Komorowski leads rivals in Poland's presidential election.

WARSAW, June 21 (Itar-Tass) - Poland's Acting President Bronislaw
Komorowski led his rivals in the first round of Sunday's presidential
elections, the state election commission said after 15 percent of ballot
papers had been counted.
Komorowski, the candidate of Poland's ruling Civic Platform, seconded
support of 39.69 percent of voters, while his main rival, Lech Kaczynski's
twin brother Jaroslaw, got 37.68 percent of votes. The run-off is expected
to take place on July 4.
The voter turnout exceeded 50 percent.
According to exit polls, Komorowski won the first round.



.Russia, US move towards stable partnership - ambassador.

WASHINGTON, June 21 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian-U.S. summit that will
take place soon during Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's visit to the
United States will not become "a ceremonial event," but will be "a meeting
of leaders with rolled up sleeves," Russian ambassador to Washington
Sergei Kislyak expressed such confidence in an interview with Itar-Tass.
Medvedev has repeatedly visited Washington, but as a rule he did this
to take part in multilateral forums. In fact, the upcoming visit will be
his first and most important official visit to the U.S.
The diplomat noted that a personal confidence-based dialogue between
the Russian and U.S. leaders "is much more than just an exchange of
opinions, this is a tuning fork in building up the two countries'
political positions."
Abiding by an ironclad rule of diplomats Kislyak did not forecast
concrete results of the upcoming talks. At the same time he recalled that
at the summit the two presidents will study a report of the bilateral
commission for cooperation and expressed confidence that this document
"will create a good groundwork for our interaction in strategic
directions."
The ambassador admitted that "of course, the issues of arms control
are very important in bilateral relations." "However, relations between
Russia and the United States are not tapped by these issues. There is a
huge potential for the growth of economic relations, Russia has a deep
interest in innovation technologies. I think all this will be discussed by
the presidents," he said.
Among concrete themes that evoke the two countries' intense interest
Kislyak named the issue of Russia's accession to the World Trade
Organization that remains unresolved.
"I cannot say that it will be certainly resolved at the time of the
summit," he said assuring that "serious work" with U.S. counterparts
continues.
Kislyak was appointed as Russia's new ambassador to the United States
in July 2008 and arrived in Washington soon after the August conflict in
Georgia. Recalling that difficult time he said "the Russian-U.S. relations
really had reached their worst level since the end of the cold war."
He noted that discrepancies in assessment of the events in South
Ossetia still persist, but they do not prevent Moscow and Washington "from
speaking about all issues honestly and sincerely, without reading lessons
to each other, but seriously and without offence."
This fact also proved to be a practical result of resetting bilateral
relations, an initiative put forward by U.S. President Barack Obama and
taken in Moscow "with respect."
Kislyak believes that "in fact, Russia and America have already got
out of the resetting period." "I would say that now we have the period of
establishing stable partnership."
The ambassador expressed confidence that the Russian diplomacy showed
an adequate and constructive reaction to the U.S.' changing policy. At the
same time Kislyak said he believed that Russia's approaches "have not
drastically changed in comparison with that what we in principle were
ready to do earlier." "Most likely the Americans had the wisdom to start
bringing stalemate in our relations to an end, which allows to expand
cooperation," he said.



.Russia - Cyprus' most reliable supporter in UN SC - FM.

NICOSIA, June 21 (Itar-Tass) - Russia is "Cyprus' most reliable
supporter" in resolving the Cyprus problem, Cypriot Foreign Minister
Markos Kyprianou said before his departure to Moscow, where he would hold
talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Monday.
"I would like to highlight that Russia has been and remains a reliable
advocate of the principal position of the Republic of Cyprus and
resolutions of the UN Security Council related to the Cyprus settlement,"
he said.
"Russia has never changed its position and it is our most reliable
supporter in the UN Security Council," Kyprianou said noting that this
fact was proved last week during discussions of the UN SC resolution
extending mandate of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus for six months.
Thanks to Russia's efforts "a well-balanced resolution that does not
change fundamental principles and parameters of a solution to the Cyprus
problem was adopted."
At the talks in Moscow Lavrov and Kyprianou will discuss a wide range
of issues on the bilateral and international agenda, Russian Foreign
Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said on Thursday.
He noted that the diplomats will exchange opinions on Russia-EU
cooperation, the Cyprus settlement, Iran's nuclear problem and the
situation in the Balkans.
"The positions of Russia and Cyprus coincide or are very close in
these issues," the diplomats said.

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