2001 is a remarkable year in the biography of famous ethnographer Sevian Vainstein, who has devoted the better part of his life to Tuva. In April this year by the Decree of President Putin he was awarded with the title of the "Merited Scientist of the Russian Federation". Sevian Vainstein is now finishing the work at the book "Tuva, full of secrets and mysteries: 50 years of expeditions and work", which is going to be released by the Publishing House "Anloutte Verlag" (Jurgen Boden) in Germany. Afterwards it will be translated into English and French.

International Centre on Biosphere research in the Ubs-Nuur Hollow is celebrating today its 10th anniversary. The scientific conference devoted to it is taking place both in Tuva (Kyzyl) and in Mongolia (Kovd). The Ubs-Nuur center, founded by Professor Victor Bugrovski, has paved way to a principally new school in ecology "Functional Ecology" which makes it possible to observe the changes in ecosystems in its dynamics. The Ubs-Nuur Hollow is an ideal place for such observations. It's a kind of the Earth model combining on the relatively small territory practically all natural zones: from a tundra to a desert.

Today the International Fair is opened in the village of Khandagaity (Oviur district of Tuva). The Mongolian and Tuvan goods are exhibited and sold there. Among participants of the Fair are more than 200 enterprises and individuals from Tuva, Ubs, Kovd and Bayan-Ulgi aimaks of Mongolia.

The Tuvan President's condolescence is published today in the republic. It reads:"On behalf of the people of the Republic of Tuva I express deep concern for the further development of the situation in the world and sincere condolescence to the families of all those perished in New-York. We are with Americans. We condemn all kinds of terror, no matter where it takes place. I support the idea of President Putin to work out international law regulations for the struggle against terrorism. Only uniting our efforts in the fight against terrorism we can expect effective results".

Out of all the exhibition of different Publishing Houses of Russia, put on displau at the XIV International Moscow Book Fair, the exposition of the House of Peoples of Russia was in much greater demand. Hosts of this exposition Chimit-Dorzhu Ondar and Sergei Kuchinski had to answer numerous questions concerning books and magazines about the life of different nationalities of Russia. As they have said afterwards, this experience has proved once again the necessity to open up a special bookstore with the literature on People of Russia on sale. Such a store will begin functoning in October this year in the main Pavillion at VDNH (all-Russian Exhibition Centre) in Moscow.

The situation on the Tuvan stretch of the Russian-Mongolian border has got tenser due to the recent accident with the gun-fires. Two Mongolian frontier-guards have surpassed the state border and gone deep into the territory of the neighbouring republic to meet Tuvan hay-harvesters there. Their accidental meeting ended in gun-firing. One of the Mongolian frontier guards got wounded and died on the way to the hospital. The other one was arrested. The investigation of the case has started.

Today Sherig-ool Oorzhak, the President of the Republic has signed the new election laws adopted by the Supreme Khural (parliament of Tuva) in July this year. The new laws would serve as the base for the introduction of a new state system in Tuva. In accordance with the new Constitution of Tuva, adopted on the republican referendum on 6, May, 2001 Tuva will have no President any more but will have a 2-cameral parliament consisting of 162 deputies. These innovations were initiated by the Sherig-ool Oorzhak and were supported by people through an all-republican vote in May.

Most famous Tuvan opera-singer Nadezhda Krasnaya successfully combines the carreers of a singer and a teacher. Today she has given her first after summer holidays lesson of vocal art in the Moscow Conservatoir and had her first rehearsal of a new concert programme whiich would be presented to public on September, 20 in the Stanislavski Museum. The programme consists of romances by Grig and Rakhmaninov.

The work of Tuvan militia is nowadays being reorganized in accordance with the zone division of the republic. Instead of an old ptinciple when the militia personnel was mostly concentrated in the district centres with practically none in charge of the out-of-the-way villages the new structure presupposes district subdivision into zones consisting of 3-4 villages. A militia zone group will be controlling its responsible zone and each member of such a group should reside in 1 particular village. Local alexistrations take upon themselves the responsibility to provide them with houses.

The saving expedition of the Tuvan Ministry for Emergency keeps searching for Andrei Bogomolov, a 18-years-old tourist from Moscow. He got lost 2 weeks ago when the group of 15 muscovites, aged 10 to 61, having unregistered on their arrival to Kyzyl, went off on catamarans down the Yenissei river. Flowing down at a very high speed one of the catamarans with 5 people in crushed against a big water stone. Tatiana Smirnova is reported dead, Dmitriy Bogolubov - lost. The rest of the tourist group have left for Moscow.