Main News of May 17

WORLD

* Greece's interim government was sworn in at the presidential palace in Athens.  

* The Group of Eight industrial nations meeting outside Washington on 18-19 May will begin with talks on Syria and Iran, a Kremlin aide said.

* A Nasa astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts docked with the International Space Station (ISS), beginning a four-month mission aboard the orbiting complex.

RUSSIA

* Russian stocks closed deep in the red on Thursday, hitting fresh lows as political uncertainty in Greece and Europe’s lingering debt crisis prompted investors to dump riskier assets.

* Russian stocks closed deep in the red on Thursday, hitting fresh lows as political uncertainty in Greece and Europe’s lingering debt crisis prompted investors to dump riskier assets.

* Opposition lawmakers in Moscow failed to legalize a resilient opposition camp in the city’s center that faces pressure from city authorities and law enforcement.

* Electoral ratings of Russian President Vladimir Putin have grown to 55% returning to 2010 levels, the Public Opinion Foundation said. 

* Military intervention in the sovereign affairs of other states may lead to outright war, including nuclear war, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said.  

MILITARY

* The Russian Air Force will receive the first batch of prototypes of its fifth-generation T-50 fighter for performance testing in 2013, Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin said.

* A delivery schedule for an option order of Mil Mi-17 transport helicopters for the Afghanistan Armed Forces will be signed by Russia and the U.S. by the end of the year, Russia's defense exports holding Rosoboronexport said.

* The Russian Air Force will start receiving new ground attack aircraft based on the Sukhoi Su-25SM Frogfoot combat jets by 2020, Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin said.

BUSINESS

Russia's flagship airline Aeroflot saw its 2011 IFRS net profit double year on year to $491 million, the company said.

SPORTS

* Russia has reached the semifinals of the world championships after overcoming determined Norwegian resistance to win 5-2, as Alex Ovechkin opened his account at the tournament with an early goal.