Moscow press review for June 4, 2004 (Update)
MOSCOW. June 4 (Interfax) - The following is a digest of Moscow newspapers published on June 4. Interfax does not
accept liability for information in these stories. POLITICS & ECONOMICS
The Financial Monitoring Committee is asking the State Duma to restore government regulation of major personal
expenditures in order to fight money laundering and financing of terrorism (Vedomosti, p. A1).
OIL & GAS
OPEC on Thursday decided to increase oil production quotas
Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov, speaking Thursday at a corporate governance conference cosponsored by the World Bank
and billionaire Vladimir Potanin, said business owners should make their assets more transparent and bring wages out
from under the table (Vedomosti, p. A2; Moscow Times, p. 1; Vremya Novostei, p. 2).
in August, thus only officially acknowledging current
overproduction. Crude prices are expected to remain high
In what has been called a precedent-setting case, a St. Petersburg court on Thursday ruled that United Russia Deputy
Alexander Morozov should be stripped of his seat in the State Duma over violations of the election law (Moscow Times, p.
3; Vremya Novostei, p. 3). HEADLINE NEWS
Italian prosecutors on Thursday issued an arrest warrant for Yevgeny Ananyev, the former general director of Russian
state arms exporter Rosvooruzheniye. Ananyev is accused of laundering kickbacks from the sale of MiG-29 fighter planes
(Kommersant, p. 1).
by just 2 million barrels a day now and another 500,000 barrels
(Vedomosti, p. A1; Kommersant, p.13; Vremya Novostei, p. 7).
TNK-BP and Gazprom have taken a first step toward forming a partnership on the huge Kovykta gas field, but
differences still remain (Vedomosti, p. B1; Moscow Times, p. 5; Vremya Novostei, p. 7).
Russian oil major Lukoil has begun taking out insurance to cover the liability of the company and its executives.
Lukoil plans to spend $2 million for $30 million in liability coverage in 2004-2005 (Vedomosti, p. A1). BANKING, FINANCE
& INSURANCE
Faced with a liquidity crisis brought on by suspicions of ties with scandal-ridden Sodbiznesbank, the bank
Kredittrast stopped payments and opted for liquidation. This is the first time a Russian bank has been shut down by just
rumors, but it is unlikely to be the last (Kommersant, p. 1). TELECOMMUNICATIONS, MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY
Russian physicist Martyn Nunuparov has earned $2.5 million and gained a strategic investor in AFK Sistema for his
wireless devices that operate on manual power. The invention won the grand prize Thursday in the Russian Innovation
competition (Vedomosti, p. A1). TRANSPORTATION
The Alfa Group and Russian flag carrier Aeroflot are negotiating to form a joint company to run Sheremetyevo airport,
including the future Sheremetyevo-3 terminal. A deal could be sealed by Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov today (Vedomosti,
p. B1).
Boeing has invested over $1.3 billion in Russian joint ventures, but is finding it difficult to sustain this level of
investment because of restrictions on sales to domestic airlines, Thomas Pickering, the aircraft maker's senior
vice president for international relations and a former U.S. ambassador to Russia, said on Thursday (Moscow Times, p.
4). [RU ASIA EUROPE EEU EMRG PRESS AIR AER ELC BNK CRIM POL CRU NGS ENR INS] vp kg
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