of Moldovan poet
Grigore Vieru, where books on different languages will be displayed.
"Such an approach demonstrates that Moldova's uniqueness is in the
unity and variety of languages and cultures," organizers of the
festivities from the republic's department for interethnic relations said.



.Quake hits Paramushir, northern Kuriles.

YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, August 31 (Itar-Tass) - An earthquake measuring 5.5
points on the Richter scale was reported on the Paramushir Island,
northern Kuriles, early on Monday.
The Russian Geophysical Service said the epicenter was at the depth of
33 kilometers under the bed of the Sea of Okhotsk and 195 kilometers
southwest of Severo-Kurilsk.
The Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk seismic station said no tremors were felt in
Kurile populated settlement and no tsunami threat had been reported.
No fatalities and destructions have been registered.