RUSSIA INTELLIGENCE Politics & Government

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

RUSSIA INTELLIGENCE Politics & Government N°66 - November 22 2007 Published every two weeks / International Edition CONTENTS KREMLIN P. 1-4 Politics & Government c KREMLIN The highly-orchestrated launching into orbit cThe highly-orchestrated launching into orbit of of the «national leader» the «national leader» Only a few days away from the legislative elections, the political climate in Russia grew particu- STORCHAK AFFAIR larly heavy with the announcement of the arrest of the assistant to the Finance minister Alexey Ku- c Kudrin in the line of fire of drin (read page 2). Sergey Storchak is accused of attempting to divert several dozen million dol- the Patrushev-Sechin clan lars in connection with the settlement of the Algerian debt to Russia. The clan wars in the close DUMA guard of Vladimir Putin which confront the Igor Sechin/Nikolay Patrushev duo against a compet- cUnited Russia, electoral ing «Petersburg» group based around Viktor Cherkesov, overflows the limits of the «power struc- home for Russia’s big ture» where it was contained up until now to affect the entire Russian political power complex. business WAR OF THE SERVICES The electoral campaign itself is unfolding without too much tension, involving men, parties, fac- cThe KGB old guard appeals for calm tions that support President Putin. They are no longer legislative elections but a sort of plebicite campaign, to which the Russian president lends himself without excessive good humour. The objec- PROFILE cValentina Matvienko, the tive is not even to know if the presidential party United Russia will be victorious, but if the final score “czarina” of Saint Petersburg passes the 60% threshhold. To the extent that the United Russia programme has blended with the record of the President, these elections serve two objectives : to allow businessmen who have duly P. 5-8 Business & Networks paid their way on to the list to sit in the Duma; to serve as a basis for a political-constitutional ed- BEHIND THE SCENE ifice that permits Vladimir Putin to remain in power, in a form to be determined. c Middle east : Primakov resumes his service A fairly revealing document circulated these days on Russian internet sites. It concerned a letter FOCUS signed by a certain Dyudyaev, secretary of the political council of the United Russia branch in Ke- c Russia-India : accord on merovo addressed to the director general of the Siberian coal and energy company (the SUEK group, the MTA, nuclear cooperation whose owners are the young bankers Melnichenko and Popov) which stipulates that «I interpret on stand-by your refusal to extend financial aid to United Russia as a refusal to support Vladimir Putin and FOCUS his constructive line. I find myself obliged to inform the presidential administration and the gov- c De Beers close to an accord ernor of the region of Kemerovo». United Russia immediately claimed a fake and provocation, but on the Arkhangelsk diamonds? not very convincingly. At the large electoral rally of the party that took place November 21 in Moscow, ALERTS the programme was raised only in passing, but speakers of all shades paraded to the rostrum (in- c Shell c Lukoil cluding the indestructible Mikhail Kalashnikov, inventor of the eponymous weapon) to sing the SHIP BUILDING praise of the «national leader» Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. c Moscow gives its green light to foreign investors ALERTS This stage-setting of a «call to the people» is in fact classic and in addition has served elsewhere c Chemezov c Pakistan as well as in Russia. But in Moscow it is the symbol of an major illness in the executive body. If the c Tupolev legislative elections are transformed into presidential elections, what will happen in March, when ELECTRICITY it will be time to elect a president of the federation? It is not certain that the Kremlin holds an an- c Gaz de France ready to swer to this question. invest in Siberia OIL, INSURANCE One thing is certain : the partisans of the continuation of Vladimir Putin in power are putting at c Oleg Deripaska upset work enormous means. In the background, they finance an American-style campaign by United Rus- SUBSCRIPTION sia at the same time that they use their influence to erase from the media the liberal opposition lead- Print Edition ers against who the Kremlin zealots have been unleashed. On the touchline, they have triggered a (23 issues, airmailed overseas) clan war destined to combat all attempt to put into orbit a successor, even from within the entourage €770 TTC of President. Does Vladimir Putin dispose of the margin of manoeuvre and the necessary authority The Web Pack to extricate himself from the twin pressures of an opinion heated to a boil and of clans ready to de- (Print Edition stroy themselves in case of a power void ? No-one knows. + PDF + archives acess) € 880 TTC Basically, there is only consensus on one point : if a decision must be taken concerning the con- The Premium tinuation in power of Vladimir Putin, it must come rapidly after the legislative elections. And it will Subscription probaly not concern the post of Prime minister, since, as we have already said in this column, it as- (Print Edition + PDF + access sures its occupant neither a guarantee of longevity nor direct control over the power structures that to all the website contents) continue finally to play a key role in the political life of the country. d € 1200 TTC www.russia-intelligence.fr RUSSIA INTELLIGENCE Politics & Government STORCHAK AFFAIR c Alexey Kudrin in the line of fire of the Patrushev-Sechin clan Despite the appeal for reason made in late October by the KGB idential guard) and Yevgeny Murov, the director of the old guard (read article page 2), the clan war that is shaking the en- FSO (service for the protection of senior personalities). tourage of President Poutine has shown no respite. The tempo has Patrushev and Sechin in fact hardly appreciated that Ku- even increased a notch with the opening of a new front. October 16, drin was re-instated in rank as vice Prime minister in the Sergey Storchak – vice minister of finance – was arrested at the «true-false» ministerial reshuffle in September. The restora- same time as two businessmen, Vladimir Volkov, the boss of the tion of influence for Kudrin is, in their MiB bank, and Viktor Zakharov, the director general of the Moscow eyes, disruptive since the Finance min- firm Sodexim. The objective of the remotely-guided manoeuvre by ister holds an intransigent position on the director of the FSB, Nikolay Patrushev, and carried out by a sensitive question – the management Alexandre Bastyrkin, the boss of the Investigations committee of of the stabilisaton funds, which amount the Prosecutor’s office (a team which had already displayed its skills to some 147 billion dollars on Novem- during the Kumarin and Bulbov affairs – Russia Intelligence n°61, ber 1. 63 and 64) is to weaken the vice Prime minister in charge of finance, Alexey Kudrin. Alexey Kudrin For several months, lobbyists of all types have agitated in the wings to losen Sergey Storchak and the Algerian debt. the pursestrings. The last example, a round table which was held November 15 in the Budgetary commitee of the According to the Investigations commitee of the Prosecutor’s federal council. Its president, Yevgeny Bushmin, and his office, Storchak, Volkov and Zakharov were preparing to divert 43.4 assistant, Vladimir Petrov (ex-Finance minister under million dollars from public funds. The affair is said to be linked to Yeltsin, emprisoned in 1999 for illegal transfers), made a the settling of the Algerian debts to Moscow, a matter that Stor- lengthy appeal in favour of investing a part of the Stabili- chak was charged with at the Finance ministry. In 1996, Sodexim sation fund into shares of Russian state companies. was authorised by the Russian government to resell the Algerian products delivered to Moscow in a barter agree- A few days earlier, another senator, also a former Fi- ment. As a guarantee, the Russian Finance min- nance minister, Andrey Vavilov (read his portrait in Rus- istry required that the amount involved – 26 mil- sia Intelligence n°46-47 of January 19 2007), had published lion dollars – be transferred by Sodexim to the a long article in the same sense in the magazine Profil. In Treasury, which had been done. But in late 1996, view of the debt of Rosneft and its deadlines in 2008 (about the Algerian side ceased to fulfill the contract, 9 billion dollars to reimburse), as well as some mammoth with the result that Sodexim could not deliver investment projects by the Railways (Russia Intelligence to the international markets the products it n°63 of October 11) we can imagine that the oil nest-egg Sergey Storchak should have received. Sodexim at first tried to arouses considerable attention. settle the problem with Algiers, but without suc- cess. Following the signature, in March 2006, of the Russo-Alger- Who sill stop the Sechin-Patrushev clan? ian intergovernmental accord settling the debt (converted into arms deliveries – Russia Intelligence n°37 of July 13 2006), The boss of the FSB and the leader of the Rosneft had Sodexim addressed itself to the Russian Finance ministry demand- therefore decided to broaden the field of battle. We note ing that the 26 million dollars in guarantees transferred in 1996 in passing that a first warning shot had been fired in Feb- be restituted, along with interest. Or 43.4 million dollars. The ruary in the direction of another Kudrin associate, Sergey Finance ministry, but also the Economic development ministry, Ignatev, the boss of the Central bank of Russia.
Recommended publications
  • Russland–Analysen
    www.laender-analysen.de/russland Nr. 403 | 08.06.2021 Russland–Analysen • Duma-Wahlen • Repressionen ■ KOMMENTAR Schrumpfende Freiräume für Russlands Medien 25 Die Duma-Wahlen 2021: Hochmut kommt vor dem Fall – oder doch Esther Somfalvy (Forschungsstelle Osteuropa an der Universität nicht? 2 Bremen) Boris Ginzburg und Alexander Libman (Freie Universität Berlin) Russland drosselte Twitter, um Inhalte zu zensieren 27 Informationskriege, Oppositionskoordination und die Dumawahl Natalia Krapiva (Access Now) im Jahr 2021 4 ■ Regina Smyth (Indiana University und Woodrow Wilson Center, DEKODER »Hätten wir eine andere Wahl gehabt? Nein.« 30 Washington D.C.) Konstantin Gaase und Leonid Wolkow Wird das Putin-Regime überleben? 6 ■ DOKUMENTATION Andreas Heinemann-Grüder (Universität Bonn) Repressive Gesetze, die von Wladimir Putin am 30. Dezember 2020 Vorbereitung auf die Parlamentswahlen 2021 8 unterzeichnet wurden 35 Andrei Semenov (Zentrum für vergleichende Geschichts- und Politische Strafverfahren nach den Protesten im Januar 2021 37 Politikwissenschaft, Staatliche Universität Perm) April-Chronik der Repressionen: Der Journalist Ilja Asar hat Buch geführt 40 Vor den Dumawahlen weitet Russland die elektronische Überblick: Hochverrat, Spionage und Staatsgeheimnisse 47 Stimmabgabe aus – warum und mit welchen potenziellen Folgen? 10 »Haben Sie Angst vor…?« Umfrageergebnisse Stas Gorelik (George Washington-Universität, Washington D.C. / des Lewada-Zentrums 48 Forschungsstelle Osteuropa, Bremen) Teilnehmende an den Protesten aus Solidarität mit Alexej
    [Show full text]
  • Russia's Foreign Policy Change and Continuity in National Identity
    Russia’s Foreign Policy Russia’s Foreign Policy Change and Continuity in National Identity Second Edition Andrei P. Tsygankov ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK Published by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom Copyright © 2010 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Tsygankov, Andrei P., 1964- Russia's foreign policy : change and continuity in national identity / Andrei P. Tsygankov. -- 2nd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-7425-6752-8 (cloth : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-0-7425-6753-5 (paper : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-0-7425-6754-2 (electronic) 1. Russia (Federation)--Foreign relations. 2. Soviet Union--Foreign relations. 3. Great powers. 4. Russia (Federation)--Foreign relations--Western countries. 5. Western countries--Foreign relations--Russia (Federation) 6. Nationalism--Russia (Federation) 7. Social change--Russia (Federation) I. Title. DK510.764.T785 2010 327.47--dc22 2009049396 ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Printed in the United States of America It is the eternal dispute between those who imagine the world to suit their policy, and those who arrange their policy to suit the realities of the world.
    [Show full text]
  • Privatization in Russia: Catalyst for the Elite
    PRIVATIZATION IN RUSSIA: CATALYST FOR THE ELITE VIRGINIE COULLOUDON During the fall of 1997, the Russian press exposed a corruption scandal in- volving First Deputy Prime Minister Anatoli Chubais, and several other high- ranking officials of the Russian government.' In a familiar scenario, news organizations run by several bankers involved in the privatization process published compromising material that prompted the dismissal of the politi- 2 cians on bribery charges. The main significance of the so-called "Chubais affair" is not that it pro- vides further evidence of corruption in Russia. Rather, it underscores the im- portance of the scandal's timing in light of the prevailing economic environment and privatization policy. It shows how deliberate this political campaign was in removing a rival on the eve of the privatization of Rosneft, Russia's only remaining state-owned oil and gas company. The history of privatization in Russia is riddled with scandals, revealing the critical nature of the struggle for state funding in Russia today. At stake is influence over defining the rules of the political game. The aim of this article is to demonstrate how privatization in Russia gave birth to an oligarchic re- gime and how, paradoxically, it would eventually destroy that very oligar- chy. This article intends to study how privatization influenced the creation of the present elite structure and how it may further transform Russian decision making in the foreseeable future. Privatization is generally seen as a prerequisite to a market economy, which in turn is considered a sine qua non to establishing a democratic regime. But some Russian analysts and political leaders disagree with this approach.
    [Show full text]
  • Inside Russia's Intelligence Agencies
    EUROPEAN COUNCIL ON FOREIGN BRIEF POLICY RELATIONS ecfr.eu PUTIN’S HYDRA: INSIDE RUSSIA’S INTELLIGENCE SERVICES Mark Galeotti For his birthday in 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin was treated to an exhibition of faux Greek friezes showing SUMMARY him in the guise of Hercules. In one, he was slaying the • Russia’s intelligence agencies are engaged in an “hydra of sanctions”.1 active and aggressive campaign in support of the Kremlin’s wider geopolitical agenda. The image of the hydra – a voracious and vicious multi- headed beast, guided by a single mind, and which grows • As well as espionage, Moscow’s “special services” new heads as soon as one is lopped off – crops up frequently conduct active measures aimed at subverting in discussions of Russia’s intelligence and security services. and destabilising European governments, Murdered dissident Alexander Litvinenko and his co-author operations in support of Russian economic Yuri Felshtinsky wrote of the way “the old KGB, like some interests, and attacks on political enemies. multi-headed hydra, split into four new structures” after 1991.2 More recently, a British counterintelligence officer • Moscow has developed an array of overlapping described Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) as and competitive security and spy services. The a hydra because of the way that, for every plot foiled or aim is to encourage risk-taking and multiple operative expelled, more quickly appear. sources, but it also leads to turf wars and a tendency to play to Kremlin prejudices. The West finds itself in a new “hot peace” in which many consider Russia not just as an irritant or challenge, but • While much useful intelligence is collected, as an outright threat.
    [Show full text]
  • November 1-30, 2020
    UZBEKISATN– NOVEMBER 1-30, 2020 UZBEKISATN– NOVEMBER 1-30, 2020 ....................................................................................................................................... 1 TOP NEWS OF THE PERIOD ................................................................................................................................................................ 2 Government intends to increase excise tax rates on petrol and diesel 2 Leading trade partners of Uzbekistan 2 POLITICS AND LAW ................................................................................................................................................................................. 3 Namangan plans to build an international business center: Alisher Usmanov to contribute to the implementation of the project 3 Uzbekistan rises in the Legatum Prosperity Index 3 Worldwide Cost of Living 2020 report: Tashkent among cheapest cities to live in 4 International Organization of Migration to open its office in Uzbekistan 4 Central Asia, EU reaffirm their commitment to build strong relations 5 Facilitating Uzbekistan's Accession to the WTO 7 Economy AND FINANCE ...................................................................................................................................................................... 8 Uzbekistan takes first place in the world in terms of gold sold in the third quarter 8 The National Venture Fund UzVC is being created 8 Diesel fuel production of Euro-4 and Euro-5 standards starts in Ferghana region 9 Food
    [Show full text]
  • Redalyc.Full Spectrum Operations: the Rationale Behind the 2008
    Revista Científica General José María Córdova ISSN: 1900-6586 [email protected] Escuela Militar de Cadetes "General José María Córdova" Colombia Fernández-Osorio, Andrés Eduardo Full Spectrum Operations: the Rationale Behind the 2008 Russian Military Reform? Revista Científica General José María Córdova, vol. 13, núm. 15, enero-junio, 2015, pp. 63-86 Escuela Militar de Cadetes "General José María Córdova" Bogotá, Colombia Available in: http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=476247223003 How to cite Complete issue Scientific Information System More information about this article Network of Scientific Journals from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Portugal Journal's homepage in redalyc.org Non-profit academic project, developed under the open access initiative Revista Científica General José María Córdova, Bogotá, Colombia, enero-junio, 2015 Estudios militares - Vol. 13, Núm. 15, pp. 63-86 issn 1900-6586 Cómo citar este artículo: Fernandez-Osorio, A. E. (2015, enero-julio). Full Spectrum Operations: the rationale behind the 2008 Russian Military Reform?. Rev. Cient. Gen. José María Córdova 13(15), 63-86 Full Spectrum Operations: the Rationale 2 Behind the 2008 Russian Military Reform?* Recibido: 05 de enero de 2015 l Aceptado: 20 de febrero de 2015. Operaciones militares de espectro total: ¿fundamento de la Reforma Militar Rusa de 2008? Des opérations militaires à spectre complet: le raisonnement caché derrière la réforme militaire russe de 2008? Operações de pleno espectro: a lógica subjacente da Reforma das Forças Armadas da Rússia de 2008? Andrés Eduardo Fernández-Osorioa * Research paper based on the first and second chapter of the author’s master dissertation, completed at University College London, United Kingdom and National Research University - Higher School of Economics, Russian Federation.
    [Show full text]
  • Annual-Report-2018 Eng.Pdf
    Russian International Affairs Council CONTENTS /01 GENERAL INFORMATION 4 /02 RIAC PROGRAM ACTIVITIES 16 /03 RIAC IN THE MEDIA 58 /04 RIAC WEBSITE 60 /05 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 62 3 Russian International ANNUAL REPORT 2018 Affairs Council The General Meeting of RIAC members is the The main task of the RIAC Scientific Council is to ABOUT THE COUNCIL supreme governing body of the Partnership. The formulate sound recommendations for strategic key function of the General Meeting is to ensure decisions in RIAC expert, research, and publishing The non-profit partnership Russian compliance with the goals of the Partnership. The activities. General Meeting includes 160 members of the International Affairs Council (NP RIAC) is Council. The Vice-Presidency was introduced to achieve 01 the goals of the Partnership in cooperation with a Russian membership-based non-profit The RIAC Board of Trustees is a supervisory body government bodies and local authorities of the organization. The partnership was established of the Partnership that monitors the activities of Russian Federation and foreign states, the Partnership and their compliance with the international organizations, and Russian and by the resolution of its founders pursuant statutory goals. foreign legal entities. The candidate for Vice- President is approved by the RIAC Presidium for a to Decree No. 59-rp of the President of the The Presidium of the Partnership is a permanent one-year term. Russian Federation “On the Establishment collegial governing body of the Partnership that consists of not less than five and no more than RIAC Corporate Members of the Non-Profit Partnership Russian fifteen members, including the President and According to the Charter, legal citizens of the the Director General of the Partnership, who Russian Federation or entities established in International Affairs Council” dated February 2, have a vote in the decision-making process.
    [Show full text]
  • The North Caucasus: the Challenges of Integration (III), Governance, Elections, Rule of Law
    The North Caucasus: The Challenges of Integration (III), Governance, Elections, Rule of Law Europe Report N°226 | 6 September 2013 International Crisis Group Headquarters Avenue Louise 149 1050 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 502 90 38 Fax: +32 2 502 50 38 [email protected] Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... i Recommendations..................................................................................................................... iii I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 II. Russia between Decentralisation and the “Vertical of Power” ....................................... 3 A. Federative Relations Today ....................................................................................... 4 B. Local Government ...................................................................................................... 6 C. Funding and budgets ................................................................................................. 6 III. Elections ........................................................................................................................... 9 A. State Duma Elections 2011 ........................................................................................ 9 B. Presidential Elections 2012 ......................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Biosecurity in Putin's Russia
    EXCERPTED FROM Biosecurity in Putin’s Russia Raymond A. Zilinskas and Philippe Mauger Copyright © 2018 ISBN: 978-1-62637-698-4 hc 1800 30th Street, Suite 314 Boulder, CO 80301 USA telephone 303.444.6684 fax 303.444.0824 This excerpt was downloaded from the Lynne Rienner Publishers website www.rienner.com Contents List of Tables and Figures vii Acknowledgments ix 1 Putin’s Direction in the Biosciences 1 Notes 6 2 The Legacy of the Soviet Union’s Biological Warfare Program 7 The First-Generation Program, 1928–1971 7 The Second-Generation Program, 1972–1992 9 Legacy in Russia 10 Conclusions 23 Notes 25 3 Russian Biosecurity and Military Modernization 33 Russia’s Military R&D Doctrine 35 Biosecurity Threat Perceptions and Biodefense Programming 51 A Warning Sign: The Hawks Within the NBC Troops 66 Conclusions 68 Annex 3.1 Selected Russian Documents and Statements 75 Annex 3.2 Russia’s Science and Technology Priorities Since 2002 76 Notes 77 4 Biodefense and High-Technology Research and Development 87 Russian Ministry of Defense Institutions 91 Military Institutions Responsible for Advanced Weapons Acquisition Planning and R&D 115 Select Military-Industrial Complex Institutions 125 Civilian Research Institutes with Biodefense Roles 131 v vi Contents Open Financial Flows Throughout Both Military and Civilian Networks 154 Conclusions 159 Annex 4.1 A 2008 NBC Troops’ Tender Describing Future Infrastructure Work 162 Annex 4.2 Russia’s Scientific Electronic Library: eLibrary.ru 165 Notes 167 5 Civilian Bioscience and Biotechnology Since 2005 199 Developments in Biotechnology 200 Federal Programs, 2005–2016 207 Case Study 1: Consolidation of Russian Pharmaceutical Production 227 Case Study 2: Space Biology Projects 235 Case Study 3: Reforming the Russian Academies 240 Conclusions 249 Annex 5.1 Excerpts from Science in Siberia no.
    [Show full text]
  • Typologies of the Use of Preventive Measures of Financial Institutions for Crime Detection and Risk Assessment
    ЕВРАЗИЙСКАЯ ГРУППА по противодействию легализации преступных доходов и финансированию терроризма EURASIAN GROUP on combating money laundering and financing of terrorism EAG TYPOLOGY PROJECT TYPOLOGIES OF THE USE OF PREVENTIVE MEASURES OF FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FOR CRIME DETECTION AND RISK ASSESSMENT TYPOLOGICAL STUDY REPORT 2021 Contents General ....................................................................................................................... 3 Preventive Measures and Suspicious Transaction Reporting in the EAG members 3 Approaches Used by FIUs for Analyzing Incoming STRs and Service Denial Reports ....................................................................................................................... 9 Feedback on STRs ................................................................................................... 16 Trends and risks in the spread of COVID-19 .......................................................... 21 Impact of COVID-19 on AML/CFT supervisory activities and implementation of preventive measures ................................................................................................ 24 Summary of recommendations following the results of the study: ......................... 26 General Application by entities engaged in transactions with funds or other assets of preventive measures as well as identification of suspicious transactions and submission of suspicious transaction reports (STRs) to the financial investigation units (FIUs) is one of the most important measures aimed
    [Show full text]
  • East Asian Strategic Review 2001 Runoff Election
    Chapter 7 Russia ussia entered upon the new century with an energetic young Rleader Vladimir Putin. He seems to be aiming at rebuilding a strong Russia by resolutely facing up to the reality in Russia and by solving problems facing Russia one by one. Nearly ten years under President Boris Yeltsin were a transi- tional period from the old regime of the Communist Party dictator- ship to a new regime based on democracy and market economy. In the sense that he had demolished the old regime, President Yeltsin had made a great success. However, he failed to resolve the confu- sion that had arisen in the course of transition to the new regime and was unable to alleviate the sufferings of the people. What the Russian people expect President Putin to do first is to end the polit- ical and social confusion, and stabilize their livelihood. Putin considers solving domestic problems the top priority of his administration and believes that a strong Russia could not be re- vived without solving these domestic problems. In foreign policy, he stressed that Russia will favor a pragmatic approach for overcom- ing domestic difficulties, and has indicated his willingness to steer clear of troubles that could impair economic relations with the West. In the field of defense and security, he attaches priority to adapting Russia’s military to the country’s needs and economic po- tential. Since he took office President Putin has revised basic documents on diplomacy, national defense and security: Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation, National Security Concept of the Russian Federation and Military Doctrine.
    [Show full text]
  • Putin Unveils $500 Bn Offshore Energy Drive 12 April 2012, by Dmitry Zaks
    Putin unveils $500 bn offshore energy drive 12 April 2012, by Dmitry Zaks Vladimir Putin vowed Thursday to win $500 billion ExxonMobil after seeing a similar tie-up with the in investment for Russian offshore field British giant BP fall through. development over 30 years to tap the country's full energy potential with the help of foreign expertise. ExxonMobil has since lobbied for cuts in export duties that could help justify the enormous expense Putin outlined a broad new and largely business- of developing the fields. friendly energy vision whose implementation will be vital to the success of his third term as president Putin responded on Thursday by promising to following a wave of protests that greeted his March eliminate the payment of all export duties from new election win. fields for the coming 15 years. Russia's president-elect promised to cancel export "We expect the world's largest corporations to duties on new projects for its vast and mostly partner with our Russian companies on the shelf," unexploited Arctic shelf and other offshore fields as said Putin without naming any specific Western an incentive for their rapid development. firms. He also laid down clear guidelines that require 70 Private Russian companies with large cash to 75 percent of offshore projects to be remain reserves such as Lukoil and TNK-BP have also under Russian ownership while relaxing some tax clamoured for the right to compete for the deals. legislation. All private companies -- both Russian and foreign -- And he vitally signalled an imminent change in the currently have to team up with either Rosneft or rules that permit private Russian players to Gazprom and allow the state firms to control at compete openly for the development of the least 50 percent of any offshore deal.
    [Show full text]