March 27 preview

MOSCOW

* The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will hold a conference to discuss the "situation in Afghanistan and its influence on neighboring states." The conference will be attended by foreign ministers and high-level diplomats of SCO member states and observer states, as well as Afghanistan, the U.S., Turkey, the UN, the EU, CSTO, OSCE, CIS, NATO and OIC

* Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will meet with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General of the Organization of The Islamic Conference (OIC) Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu

* Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will hold a meeting with the sports and defense ministers

* Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will meet with the leaders of the State Duma factions to discuss the government's anti-crisis program

* The Federation Council's Foreign Affairs committee will hold a session to discuss modern-day threats to Russia's security (11.00 a.m., ul. Bolshaya Dmitrovka, 6, tel. 692-18-77, 692-56-04)

* The State Duma will hold a session (10.00 a.m., ul. Okhotny Ryad, 1, tel. (495) 692-80-00)

* RIA Novosti (Zubovsky Bulvar, 4, tel.: (495) 637-50-19, 645-64-72) will host:

- A TV linkup between Moscow and Berlin - Russia and the West: a New Beginning (1.30 p.m.);

- A TV linkup between Moscow and Paris, with the father of kidnapped girl Elise Andre-Belenkaya, Jean-Michel Andre (3.00 p.m.)

* The Russian Public Chamber will hold a plenary session, Economic strategy of the country during the financial crisis (10.00 a.m., Miusskaya Ploshchad, 7, build. 1, tel./fax (495) 221-83-61)

* A news conference with Russia's envoy to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, on the forthcoming NATO summit (11.30 a.m., Tverskoy Bulvar, 2, tel.: (495) 629-60-34, 629-64-03)

* The Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry will host a Russian-Ukrainian forum to discuss joint anti-crisis measures (ul. Ilyinka, 6, tel. 620-02-34, 620-01-86, e-mail: lit@tpprf.ru)

* Second annual conference, Aviaforum 2009 will be held (Marriott Grand Hotel)

BEIJING

* An opening ceremony of the year of the Russian language in China with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Zhukov attending

WASHINGTON

* U.S. President Barack Obama will meet with heads of largest U.S. banks

TOKYO

* The Japanese Security Council will convene to discuss North Korea's missile launch plans

* A regular round of Japanese-Chinese talks on security issues will be held

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