11 June 2004 13:23
Russia not to fine British Council over tax dispute
Moscow, 11 June: The Russian Interior Ministry and the British Council have settled a dispute around the activities
of this NGO in Russia, which broke out earlier this week. By the end of next week, the British Council is to submit its
financial reports about the work of its branches in Russia, the press secretary of the Federal Service for Economic and
Tax Crimes, Tatyana Mironenko, told ITAR-TASS.
"We are now discussing the form of the report with representatives of the British Council," Mironenko
explained. "Since an agreement has been reached, the Interior Ministry will not impose any sanctions against this
NGO," she said.
[Passage omitted: the Interior Ministry and the British Council had a dispute over taxes and status of the
council.]
[The Foreign Ministry's official representative, Aleksandr Yakovenko, said on Friday, 11 June, that the British
Council "is doing business in Russia, and so must pay taxes". He also added that 15 offices of the British
Council in Russia were not branches of the British embassy.
[ITAR-TASS news agency] |
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