Putin to tour Kaluga region Tue, visit Volkswagen factory.

MOSCOW, October 20 (Itar-Tass) - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin makes a
working trip to Kaluga Region on Tuesday. He will hold a meeting of the
Governmental commission on regional development, visit the car factory of
the Volkswagen Group Rus and attend a ceremony to launch a plant for
full-cycle manufacture of cars, the government press service has announced.

"During the commission's meeting, it is planned to discuss the
effectiveness of the activities of the executive power bodies in the
constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Igor Shuvalov, First
Vice-Premier, Dmitry Kozak and Sergei Sobyanin, Vice-Premiers, Georgy
Poltavchenko, presidential plenipotentiary representative in the Central
Federal District, the heads of respective ministries and agencies, as well
as the chiefs of the administrations of 20 regions will take part in the
panel's meeting," the announcement said.
A press service official said, "To introduce modern methods of
management s is a country-wide task that is being jointly accomplished by
Federal, regional and municipal government bodies".
The Volkswagen Company's car factory established in Kaluga assembles12
Volkswagen and Skoda car models. The factory turned out 62,000 cars in
2008 and over 90,000 as of October this year.

.RF interested in stabilizing Lebanon sit' on nat'l consensus.

BEIRUT, October 20 (Itar-Tass) - Russia is interested in ensuring that
"the process of stabilizing the situation in Lebanon gathers strength on
the basis of national consensus and leads to the strengthening of
independence, territorial integrity and unity", Alexander Saltanov,
special representative of the President of the Russian Federation and
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, has told Itar-Tass in an interview,
summing up the results of his talks in Beirut.
The Russian diplomat said national concord must triumph in Lebanon. "A
way out of the prolonged crisis must be such that would suit the entire
political spectrum of Lebanese confessional society," he emphasized.
Russia, Saltanov pointed out, "makes efforts towards ensuring that
Lebanon does not feel disruptive influence from the outside". Such a line
"is welcomed by this country's all political forces that earnestly count
on Russian support". In the opinion of the special representative, "A
national dialogue remains the only acceptable means to solve complex
internal problems of Lebanon".
Saltanov said that during the talks that he had held with the
President, the Speaker of Parliament, acting Prime Minister, and other
Lebanese leaders, he "felt their sincere striving to take further steps
towards deepening bilateral cooperation with Russia and interaction in the
international arena, primarily at the UN Security Council, of which
Lebanon will be a Non-Permanent Member for the coming two years".
The Russian Deputy Foreign Minister pointed out, "Moscow proceeds from
the assumption that the RF-Lebanon relations which have a long record and
have been always notable for mutual sympathies, respect, and proximity of
approaches to regional and international problems, must gain increasing
momentum".

.RF intellectuals to discuss education, crisis-free dev'ment.

MOSCOW, October 20 (Itar-Tass) - The education of people in Russia,
technological modernization, and the crisis-free development of the
country will be the focus of attention at the V Assembly of the
Intellectual Russia world forum that opens here on Tuesday.
The events of the forum will be held in Moscow and St Petersburg until
October 23. The purpose of the forum, the organizers say, is "to
consolidate intellectual forces in this country and abroad in the
interests of Russia".
An official at the Intellectual Resources of Russia (IRR) national
committee, which acts as the organizer of the forum, has told Itar-Tass
that an all-Russia TV marathon on the theme of "The Education of the
People in the Efforts to Overcome the Downturn and Implement a Strategy
for the Development of Russia" will be held within the scope of the
Assembly. "Participants in the forum will also discuss the role of the
healthy way of life in the innovative development of the country," an
official at the forum's management office added. One of the central events
of the forum will be a festival of popular science films on the theme of
"The World of Knowledge" at the St Petersburg House of Cinematography.
"Prominent researchers, science and production organizers, leading
officials of major institutions of higher learning, culture and art
people, media chiefs, and officials of state power bodies have been
invited to take part in the Assembly events," the National Committee
official pointed out.
In particular, the events are to be attended by Academicians
Chereshnev and Kapitsa, and Igor Shchyogolev, Minister of Telecom and Mass
Communications.
The Assembly is to be declared open by Sergei Mironov, president of
the forum and Speaker of the Federation Council upper house of the Russian
parliament, who co-chairs the National Committee. The opening ceremony is
to take place at the Moscow technical university of communications and
information science. Provision is also made for a TV hookup session with
the St Petersburg state university of telecommunications named after
Bonch-Bruyevich.
-0-pop