Russian demographics have now improved to the point that if the trends of the first half of 2012 hold for the rest of the year, that is if the birth rate for the whole year increases by around 6.7% and the deathrate for the whole year decreases by around 2.9%, then Russia will actually record a small natural increase in population.
Figures which take account of changes in the size and age of the UK population showed the alcohol-related deathrate has hovered at around 18 deaths per 100, 000 men since 2003, after earlier increases.