News of the day

RUSSIA

* Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed  legislative amendments to introduce primaries for all political parties

* Six servicemen were killed and 12 injured in an explosion at a weapons testing ground in Russia's southern Astrakhan region, a spokesman for the regional emergencies services directorate said

* North Korean leader Kim Jong-il visited Russia's Lake Baikal and a Siberian helicopter plant, a source said

* A former senior Russian police officer was detained in connection with the 2006 murder of investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya, the editor of the paper she worked for said

BUSINESS

* Russia may postpone its planned privatization of a 7.58 percent stake in its largest lender Sberbank from September because of the turmoil on international financial markets, Alexei Ulyukayev, first deputy chairman of the Central Bank, which controls Sberbank, said

* Russia's top lender Sberbank, which has recently agreed an acquisition of Austria's Volksbank, is considering buying two large Polish lenders, Millennium and Kredyt bank, Kommersant business daily quoted investment banking sources as saying

* Gazpromneft-Aero, a subsidiary of Russia's Gazprom Neft, and Air Total International signed an agreement on integrated supply of aviation fuel, allowing the partners to use each others' airport facilities, Gazprom Neft said in a statement

 

WORLD

* Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced he will step down shortly and expects to see his successor in office by next week, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported

* The first human-like robot and permanent resident of the International Space Station, Robonaut 2 or R2, has successfully passed its first test, the official Rabonaut`s microblog reported

* The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed a resolution that calls for a probe into the Syrian authorities' atrocities against civilians during the country's anti-government protests

* The Supreme Court of New York ruled  to close a criminal case against former IMF chief, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, charged with sexual assault on a hotel maid

* Libyan rebels announced they had gained control of much of Tripoli, but Muammar Gaddafi's whereabouts remain unknown, the rebel government’s envoy to Washington said

* Two nuclear reactors shut down automatically in the state of Virginia after a 5.9-strong earthquake hit Washington and tremors reached New York, federal officials said