Russia: Medvedev urges global system to fight disasters

"We should create a mechanism for the prevention and containment of both man-made accidents and natural disasters and make it available for any country that wishes to be part of it," President Medvedev said in comments carried by state news channel Rossiya 24. "We need to think about how to create such legislation," he went on, adding that current international law was ineffective in situations where "catastrophes take on cross-border dimensions."

Medvedev was speaking after a BRICS summit in the southern China resort of Sanya, where he met with the leaders of other BRICS nations - China, India, Brazil and South Africa.