Medvedev thanks all people watching year results program.

MOSCOW, December 25 (Itar-Tass) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
thanked all people, who were watching his live interview with the chiefs
of three federal television channels on the results of the outgoing year
on Friday.
"Thanks to all who were watching the Year Results program. Your
opinion is very important for me. Good night. Successful preparations to
the New Year holidays for you," the president wrote in his Twitter blog on
Saturday.

.Patriarch congratulates Pope, all Western Christians on Christmas.

MOSCOW, December 25 (Itar-Tass) -- Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
Kirill congratulated the Pope and all Christians, who celebrate Christmas
on the Gregorian calendar, on this great holiday on Friday.
"In these holy days the hearts are filled with joy, the grace and love
for all people from Jesus Christ the Saviour was embodied in the
Incarnation of the Son of God. Today as never before the humankind needs
our preaching," the Russian patriarch said in his Christmas greetings made
public by his press service. The patriarch urged "to preach about
Christmas not only in words, but also in deeds, annunciating the Kingdom
of God."
The Russian supreme hierarch wished to all Christians "peace, joy,
well-being and an abundant Grace of God."
More than 200 Catholic communities celebrate Christmas in Russia on
Saturday night. Catholic Archbishop Paolo Pezzi led Christmas Mass at a
Catholic cathedral in Malaya Gruzinskaya Street in Moscow.

.Yanukovich believes Timoshenko may not be put on trial.

KIEV, December 25 (Itar-Tass) -- Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich
believes that the former prime minister and the leader of the opposition
bloc, Yulia Timoshenko, may not be put on trial.
"I am not sure that a trial will take place. If she is found innocent
in the investigation the charges against her will be dropped. If a trial
is held we are interested in it to be fair with all the evidence
produced," Yanukovich said in an interview with three Ukrainian television
channels on Friday.
On December 20, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office accused
Timoshenko of office abuse that entailed heavy consequences. The former
prime minister is charged with embezzlement of the funds, which Ukraine
received from the sale of the greenhouse gas emission quotas under the
Kyoto Protocol. She transferred these funds to cover the deficit of the
pension fund.
On Friday, the Prosecutor General's Office also charged Timoshenko
with inflicting 121,000 dollars of damages to the state. These funds were
transferred as the currency conversion fee for the allocations to Ukraine
under the Kyoto Protocol.
Prosecutor General Viktor Pshonka stated on Friday that a criminal
case may be instituted over the ambulance purchases at overstated prices
by the Timoshenko-led government. The former prime minister rejected these
accusations calling them groundless.

.RF antimonopoly watchdog positive about Uralkali-Silvinit merger.

MOSCOW, December 25 (Itar-Tass) -- The Federal Antimonopoly Service
(FAS) is planning to approve an Uralkali-Silvinit merger deal issuing a
resolution protecting the domestic potash fertilizer market, Federal
Antimonopoly Service chief Igor Artemyev told reporters on Friday.
"We are working with both companies and the group of owners for a long
time. Our attitude to the deal is positive," he said. The foresaid
companies have made a request for the deal in the Federal Antimonopoly
Service on Friday, the service chief said.
Artemyev noted that at the same time the Russian antimonopoly watchdog
intends to issue a resolution protecting the domestic potash fertilizer
market from price growth. He does not rule out that the resolution will
fix the potash fertilizer price for agrarian producers for ten years with
due account of the inflation rate. Meanwhile, he noted that it is too
early to make public concrete provisions of this document as they are
probable so far.

.Pope congratulates Western Christians on Christmas.

THE VATICAN, December 25 (Itar-Tass) -- More than a billion Catholic
Christians celebrate Christmas on the Gregorian calendar on Saturday.
Lutheran and Protestant Christians and many Orthodox Autocephalous
Churches also celebrate Christmas. Meanwhile, Russian, Serbian, Jerusalem
and Georgian Orthodox Churches will celebrate Christmas on January 7,
2011, on the Julian calendar.
The Vatican is the traditional centre of Christmas celebrations for
the Catholic world. Pope Benedict XVI officiated Christmas Mass at the St.
Paul Cathedral on Saturday night. Christmas Mass began with the march of
cardinals and bishops to the accompaniment of Gregorian chants. The pope,
who was wearing gold-knitted festive clothes, announced about the Nativity
of Jesus Christ the Saviour to the Western Christian world.
Over 10,000 people, particularly prominent Italian statesmen, foreign
diplomats accredited at the Holly See, including Russian Ambassador
Nikolai Sadchikov attended Christmas Mass. Sadchikov worked as Russia's
permanent representative at the Holy See before and attended Christmas
Mass as the ambassador for the first time after visiting Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev and Pope Benedict XVI agreed to upgrade Russian-Vatican
relations to full diplomatic ties.
-0-baz