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Russia 110510Basic Political Developments

· LAVROV ARRIVES IN BAGHDAD TO DISCUSS MILITARY-TECHNOLOGICAL AND ENERGY COOPERATION WITH IRAQI LEADERS

· Lavrov arrived in Baghdad to discuss Russian-Iraqi energy cooperation - "The visit includes meetings with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani, President of the Parliament Osama Nudzheyfi, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and the leader of a political bloc Iraqi List, Ayad Allawi" - the Department of Press and Information Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Interfax .

· Pakistan, Russia to sign six agreements - Pakistan and Russia are likely to sign six Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) during the forthcoming visit of President Asif Ali Zardari.

· BoI chief to sign 6 MOUs with Russian companies - The BOI statement said that an MOU between BOI and Russian National Investment Agency is also scheduled to be signed by him along with 5 Memorandum of Understandings with 5 Russian private/public companies including Evraz S.A Russia International, Gazprom Russia International, Lukoil Russia International, Rusal Russia International and Severstal Russia International.

· Russia & Pakistan: New prospects – By Andrey Budnik, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Pakistan.

· Russian Patriarch prays violence ends against Christians in Egypt - "This time again we urge the Egyptian authorities, local Islamic leaders and international community to put an end to violence resolutely and unambiguously against the Christian minority, that has existed historically in Egypt," Patriarch Kirill said, according to a posting on the Moscow Patriarchate's website.

· Arctic Council countries to sign agt on Arctic rescue ops May 12 - The United States, Russia and six other countries of the Arctic Council (AC) will sign on May 12 an agreement on the conduct of search and rescue operations in the Arctic, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Fisheries in the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, US Department of State, Ambassador David A. Balton announced on Monday.

· Нead of State Duma CIS affairs committee: Ukrainian authorities should punish nationalists who carried out provocations in Lviv

· Russia youth lay wreaths at Latvia embassy for Vasily Kononov - About 100 activists of Russian youth and patriotic movements on Monday evening came to the Latvian embassy in Moscow.

· Kokoity is trying to keep his regime - The so-called presidential elections scheduled in the occupied Tskhinvali region may not take place, reports the Ekho Kavkaza.

· Bout's lawyers upbeat on client's case

· Alleged Russian Arms Dealer in US Court

· US court hears appeals in case of RF businessman Viktor Bout

· Police kill up to five militants in North Caucasus

· Up to five militants killed in Nalchik – source

· Special operation in Kabardino-Balkaria concluded

· Police seal off terrorist group in North Caucasus

· Suspected murderer of mufti Anas Pshikhachev blockaded in Kabardino-Balkaria

· Bomber kills officer in Russia's Dagestan region - A suicide bomber killed one police officer in the capital of Russia's violence-plagued Dagestan region in the North Caucasus on Tuesday, an official said.

· Car bomb explodes in Dagestan: report

· Islamic newspaper editor, OMON officer killed in Dagestan

· Emir of CE Dagestani Front and Governor of Province Dagestan appointed - The Kavkaz Center has received the text of the Omra (Decree) of the Caucasus Emirate Emir Dokku Abu Usman on the appointment of Emir of the Dagestani Front and Governor of Province Dagestan.

· Medvedev sacks five police generals, one colonel

· Russian president appoints police authorities in Southern Federal District

· Prosecutors arrested - Two of four former Moscow region prosecutors were arrested in the case over illegal gambling business in the Moscow region, after other suspects testified against them.

· Number of wild fires may increase in Central Russia

· Khakassia prepares work to build temporary bridge across Abakan

· Russian Press at a Glance, Tuesday, May 10, 2011

· Ambassador: Russia could tell EU 'nobody is perfect' - Russia understands the present difficulties holding up the process of EU integration, just like EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy has never publicly criticised Moscow over the human rights situation in Russia "because he understands it," Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's ambassdor to the EU, told EurActiv in an exclusive interview.

· “We Are Working Better Than We Ever Have” - Admiral MULLEN On Cooperation With Russia - On a visit to St. Petersburg Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen gave an exclusive interview to ITAR-TASS.

· Russia and China challenge NATO - By M K Bhadrakumar

· The Russian Region that's Dying on Europe's Doorstep - In the past few years, the region of Pskov has become famous in Russia for two interconnected blights: moonshine and depopulation. By Simon Shuster / Lopotova

· Russia and Africa: vying for mineral resources - By Alexei Vassiliev

National Economic Trends

· CBR: $41.2bn FDI to Russia includes only $9bn of new investments

· CBR reserves up $21.5bn in April

· Central Bank forex interventions remain moderate

· Debt markets reinstate Moscow swagger – by Julian Evans

Business, Energy or Environmental regulations or discussions

· Russian ADRs, Market Vectors Russia ETF Gain as Oil Rallies

· Russian Norilsk eyes copper smelter in Indonesia

· MMK to finish buyout of Turkish MMK Atakas by Nov

· Wind head sees Vimpelcom board seats in 6 mos-paper

· Polymetal Gains for First Day in Five as Silver Futures Climb

· Russia’s Prokhorov Negotiates Sale of TGK-4, Vedomosti Reports

· JCDecaux Considers Acquiring News Corp.’s Russian Unit, Forecasts Growth

· ATOMEXPO 2011 International Forum Media Advisory - The Forum will take place on June 6-8, 2011 in Moscow (Manezh Exhibition Hall) and will feature a Congress by international nuclear experts and an Exhibition on nuclear power development. The Congress will focus on practical application of nuclear technologies, especially in emerging nuclear countries, and will discuss lessons learned from Fukushima nuclear power plant accident.

· Mostotrest Gains 1st Day in Three as Unit Wins Airport Contract

· Aeroflot quadruples Q1 RAS net profit

· Highland Gold Mining - Lower target price on industry-wide cost inflation

· Sollers - Feeding the recovery in demand

· AvtoVAZ Climbs for 2nd Day as Carmaker Returns to Profit in 2010

· VTB deputy president Tatarchuk to leave bank-paper

· Fitch Revises Russian Standard Bank's outlook to positive, affirms ratings

· Five-billion-rouble joyride - The construction of a Formula 1 racing track in Sochi will cost Russia five billion roubles. The construction project will have the Olympic status.

Activity in the Oil and Gas sector (including regulatory)

· Central Asian nations feel the pinch of dwindling fuel supplies as Russia tightens supplies «Washington Post»

· Rosneft Gets Final Say in BP Tie-Up

· Rosneft facing tough decision

· TNK-BP to Sell Its Arbat Office to Ananyev Brothers

Gazprom

· Nord Stream will pay off over 14-15 years - Nord Stream gas pipeline "will pay off over 14-15 years. This statement was made managing director of the project's operator – the company Nord Stream AG – Matthias Warnig to interview Russia Today, RIA Novosti reported.

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Full Text Articles

Basic Political Developments

11:12

LAVROV ARRIVES IN BAGHDAD TO DISCUSS MILITARY-TECHNOLOGICAL AND ENERGY COOPERATION WITH IRAQI LEADERS

http://www.interfax.com/news.asp

CORRECTED GOOGLE TRANSLATION

http://www.interfax.ru/news.asp?id=189238

Lavrov arrived in Baghdad to discuss Russian-Iraqi energy cooperation

May 10, 2011 11:12Baghdad. May 10. INTERFAX.RU - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Baghdad on Tuesday for a working visit."The visit includes meetings with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani, President of the Parliament Osama Nudzheyfi, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and the leader of a political bloc Iraqi List, Ayad Allawi" - the Department of Press and Information Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Interfax .Smolenskaya Square noted that during his visit Lavrov plans to discuss with the Iraqi side, in particular, the cooperation in the energy sphere.

Pakistan, Russia to sign six agreements

http://tribune.com.pk/story/165032/pakistan-russia-to-sign-six-agreements/

By APP

Published: May 10, 2011

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan and Russia are likely to sign six Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) during the forthcoming visit of President Asif Ali Zardari.

In this connection, Board of Investment (BOI) Chairman Saleem H Mandviwalla would be paying a brief visit to Russia to make advanced investment deals, before the visit of the president, said a statement issued by BOI on Monday.

An MoU between BOI and the Russian National Investment Agency is expected to be signed, along with five MoUs with Russian private and public companies.

Mandviwalla said that Russian investors would be informed about investment opportunities in certain projects including that of Pakistan Steel Mills, which needed soft credit for capacity expansion from 1.1 to 3 million tons per year in three stages.

Another project is related to oil and gas exploration and production, which includes supply of equipment/rigs, processing plants, technology for revival of dead wells, pipeline projects, advanced technology for gas supplies, LNG and LPG storage terminals.

Investment will also be sought for rail tracks, new and refurbished locomotives, advanced railway signaling system and train operation based on public-private partnership. Russians will also be invited to invest in hydropower production and wind and solar energy technology.

The government will highlight the potential for Thar underground gasification project, mining of iron ore, bauxite and copper and seek supply of mining equipment on credit with soft terms.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10th, 2011.

BoI chief to sign 6 MOUs with Russian companies

http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=91460

Staff Reporter

Islamabad—Pakistan and Russia are likely to sign six Memorandum of Understandings (MOUs) during the forthcoming scheduled visit of President Asif Ali Zardari to Russia.

In this connection, Saleem H. Mandviwalla, Chairman, Board of Investment (BoI) is paying a brief visit to Russia to make ahead investment deals before the visit of President Asif Ali Zardai, says a statement issued by the BOI here Monday.

The BOI statement said that an MOU between BOI and Russian National Investment Agency is also scheduled to be signed by him along with 5 Memorandum of Understandings with 5 Russian private/public companies including Evraz S.A Russia International, Gazprom Russia International, Lukoil Russia International, Rusal Russia International and Severstal Russia International.

Chairman BOI has also issued a special note to media about the sectors of presentment to the Russian investors.

The note is describing the projects and the areas of investment to make them viable are Pakistan Steel Mills - Soft Credit for expansion of project from 1.1 million MT up to 3.0 million MT per year production capacity in 3 stages.

Oil & Gas Exploration and Production - Supply of equipments/ rigs, mud pump/processing plants - Technology of revival of dead wells- Line pipes projects- Advance technology for gas supplies- LNG storage terminals - LPG storage terminals.

Pakistan Railways - Supply of 30,000 MT Rails Tracks - New and Refurbished Locomotives- Railway signaling system equipped by advance technology- Investment for Trains Operation on Public Private Partnership.

WAPDA - Hydel Power production. - Technology for wind power- Technology for solar energy. Mining - Thar projecty for underground gasification - Mining of Iron Ore. - Mining of Bauxite. - Mining of Copper and others. - Supply of Mining Equipment on Credit with soft terms such as Bulldozers.

Agriculture Sector - Manufacturing of Tractors-Research & Development for seeds production- Manufacturing of pesticides with modern development.-Technology for Modern cultivation.

Addressing the expansion of Pakistan Steel Mill, he mentioned that an inter ministerial joint working Group for the expansion of Pakistan Steel Mills has been constituted by M/O Industries & Production.

Russia & Pakistan: New prospects

http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=91341

Andrey Budnik

Russian-Pakistani relations are on the rise. Since 2010 the intensity of bilateral contacts at all levels has increased significantly. In June our presidents Mr D A Medvedev and Mr A A Zardari met in Tashkent on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. Then in August they held a substantial discussion in Sochi, where the heads of all countries of the “Four” including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia and Tajikistan assembled together. Sochi agreements were logically followed by September’s substantial contacts of the ministers of foreign affairs held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s 65th session in New-York.

On November 25 Chairman of Government V V Putin and Prime Minister Y R Gilani had a separate meeting at the SCO Heads of Government Council in Dushanbe. On October 5-8 the Head of the Federal Service of the Russian Federation for Narcotics Control paid a visit to Islamabad to sign an agreement on cooperation in combating illicit drug trafficking. In January this year consultations on strategic stability issues at deputy ministers level were held successfully in Islamabad.

The intensification of our political contacts is not an accidental phenomenon – it is logically stipulated by growing understanding in Moscow and Islamabad that our countries have many common interests and objectives. First and foremost, it applies to providing regional security and stability, countering threats of terrorism and extremism in all forms and manifestations. Along with our Pakistani partners we resolutely stand against illicit arms trade, drug trafficking, money laundering, cross-border organized crime. We hold detailed discussions on all these issues, particularly within the framework of the joint working group on countering international terrorism and other new challenges to international security. Russia fully recognizes and appreciates the substantial contribution made by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the efforts of world community in this sphere. Thousands of Pakistani soldiers and officers, policemen and intelligence operatives sacrificed their lives while purging their country of terror hotbeds, proving with deeds the commitment of Pakistan to genuine Islamic and human values.

Russia attaches great importance to cooperation with Pakistan in the sphere of Afghan settlement. Instability in this country is our mutual concern. The success of efforts to elaborate optimum ways of reconstruction and reconciliation in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is impossible to achieve without active interaction with states bordering it, and primarily Pakistan, because many problems of these two countries are closely intertwined.

Russian and Pakistani policy is characterized by recognition of the fact that the search of ways to settle current highly sophisticated conflict situation must not become the prerogative of solely external players. The participation of the regional community in this process is imperative.

Certainly, the Afghans themselves must make a major and crucial contribution to the settlement by strengthening the state that would maintain good-neighbourly relations with the circumjacent countries and carry out the policy of neutralism while not allowing any external interference in its internal affairs. There is no doubt that it is indispensable to guarantee full sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Both Russia and Pakistan substantially contribute to the economic development and reconstruction of the friendly state.

Regional security including settlement of the Afghan situation, struggle against terror and drug threat would undoubtedly be facilitated by normalizing the relationship between the two major South Asian states – India and Pakistan. In this connection Moscow supports the resumption of political dialogue between Islamabad and New Delhi. On the whole, Russia and Pakistan work productively within both international and regional formats. We adhere to similar or identical positions on major international issues including crisis management, formation of multipolar world order, strengthening of the United Nations’ role and authority as well as supremacy of international law. We have a lot of common interests in disarmament and non-proliferation sphere: we discuss these problems on a regular basis. It does not mean that there are no differences between us. But most importantly, we discuss existing complex issues sincerely and in a practical way, respecting and not offending each other, thus promoting the atmosphere of healthy cooperation between our countries. We attach primary importance to the consolidating and integrating role of the SCO. This organization has lately become one of the most authoritative and influential in the region. By now Pakistan enjoys the status of the SCO observer-state, but along with other candidates it has all the chances to become a full member of the organization. The real prospects of Islamabad’s contribution to the SCO activity – both in the sphere of solving security problems (within the framework of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure) and in expanding economic cooperation – are already evident.

It would be proper to mention that being the largest transit state, Russia quite positively assesses Pakistan’s transit capabilities, whose importance is undoubtedly gaining ground in today’s interdependent world. In our opinion, the construction of transport and energy corridors in Southwest and Central Asia is a key not only to successful development of the countries situated there, but also an important factor of strengthening security in the region. Today we have vast opportunities for giving impetus to the economic component of our bilateral cooperation. In this connection the first meeting of Russian-Pakistani Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation held in September, 2010 was a significant event. It helped to outline specific areas of our interaction as well as the projects that can be practically realized within the framework of the two countries’ cooperation.

Special attention is drawn to the possibilities of oil-, gas- and coal-deposits exploitation, participation of Russian companies in providing electricity transit from Central Asia (CASA-1000), construction of Iran-Pakistan and Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipelines, reconstruction and modernization of Pakistan Steel Mills in Karachi, establishment of banks’ representations in both countries, telecommunication development and modernization of Pakistani railways.

After the session of the Intergovernmental Commission the exchange of delegations representing both countries’ business communities has become more intense. This is helpful for practical implementation of existing and newly emerged plans and ideas. In this connection the visits paid to Moscow by Minister of State, Chairman of the Pakistani Board of Investment Mr. S.Mandviwalla on September 28 – October 4 and Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources Mr. S.N.Qamar on November 19-20 were extremely useful. Quadrilateral meeting of the ministers of economic block of the “Four” including Russia, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan held on October 22 in Moscow and attended by the Minister for Commerce of Pakistan, Mr. M.A.Fahim, is also worth mentioning.

It should be acknowledged that there are some factors impeding the development of economic cooperation between Russia and Pakistan. That is a certain passivity of our companies as well as the lack of mutual awareness, particularly, of the economy dynamics and the development of both countries’ legal basis in the respective sphere. In this connection we welcome the establishment of Pakistan-Russia Business Forum by Pakistani companies and local organizations concerned. This Forum along with Pakistan-Russia Business Council (also formed by Pakistani enterprises) aims at promoting direct contacts between the business communities of our states. We are also working at the idea of establishing a joint business council with an active participation of Russian companies.

Analyzing Russian-Pakistani relations, one would draw attention to a simplified approach to their history still remaining in a section of the Pakistani political circles. Appeals to “abandon the prejudice of a cold war period” resound here from time to time. In this connection it is appropriate to emphasize that even at the height of this period when the Soviet Union and Pakistan were pushed to opposite block systems, Moscow continued to develop its contacts with Islamabad and gave active assistance to Pakistani economy. It was in the seventies and eighties when Karachi’s Pakistan Steel Mills, Multan and Guddu power plants were constructed with the direct help of USSR.

The re-evaluation of the Russian-Pakistani relations in accordance with the realities of modern international situation took the period of the late nineties and early years of the current century. It was then that the leaders of both countries categorically opted for overcoming the remaining divisive lines in the region and emphasized that Moscow-Islamabad interaction is not subject to any outside influence and has its own value. The past decade fully proved the correctness of this approach. To sum up, the main thing has to be emphasized. We have a solid foundation for constructing a multistorey building of Russian-Pakistani relations, and there are excellent opportunities to do it in a proper way. All we need is to use them.

—The writer is Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Pakistan.

10 May 2011, 11:57

Russian Patriarch prays violence ends against Christians in Egypt

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=8430

Moscow, May 10, Interfax - Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia has expressed his condolences over the deaths of Christians and church fires in Giza on May 7 and 8 as a result of clashes between Muslims and Christians.

"The Easter joy over the resurrection of Jesus Christ was marred by sad news coming from Giza. The crimes committed on May 7 and 8 took the lives of our Christian brothers. Coptic churches were damaged," the Patriarch said in a letter to Coptic Patriarch Shenouda III.

The Russian Orthodox Church has on many occasions voiced its solidarity with Christians in countries where they are under pressure and where their rights to live and to profess their religion are being abused, he said.

"This time again we urge the Egyptian authorities, local Islamic leaders and international community to put an end to violence resolutely and unambiguously against the Christian minority, that has existed historically in Egypt," Patriarch Kirill said, according to a posting on the Moscow Patriarchate's website.

Patriarch Kirill is praying that the souls of those killed rest in peace and that stable civil peace be established in Egypt.

05:13 10/05/2011Top News

Arctic Council countries to sign agt on Arctic rescue ops May 12

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/138814.html

WASHINGTON, May 10 (Itar-Tass) — The United States, Russia and six other countries of the Arctic Council (AC) will sign on May 12 an agreement on the conduct of search and rescue operations in the Arctic, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Fisheries in the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, US Department of State, Ambassador David A. Balton announced on Monday.

He held a briefing on the eve of the AC regular session at the foreign ministers’ level to be held in Nuuk (Greenland) next Thursday. In addition to Russia and the United States, the Council members are Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and Finland. The Council holds ministerial meetings every two years, and the US secretary of state will participate in it for the first time, according to Balton.

Balton noted that he does not believe it possible to go into the details of the agreement developed under the guidance of US and Russian experts, because the document has yet to be adopted by the AC members. He could only say that the Arctic region was divided into eight zones for the conduct of search and rescue operations, in accordance with the number of the Council member states, the ambassador said. The boundaries of these zones on the map do not necessarily coincide with the interstate borders. At present none of the AC members has sufficient resources to carry out search and rescue operations in the region unaided. If someone asks for help, all the others, according to the agreement, will be obligated to assist. There are also plans for joint exercises.

This will be the first legally binding document, adopted by the AC, and an important step in saving lives in the region, the US State Department official said.

Balton also noted that the meeting participants will also consider a number of other issues associated with the development of the Arctic and the protection of its environment, including the following reports on climate change in the region and their potential consequences for the AC countries and the world. For the first a decision will be made on the establishment of the AC permanent secretariat, sort of an administrative office, the ambassador said. It is unknown so far where it will be located. Norway has proposed Troms· and Iceland - Reykjavik. This should be decided by the meeting participants. They will discuss both urgent and potential problems of oil pollution in the region - as a result of oil exploration and production, as well as its transportation by tankers.

According to Balton, the meeting is to approve the criteria for the AC observer status. The meeting participants will discuss the possibility of increasing the number of observers: the countries that want to participate in such capacity in the Council activities, he said. One of the key criteria will be their ability to make a meaningful contribution to the AC work. The ambassador named among the candidates China, Japan, South Korea and Italy. Six countries - France, Germany, Great Britain, Poland, Spain and the Netherlands – already have such status.

According to the AC press release, the 7th Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting is fast approaching. The meeting takes place in Katuaq, the Nuuk Cultural Centre, on 12 May 2011. On the Ministerial agenda are items such as “Challenges and opportunities for the Arctic Council in a changing Arctic” and signing of two important documents; the Nuuk Declaration and the Search and Rescue (SAR) agreement. The Nuuk Declaration is the Ministers’ common statement on the work of the Arctic Council, which outlines the direction for the incoming Swedish chairmanship. The SAR agreement, which will be the first ever legally binding agreement among the Arctic states negotiated under the auspices of the Arctic Council, will strengthen the cooperation on search and rescue between the Arctic States.

The Ministers will also welcome various new reports from the Arctic Council Working Groups, including a major report on Snow, Water, Ice and Permafrost in the Arctic, that emphasizes the need for increasing Arctic resilience. Other reports deal with mercury and short lived climate forcers (soot).

A photo exhibit, “Views from Greenland”, will be presented at the meeting venue. The exhibition shows the results of a photo competition that ran from 8 till 29 April 2011. In the competition, the people of Greenland were encouraged to send photos representing their views on climate, health and living conditions in Arctic. More than 200 pictures were received from photographers from all over Greenland who wanted to make sure the Arctic Council became aware of their opinion.

The Arctic is an enormous area, sprawling over one sixth of the earths' landmass; more than 30 million km2 and twenty-four time zones. It has a population of about four million, including over thirty different indigenous peoples and dozens of languages. The Arctic is a region of vast natural resources and a very clean environment compared with most areas of the world.

The Ottawa Declaration of 1996 formally established the Arctic Council as a high level intergovernmental forum to provide a means for promoting cooperation, coordination and interaction among the Arctic States, with the involvement of the Arctic Indigenous communities and other Arctic inhabitants on common Arctic issues, in particular issues of sustainable development and environmental protection in the Arctic.

Нead of State Duma CIS affairs committee: Ukrainian authorities should punish nationalists who carried out provocations in Lviv

Today at 09:28 | Interfax-Ukraine

Moscow, May 10 (Interfax) - The Ukrainian authorities should punish the nationalists who took part in provocations during the celebrations of the Victory Day in Lviv, Alexander Ostrovsky, the head of the State Duma CIS affairs committee, said.

"No doubt, such things have nothing to do with state policy and are not backed by the official Kyiv. I believe that such actions should be followed by uncompromising actions taken by Ukrainian law enforcement officials and judicial authorities. I would very much like to believe that all mechanisms the state now has will be used to punish these scoundrels," Ostrovsky told Ekho Moskvy on Monday.

The Lviv District Administrative Court earlier prohibited rallies in Lviv on May 9. On Monday, members of the Svoboda nationalist organization carried out a series of attacks against people who intended to visit the Hill of Glory. In particular, they took and destroyed a wreath of flowers from Russian diplomats that the Russian general consul intended to lay on the military cemetery. The nationalists also clashed with police.

Read more: http://www.kyivpost.com/news/russia/detail/103979/#ixzz1Lvh2JEXR

07:07 10/05/2011Top News

Russia youth lay wreaths at Latvia embassy for Vasily Kononov


MOSCOW, May 10 (Itar-Tass) — About 100 activists of Russian youth and patriotic movements on Monday evening came to the Latvian embassy in Moscow. The young people laid flowers at the walls of the diplomatic missions and lit candles in memory of the WW2 veteran, former partisan Vasily Kononov. On Monday, Victory Day, it was 40 days from the death of the hero, who for years has been in litigation with the Latvian authorities that declared him a war criminal.

“Unfortunately, Vasily Makarovich who devoted himself to fighting the Nazis and their accomplices, is no longer with us. We grieve for the departed hero and intend to do everything to stop the abuse of the fighter against fascism, and to clear the name of Vasily Kononov of unfair accusations,” leader of the Nashi (Ours) movement Maria Kislitsyna told Itar-Tass. “The unfair recognition of Kononov as a war criminal is a step towards whitewashing of fascism and an attempt to silence the role of the Soviet Union during World War II,” she pointed out.

Vasily Kononov died on March 31, 2011 at the age of 89. The former guerrilla for years was in litigation with the authorities of Latvia, who accused him of war crimes. The Riga court, in particular, ruled that in 1944 Kononov was involved in a punitive action in the town of Mazie Bati against civilians. The veteran stated that the citizens that were shot down there were accomplices of the Nazis. The legal proceedings initiated by the supporters of defending Kononov’s good name continue to this day.

Vasily Makarovich Kononov (1 January 1923 – 31 March 2011) was the only Soviet partisan from World War II convicted of crimes against humanity for his role in the Mazie Bati killings, where posing as German Wehrmacht officers, Kononov led a unit into a Latvian village and killed 9 people.

In July of 1998, original proceedings against Kononov were commenced by the Latvian Principal Public Prosecutor’s Office, whereby in August of 1998 he was formally charged and ultimately indicted in December of 1998. Kononov pleaded not guilty at the trial which began in January of 1999. Ample evidence of guilt was found by the court where Kononov was in violation of the Charter of the International Military Tribunal (“IMT”) Nuremberg, the Hague Convention (IV) 1907 and the Geneva Convention (IV) 1949. He was found guilty and sentenced to six years imprisonment.

However, on April 25, 2000, the Criminal Affairs Division in Latvia overturned his conviction on the grounds that it was not clearly established whether Kononov was operating on occupied territory and whether he and his men could be considered combatants, as well as whether the villagers could be considered prisoners of war based on their armament by the Germans. On June 27, 2000, the Supreme Court of Latvia dismissed the prosecutor's appeal, ultimately setting Kononov free.

On May 17, 2001, Kononov was once again charged by the prosecutor’s office following a fresh investigation. The deaths of six men the was deemed justifiable, but found the deaths of the three women deemed an act of banditry, in violation of the law, but ultimately barred by statute of limitations. The prosecution appealed and on April 30, 2004, the decision of the lower court was overturned and Kononov was found guilty of war crimes, and subsequently jailed. On September 28, 2004, the Supreme Court upheld the verdict of the court in dismissing Kononov's appeal.

On 19 June 2008, Kononov’s lawyer Mikhail Ioffe, announced that the European Court of Human Rights had overturned the Latvian court ruling. He also said that Kononov was seeking 5,187,000 euros in compensation for the two and a half years his client spent in a Latvian prison. A press release published by the ECHR on 24 July 2008 revealed the Court's decision, establishing, by four votes to three, that the Kononov's case presented a violation of Article 7 (no retrospective punishment) of the European Convention on Human Rights. Kononov was awarded 30,000 euros in respect of non-pecuniary damage. On 14 October 2008, the government of Latvia decided to appeal the 24 July judgment. On 9 February 2009, the case Kononov v. Latvia was referred to the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights. In May 2009, Lithuania has joined Latvia using its right to participate in the case.

In May of 2010, the Grand Chamber ruled, by 14 votes to 3, that the case presented no violation of Article 7 ECHR. Under the Hague Regulations of 1907, the court determined Kononov could be punished for failing to meet the regulation criteria, specifically, wearing German Wehrmact uniforms while carrying out the crimes. The court determined the execution of the villagers was in violation of established international law at the time, as Kononov was only entitled to arrest them, and his conviction was not barred by statute of limitations.

Kokoity is trying to keep his regime

http://eng.expertclub.ge/portal/cnid__8509/alias__Expertclub/lang__en/tabid__2546/default.aspx

10/05/2011 10:17

The so-called presidential elections scheduled in the occupied Tskhinvali region may not take place, reports the Ekho Kavkaza.

In order to retain power Kokoity plans to postpone the elections for a later date and to hold a referendum on extension of his power before that. The proposal was made by so-called first deputy defence minister of the puppet regime of the occupied Tskhinvali region Ibrahim Gasseev.

We should remind that the elections of the head of the puppet regime of Tskhinvali region are officially scheduled for this November.

Bout's lawyers upbeat on client's case

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/05/10/50057316.html

May 10, 2011 09:14 Moscow Time

The lawyers of the alleged Russian arms trader Victor Bout were upbeat on Tuesday about the outcome the latest pre-trial hearing of his case in New York.

Bout’s defense lawyers demand that what they describe as “coerced” evidence their client gave on the day of his arrest in Bangkok be deleted from the case file.

The next hearings - on the legality of Viktor Bout’s extradition to the United States - have been set for June 16 and the trial - for October 11.

Alleged Russian Arms Dealer in US Court

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/Alleged-Russian-Arms-Dealer-in-US-Court--121541044.html

May 09, 2011

Peter Fedynsky | New York City

Attorneys for accused Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout have filed a motion in U.S. federal court in New York City to suppress statements their client gave American agents the day of his arrest in Thailand in March 2008. The defense team used Monday’s suppression hearing to support its contention that the United States orchestrated the case against Bout.

Viktor Bout alleges in an affidavit that U.S. agents tricked him into speaking even after he told them he was not in the right state of mind immediately after his arrest in Bangkok. Bout’s defense team, however, acknowledges that U.S. agents informed him of his right, according to U.S. law, to remain silent in order to avoid self-incrimination.

At issue is an affidavit filed by Bout, which alleges that U.S. agents threatened him with hunger, disease, and possible rape in Thailand’s notorious prisons if he did not cooperate. The defense also alleges that agents lied to their client by saying Bout had only one opportunity to talk to them before he would be taken into custody by Thai authorities.

Two agents who interviewed Bout, Robert Zachariasiewicz and Louis Milione, took the witness stand in New York to deny having said anything about conditions in Thai prisons, which lack air conditioning. They insisted that Thai officials gave U.S. authorities only one opportunity to question Bout.

The United States alleges the defendant is an international arms trafficker who attempted to supply weapons to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, for use in killing Americans. The United States considers the FARC to be a terrorist organization.

Bout was arrested in Thailand in 2008 and extradited to the United States last November. Bout says he is a businessman and has pleaded not guilty to charges against him.

One of his attorneys, Albert Dayan, acknowledges Bout did not say anything to U.S. agents that hurts his case. But Dayan said the motion to suppress Bout’s post-arrest statements is part of a defense strategy that alleges Thailand did the bidding of the United States, which allegedly orchestrated the arrest. "So we as the United States, in my opinion, cannot turn a blind eye to what happened in Thailand, because whatever happened in Thailand, in my opinion, is the process of his prosecution by the United States," he said.

Dayan says the United States is, therefore, responsible for all possible due process violations by Thailand. These could include pressuring Bout to talk to U.S. agents when he was not ready or willing. Dayan said the issues involved are complicated and will be the subject of further defense motions. He indicates the defense strategy could also have a bearing on the legality of Bout’s extradition to the United States.

Judge Shira Scheindlin raised questions about the defense approach, saying Thailand appeared to act independently by filing its own arrest warrant against Bout and holding him for two-and-a-half years before his extradition.

Judge Scheindlin did not offer an immediate ruling on Monday’s motion to suppress. Bout’s next hearing is scheduled for June 16. The trial is scheduled to begin in October.

03:01 10/05/2011Top News

US court hears appeals in case of RF businessman Viktor Bout


NEW YORK, May 10 (Itar-Tass) — US federal court on Monday heard appeals in the case of Russian businessman Viktor Bout who is charged with arms smuggling. The appeals were submitted by the defence and prosecution sides.

In particular, Federal Judge Shira Sheindlin heard two witnesses for the prosecution - agents of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Louis Milione and Robert Zachariasiewicz. The judge said that she will notify the sides of her decision later.

Sheindlin appointed for June 16 hearing on the petition of Bout’s lawyers concerning the legality of his extradition from Thailand and on all submitted appeals.

The last arguments of the parties before the trial starts will be heard on July 21.

Russian businessman’s lawyer Albert Dayan filed a motion asking to drop all charges against his client because “the US government has no extraterritorial jurisdiction” and has no competence to consider “crimes taking place outside the United States.” However, for its part, the prosecution side insists that Bout allegedly agreed to supply weapons to an international terrorist organisation, knowing that it aimed to kill US citizens and officials in Colombia.

Lawyers of Viktor Bout are still hoping to challenge the legality of the Russian businessman's extradition from Thailand to the United States. The deadline for the submission of the related appeals, according to the decision of Federal Judge of the Southern District of New York Shira Sheindlin, was extended for three weeks, according to earlier reports.

The document says that the court decided to grant the defence appeal, and all the petitions relating to the extradition of Mr. Bout from Thailand, must be submitted no later than May 27, 2011. Next month, the prosecutors are to submit their petitions on this issue, and hearings on the parties’ motions concerning the Russian businessman’s extradition, will be held on July 21, 2011.

According to Albert Dayan, the extension of the deadline for the submission and consideration of appeals is necessitated by the fact that “all matters relating to extradition are very complicated and, among other things, relate to the laws of both the United States and Thailand.” “The defence still intends to consider the appropriateness of attempts by the US authorities to exert political pressure on the government and the Court of Thailand, which allowed to revise its original decision in favour of Bout that rejected the US request for extradition.” Currently, the defence is “thoroughly investigating of all aspects of the case, including the work in Thailand, an analysis of all the details, facts, questioning witnesses and checking sworn witness testimony.”

Albert Dayan has earlier sent to the Manhattan prison authorities the first appeal with a request to improve the prison conditions for the defendant. Since November last year when Viktor Bout was extradited to the United States he has been kept in a ward of the so-called special block that is more like a punishment cell without natural daylight, he has not right to fresh air, the arrested there are not allowed to make telephone calls or use e-mail, and during communication with the lawyers the prisoners are separated from them by a partition. Being a dedicated vegetarian, Bout has been unable to get proper nutrition. The prison ration does not provide fresh vegetables, fruit and juices, however, it is also impossible to buy them. Such incarceration conditions, believes the businessman, are created only for exerting psychological pressure on him and pose a serious danger to his health. “He cannot dietary supplements, and any of his recourses to doctors are ignored,” the RF vice consul said earlier. Moreover, in his letter Bout complained that he had “asked the prison authorities a permission to buy fruits, vegetables and juices with his own money in compliance with all the necessary security measures, but he has not received any response to these requests as well.” “Such treatment is contrary to international minimum prison standards,” believes Viktor Bout, “and it may soon result in a sharp deterioration of my health.”

Viktor Bout was arrested in Bangkok in March 2008 at the request of the United States. No evidence against Bout was presented to the Thai court during two years. However, in August 2010 the court ruled to extradite the Russian, on the grounds that his case “has no relation to politics, and the evidence facts, according to the plaintiff’s pledges, are in the United States.” This verdict has evoked a sharp reaction in Moscow – Russia’s Foreign Ministry called the decision of a higher court for extradition as “politically motivated and biased.”

Russia did not want Bout to face trial and called the Thai court decision in 2010 politically motivated. RF Foreign Ministry took steps to prevent his extradition to the US; Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggested that Bout was innocent. On 18 November 2010, shortly after Bout’s extradition to the United States, Russian President Medvedev’s aide Sergei Prikhodko claimed that Russia had “nothing to hide” in Bout’s criminal case stating, “it is in our interest that the investigation... be brought to completion, and [Bout] should answer all the questions the American justice system has. Bout is currently incarcerated in the Metropolitan Correctional Centre, New York City.

Wife of the defendant Alla Bout also believes that the decision on the extradition is political and was lobbied by the United States authorities. “The decision on the extradition was made by the Thai Cabinet, neglecting all the judicial procedures,” she said. Alla Bout stressed that, according to the laws of Thailand, the extradition can only be made pursuant to a court decision. “However, we were not given an opportunity to prove Bout’s innocence in court,” said the businessman’s wife.

Russian businessman Viktor Bout is charged with four counts: conspiracy to kill US citizens, conspiracy to kill officers in government service, criminal conspiracy to purchase and sale antiaircraft missiles and criminal conspiracy to supply weapons to terrorist groups. The Russian has pleaded not guilty on all of the charges brought against him.

If convicted, the 44-year-old businessman faces 25 years in prison to life imprisonment. The beginning of the trial of Victor Bout is scheduled for October 11, 2011.

Police kill up to five militants in North Caucasus

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20110510/163948512.html

11:25 10/05/2011

Police killed up to five suspected militants on Tuesday in a raid in the southern Russian republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, a spokesman said.

Earlier reports said police had surrounded the terrorist group in an apartment in downtown Nalchik, the capital of the volatile republic.

“Police are currently undertaking a ‘clean-up’ operation in the apartment where the militants have been hiding,” the spokesman said. “According to preliminary data, three to five suspected militants have been killed.”

A special operation in North Caucasus in late April led to the death of 10 insurgents thought to be behind a string of terrorist attacks and murders in the region, including an attack on Moscow tourists in a ski resort in February.

A police spokesman said earlier on Tuesday that the suspected killer of the former mufti of Kabardino-Balkaria was believed to be in the flat.

Mufti Anas Pshikhachev, an influential figure in the volatile North Caucasus region, was dragged out of his home and shot by insurgents in December.

Until recently Kabardino-Balkaria was considered one of the calmer republics of the mainly Muslim North Caucasus, where terrorist attacks and shootouts with police are common.

Russian federal troops fought two brutal wars against Islamist separatists in neighboring Chechnya in the 1990s and early 2000s.

NALCHIK (Kabardino-Balkaria), May 10 (RIA Novosti)

May 10, 2011 09:42

Up to five militants killed in Nalchik – source

http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=242308

NALCHIK. May 10 (Interfax) - From four to five militants, including one woman, are said to have been killed in a security operation in Nalchik, a source in Kabardino-Balkaria's law enforcement services told Interfax.

"The fire has already been put out and policemen are entering the apartment. They will establish how many militants have been eliminated," the source said.

One of them has already been identified as Ruslan Fedyanovich, he said.

Official representatives of law enforcement services have so far been unavailable for comment.

Tm

Special operation in Kabardino-Balkaria concluded

http://vestnikkavkaza.net/news/politics/13665.html

The police of Kabardino-Balkaria have concluded a special operation in the center of Nalchik. Militants were killed, a police source in Kabardino-Balkaria told RIA Novosti.

A militant group was blockaded into an apartment on Tuesday morning. A counter-terrorism operation started. The militants were killed at about 09.00 (Moscow time).

The source said that firefighters are currently extinguishing a fire that started in the apartment.The police believe that Astimir Mamishev, the murderer of Kabardino-Balkarian mufti Anas Pshikhachev, could be among the dead militants.

Pshikhachev was killed in Nalchik in December 2010. Two assailants lured him from his house and shot him. 9mm rounds were found at the spot. Pshikhachev was one of the most authoritative religious figures in the North Caucasus.

Police seal off terrorist group in North Caucasus

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20110510/163948512.html

09:06 10/05/2011

Police have surrounded a group of suspected terrorists in a flat in the southern Russian republic of Kabardino-Balkaria and are preparing an attack.

A special operation in the region in late April led to the death of 10 insurgents thought to be behind a string of terrorist attacks and murders in the region, including an attack on Moscow tourists in a ski resort in February.

A police spokesman said the suspected killer of the mufti of Kabardino-Balkaria is believed to be in the flat.

Mufti Anas Pshikhachev, an influential figure in the volatile North Caucasus region, was dragged out of his home and shot by insurgents in December.

Until recently Kabardino-Balkaria was considered one of the calmer republics of the mainly Muslim North Caucasus, where terrorist attacks and shootouts with police are common.

Russian federal troops fought two brutal wars against Islamist separatists in neighboring Chechnya in the 1990s and early 2000s.

NALCHIK (Kabardino-Balkaria), May 10 (RIA Novosti)

Suspected murderer of mufti Anas Pshikhachev blockaded in Kabardino-Balkaria


The police of Kabardino-Balkaria have blockaded a group of militants at an apartment at the center of Nalchik, RIA Novosti reports.

The operation started at 07.30 (Moscow time), spokesman of the operative headquarters of Kabardino-Balkaria said.

The police suspect that Astimir Mamishev, suspected murderer of mufti Anas Pshikhachev in December, is among the militants.

Bomber kills officer in Russia's Dagestan region

Today at 11:30 | Reuters

MAKHACHKALA, Russia, May 10 (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed one police officer in the capital of Russia's violence-plagued Dagestan region in the North Caucasus on Tuesday, an official said.

The bomber detonated explosives strapped to his body when police tried to stop him at an intersection to check his documents, the official said on condition of anonymity.

The blast killed one police officer and wounded another, he said. The bomber was also killed.

Interfax news agency initially reported a car bomb blast, but later cited a police official as saying the explosion was set off by a suicide bomber.

Violent incidents occur almost daily in the mainly Muslim provinces of the North Caucasus, where rebels want to establish an Islamic state.

Nearly a decade after federal forces drove a separatist government from power in neighbouring Chechnya, Dagestan is considered the heart of the insurgency. It has seen some of the worst violence, including clashes that killed nine on Sunday.

In the nearby Kabardino-Balkaria province, four alleged Islamist militants were killed by security forces on Tuesday, Russian news agencies reported.

Read more: http://www.kyivpost.com/news/russia/detail/103988/#ixzz1Lw87LpI9

Car bomb explodes in Dagestan: report

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/bric-yard/car-bomb-explodes-dagestan-report

A car bomb explodes in Makhachkala, capital of Dagestan, capping a violent few days in the troubled region.

Miriam Elder

May 10, 2011 03:55

A car bomb exploded Tuesday morning in the center of Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, Interfax reported, capping a violent few days in the troubled southern Russian region. The mainly Muslim region, which neighbors Chechnya, has grown increasingly violent in the past few years. It's early yet, but there are reports of injuries.

On Sunday, authorities announced they had killed eight insurgents in a counterterrorism operation in the south of the region. They also said they destroyed three bunkers used for storing weapons and food. A member of the security services was also killed in the attack.

Also Sunday, Yakhya Magomedov, the editor of an Islamic newspaper called Al Salam, was shot dead in his village. Last week, the Committee to Protect Journalists called on local police to investigate an attack on Magomed Khanmagomedov, a correspondent for respected local weekly Chernovik (I interviewed its editor-in-chief for this story) who was beaten while on assignment in the city of Derbent.

10 May 2011, 11:04

Islamic newspaper editor, OMON officer killed in Dagestan

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=8428

Makhachkala, May 10, Interfax - An editor of the Avar-language version of the Al Salam Islamic newspaper, Yakhya Magomedov, was killed in the village of Kokrek in Dagestan's Khasavyurt District last Sunday, spokesman for the republic's branch of the Russian Investigative Committee Alkhas Amirkhanov told Interfax.

"We were alerted about the crime at around 11:00 p.m. Moscow time. The preliminary information available to us suggests that Magomedov was killed by a firearm bullet," he said.

An officer of Dagestan's OMON riot police units was killed in the village of Shamkhal in Makhachkala's Kirov District, he said.

"The preliminary information available to us indicates that the serviceman was killed by a firearm bullet in the yard of his own house at 10:50 p.m. Moscow time. A pre-investigation inquiry has been launched," Amirkhanov said.

Emir of CE Dagestani Front and Governor of Province Dagestan appointed

http://www.kavkazcenter.com/eng/content/2011/05/10/14278.shtml

Publication time: Today at 01:41 Emirate time

The Kavkaz Center has received the text of the Omra (Decree) of the Caucasus Emirate Emir Dokku Abu Usman on the appointment of Emir of the Dagestani Front and Governor of Province Dagestan.

***

OMRA № 25

"On the appointment of Emir of the Dagestani Front of the Armed Forces of the Caucasus Emirate"

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful!

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. May peace and blessings be upon the Prophet Muhammad, his family, his companions and all those who followed his path till the Day of Judgment. To proceed:

I decree

1. To appoint the Commander of the Central Sector of the Dagestani Front and Deputy Emir of the Dagestani Front, Ibragimkhalil Daudov (Emir Salih), as Commander of the Dagestani Front of the Caucasus Emirate's Armed Forces.

2. The Omra comes into effect on the date of its signing.

Emir of the Caucasus Emirate

Dokku Abu-Usman (Dokku Umarov)

Jumada-ul-Sani 06, 1432 (April 09, 2010)

***

OMRA № 26

"On the appointment of the Governor of the Caucasus Emirate's Dagestan Province"

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful!

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. May peace and blessings be upon the Prophet Muhammad, his family, his companions and all those who followed his path till the Day of Judgment. To proceed:

I decree

1. To appoint the Commander of the Dagestani Front, Emir Salih (Ibragimkhalil Daudov), as the Governor of the Caucasus Emirate's Dagestan Province.

2. The Omra comes into effect on the date of its signing.

Emir of the Caucasus Emirate

Dokku Abu-Usman (Dokku Umarov)

Jumada-ul-Sani 06, 1432 (April 09, 2010)

***

Department of Current Information

Kavkaz Center

May 10, 2011

10:26

Medvedev sacks five police generals, one colonel

http://www.interfax.com/news.asp

Russian president appoints police authorities in Southern Federal District


Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has appointed Colonel Nikolai Ruy as the Deputy Police Chief of Krasnodar Territory and head investigator. Colonel Vyacheslav Bolgov became Ruy’s deputy, RIA Novosti reports.

Medvedev also appointed Colonel Vitaly Shevchenko as the Deputy Police Chief of Krasnodar Territory, Colonel Mikhail Molokanov as the Deputy Police Chief of Volgograd Region, Alexander Rechitsky as the Minister of the Interior of Adygeya.

12 people were killed in the Kushyovskaya Cossack village in Krasnodar Territory in November 2010. The local criminal group was operating for many years with connivance of the police. 12 people were detained, including organizer of the crime.

The Prosecutor General’s Office, the Investigation Committee and the Interior Ministry started a mass inspection of police structures. Crimes were revealed. The regional Police Chief Sergey Kucheryuk was dismissed.

12:18 10/05/2011RUSSIAN PRESS REVIEW

Prosecutors arrested


MOSCOW, May 10 (Itar-Tass) - Two of four former Moscow region prosecutors were arrested in the case over illegal gambling business in the Moscow region, after other suspects testified against them.

Former head of the department for supervision over investigation Dmitry Urumov and former Noginsk prosecutor Vladimir Glebov were arrested on May 6. Their arrest was sanctioned by the city's Basmanny court. Urumov and Glebov are accused of taking bribes from businessman Ivan Nazarov, who had been arrested together with his associates back in February on charges of arranging an illegal gambling network in the Moscow region.

Former deputy prosecutor of Moscow Region Alexander Igantenko and former Klin prosecutor Eduard Kaplun have been put on the federal wanted list.

11:20 10/05/2011Top News

Number of wild fires may increase in Central Russia


MOSCOW, May 10 (Itar-Tass) —— The situation connected with wild fires may aggravate in a number of regions of Central Russia, the Russian Ministry for Emergencies (RME) reports.

“According to forecasts, the most difficult situation may develop in the Far Eastern, Siberian and Central Federal Districts, in the Khabarovsk, Baikal, Altai, Amur, Voronezh, Lipetsk, Moscow, Ryazan and Yaroslavl Regions,” the ministry reports.

“Over the past 24 hours, two wild fires on an area of more than 0.3 hectares were registered in Central Russia, all of them were put out,” the report says. According to Tuesday’s morning data, there are no wild fires in the Central Federal District at present.

All in all, eighty wild fires, or 8.5 times less than over the same period of 2010, were registered in Central Russia this spring. “Their total area amounted to 44.9 hectares, which is 11.7 times less than last year,” the report noted.

11:40 10/05/2011Top News

Khakassia prepares work to build temporary bridge across Abakan


GORNO-ALTAISK, May 10 (Itar-Tass) — The Khakassia Republic started preparation work on building a temporary rail bridge by troops across the Abakan River instead of the collapsed one, Itar-Tass learnt on Tuesday at the press service of the republican government.

The Russian Defence Ministry issued a permission to involve in construction the personnel of the Abakan railway construction battalion. Designers will submit recommendations to the military, within two or three days, on building a detour bridge. Workers of Khakassia timbering enterprises started felling coastal trees, while specialists of highway construction and hydro-technical schemes pinpoint places of approach roads for the operation of special machinery.

The temporary rail bridge will help during the summer period to bring necessary cargoes for the Khakassia economy for the needs of leading republican enterprises. It is planned in the meantime to complete repair work to restore the main bridge.

Specialists of the Ministry for Emergencies ensure safety of work on water. Besides, the local department of the Ministry for Emergencies orchestrated work of numerous ministries and departments which it was necessary to involve for efficient work.

The Khakassia rescue agency set up a crisis centre, collecting information round-the-clock and determining consistency of work to overcome consequences of the bridge collapse and its restoration.

In the morning of May 7, the railway bridge, belonging to the Division of Temporary Operation firm (city of Sayanogorsk), had dropped into the Abakan River. There were no casualties in connection with this incident. The siding was not used for carrying passengers. The main task of the railway siding was to bring raw materials for aluminium production and shipping ready-made products.

The Khakassia authorities announced the state of emergency as a result of the bridge collapse in the belief that under the present circumstances there is a threat of stoppage of aluminium production and subsequent social tension.

The time of restoring the Sayano-Shushenskaya hydropower station, using the rail siding for bringing equipment, can also turn under threat.

Russian Press at a Glance, Tuesday, May 10, 2011

http://en.rian.ru/papers/20110510/163948840.html

09:35 10/05/2011

POLITICS

United Russia has called on Federation Council Speaker Sergei Mironov to resign as tensions between pro-Kremlin parties rise ahead of December's State Duma elections and the 2012 presidential vote

(Moscow Times, Vedomosti)

President Dmitry Medvedev promised upgrades and dignity for the armed forces as a record 20,000 soldiers and officers marched across Red Square for Victory Day on Monday

(Moscow Times)

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's promise on Friday to create a "strategic initiatives agency" for the creation of undefined social projects is an attempt to win over voters in an election year, experts say

(Vedomosti)

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

Russia's largest search engine Yandex, which is due to hold an IPO on Nasdaq in late May, has been valued at $6.4-7 billion

(Kommersant, Vedomosti)

Russian tycoon Mikhail Prokhorov is negotiating the sale of Quadra, the former TGC-4 generating company, to Inter RAO

(Vedomosti)

The Central Bank has revealed the structure of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Some 40% of it is money earned in Russia

(Vedomosti)

SOCIETY

Riot police roughly broke up a protest over the destruction of the Khimki forest, briefly detaining two dozen activists and beating one so badly that he required hospitalization, environmentalists said

(Moscow Times, Kommersant)

As warm May weather revives memories of the smog that caused the capital to choke for weeks last summer, the Emergency Situations Ministry has offered assurances that it has control over the source of the air pollution - burning peat bogs and forests in the Moscow region

(Moscow Times)

OIL & GAS

Rosneft finds itself in a peculiar position this week after an international arbitration tribunal decided to give it the last word on a $16 billion tie-up - not with BP as it had hoped but rather with TNK-BP, a smaller rival with whom it previously said it did not want to work

(Moscow Times, Kommersant, Vedomosti)

IT

Russia's largest Internet registrar, Ru-Center, will annul sites in the Russian-language domain (.àä) if it finds that they violate trademark rights

(Vedomosti)

Ambassador: Russia could tell EU 'nobody is perfect'

http://www.euractiv.com/en/global-europe/ambassador-russia-tell-eu-perfect-interview-504660

Published: 10 May 2011

Russia understands the present difficulties holding up the process of EU integration, just like EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy has never publicly criticised Moscow over the human rights situation in Russia "because he understands it," Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's ambassdor to the EU, told EurActiv in an exclusive interview.

Vladimir Chizhov is a career diplomat. Before being appointed Russia's ambassador to the EU in 2005, he was his country's deputy minister of foreign affairs.

He was speaking to EurActiv Senior Editor Georgi Gotev.

To read a shortened version of this interview, please click here.

Mr. Ambassador, we are meeting a few days after the demise of Osama Bin Laden. How was the news received in Moscow and what do the Russian leadership and the Russian people think about what happened in Pakistan?

We believe that it was a successful operation on the part of the American special forces, which has led to the killing of a man widely believed to be the mastermind, not only behind 9/11, but also behind a number of other terrorist activities, including some in Russia and the northern Caucasus. The links between Al-Qaeda and terrorists who used to operate in various parts of the world, including Russia, was quite evident.

So we consider this as part of overall international efforts which also included a number of successful operations by Russian special forces in our own territory. Of course the difference being that the Russians operated within their own national territory and the Americans operated in the territory of Pakistan. Well, I leave aside the issue of US-Pakistani relations in this respect…

But in any case you don't appear to share feelings expressed in some circles in Europe, suggesting that the Americans should have captured him alive.

I wouldn't want to speculate on this. Of course bringing somebody to justice is a formula that is usually referred to in the context of bringing somebody to trial. But none of us know the actual circumstances. None of us have actually seen the corpse! [laughs] And we do not know the actual details.

Perhaps at some point they will be published and there will be transparency, but I think [US] President [Barack] Obama has a valid point saying, "putting a picture of a dead body with a bullet in his head could actually ignite feelings in some places across the world".

Of course if Russia wants details, I think Russian President Dmitry Medvedev could speak to his colelague Mr Obama and get all the details…

They will have a chance a couple of weeks from now at the G8 summit in Deauville, just around the corner from here. But I can confirm that actually the Russian government was informed by the US government before Obama went on television.

By the way, if I'm asking about this detail, it's also because when they fight with terrorists the Russian forces usually take no prisoners, if you pardon the expression.

In most cases the people we are dealing with are people who have nothing to lose. They actually are indoctrinated to become a Shahid [martyr]. That's how those suicide bombers come to act.

In many cases, of course, the police and the special forces, each time they provide an opportunity for surrender, but only on very rare occasions is there a positive reaction from the terrorists. In most cases they start shooting, and then there is no other way to deal with them.

What was the Russian reaction to this wave of revolutions in Northern Africa and in the Arab World in general? In several countries Russia has traditionally good relations, therefore there ought to be mixed feelings about it.

I wouldn't like to boast, but I can tell you quite responsibly that Russian diplomacy saw it coming. Of course the situations are different in different countries. We shouldn't compare for example seemingly similar events, say in Libya and in Bahrain or in Egypt.

Some people are talking about "Facebook revolutions" or "Twitter revolutions". But you know in Egypt only 4% of the population actually owns a computer, in Bahrain it is 88%, which makes the whole situation quite different.

In Bahrain it has taken on more of a religious split between the Shiite majority and the Sunni minority. In Syria only now some people started remembering that the president actually belongs to the Alawites. But you know the current regime in Syria used to be called the "Party of Arab Socialist Renewal". And it was certainly a non-religious regime. Well, in Libya they're all Sunnis, so there is no difference of this kind.

So the situations are all different but there are similarities of course. Some are related to the economic situation, but again the per capita GDP in Libya was several times higher than in Egypt. The nature of the regimes, of course most of them have overstayed their luck [laughs], to put it bluntly.

But also, you see, if you look at the demographics, the average age of an Egyptian is 24. So the average Egyptian had not known any other president. In Yemen, reportedly, I don't know how accurate the figures are, reportedly it is 17. And the president has been around for how many – 32? – that is two generations!

What we're concerned about of course is that the nature of the transitions has in many places become violent and blood was shed and there were casualties, which we certainly deplore. We were quite apprehensive about the developments in Libya. That is why we supported Resolution 1970 which introduced certain restrictions, sanctions, and we allowed subsequent Resolution 1973 to pass by abstaining.

Well you can ask why we didn't veto, that's the reason, because we did not in any way condone what Muammar Gaddafi and his government was doing. We didn't vote in favour because we had doubts, like other countries did! Like Germany did, similar doubts. Because the resolution, which was positive in essence, was also vague in terms of means of implementation, and subsequent events have shown that our concerns had been at that stage quite legitimate.

In particular there was this attack against a building where Muammar Gaddafi was believed to be, and the attack killed one of his sons. Is this something that Russia doesn’t accept?

I personally believe that it has very little to do with establishing the no-fly zone and protecting the civilian population. So some of the actions of the coalition are quite questionable. Now, here in Brussels we hear about the EU planning and of a military operation of its own to provide security for humanitarian assistance, in case there is a request coming from the UN.

But there is no such request inside at the moment. I want to make one thing clear, and I want to put emphasis on it: a request by the UN should not be a request by certain officials at the UN secretariat or even a request from OCHA [the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]. A "request from the UN", strictly speaking, is a request from the Security Council.

So we cannot exclude that the course of events may require such an operation but in this case the EU should go through its member states, should go to the Security Council, and ask for a new resolution, because this would go way beyond what the Security Council has approved so far.

But what would be Russia's main motivation to agree? Massive bloodshed?

I don't want to sound like a Cassandra in this situation! I believe that the whole Libyan crisis has only one way of being settled, that is the way of political negotiation. I am personally somewhat concerned that the mediation efforts undertaken so far by, for example, the African Union, have not been successful because there was a negative stance, not from Tripoli by the way, but from Benghazi!

The Transitional Council with which we are in correspondence has not been forthcoming in accepting a ceasefire. But how can you launch a political process without a ceasefire?

The latest that I read this morning, somebody from Benghazi saying "all we need to achieve a clear military victory is $3 billion". [laughs] I would be quite cautious in opening up the purses!

No-one can sell arms even to the rebels, even if they have money.

Precisely! According to Resolution 1973 a complete arms embargo covers all sides in that conflict. And that includes sending military trainers or advisers.

Is the Russian position closer to the position of Turkey, which is a position of mediation?

We were not planning to mediate ourselves, but we welcome all efforts, be it the African Union, be it the Arab League, be it whoever. First of all to put an end to the bloodshed and to open a political process.

Even if Gaddafi stays in power?

That's for the Libyan people to decide, isn't it? If there is a compromise that is acceptable to all, we will be able to live with it. If the people demand – well, who are the people? If you look at what's happening inside Tripoli, you will see rallies in support of Gaddafi. So you cannot say that 100% of the Libyan people demand that he leaves. It means it is a political crisis, with unfortunately a resort to violent means.

Are you happy with your relations with your counterparts in the European Union, with Catherine Ashton, for example who is under fire in EU circles?

She has been under fire from the first day that she is in office! I have a lot of sympathy for her, because this was a structure that was built from the top down. So she was given the steering wheel without the other wheels or the engine, and was expected to drive immediately in four different directions!

How do you work with her?

I work with her quite well. I've known her since she was commissioner for trade, before she became high representative. The future will judge whether it was the wisest of all decisions to combine the functions of several people in the previous incarnation of the European Union into a single post and not even give her deputies.

Well, they say several commissioners can act as deputies at the political level…

Of course they can! [laughs] But I've seen that in a number of cases already when she was physically unable to participate in some events, she was replaced not by commissioners but by the Hungarian foreign minister. What is the impact of this substitution on efficiency? Perhaps it is too early to judge.

I would like to come back to the agenda of Russia-EU bilateral relations. Are there any big events coming up? How would you assess relations?

I will perhaps proceed chronologically. Before the end of this month, apart from the encounter in Deauville which will be the G8 summit, we will have a permanent partnership council (PPC) in the field of freedom, justice and security in St. Petersburg on 19 May with the ministers of justice and interior of Hungary and Poland, participating and [Home Affairs] Commissioner [Cecelia] Malmström. It's not foreign policy so it's part of the domain where the national presidencies are still valid.

Is it about visas?

It's going to cover our visa-free dialogue. It will cover our dialogue on updating the existing visa facilitation regime. I hope it will be able to launch a dialogue on migration. It will cover our cooperation in the anti-terrorist field, in fighting organised crime, drug trafficking, our cooperation with Europol and Eurojust, and above judicial cooperation in criminal matters, in civil and trade matters, and so on.

So it's a very broad agenda. And understandably these PPCs take place twice a year. So there is the meeting on 19 August in St. Petersburg but another one is planned for October in Warsaw.

And then we have our 27th summit which will be taking place on 9-10 June in the city of Nizhny Novgorod, east of Moscow, but not as far east as Khabarovsk or Khanty Mansiysk [where similar summits took place before].

Nizhny Novgorod, the former Gorky? I remember its citizens didn't like the name 'Gorky' because it means 'bitter', and there is nothing bitter in Nizhny Novgorod: it’s a beautiful city on the Volga…

That was the pseudonym the famous author Maksim Gorky took for himself. He had a dry sense of humour! [laughs] Indeed…

And also our parliamentary cooperation is proceeding. There was a working group of the parliamentary cooperation committee last week in Astrakhan. There will be another before the end of this month in Sochi. And a formal annual meeting of the committee will be in Warsaw on 1 September.

Also our negotiations on the new basic agreement: the process overall is continuing but we've taken a technical pause to sort out some issues that have arisen in the area of trade and investment. So informal consultations are ongoing. There was a round last week in Geneva. And the next one is planned for next week in Moscow.

And of course the partnership for modernisation is underway. There will be a meeting of the two coordinators on the EU side and the deputy minister for economic development on the Russian side.

How about the more strategic projects? Prime Minister Putin spoke of a "harmonious community of economies from Lisbon to Vladivostok". Are you thinking of putting flesh to this idea? For the time being relations between Russia and the European Union are managed by yearly summits, but for such a project, maybe a new institutional framework will be needed?

The new institutional framework will be the concluding chapter of the new basic agreement. When we approach the final stage of those negotiations we will certainly create a modern effective structure of our relationship. In the meantime of course, "harmonious economic space" presupposes that Russia becomes a member of the WTO.

Which it is going to become, according to recent optimistic statements.

Yes, I am quite confident.

Are there any new problems?

When you have negotiated something for almost 18 years, all the big issues have been settled. Then the small issues became big issues. They were settled. Now it's the remaining tiny bits that understandably are being blown out of proportion.

By some countries?

By some countries. And I would say there were two exogeneous factors. One was the global financial economic crisis, which has led to certain anti-crisis measures being taken by most countries, including the EU and Russia, which require certain explanations as to their temporary, anti-crisis nature, and compatibility with WTO rules.

And secondly, while we continued negotiating, and actually some of us becoming frustrated by the lack of expected progress along that negotiating track. We were more successful along a parallel track of creating a customs union with two former Soviet countries, Kazakhstan and Belarus.

So this also led to a certain intellectual effort, brainstorming how best to create an interface between WTO membership and this customs union. And the customs union is already evolving into a single economic space.

All three members of the customs union have applied to join the WTO but each is at a different stage of accession, Russia being the most advanced. Kazakhstan actually is not far behind. But Belarus for reasons which have nothing to do with trade or its economy is actually at the beginning phase.

So this had to be addressed also in the context of our negotiations on the new basic agreement with the European Union. So this has taken some time, understandably, but now we believe we are proceeding at a satisfactory pace.

By the way, all this is taking place against the background of a number of frozen conflicts like Transnistria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Do you think that this 'harmonious community of nations' could co-exist with those frozen conflicts or that these should be solved in the meantime?

You know, even the European Union has changed its terminology. It no longer refers to "frozen conflicts". It refers to "protracted conflict", which in the case of Transnistria is correct, but which in the case of Abkhazia and South Ossetia is no longer correct, because those conflicts have been settled. There are two new vibrant democracies that appeared on the world map with whom my country has established full diplomatic relations.

How the government in Tbilisi has used that is of course their problem. In our view it should get accustomed to realities on the ground. And what is important is that in order to bring stability into that part of the world, the first thing that needs to be done, I would say, are durable guarantees of non-recurrence to use of force by Georgia.

But Georgia has the support of the European Union. You may say it is their point of view, but they have 27 countries on their side.

In what?

In considering that their territory is occupied by a foreign force.

No, the European Union has not referred to the notion of an occupation, which would have been wrong from the point of view of international law. Because occupation means that a foreign power is exercising administrative rule over the whole territory of another country or part of it, which is not the case there.

There are credible reports of ethnic cleansing, which unfortunately cannot be verified…

If they cannot be verified, they cannot be considered credible!

Yes, but it is Russia which prevents European observers from going to this territory.

No. It is the local governments. The EU should address the governments of Abkhazia and South Ossetia if it wants to enter their territory

The EU doesn't recognise them. But my question was in this sense: Do you think that a big political project between the European Union and Russia can take place amid all these conflicts?

There are many conflicts, unfortunately, across the world. There are still several conflicts, protracted conflicts, in Europe. There is the conflict over Kosovo and both of us know that EU member states have different views on that. We, as Russia, we share the view of those five countries that have not recognised Kosovo.

There is the unresolved Cyprus problem. Actually there is an ongoing UN peacekeeping operation within EU territory. So nobody's perfect!

You seem to like the fact that due to various internal problems the European Union has an immigration wave, which puts France and Italy in a situation where, if you like, there is a 'discount price tag' attached to human rights and to basic freedoms in the European Union…

No, I'm actually quite unhappy about the recent problems with immigration in the European Union, because you will understand that is not very helpful in terms of creating a positive environment around our own dialogue with the European Union aimed at abolishing visas.

Actually I believe that the achievements of European integration that have taken place so far, including the introduction of the euro, including the introduction of the Schengen system, they are major achievements. Of course they are coming under strain and that is quite understandable, because in the financial field you have a single currency but the fiscal policies have remained in the hands of the individual states, and that was bound to clash.

In the field of immigration, again, having a single Schengen space which covers most of the European Union requires the need to jointly address issues of immigration. Both illegal and legal migration, which in many cases had remained, again, in the competence of individual member states. That is why we have seen what we have seen.

Next time Herman Van Rompuy speaks about human rights in Russia, will you speak to him about human rights in the European Union?

Herman Van Rompuy has not spoken on this publicly, because I hope he understands the situation. It may not be perfect. I will never claim that the human rights situation in my country is perfect, but it is improving. And there are consistent efforts by the authorities to promote dialogue with EU civil society, to improve the work of the judiciary, to reform the policy, which are currently taking place, and of course we do have a dialogue on human rights.

Actually the day before yesterday there was a full day of consultation on human rights with the European Union, which according to reports from my colleagues who work in those consultations took place in a very positive and constructive atmosphere. This is confirmed by the press release published by the EU yesterday.

I think you wanted to add something.

I am happy to be able to inform you that a public criminal case about a prominent lawyer, Markelov, and a young girl journalist who were both killed in downtown Moscow: this has been resolved.

[Stanislav Markelov, a human rights lawyer, had just come out of a press conference when he was shot on a sidewalk. Anastasia Baburova, a journalist, was killed trying to defend him. Markelov worked closely with Anna Politkovskaya, a journalist, and with Natalya Estemirova, a human rights campaigner, both of whom were killed in separate attacks.]

And this morning I saw reports that the two perpetrators, a man and a woman, the man who actually did the shooting, he got life. And the woman got 18 years. So this has been resolved. So don't write that not a single case which is so often referred by various human rights activists, has been resolved! There is some progress.

16:00 07/05/2011OUR INTERVIEW

“We Are Working Better Than We Ever Have” - Admiral MULLEN On Cooperation With Russia


Mikhail Gusman (ITAR-TASS, St. Petersburg)

On a visit to St. Petersburg Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen gave an exclusive interview to ITAR-TASS.

- Mr. Chairman! Thank you very much for you time. What is the purpose of your current visit to Russia? And what’s your vision for the professional mil-to-mil cooperation with Russia in the time ahead?

- Well, I first met General Makarov over two and a half years ago in Helsinki. One of the things that we said we would do would meet to discuss the current issues of the day, the areas of common interest.

We try to reach mutual understanding, we have differences, and I give him a lot of credit. He has been very responsive in that regard. We have had a series of meetings, I feel free to call him on the phone.

So the visit today is to follow up on a series of meetings between our staffs on major issues we have had discussions about. /One is/ how to combat terrorism. We had a difficult discussion on missile defense, we’ve been looking at ways to involve our younger officers together, to exercise together.

It was a very broad discussion in terms of global issues. But very specific. In terms of taking steps to understand each other better and to work together better. I think that we are from the military standpoint working better than we ever have.

Still, we have an awful lot to do.

wikileaks.org 1105… · Web viewRussia 110510. Basic Political Developments. LAVROV ARRIVES IN BAGHDAD TO DISCUSS MILITARY-TECHNOLOGICAL AND ENERGY COOPERATION WITH IRAQI LEADERS.

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