Fast called off by Russian wanting to join wife in US

Russian hunger striker Sergei Petrov called off a 52-day-old hunger strike he began in support of an application to join his wife in the United States.

He said Thursday he ended his fast ''to save my mother and my wife from any further suffering. I could have carried on but it would have been unfair on them.'' His wife, who left Moscow Wednesday after a short visit, was still unaware of his decision, he said.

Mr. Petrov, a free-lance photographer, was told by Soviet emigration authorities earlier this month that his application for an exit visa had been rejected on security grounds.