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A senior Russian Foreign Ministry official says that Moscow has a responsibility to protect ethnic Russian citizens of other countries, "regardless of where they live," and that "we will do everything possible to defend the rights and interests" of ethnic Russian minorities in the neighboring Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The comments came from Anatoly Makarov, the director of the Foreign Ministry's Department for Interaction with Compatriots Abroad. He was speaking to the Russian outlet RuBaltic, as translated by Paul Goble. "We are carrying out a line so that Russian compatriots regardless of where they live are guaranteed...

In the final season of the TV show “24,” an idealistic president finds herself sacrificing her principles one by one in an attempt to preserve a “peace process.” She eventually manages to hammer out a flawed treaty, but can’t bring herself to sign it. In the real world, the Obama administration’s overly idealistic pursuit of a reduction in American and Russian stockpiles of nuclear arms has led it to actually sign a woefully flawed treaty. The goal may be worthy. The pact is not. The first major problem with the treaty: It would definitely reduce the number of American weapons,...

A FORMER KGB agent fears he will be the next victim of the escalating diplomatic row between Britain and Russia. Victor Makarov, who risked his life to pass secrets to Britain before he defected 15 years ago, last night warned he remained on a 'hit-list' of fugitives targeted for assassination by President Vladimir Putin. He claimed the increasingly bitter row over the poisoning of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko increased the danger of an attempt on his life. "I expect the KGB to try and kill me," said Makarov, who is demanding greater support and protection from the British authorities....

<p>A federal grand jury has added another firearms-related felony charge against a Bellevue gun dealer once arrested as a material witness in the 2001 slaying of Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Wales.</p> <p>Albert Kwok-Leung Kwan was charged Wednesday with unlawful possession of a short-barreled rifle, which carries a potential prison term of up to 10 years.</p>

Russian Journalist Politkovskaya Found Dead October 7, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- Moscow police say prominent Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, known for her critical coverage of the war in Chechnya, was killed today in the capital. Moscow police said Politkovskaya's body was found in an elevator in the apartment building where she was living in the city center. The Interfax news agency quoted police officials as saying a pistol and four bullets were found in the elevator. Politkovskaya was respected for her critical, in-depth coverage of the Russian government's campaign in Chechnya. In 2004, she fell seriously ill with symptoms of food...

Anna Politkovskaya, the famous journalist and political commentator from Novaya Gazeta was killed in Moscow. This was reported by Novaya Gazeta's chief editor Dmitri Muratov to the radio station Echo of Moscow. The murder occurred around 5 in the evening on Lesnaya Street, where Politkovskaya lived. An unknown man in dark clothing shot her with a pistol. A police source reported to Interfax that a neighbor of the journalist found her body in the elevator. Police also found a discarded Makarov pistol and four empty cartridges. Politkovskaya's home is now cordoned off by the police, reported ITAR-TASS. The police are...

Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin, was shot dead on Saturday at her apartment block in central Moscow, police said. "According to initial information she was killed by two shots when leaving the lift. Neighbors found her body," a police source told Reuters. Police found a pistol and four rounds in the lift. Politkovskaya, a 48-year-old mother of two, won international fame and numerous prizes for her dogged pursuit of rights abuses by Putin's government, particularly in the violent southern province of Chechnya. "The first thing that comes to mind is that Anna was killed...

Here are some pictures of the wholesale destruction of some Tokarevs and Makarovs in Estonia. If you are a collector, you may get upset.

A Bellevue gun collector was arrested and held for 23 days as a material witness in the slaying of federal prosecutor Thomas Wales, according to court records, jail logs and people familiar with the investigation. The man is not considered a suspect in Wales' killing, but he was jailed in January as part of the FBI's nationwide search for a unique gun barrel used in the crime. Wales was shot to death while sitting at a computer in the basement of his Queen Anne home on Oct. 11, 2001. Shell casings and slugs found at the scene and recovered from...

Gun used to kill prosecutor is focus of massive search By Steve Miletich Seattle Times staff reporter FBI agents are conducting an unusually sweeping search for a customized gun used in the killing of Seattle federal prosecutor Thomas Wales, according to the owner of a Minnesota arms company and sources familiar with the investigation. The gun, an Eastern European-made semiautomatic pistol called a Makarov, had been fitted with a replacement barrel that leaves telltale marks on bullets. The search, one of the most laborious gun sweeps in FBI history, is taking place in all 50 states, as agents track down...

FBI Doing Gun Roundup To Try To Solve Tom Wales Murder July 15, 2003 By Michelle Esteban SEATTLE - Gun owners say the FBI is rounding up pistols in a nationwide effort to solve the murder of Tom Wales, a federal prosecutor from Seattle. It's been 19 months since Wales was gunned down in his Queen Anne home. The feds are looking for Makarov pistols -- a special kind of gun that may have been used in the killing. Wade's Gun Shop in Bellevue describes it as an inexpensive, but "very reliable" pistol. According to "Mak" owners, the FBI is...

FBI seeking all Makarov replacement barrels The FBI is conducting a nationwide campaign to seize, and ballistically fingerprint, all Makarov 9 mm replacement barrels manufactured by Federal Arms Corp. Anyone who has purchased a barrel from FAC may receive a call from the FBI, asking that they "voluntarily" surrender the gun and the barrel so the FBI can fire two rounds through it to take a ballistic fingerprint. This appears to be part of the investigation into the homicide of Thomas Wales, an Assistant U.S. Attorney who was murdered in his Seattle, WA home in October, 2001. Wales was also...