Main news of April 8

RUSSIA

* Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told the pro-Kremlin United Russia party on Wednesday that it needs to make greater use of the Internet in getting its message across

* A Russian MP, accused by the Dubai police of involvement in the March 28 assassination of Sulim Yamadayev, condemned the police investigation on Wednesday and said the police were "covering up" for a "criminal"

* The Russian national football team has dropped one place from eighth to ninth in the latest FIFA rankings, posted on the website of world soccer's governing body

* Russia's Techsnabexport shipped on April 7 the first batch of low-enriched uranium to the United States in 2009 under a bilateral agreement, nuclear-power corporation Atomenergoprom said

* Russian archaeologists working at Egypt's Fayoum Oasis have uncovered a number of mummies wearing golden masks, as well as other artifacts of historical value, a Russian Egyptologist said

* Former Bolshoi ballerina Anastasia Volochkova lodged an appeal with a court in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi against a decision to bar her from running in the city's mayoral elections

WORLD

* France is ready to increase investments and its economic presence in Russia to strengthen the two countries' partnership during the world financial crisis, the speaker of France's parliament said

* The six nations involved in talks with Iran over its nuclear program urged Tehran on Wednesday to engage in further dialogue "in a spirit of mutual respect"

* Abkhazia has decided to reinforce protection of its border with Georgia, which will be done together with the Russian military contingent, the former Georgian republic's Foreign Ministry said

* Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin accused the opposition on Wednesday of betraying the interests of the country and attempting to trigger a civil war during disturbances in the capital, Chisinau

* Romania dismissed on Wednesday claims by Moldova's president that it had interfered in his country's internal affairs, and threatened to expel the Moldavian ambassador

* North Korea has threatened to prevent Japanese attempts to locate components from a rocket launched by Pyongyang on April 5 that fell into the Pacific Ocean

* Pope Benedict XVI of Rome said on Wednesday he would visit the site of the April 6 earthquake in central Italy, which killed at least 260 people

* Moscow is concerned by Pyongyang's recent rocket launch, but believes that imposing sanctions against North Korea would be counterproductive, the Russian foreign minister said

* Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin on Wednesday accused Romania of involvement in the riots in Chisinau, announcing visa restrictions for Romanians and the expulsion of the country's ambassador

* A Soyuz capsule with the 18th Expedition ISS crew, together with two-times space tourist Charles Simonyi, has landed safely in Kazakhstan

* Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has said his meeting with a group of U.S. lawmakers in Havana, his first with senior U.S. officials in years, was a "great meeting" that held "particular importance for me"

* North Korea will respond with "strong steps" if the UN Security Council takes any action over Pyongyang's recent rocket launch, a senior diplomat in the reclusive state said, reiterating that the launch was peaceful

* Police in Moldova's capital Chisinau regained control of the parliament's building overnight following two days of mass opposition protests against the recent parliamentary elections, an Interior Ministry spokeswoman said

* Italy's emergency services continued to find survivors following the devastating quake in central Italy, as the country's economic development minister said the death toll had exceeded 250

BUSINESS

* PricewaterhouseCoopers Audit has won a tender to be Gazprom's auditor in 2009, the Russian energy giant said