Patriarch Kirill to leave for Yerevan for first official visit.

MOSCOW, March 16 (Itar-Tass) - Patriarch Kirill leaves for Armenia on
Tuesday for the first official visit in his capacity of Primate of the
Russian Orthodox Church (ROC). During a three-day tour of that
Transcaucasian republic, the distinguished guest will lay the
foundation-stone of a new Russian cathedral, honour the memory of Russian
warriors who perished in the 19th century in fighting for the freedom of
Armenia, and meet with intellectuals, State University students, as well
as the leading executives of the state.
Hegumen Philippe (Ryabykh), deputy head of the Moscow Patriarchate
department for foreign church relations, has told Itar-Tass in an
interview, "The principal aim of the visit is to meet with the believers
of Armenia and get acquainted with the life of the Armenian Apostolic
Church (AAC)".
"One of important events during the tour will be a ceremony to
consecrate the laying of the foundation-stone of a Cathedral of the
Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Yerevan. The cathedral will subsequently
function as representative office of the ROC," Hegumen Philippe pointed
out.
An understanding on the construction of the cathedral was reached in
2001 during the visit there by the then Patriarch Alexiy. The Head of the
AAC also made his contribution -- he handed over the prize, presented to
him in January this year by the Orthodox Peoples' Unity Foundation, for
the purpose of building the cathedral.

.Patrol ship intended for Vietnam to be launched in Tatarstan.

KAZAN, March 16 (Itar-Tass) - A ceremony marking the launching of a
second patrol ship Gepard, intended for Vietnam, is to be held in
Tatarstan on Tuesday. The combatant ship was built at the Zelenodolsk
shipbuilding plant named after Maxim Gorky.
Sergei Ilyin, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the shipbuilding
company, said, "The ship, which is more than 102 metres long, and has a
deadweight of 2,100 tonnes, is provided with a combined diesel and gas
turbine power plant with a power of 40,000 hp. The ship is capable of
developing a speed of 25 knots". The ship is designed for the guarding and
patrolling of state sea borders.
This is a second ship built in Zelenodolsk for Vietnamese Navy over
the past two years. The first one was launched in December last year. In
May, when navigation will begin, the combatant ships will travel to St
Petersburg under their own steam and proceed on their way by sea to
Vietnam.
The Zelenodolsk shipbuilding plant, one of the largest enterprises in
the sector, was founded in 1895. Its personnel have turned out more than
1,000 naval and passenger ships.

.RF female Paralympian wins gold in 15-km ski-race.

OTTAWA, March 16 (Itar-Tass) - Russian female Paralympian Anna
Burmistrova won the gold medal in the 15-kilometre cross-country ski-race
on Monday for locomotion-handicapped sportswomen, clocking 49:16. 3, seven
seconds ahead of Yulia Batenkova of Ukraine. Katrzyna Rogowicz of Poland
was third (51: 04.1).
A silver medal was also gained by Lyubov Vassilyeva of Russia: in the
15-km cross-country ski-race for the poor-sighted. She clocked 48: 34.1.
The winner in the event was Werena Bentele of Germany. Yadvina
Skorobogataya of Belarus was third (49:19.3).
The Russian team is in the lead in overall team classification, having
to their credit 15 medals (six gold, six silver, and three bronze ones).
They are followed up by Paralympians of Ukraine who gained two gold, two
silver, and three bronze nedals. The Canadian team is third with two gold
medals, three silver ones, and one bronze nedal.

.Altai Rep to hold interregional press, cinema, TV fest in May.

GORNO-ALTAISK, March 16 (Itar-Tass) - An international youth festival
of the press, cinema and television, the Altai--Northern Athens, is to be
held in the Altai Republic in May.
The festival will involve young journalists aged 15-25, both
professionals and amateurs, who will present works in various nominations
divided into four categories: print media, television, the Internet, and
public relations.
Editors and directors of studios -- the instructors of young
participants -- will also attend the three-day festival which takes place
in the picturesque localities in the foothills of Altai mountains, an
official in the press service of the republican government has told
Itar-Tass.
Honorary participants in the festival will conduct master-classes for
future journalists. Natalya Dabizha, an animation director, producer of
the Cheburashka animated-cartoon film, shared the makings of mastery in
2007, and Dmitry Khaustov, a program host at the VGTRK Rossiya, did so in
2008. TV programme hosts Svetlana Sorokina and Pavel Sheremet have been
invited to the festival this year.
Print and electronic media, television and radio broadcasting
networks, individual authors and performing groups may participate in the
competition. Works published in the press or broadcast in 2009-'10 are to
be accepted before until April 15 for participation in the contest, an
organizing committee official said.
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