Russia 100325 Basic Political Developments

Russia 100325

Basic Political Developments

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  Ukrainian News: Azarov Leaves For Russia To Discuss Correction Of Gas Contracts
  
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  Voice of Russia: Putin, Azarov to discuss gas issues
  
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  UNIAN: Azarov and Putin to meet in Moscow today
  
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  RIA: Russia unlikely to make concessions on gas deal – paper: "We are absolutely satisfied with the gas deal [signed] on January 19, 2009, and we have to understand what Russia will get in return before giving the go-ahead to making amendments," Kommersant quoted a source in the Russian government as saying.
  
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  Itar-Tass: Russian, Ukrainian PMs to discuss energy problems
  
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  Reuters: Russia, Ukraine PM to talk gas, property rows - Putin, Azarov to meet on Thursday afternoon; Kiev ready to share pipelines with Russia; Moscow keen to resolve property rows
  
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  NY Times: Seeking Lower Fuel Costs, Ukraine May Sell Pipelines - Russia has already negotiated similar agreements with Belarus and Armenia, where Gazprom owns stakes in the pipeline systems with implied vetoes over strategic energy decisions and in exchange sells gas at steep discounts. Belarus, for example, now pays $168 for 1,000 cubic meters of gas compared with $305 in Ukraine.
  
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  Moscow Times: Putin Targets Global Gas Trade - Al-Thani held separate talks with Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller earlier in the day, expressing interest in joining forces with Gazprom in developing the huge reserves on the Yamal Peninsula, an effort that would involve construction of an LNG plant there, the company said in a statement.
  
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  RIA: Foreign ministers of post-Soviet security group to meet in Moscow - The council of ministers of a post-Soviet security group, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), will gather in Moscow on Thursday to coordinate foreign policy.
  
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  RIA: Russian warship to take part in Blackseafor naval drills - The Caesar Kunikov large amphibious landing ship from Russia's Black Sea Fleet will take part in regular Blackseafor naval drills in April, the fleet's press office said on Thursday.
  
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  RIA: Russian Airborne Troops to hold exercises in northwest Russia - Over 300 paratroopers from the 76th Airborne Division will be airdropped during military exercises in northwest Russia on Thursday, Airborne Troops spokesman Col. Alexander Cherednik said.
  
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  Itar-Tass: Russia, Moldova, Dniester reg peacekeepers to hold joint exercise - Military from the Joint Peacekeeping Force of Russia, Moldova and Moldova’s breakaway Dniester region will hold on Thursday a joint military exercise, the press service of the Joint Control Commission, which supervises the peacekeeping operation in the Dniester region said.
  
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  BNS: Russian Air Force receives Pantsir-S1 missile systems
  
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  Gazeta.kz: Kazakhstan, Russia reached arrangements on cooperation in food and automobile industry - During the working meeting of First Vice Premiers of Kazakhstan and Russia, Umirzak Shukeev and Igor Shuvalov, taken place on March 24, the officials reached arrangements on expansion of cooperation of two countries in food and automobile industries, the agency reports citing the official mass media.
  
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  Guardian: RAF jets scrambled 20 times in 12 months to intercept Russian aircraft
  
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  Scotsman: RAF catches Russian bombers in UK airspace
  
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  Telegraph: RAF scrambled jets 20 times to intercept Russians
  
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  Bloomberg; Russia Vetoes Public Dismantling of UN Council’s Meeting Table - The world won’t be able to watch today as the United Nations Security Council’s horseshoe-shaped table is taken apart and moved to another room while the chamber undergoes renovation. Russia vetoed a public dismantling. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said his government thought it would be “bad symbolism” for photographers and reporters to document the event, as the UN proposed. The council makes such decisions on the basis of consensus, meaning agreement of all 15 member governments is required.
  
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  RIA: U.S. Senate to discuss arms treaty with Russia in April-May
  
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  Bloomberg: Obama, Medvedev Move to Cut Nuclear Arsenals in New Agreement
  
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  Reuters: Q+A - Why is a U.S.-Russia nuclear deal important?
  
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  RIA: Despite reset in ties, Russians still see U.S. as aggressor – poll - Only 9% of Russians said they saw U.S. as a country promoting "peace, democracy and order" on the globe, while 73% said it was "an aggressor seeking to establish control over all countries." The remainder of the respondents were unable to answer.
  
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  Russia Today: US, Russia look for concessions to boost trade - Russia set up a raft of trade barriers last year to protect domestic producers in the crisis. Higher import taxes prompted a 30-fold slump in sales of used foreign-made cars. Deputy Economy Minister Andrey Slepnev told RT that those tariffs can go back to pre-crisis levels.
  
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  Georgian Times: Copy of the memorial of Glory to be built at another place in Moscow
  
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  Messenger.ge: Russians destroy Georgian school
  
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  RIA: Russia has good chance of hosting 2018 World Cup – Putin
  
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  RIA: Abramovich to head Russian Football Union board of trustees
  
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  Yorkshire Post: Russia honours veterans of wartime Arctic convoys with special medals
  
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  Moscow Times: United Russia Tones Down Amnesty Plan - United Russia has backed away from a proposal to grant amnesty to 333,200 people, including 46,200 prisoners, amid pressure from the Kremlin, Gazeta.ru reported Wednesday.
  
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  Itar-Tass: Rustam Minnikhanov to be inaugurated as Tatarstan president
  
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  Russia Today: Wahhabi leader killed in North Caucasus
  
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  Interfax: Wahabi militant leader killed in Kabardino-Balkaria
  
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  Reuters: Russia says forces kill leading Islamist rebel - Anzor Astemirov, an associate of rebel leader Doku Umarov, was killed in a shootout with FSB security service troops in Nalchik, capital of the southern Kabardino-Balkaria region, investigators with the prosecutor's office said in a statement.
  
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  Riadagestan: The parliament of Dagestan passed the Complex program of struggle against drug addiction
  
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  RIA: Crew of passenger jet used pocket GPS to make emergency landing - paper
  
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  Russia profile: Whose Russia? - Russia’s Million-Plus Tajiks Are Fighting Back Against the Casual Racism that Makes Them Synonymous With Any Low Paid Worker
  
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  Moscow Times: Insults Fly as Mironov and Gryzlov End Truce - A bizarre fight between the main pro-Kremlin parties returned to the political stage Wednesday when United Russia officials accused A Just Russia leader Sergei Mironov of conducting a "frenzied campaign" against the ruling party.
  
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  Pravda: Russia Unable To Abolish Death Penalty because of Terrorist Threat - “Well-known circumstances do not allow us to do this. The issue has to do with terrorist activity in Russia,” told the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Monitoring Commission’s co-reporters for Russia Andreas Gross and Gyorgy Frunda in Moscow on Tuesday. At the same time, he said Russia had fulfilled the majority of its PACE accession commitments assumed in 1996, Interfax reports.
  
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  Russia-IC: Russian Priests to Give up Divine Services in Ancient Churches - Museum authorities suggest that the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Kirill divides all the churches into three categories: those where services can be led ad lib, those where certain safety precautions should be observed and where it is better not to hold services at all.
  
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  Russia Today: Russian time-zone reform to spur economy - “The reduction in the number of time zones will allow for a smoother administrative policy making across the county. With more than 80 regions in Russia in administrative terms it’s very difficult to implement decisions, to adopt decisions. The reduction will make it somewhat easier,” Lissovolik said.
  
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  Kremlin.ru: Opening Remarks at Meeting on Reducing the Number of Time Zones
  
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  Huffington Post: Newsweek Russia Editor Caught On Tape With Coke & Hookers
  
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  Financial Times: Strife on the edge - Analysts say a new mood is starting to develop that barely existed before the onset of the economic crisis in the autumn of 2008. Prior to that, protests were confined mostly to within the Moscow ring road and a coterie of democratic activists, or the elderly demanding higher pensions. Saturday's protests included all age groups and covered the full ideological spectrum, from democrats to hardline nationalists.
  
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  BNE: What's really wrong with Russia - Infrastructure; Oil addiction; Diversification and top-down reform ; Corruption and bureaucracy; Political risk is rising
  
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  Russia Today: 25 March, 2010 in Russian Newspapers
  
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    Vedomosti: A team of oligarchs
    
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    Kommersant: Joseph Stalin will not be invited to the Victory Day celebrations
    
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    Rossiskaya Gazeta: A sold-out auditorium demands an encore
    
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  Reuters: PRESS DIGEST - Russia - March 25
  
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    KOMMERSANT
    
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    Russian utility RusHyrdo (HYDR.MM) wants to attract a foreign partner as a strategic investor in 2012-13 and take part in international projects, the paper says.
    
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    Pepsico Inc (PEP.N) in March will launch its own brand of kvass, a traditional mildly alcoholic beverage made from black rye or rye bread, the paper reports.
    
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    VEDOMOSTI
    
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    The Russian government plans to let major businessmen control investment in sports. Oil and metals tycoon Roman Abramovich together with Gazprom's (GAZP.MM) CEO Alexei Miller and railroad monopoly chief Vladimir Yakunin are also likely to be chosen.
    
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    German carmaker Daimler AG (DAIGn.DE) has spent more than 5 million euros on bribes to Russian officials, the paper writes.
    
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    Russia will have no federal budget deficit in 2011, the daily reports citing a World Bank report.
    
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    GAZETA
    
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    Russia will only amnesty 150-200 prisoners by the 65th anniversary of victory in World War Two on May 9, instead of the 45,000 previously planned, the paper says.
    
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    NEZAVISIMAYA GAZETA
    
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    Russian oil company Lukoil (LKOH.MM) on Wednesday officially confirmed its withdrawal from Iran's Anaran oil project, the paper says.
    
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    KOMSOMOLSKAYA PRAVDA
    
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    Russian President Dmitry Medvedev plans to cut the number of time zones in Russia from 11 to nine, the daily writes.
    
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  Moscow Times: Today in Vedomosti
  
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    Editorial: Utilizing Utilities
    
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    Medvedev Calls Time on Summer Time
    
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    Callers Not Given a Sporting Chance
    
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  Itar-Tass: Boarding school teacher to face trial for beating up pupils
  
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  Russia Today: New species of early human found in Siberia