TODAY: Medvedev comes down hard on ministers; prison mastermind fired; could a return to Soviet labor be on the cards?  Colonel sentenced for bribe taking; Chernobyl survivors bring lawsuit against Medvedev. Tensions bubbling with Belarus as Lukashenko courts Chavez; Ukraine proposes Kiev as venue for possible START replacement signing.  Ex-Yukos director jailed; Waffen SS march raises storm of controversy; Russia Today examined

According to the Moscow Times, President Medvedev has flexed his muscles at a Kremlin meeting, suggesting that ministers must obey orders, or face dismissal.  A move to detract attention from delays in reform?  The President has dismissed Deputy Justice Minister Yury Kalinin, the architect of Russia’s existing and much-criticized prison system.  Bloomberg reports that Russia may introduce Soviet-style convict labor as it tries to revamp the incarceration infrastructure.  A military court in the western city of Penza has sentenced a former colonel for taking bribes from young conscripts.  Is faith in the police really growing in Ingushetia?: Medvedev’s recent dismissal of the interior minister may suggest otherwise, argues RFE/RL.  Graft-tarnished senator Andrei Vavilov will step down as Federation Council senator for a new job, the Moscow Times reports.  A group of Chernobyl veterans has filed a compensation lawsuit against President Medvedev and Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov.