Windows to Russia

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 14:35:42.Russia’s trade surplus grew 1.7 times to $67.5bn in January-April 2008 compared to the same months a year earlier, the Economy Ministry stated today in a monitoring report on the economic situation in the country in January-April. Russia’s foreign trade jumped 49 percent to $236.1bn and exports rose 1.5 times to $151.8bn. Countries outside the CIS accounted for 85.5 percent of Russia’s exports (up from 84.7 percent), while the CIS’s share decreased from 15.3 percent to 14.5 percent. Russia’s imports climbed 41.7 percent to $84.3bn. The share of countries outside the CIS in Russia’s imports edged up from 84.7 percent to 86.5 percent, while the CIS’s share shrank from 15.3 percent to 13.5 percent.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 14:23:27.According to the Economy Ministry’s preliminary estimates, inflation is expected to reach 7.4-7.5 percent in January-May, the ministry’s monitoring report on the economic situation in the country states. The ministry forecasts inflation to exceed 1 percent in May.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 13:34:19.Trading in RAO UES shares will be suspended on the RTS Stock Exchange’s Classic Market starting June 2, 2008, the exchange said in a statement. Trading in RAO UES’s common and preferred shares on the T+0 market will be halted from June 7, 2008. Trading will be suspended in accordance with the RTS’s action plan, which was put into force in connection with RAO UES’s restructuring as approved by the RTS’s Board of Directors on May 7, 2008.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 13:16:18.Head of Interros and one of the main shareholders of Norilsk Nickel Vladimir Potanin has recommended the managers of the Russian mining and metallurgical company to launch a new round of talks with UC RUSAL on the divestment of energy assets into an independent company, the Russian businessman told journalists today.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 12:57:15.Russia’s investment in projects for the construction of roads, ports and airports until 2020 may amount to $1 trillion, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov told a conference today. He stressed that Russia’s innovative development would be impossible if the country failed to use the current favorable situation on the global energy market to boost its competitiveness and implement large investment projects.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 12:25:53.Russia’s social and economic development strategy until 2020 is aimed at maintaining the country’s average annual GDP growth at 6.5 percent, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov told a conference “Corporate Governance and Globalization of the World Economy” today. He said that it was a conservative but a realistic forecast, adding that the strategy provided for innovative development. The government plans to draft and approve the document before the end of the summer of 2008.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 11:57:23.An hour and a half into today’s special dollar trading session for tomorrow deals, the weighted average exchange rate stood at 23.74 RUB/USD. Therefore, the official rate for May 31 – June 2 could be revised RUB 0.07 higher. Given that the dollar gained RUB 0.12 over the previous two sessions, the US currency climbed a total of RUB 0.19, or 0.8 percent, against the ruble in three days. The current developments on MICEX can be linked to the euro’s considerable decline against the dollar on international exchanges. The European currency is now trading at around USD 1.5480, down some 0.7 percent from roughly USD 1.5590 at midday on Thursday. As a result, commercial bank activity has been high at the UTS, where the trade volume topped USD 1.463bn. Meanwhile, the average deal size exceeded USD 5.2m.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Moscow 10:55:02.Russia’s government has drafted a set of anti-raid bills, Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov told a conference dedicated to corporate governance and globalization of the world economy today. The bill will be committed to the State Duma in the near future, he added.

RBC, 30.05.2008, Chisinau 09:31:01.Russia is not ready to recognize Transnistria’s independence, as the conflict can only be resolved by mutual consent of Chisinau and Tiraspol, head of the State Duma committee on the CIS affairs and relations with Russians living abroad Alexei Ostrovsky told Transnistria’s President Igor Smirnov. At the meeting, the two parties handled social and economic cooperation between Transnistria and Russia as well as ways to settle the conflict with Moldova. Ostrovsky said that although Russia was aware that 96 percent of the population of Transnistria had voted in favor of sovereignty and independence, other countries, the US and EU included, were not yet inclined to recognize it as an independent country. He noted that Moscow was very concerned about Transnistria’s unresolved status and the conditions the people have been forced to live in there.

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee & reading an article about the:

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The hunger strikes in the Czech Republic, that the government is acting undemocratically in refusing to consult the public on the issue, even though the latest opinion polls show that 65 per cent of Czechs are against the radar base.

Jan Bednar from the ‘No to the Base’ campaign group has lost 10 kilograms in weight in just over two weeks. His liver is failing and jaundice is setting in, so doctors are urging him to end his hunger strike. But he’s refusing. He may look weak, but his will is strong.

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Seems that there are some issues that America has caused in the Czech Government structure. Wonder how much money the Czech Government was bribed with by the USA to put in a Radar Base?

Poland, I think is holding out for much more money than Czech did!

I think that this is called buying your friends, so do not miss a payment…… 🙂

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

Estonia has put an 88 year old veteran of the WWII. Moscow is having some real issues over this………
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Arnold Meri is being tried in Estonia for genocide during WW2. But in Russia the 88-year-old veteran is considered a hero, and streets and schools are named after him.

Arnold Meri is an Estonian national who was awarded the highest state medal during the war. Estonia accuses him of taking part in the deportation of hundreds of his countrymen to Siberia after the war. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life behind bars.

A village in Russia’s Pskov region is naming a school after the veteran. It educated the regiment under Meri’s command in 1941. Back then, Meri organised the region’s defences against the invading Nazis. He was wounded several times in action.

And the city of Gorno-Altaisk in Southern Urals is giving Meri’s name to a street. He lived there after he was stripped of all honours in 1952. Meri says he was accused for his criticism of the very deportation he is now being tried for in Estonia.
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What do you think? Was he a barbaric criminal that needs to be put away for life? Or is he a war hero of a brutal war that changed the history of the world forever?

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

I think that this is a good example of what Russia is up to in the world scene! I doubt that press will give this much time on the air because it says good things about Russia and her MiG jets.
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The upgraded MiGs have also been completely overhauled, enabling them to stay in service until the early 2030s. During this time they may undergo several more refits and may be provided with more advanced equipment to keep them in proper fighting condition.

The success of the Slovakian contract shows that Russia’s defense industry can stand its own against the West in its home field – aircraft for NATO’s air forces. And not only in aircraft – Greece’s purchase of Russian ships and air defense systems is another fine example. Hopefully, contracts, both filled and to be filled, are only a beginning, the beginning of the Russian defense industry’s comeback to the European market. (Link)
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But I will give it time on the air because I think it is important. The NATO MiG is a crucial part of many air forces in the European Region.

Just something else that you may not have known about Russia…..

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

Looks like Spring is not as much fun in Mongolia…….
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MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – At least 21 people are reported dead and 100 are missing after snowstorms battered Mongolia over the past two days, the Xinhua news agency cited the country’s emergencies officials as saying Wednesday.

Seven provinces in west and central Mongolia were hit hardest, with wind speeds reported at up to 40 meters per second. Buildings and power transmission lines have also been damaged.

Over 300 rescuers and more than 70 vehicles are involved in search and rescue operations.

Snowstorms are common in Mongolia during spring.

Update: 5-30-2008
Mongolia will observe a nationwide day of mourning on Saturday for 46 people killed in heavy snow and sandstorms that have battered the country this week, China’s Xinhua news agency reported on Friday.

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How would you like to live in Mongolia and have a blizzard for Spring welcome?

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

Seems that Georgia is up to its usual: “It was a planned terrorist act aimed at escalating tensions in the region, and there is no doubt that the date was specifically chosen to coincide with Independence Day celebrated in South Ossetia today,” Eduard Kokoity said.

“Georgia continues its policies of state-level terrorism,” Kokoity said.

South Ossetia and the other Georgian breakaway region, Abkhazia, are a sensitive issue in relations between Georgia and Russia. Georgia, which has moved to join NATO under pro-Western President Mikheil Saakashvili, is seeking to regain control of the republics and accuses Moscow of encouraging separatism.

A group of international peacekeepers and observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) headed to Tskhinvali to monitor the situation.

Meanwhile, police in the southern Znauri district of the self-proclaimed republic reported another incident allegedly linked to Georgia.

A car with several South Ossetia residents came under fire early Thursday. Three people were reportedly injured in the incident.

“The car, presumably, came under mortar fire from Georgian territory,” a spokesperson for South Ossetia’s Interior Ministry said.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

I have the same thoughts running my through my head…..
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ILULISSAT (Greenland), May 28 (RIA Novosti) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that third parties could be behind Georgia’s provocative actions against Russia.

Relations between Russia and Georgia have been consistently strained since President Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia four years ago, with both sides being involved in numerous disputes, most recently over Russia’s moves to develop closer ties with Georgia’s two breakaway regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

“I do not understand what they [the Georgian authorities] want; unless they are being used [by someone else] to constantly provoke Russia,” Lavrov said at a ministerial meeting of the five states bordering the Arctic Ocean, held in Ilulissat, western Greenland.

“I doubt they would come up with these provocative actions on their own,” he added.
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I will say what Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is implying:
I think that the the USA is behind this turmoil in Georgia, seems that the USA policy right now is one of interference in Eastern Foreign Countries as its number one priority……

Just look at the International news sources!

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

Remember a while back when Russia upset the world by planting a flag under the North Pole at the Seabed? No! Well to refresh your memory here are my articles on the subject….
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/07/russia-north-pole-ice-station-zebra.html
http://windowstorussia.com/2007/08/russians-claim-to-north-pole.html
http://windowstorussia.com/2007/08/russia-plants-flag-under-santas-home.html
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/09/russians-have-made-their-claim-and-they.html
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/09/russia-here-we-go-again.html
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Officials from the five nations with Arctic coastlines are meeting in Greenland for talks on the territorial status of the polar region. According to geologists, up to 25 % of the world’s oil and gas reserves could be buried under the ice. The controversy over exploration rights intensified last year after a Russian research vessel planted a flag on the sea-bed at the North Pole. (Link)

Russia, Canada, Denmark, Norway and the U.S. all claim rights over the Arctic. All own a part of the region, but each is vying for the area that lies beyond.

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea has the ultimate say over issues concerning continental shelf borders. It says a country’s shoreline can be extended if the sea bed is a continuous part of the continent.

Last year Russia became the first country to plant its flag at the bottom of the Arctic Sea at the geographical North Pole. However, Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said on Monday in Denmark that this doesn’t mean Moscow is about to claim the area as its own.
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Looks like Russia was on to something & made sure that they caused a little stink over it……

That is another reason why I like Russia.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

While I was drinking my morning cup of coffee I was thinking that Gazprom had to have its sights on the number 1 spot in the world. For the last few weeks there has been article after article about how fast Gazprom is growing and that they have their sights on Exxon.
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MOSCOW, May 27 (RIA Novosti) – Russian energy giant Gazprom is seeking to become the world’s number one company, CEO Alexei Miller said during a meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Tuesday.

“…Very important steps will be taken, including making Gazprom the world’s number one company,” Miller said, adding that his company had experience, resources and over 300,000 employees to achieve the goal.

Miller said Gazprom was now ranked the world’s third-largest company for market capitalization, which currently stands at $362 billion.

Financial statements say Gazprom produced 548.6 billion cubic meters of gas last year, excluding output by its subsidiaries, up 1.3% against 556 billion cubic meters in 2006.
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I guess we will see what happens. This is apples to apples comparison. Exxon and Gazprom are both energy related businesses.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

Today a blog by the name of Rotus tried to scoop a news story before Windows to Russia posts it. (Which is not hard to do by the way!) So I took this as a challenge & here are our articles that have to do with Medvedev and corruption in officials!

http://kylekeeton.com/2008/05/russian-news-05-20-2008.html
http://kylekeeton.com/2008/05/russian-news-may-27th-2008.html
http://kylekeeton.com/2008/05/russia-what-is-president-medvedev-doing.html

Rotus scooped??? me on the Judicial aspect but the judicial end of it is just a small part of the whole process. Medvedev is reforming the whole system of the Government.
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“The judicial system is completely corrupt, and to reverse this, what is necessary is a change of the ruling elite and not just the judges,” Belkovsky said.

He predicted that the reform would “contribute to the consolidation of power in Medvedev’s hands,” as the winnowing-out and replacement of judges, and the appearance of new high-profile cases or review of past decisions could reinforce the president’s authority with the people.

Tuesday’s meeting appears to be part of a larger message from the Kremlin concentrating on the need to battle corruption. In one of his first major steps as president, Medvedev said Monday that he would head a new federal council to fight against graft, giving a group of senior Kremlin, government and law enforcement officials a month to draw up a “national plan” to deal with the issue. (Link)
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So thank you Rotus, this is a very good thing for Russia. Like all over the world Government has a tendency to be corrupt at times. Medvedev is very serious about this & I think that he will succeed. Now Government Officials have two Big Bosses to deal with. Makes for good little kids (I mean officials.) when they all play…….
http://rotus.wordpress.com/2008/05/27/medvedev-spurs-judicial-reform-in-russia/

Kyle & Svet

PS: Now we have an article on the Judicial reform 🙂

comments always welcome.