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Tuesday, July 10, 2007 Volume 11 Number 124
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Russia
PRESIDENT WANTS TO PREVENT THEFT OF FUNDS FOR SOCHI OLYMPICSRussian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in Bishkek on July 10 that the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) recent selection of Sochi to host the 2014 Winter Olympics "will enhance the authority of Russia, its friends, and its allies," Interfax reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," July 9, 2007). At the Russian presidential residence in Zavidovo, northwest of Moscow, President Vladimir Putin stressed on July 9 that money earmarked for constructing facilities for the games must not be embezzled, Interfax and RIA Novosti reported. He told the cabinet that "the irrational use of money must not be permitted. The embezzlement of state funds must not be permitted." He called on the Prosecutor-General's Office "to form a working group, which will provide security...and coordinate construction of the necessary facilities so that the allocated finances will be spent rationally, and any misappropriation of state funds will be prevented at all cost." Putin noted that $12 billion has been budgeted for construction related to the games, of which at least $5 billion will come from private investment. He said that about one-third of the total will be spent on sports facilities and the training of athletes, while roughly two-thirds of the money will be spent on infrastructure in southern Russia. "That includes the construction of roads, bridges, tunnels, communication, water supply, and electricity, [in other words,] everything that makes for a decent life for people," he added. Britain's "Financial Times" noted on July 10 that Russia hired top-flight Western public relations and communications consultants in its effort to win the games in order to show that Russia "competes and...can succeed by playing by Western rules." PM RUSSIAN PAPERS ASSESS ANTICIPATED IMPACT OF SOCHI GAMES The weekly "Itogi" noted on July 9 that, by selecting Sochi, the IOC acknowledged that Russia "is a normal country." On July 9, the mass-circulation daily "Moskovsky komsomolets" wrote that "our main political objective for the 2014 Winter Olympics is to prove to the whole world that stability and security have arrived in southern Russia. The problem, however, is that when the [IOC] voted [recently] in Guatemala, there was no stability or security in southern Russia." The paper noted that the Russian authorities hope that by 2014 "a new era will dawn in Russia. The civil war in the Caucasus, bloodshed, and xenophobia will all fade away into history; grudges and territorial claims will be forgotten; and new world-class resorts will be built along Russia's Black Sea coast. Unless this happens, the whole Sochi Olympics plan could become a dangerous gamble." The daily argued that "the problems of the North Caucasus have become relevant again. Any act of terror, even a minor bombing, anywhere near the site of the future Olympics would make headlines all over the world. The danger is that the guerrillas are well aware of this, and will certainly make every effort to disrupt the Sochi Games." In "The Moscow Times" on July 10, Aleksei Pankin wrote that the bragging by Russian officials over the IOC's decision reveals a deeper inferiority complex. He pointed out that, after the IOC's decision was announced, a Russian "Foreign Ministry spokesman said that 'this is a testament to Russia's new position of strength in the global arena.' I wondered to myself whether Austria's Foreign Ministry would have reached a similar conclusion had the [IOC] chosen Salzburg over Sochi. Probably not, I thought, but Russians have a definite complex about their self-image." Russians, Pankin continued, need to be reassured by foreigners of their status as a "world leader," even though "Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, a nuclear superpower, and has the richest natural resources of any nation on earth." Pankin suggested that the games pose a huge challenge and that "this utopianism turned the Sochi Olympics into a genuine national idea." He quoted 19th-century writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky as saying that "Russians like to do everything big, but they need to be brought down to earth a bit." PM BAVARIAN LEADER SHOWS SYMPATHY FOR RUSSIA ON MISSILE DEFENSE Outgoing Bavarian Prime Minister Edmund Stoiber said at the conclusion of a visit to Russia, his last major foreign trip before leaving office, that "if the Americans go ahead and build a missile-defense shield in Eastern Europe, Russia will feel threatened," the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" reported from Berlin on July 9. Stoiber added that Russia "will aim missiles at Europe" if Washington goes ahead with its plans to station 10 interceptors in Poland and a radar site in the Czech Republic (see "RFE/RL Newsline," June 28 and July 9, 2007). Stoiber argued that Germany needs Russia's energy, and the EU needs Russia to find solutions to problems in Kosova and the Middle East. He said that "no significant decisions can be reached in the international arena without Russia." The daily suggested that Stoiber's remarks "sound like [former German Chancellor] Gerhard Schroeder," who pursued close ties with Moscow while in office and now has a close business relationship with Gazprom. The daily suggested recently that Europe is more dependent on Russia as an energy supplier than Russia is dependent on Europe as a customer. On February 21, Stoiber said in Wildbad Kreuth that Putin's February 10 Munich speech signaled Russia's legitimate return to the world stage (see "RFE/RL Newsline," February 23, 2007). The Frankfurt daily noted at the time that Putin flattered the embattled Stoiber, whose own Christian Social Union (CSU) is forcing him from office, when the two men met in Munich on February 10. PM U.S. URGES RUSSIA TO SOLVE JOURNALIST'S MURDER U.S. Ambassador to Russia William Burns said at a Moscow memorial service for slain American journalist Paul Klebnikov on July 9 that the Kremlin should "redouble its efforts" to resolve the case, "The New York Times" reported on July 10. Klebnikov, who was editor of the Russian edition of "Forbes" magazine, was gunned down in an apparent contract killing on July 9, 2004, in one of at least two dozen unresolved murders of journalists in Russia in recent years (see "CIS: Behind An 'Information Curtain,'" rferl.org, May 2, 2007). In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said in a statement on July 10 that "the intimidation and murder of journalists is an affront to free and independent media and all who respect democratic values." PM SEVERAL GOVERNORS REAPPOINTED FOR NEW TERMS On July 5, President Putin nominated Tver Oblast Governor Dmitry Zelenin for a second term, which the regional parliament approved on July 10, newsru.com reported. A former top executive for Norilsk Nickel, Zelenin has been governor since 2004. Putin also nominated Viktor Ishayev on July 5 to continue as governor of Khabarovsk Krai, a post he has effectively held since 1991. On July 9, the Khabarovsk regional legislature voted overwhelmingly to confirm the appointment, gzt.ru reported. On July 6, Putin nominated Leningrad Oblast Governor Valery Serdyukov for another term, which the regional parliament approved on July 9, regnum.ru reported. Following the vote, Serdyukov, who has been in office for nine years, said that the main problems he intends to tackle are the low quality of health services, poor roads, and growing rates of alcoholism and drug addiction. On July 6, Putin also nominated Novosibirsk Governor Viktor Tolokonsky for another term. He has held the post since 1999 and is expected to be confirmed in office by the regional parliament on July 12, news.ngs.ru reported. Governors officially serve for five-year terms. Some Russian media reports suggested recently, however, that several governors asked for fresh presidential confirmation in office before the 2007 legislative and 2008 presidential elections, even though their terms have not expired. Putin moved to consolidate his control over the regions in late 2004, when he ruled that governors will henceforth be appointed by him rather than elected (see "RFE/RL Newsline," March 14 and July 2, 2007). PM STALIN-ERA ARCHIVES OPENED The Federal Security Service (FSB), which is the successor to the KGB, announced on July 8 the declassification of its Soviet-era archives for 1920-50, the so-called "period of mass repression," Russian and international media reported. Vasily Khristoforov, who heads the agency's archives and registers department, said that "any citizen" can access files from those years pertaining to their relatives. Khristoforov said such citizens need to first send a letter to the FSB's central archive explaining what material they are seeking. Stalin-era documents were first declassified in 1992, although some restrictions were reinstated in the late 1990s. It is not clear exactly which materials are affected by the latest FSB announcement. It appears that journalists and historians still will not have direct access to the archives but will require written permission of relatives of the purge victims to examine them. PM THREE RUSSIAN SERVICEMEN KILLED IN SOUTHERN CHECHNYA Three Russian Interior Ministry troops were killed and five more injured on July 10 when their armored personnel carrier hit a land mine near the village of Dyshne-Vedeno in southern Chechnya and then came under fire from Chechen resistance fighters, regnum.ru and lenta.ru reported. Dyshne-Vedeno was the home of radical Chechen field commander Shamil Basayev, whose death in an explosion in Ingushetia was announced exactly one year ago (see "RFE/RL Newsline," July 11, 2006). LF CHECHEN REPUBLIC HEAD SUBMITS ANNUAL ADDRESS TO PARLIAMENT Ramzan Kadyrov's annual address to the Chechen parliament was posted on July 9 on the Chechen government website, chechnya.gov.ru. In that missive, Kadyrov called on the parliament to work closely with the government in preparation for next year's local elections. He noted that the draft project for socioeconomic development in 2008-11 envisages doubling gross domestic product (GDP) and reducing unemployment and poverty. He argued against relying primarily on Chechnya's oil sector to generate economic growth, advocating instead expanding into machine building for the oil and petrochemical sector and resurrecting the agro-industrial sector. He further proposed resolving the acute housing shortage by introducing a mortgage program, but did not explain how that would benefit the estimated 75 percent of the population that is unemployed and thus has no regular income. Kadyrov advocated measures to expand the use of the Chechen language, including switching to Chechen as the language of instruction in primary education. Finally, he called for the "maximum transparency" in the work of the government bureaucracy in order to preclude corruption. LF
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