MOSCOW, January 30 (RIA Novosti)Kremlin shifts foreign policy stance/ NGO law defends Russia's interests/ Anti-extremism law to target Internet/ Central Bank to allow foreigners to buy shares in Russian banks/ Aeroflot to enter charter flight sector/ Neftyanoi bank chairman seeks political asylum to escape money laundering case
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Nezavisimaya Gazeta
Modernization crucial to Russia's interests
The Kremlin has revised its foreign policy goals in order to help regain Russia's status as a global center of power, the paper said.
Moscow has abandoned the orbit inhabited by Western countries and is in "free flight." Russia's leaders believe that its energy resources are making the country indispensable to the global economy, and hence also to global politics. The emphasis in the phrase "great energy power" is on the last word. The Kremlin's ambitious goal is to turn Gazprom into a world-leading company, with "Corporation Russia" taking over control of the most profitable economic sectors.
A great power needs the right environment. In the last three years, the Kremlin has been working predominantly in the former Soviet region to develop its interests and strengthen its influence there. From a political position based on weakness Russia has switched to a reliance on its own strengths, and especially on its economic strength. An imitation of integration has given way to open capital expansion, and subsidies and barter have been replaced with market-based systems. The Kremlin is not reviving the tsarist or Soviet imperial policies, but is creating post-imperial relationships where its main interests lie.
This post-imperial project is justified. It is based on the economic and cultural attractiveness of Russia and its ability to use its resources not only on the domestic market but also to allow it to guarantee the security of those countries that are ready to accept its leadership, as well as to help them modernize. Russia's cause, seen from this point of view, is Russia itself. The country's successful modernization is its best bet for gaining global attractiveness.
The volume of its energy resources alone will not make Russia a great power; drive is not the same as leadership, and a tough policy is not the same as an effective one. This is the main difference between the post-imperial and the neo-imperial projects.
Izvestia
NGO law defends Russia's state interests
General Charles de Gaulle used to say that democracy must be able to defend itself. Today, the state can defend itself by regulating financial flows.
The recent spy case involving British secret agents has stirred up controversy around Russia's non-governmental organizations. People can interpret the incident as they like - either as an "FSB achievement" or as "an awkward attempt to link the activity of British agents with the financing of NGOs." However, public feeling cannot change the fact that the essence of the NGO law is aimed at streamlining the way in which NGOs' financial records are submitted to the Federal Registration Service.
All countries, with the exception of offshore zones, staunchly defend their financial interests. It is hardly surprising that the United States reacts so painfully to Russian capital moving into its territory. Moreover, the country's 1938 Foreign Agents Registration Act orders all foreign lobbyists to register with Congress. EU specialists also look for connections between bank accounts and the potentially subversive activities of non-European organizations.
It is high time the Russian authorities dried out tax oases such as charitable organizations engaged in money-laundering operations.
Human rights activists fear that the authorities will now put pressure on them, regardless of their good intentions, honesty and impeccable behavior. But anyone seeking the truth should realize that a strong state is strong because it is impossible ever to ignore. And, finally, charitable activity can only be genuinely effective if it has legal support.
Gazeta
Anti-extremism law to target Internet
Internet content and service providers will be held responsible for any distribution of extremist materials on the Web, the paper reported. Amendments to that effect to the Criminal Code, the Code of Administrative Offenses and an anti-extremism law are being drafted in the State Duma. Legal experts say the main deficiency of the existing law is its extremely broad definition of extremism, combined with very harsh sanctions. Human rights activists, on the other hand, believe that most danger lies in the Duma's amendments.
The owners of Internet resources are to be charged with the duty of moderating the numerous forums and chat rooms. This presupposes the round-the-clock observation of comments made by site visitors. Providers failing to meet these requirements will face penalties: a warning or a fine amounting to 2,000 times the minimum wage, i.e. 200,000 rubles ($7,138, or €5,850).
Lev Levinson, an expert with the Institute of Human Rights, said a similar proposal was made in 2002 when the main framework of the law on countering extremist activity was passed, but at that time Internet freedom was upheld. Human rights activists are optimistic [of a similar outcome this time], since the amendments are being discussed in public, rather than behind the scenes. The amendments drafted in the Duma have been referred to the government and the Supreme Court for approval. According to information obtained by Gazeta, the Prosecutor-General's Office has already endorsed them.
In the view of well-known Internet columnist Anton Nosik, the siloviki are looking to expand their presence on the Internet as much as possible, because this will allow them to boost their staff numbers, attract more financing and increase their status in society.
"No one cares about the enforcement of the law," he claims. As an example he cites the system of operational and investigative measures (SORM-2), which is supposed to monitor all outgoing messages from Russian e-mail accounts. "But who will be doing all that? In Russia alone, there are more than 20 million users."
Vremya Novostei
Central Bank to allow foreigners to buy shares in Russian banks
Russia's Central Bank (CBR), which once banned foreign credit organizations from opening branches in Russia, is to make a slight concession to non-residents, liberalizing the terms of their involvement in Russian banks' authorized capital. Experts say the initiative will have no impact on attracting strategic western investors into the Russian banking sector, but will simplify the IPO procedure for Russian banks.
The CBR proposes that non-residents enter banks' capital independently on purchasing up to 10% of shares - in other words they need only notify the CBR, without having to wait for authorization.
According to Russian bankers, the CBR's initiative could be seen as a small step toward the liberalization of the banking sector that WTO member-countries have been insisting on.
The novelties put forward by the CBR are unlikely to affect the participation of strategic investors in the capital of Russian banks in any significant way, Viktor Chetverikov, Director of the NAUFOR ratings agency, said.
"Big Western players either buy controlling stakes in Russian banks which must be authorized by a regulator in any case, or establish subsidiaries from scratch," he said.
However, Alfa Bank macro-economics analyst Natalia Orlova said the CBR's decision would give Western portfolio investors easier access to the capital of Russian banks. "The need to obtain permission to buy and sell banks' shares made the operations illiquid," she said. "The equity market is showing a great interest in shares of Russian banks, and many creditors have already bid for IPOs this year. The CBR's initiative is very timely, both for them and for Western investors."
As of December 1, 2005, the share of foreign capital in Russian banks was 11.1% and just below 8% a year before. All in all 41 banks with 100% Western capital have been registered in Russia. The share of foreign participation exceeds 51% in nine banks, and 10% upward in more than 50 Russian banks.
Biznes
Aeroflot to enter charter flight market
Aeroflot, Russia's largest airline, has announced plans to establish a charter flight subsidiary. The structure and business plan of the new company will be finalized by summer, and the company will be launched in late 2006.
The company will be created from scratch, and will be 100% owned Aeroflot. Previously, Aeroflot had intended to set up a charter company on the basis of an existing market operator. Notably, Aeroflot had negotiated the purchase of a 51% stake in Kontinentalnye Avialinii (Continental Airlines).
"Charter airlines performed well last year. This is a popular air-traffic segment," deputy Aeroflot general director Lev Koshlyakov claims.
"The foreign tourism market is growing annually by 10-15%," Natalie Tours deputy general director Tatyana Chuvilkina said.
However, experts believe that six Il-86 planes will not ensure a fully-fledged charter business for Aeroflot, because the company needs more planes of different types. "Quite possibly, the new charter company will receive Tupolev Tu-154 "Careless" airliners, which being phased out by Aeroflot. And the latter will acquire new planes instead," Koshlyakov noted.
By transferring all inefficient aircraft to the charter flight company, Aeroflot will improve its financial performance. "The company now has to spend substantial sums on servicing inefficient planes. However, the overall financial picture would improve considerably if Aeroflot were to transfer these aircraft to the new subsidiary," BDO Unicon financial consulting director Natalia Odintsova believes.
Vedomosti
Businessman accused of money laundering
Igor Linshits, board chairman of the Neftyanoi bank, has become the latest businessman to flee Russia in disgrace after the Office of the Prosecutor General put him on the federal wanted list for money laundering. Some discern a political element to Linshits's case, but most say Neftyanoi fell because of its own shady financial deals.
The businessman is charged under Article 172 Part 2 (illegal banking activity on a grand scale) and Article 174 Part 2 (laundering of substantial criminal incomes). A source in the law enforcement community said Linshits is accused of acquiring 57 billion rubles ($2.03 billion, or 1.67 billion euros) from illegal banking operations and 610 million rubles ($21.77 million, or 17.84 million euros) through the legalization of criminal incomes.
A banker familiar with the case said many banks were checked for involvement in the deals, but proof was found only at Neftyanoi.
Linshits was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, because the Kremlin is clearing the political field, said a businessman who knows the banker. Another of his acquaintances puts the blame on Boris Nemtsov, who was chairman of Neftyanoi from February 2004 to December 2005. "The Kremlin is strongly allergic to him," the source said.
According to a spokesman from the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Linshits could be helping the opposition leader Mikhail Kasyanov, a former Russian prime minister.
Others will be charged too, said the union spokesman: "He is the third from the bureau to be persecuted," he said. The other two are Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who is serving a long prison term, and Oleg Kiselev, also on the wanted list. "The attack on business is only gathering momentum."
Dmitry Orlov, general director of the Agency of Political and Economic Communications, said that "speculation about political motives" suited Linshits. "He needs this to get political asylum abroad, but he is not likely to get it. His company's reputation bears witness to the economic and criminal aspects of the case."
As of October 1, 2005, Neftyanoi had assets worth 6.9 billion rubles ($246.25 million, or 201.81 million euros) putting it in 129th place among Russian banks.
