Emergency Meeting Of Russia's Upper House Scheduled For 16 January

On Sunday Sergei Mironov, speaker of the upper house of the Russian parliament, reported at a press conference in Orel that the first emergency meeting in 2002 of the Federation Council of the Russian Federal Assembly would be held on 16 January. According to Mironov, the meeting is expected to be based on the new regulations. In two weeks' time, the next meeting of the Federation Council will be held, during which these regulations will be adopted with any amendments to be proposed. According to him, in the new year the approach towards formation of committees will be modified. Mironov indicated that in this matter "we would follow a non-traditional way". Thus, he explained, first they would elect chairmen of committees, and then they themselves would elect members of committees. According to the speaker, in general 14-15 committees would be established. In addition, the head of the upper house of the Russian parliament mentioned that the Federation Council would consider several draft laws which by that time would be prepared by the Duma. Mironov did not exclude that among them might be a draft law on state of emergency.