KIEV - Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko is planning to hold talks on Tuesday on procedures for dissolving parliament, but dissolution would only be a last resort, his press service said.

"The Ukrainian President plans today to hold consultations with the Speaker, his deputy and heads of parliamentary factions according to Article 90 of the Constitution of Ukraine about dissolving parliament," his press service said in a statement.

"The head of state stresses the importance of searching for a compromise and understanding and sees his right to dissolve parliament as his final argument," the statement said.

If Yushchenko does order the dissolution of parliament, it could spark an unpredictable standoff with the opposition majority in the chamber. They have said any dissolution would be illegal and that they would ignore it.

A dissolution would mean that talks with parliament on forming a coalition government had collapsed. Parliament has been pressing Yushchenko to nominate his rival Viktor Yanukovich as prime minister, something he is reluctant to do.

Yushchenko was planning to meet Yanukovich later on Tuesday, the statement said.

"The relationship is clear ... whatever the age at the moment of irradiation," Vathaire wrote.

Even taking into account other factors known to increase incidence of thyroid cancer among Polynesians, such as obesity, "the coherence and stability of the results are exceptional", he wrote.

Vathaire said it is now "accepted" that French tests increased the number of people with thyroid cancer in Polynesia.

However he added that the number of extra cases is probably limited, with only around 10 instances between 1984 and 2002 definitely linked to the nuclear tests.

France carried out some 40 atmospheric atomic tests in Polynesia from 1966 to 1974. After that its tests were carried out underground.

The fraud investigation against Khodorkovsky and the tax probe into Yukos that began in 2003 were cast by the Kremlin as a crusade against a rotten corporate empire. But the case was perceived by others as punishment for Khodorkovsky's perceived political ambitions and a drive by the state to regain mastery of the strategically important oil sector.

The widely expected ruling upholds a vote one week ago by Yukos' creditors, who dismissed the assurances of the company's lawyers that it could continue as a viable entity and pay down its remaining debts.

The creditors are dominated by the Federal Tax Service and the state-controlled oil group OAO Rosneft, which already owns the battered company's biggest production unit, Yuganskneftegaz. The production unit was sold in December 2004 in a disputed auction against Yukos' multibillion-dollar back tax bills.

Rosneft became the nation's No. 3 oil producer overnight after its purchase of Yuganskneftegaz and is being primed as the nation's champion oil company, capable of competing with the likes of Exxon Mobil Corp. and Saudi Arabia's Aramco. It is expected to be a major beneficiary in the future liquidation of Yukos' assets, which include capacity of 600,000 barrels per day at its Samaraneftegaz and Tomskneft subsidiaries.

Yukos' current output averages 450,000 barrels per day - as the company has struggled to pay down its massive tax bills it has been able to invest less into production.

Rosneft currently produces about 1.6 million barrels per day, of which 1 million barrels come from Yuganskneftegaz.

The Lebanese government is calling it the biggest ecological catastrophe in the country's history. Between July 13 and 15, Israeli jets bombed the Jiyyeh power station, located 30 kilometers south of Beirut, and caused up to 35,000 tons of fuel oil to gush into the sea. The oil slick has now spread along 80 kilometers of Lebanon's 225 kilometer coastline and has already reached Syria. A clean up operation is badly needed, but continuing hostilities between the Israeli army and Hezbollah have made this virtually impossible. Now, the catastrophe is threatening to damage the environment across many parts of the Mediterranean.

The United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) is warning of long-term damage if the oil is not cleaned up as quickly as possible. "Every day that passes will increase the potential damage of this tragic incident," UNEP director Achim Steiner told Reuters.

According to the Lebanese Environment Ministry, the worst may be yet to come. Another tank at the same power plant with around 25,000 tons of fuel is still burning and there is a risk that it could leak or explode. The fire has created a thick cloud of black smoke that has polluted the air over Beirut and its suburbs.

As bad as the Exxon Valdez?

In an interview with the BBC, the ministry's director general, Berj Hatjian, compared the oil slick to that caused by the Exxon Valdez tanker, "with 20,000 to 30,000 tons reaching the shoreline." When the tanker sank off the coast of Alaska in 1989, 40,000 tons of oil were released into the sea. The result was the worst ever maritime environmental disaster. Hundreds of thousands of animals died, and because the oil spill could not be completely cleaned up animals are still being poisoned today.

The environmental impact of the current oil slick is not confined to Lebanon and risks spreading through the Mediterranean. The Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Center (Rempec), based in Malta, has already recorded the first traces of oil on the Syrian coast -- confirming reports of contamination made by the port authority at Syria's coastal town of Tartus. Environmental groups in Lebanon are also warning that the pollution could reach the coasts of Turkey and Cyprus.

The Lebanese government has asked Syria and Jordon for help in the clean up operation, which it calculates could cost up to $50 million. Several Mediterranean countries have made equipment and personnel available to try to avert a catastrophe. However, the Lebanese government told the BBC that there are only minimal amounts of "dispersants, booms, absorbents and skimmers" readily available. Furthermore, with Israel continuing its air strikes, any clean-up work would be far too dangerous. But if the spill is not contained, the damage will quickly become irreversible and cause long-term damage to the complex ecosystem along the Mediterranean coast. Among the first victims could be the endangered green turtles whose eggs hatch in July. Now it is feared that the baby turtles will not be able to get past the oil to reach the sea.

According to UNEP chief Steiner, "The Lebanese government has requested international assistance from the UN, and we stand ready to do all we can." He added that he is urgently trying to assemble EU satellite images and other data in order to get a more accurate measure of the spill along Lebanon's coast. "Firstly our thoughts are with the suffering of the civilian population," he said. "But we must be concerned about the short and long-term impacts on the marine environment, including the biodiversity upon which so many people depend for their livelihoods and living."

The ocean is a vital source of income for many Lebanese, through fishing and tourism. Many fish and crabs have already perished and others are covered in oil. The Lebanese beaches that were once so popular with tourists could be polluted for some time to come. Even when the bombing stops, it is unlikely tourists will be rushing back to the country, but if they did, instead of sandy beaches they would find long stretches of oily ground, strewn with dead and dying marine life.