Comb-over Alex

The summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which took place in Minsk on November 28th was one of the best-attended of recent years.

Among those present were President Yushchenko, Uzbek President Islam Karimov, President Ilkham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin.

The host for this event was, of course, President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus with his exemplary comb-over hair cut - the give-away is the proximity of the parting-line to the ear, and the depth to which it extends around the back of the head. [see photo] I wonder if some kind of adhesive or fixative is used in its elaborate arrangement, in order to avoid possible embarrassment caused by unexpected gusts of wind etc.

Kremlin-controlled disinformation is now flowing at full output following former FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko's fatal poisoning caused by a radioactive isotope in London.

I recall a highly placed official of the Russian State Organic Chemistry Institute attributing, in the mass media, Yushchenko's poisoning to 'out-of-date' eau-de-cologne, after western scientists had declared the probable cause was a dioxin cocktail.