Johnson's Russia List #6015 10 January 2002 davidjohnson@erols.com A CDI Project www.cdi.org [Note from David Johnson: 1. Reuters: Russia hopes nuclear arms cuts "not just on paper." 2. Interfax: Russia, US to hold first arms talks since ABM withdrawal. 3. Luba Schwartzman: ORT Review. 4. DPA: Russian Army Claims Final Victory in Chechnya. 5. BBC Monitoring: Russian general says no end in sight to Chechen war. 6. BBC Monitoring: Chechen MP asks USA for help to fight Russian terrorism in Chechnya. 7. New York Times letter: The Civic Spirit Is Alive in Russia. 8. Reuters: Protesters rally over jailing of Russian reporter. (Pasko) 9. Financial Times (UK) editorial: Kremlin TV. 10. The Times (UK): Clem Cecil, Turkey changes line on Chechen rebels. 11. The Times (UK) obituary: Lev Zaikov. Moscow Communist Party boss in an era of transition. 12. Interfax: Prosecutor General's Office may question current, former heads of Gazprom on Sibur case - Ustinov. 13. Moscow Times: Anna Raff, Top Sibur Executives Hauled In By Feds. 14. The Guardian (UK): Ian Traynor, Russia edgy at spread of US bases in its backyard. 15. Neue Zürcher Zeitung: Patrick Nigg, Minsk: Soviet Reality Today. Daily Life in the Belarusian capital. 16. pravda.ru: VLADIMIR MIKHEYEV: DANGER EQUIVALENT TO 500 CHERNOBYL CATASTROPHES IS STORED IN SIBERIA. 17. Financial Times (UK): Andrew Jack, Window of Opportunity in Russian Market.] ******* #1 Russia hopes nuclear arms cuts "not just on paper" MOSCOW, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Russia sounded a warning on U.S. plans to store rather than destroy warheads to be cut from strategic nuclear arsenals, saying Moscow hoped the reductions "would be not just on paper." A Foreign Ministry statement issued in the early hours of the morning following the presentation in Washington of a new nuclear strategy urged the United States to follow through on pledges to proceed with real cuts in parallel with Russia. "We believe Russian-American agreements on further cuts in nuclear arsenals must firstly be radical -- down to 1,500-2,200 warheads, secondly verifiable, and thirdly irreversible," ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko said in the statement. "That means strategic nuclear weapons must be cut not only 'on paper."' A senior source in the Russian general staff, quoted by the daily Kommersant in anticipation of the announcement, said Moscow would object to such a move. "Such a contribution by Washington cannot be acceptable -- offering 50 Peacekeeper ICBMs and 200-300 warheads whose working life has already expired," the source said. "It is ridiculous." Assistant Defence Secretary J.D. Crouch, outlining the results of a Nuclear Policy Review sent to Congress on Tuesday, has said many inactivated nuclear warheads would be put into storage for emergency redeployment rather than being destroyed. Crouch said Washington was not trying to "mislead anybody." He said it was "a prudent thing to have, in a very uncertain, period, some responsive capability." Both Russia and the United States have pledged to reduce the size of their strategic nuclear arsenals, now standing at between 6,000 and 7,000 warheads each, to a figure somewhere between 1,500 and 2,200. The issue of whether to destroy -- or merely store -- warheads removed from missiles was a focal point of discussions at a summit in November between presidents Vladimir Putin and George W. Bush. Putin said the issue was one to be examined in negotiations leading to a new treaty. U.S. officials took no firm position and left the matter open, with Bush suggesting that a new agreement need not necessarily be part of a formal treaty. Crouch's comments were part of a broader presentation setting out Washington's vision of nuclear weapons by 2012 to abandon the Cold War-era emphasis on mutual deterrence. U.S. defence policy is predicated on developing an anti-missile shield to guard against what Bush says are new threats in the 21st century -- primarily missile launches by "rogue states" like Iran, Iraq and North Korea. Bush said last month the United States would withdraw from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, which Washington sees as outdated and a hindrance in developing the missile shield. ******* #2 Russia, US to hold first arms talks since ABM withdrawal Interfax Moscow, 10 January: Russian-American consultations on strategic offensive arms reduction will be held in Washington on 15-16 January, a spokesperson for the US embassy in Moscow told Interfax news agency today. The spokesperson said the American delegation to the consultations will be headed by Under Secretary for Policy Douglas Feith. These will be the first Russian-American consultations on strategic issues since Washington announced its withdrawal from the ABM Treaty. The Russian side said that it did not intend to present itself as the aggrieved party over this but would continue talks with the USA on strategic issues "but in a different format". Moscow has expressed the hope that by US President George Bush's visit to Russia, planned for mid-2002, the sides would have reached an understanding on radical strategic offensive weapons cuts. The Russian side also announced its desire to reach "some other accords which could replace the ABM Treaty". The upcoming Washington consultations will give a boost to the talks process at various levels which is to draw up a document both incorporating the parameters of future strategic offensive weapons cuts and detailing the control and transparency of this process. Interfax sources recall that Moscow has proposed that Russia and the USA cut their existing nuclear warheads to as little as 1,500 on each side. The American sides also set out its stance, saying it was prepared to reduce strategic offensive weapons to 1,700-2,200 nuclear warheads. "This would bring us, if not to identical positions, to similar ones," the agency was told. The hope was also expressed that once specific agreements on strategic offensive weapons were ready for signing this gap would be eliminated. ******* #3 ORT Review www.ortv.ru Compiled by Luba Schwartzman (luba7@bu.edu) Research fellow at the Institute for the Study of Conflict, Ideology and Policy at Boston University HEADLINES, Wednesday, January 09, 2002 - Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev has been awarded honorary citizenship in the city of Dublin for his contribution to political and economic reforms. - Pension Fund head Mikhail Zurabov explained the workings of the new pension system: Every worker will have a personal account which will accrue 14 percent of his/her income. This money will later be used to pay the pensions. - After an emergency shut-off along the high-voltage line, several areas of Sochi are once again left without electricity. Authorities are investigating the cause of the shut-off. - Federation Council Speaker Sergei Mironov met with Grigory Pasko's lawyer and expressed his willingness to personally vouch for the journalist in order to have him released from prison. Mironov said that his personal opinion is that the verdict was unfair. - Former (1996-1998) Yakutian Finance Minister Sergei Yanygin has been detained. He is suspected of attempting to sell $100 million worth of government bonds -- the equivalent of one third of the Republic's yearly budget. - The Russian General Prosecutor's office has filed a case against three directors of Sibur, the daughter company of Gazprom. President Yakov Goldovsky, Chairman of the Board Vyacheslav Sheremet and Vice President Yevgeny Koshits have been detained and will be accused of abusing their positions. - Federal forces have completed a special operation in Argun. Presidential Spokesman Sergei Yastrzhembskii declared that the latest federal actions have been very successful: a total of 92 fighters have been killed, while, of the federal troops, five were killed and 24 wounded. - A mass influx of skiers and snowboarders has been a boon to the Elbrus-region hotels and attractions. At least 15,000 tourists are expected this winter. The Russian government has allocated 80 million rubles for repairs and improvements. - The Art of Islam exhibit has opened in Kazan. It includes paintings from St. Petersburg's Hermitage Museum. - Six thousand children -- mainly orphans and handicapped children -- gathered at the Kremlin for the lighting of the national Christmas Tree. Tomorrow a group of 5-8th graders from Kaliningrad, whose trip to Moscow is a presidential prize for their good marks, will visit the Kremlin tree. - The First International Olympiad of the Russian Language has opened in Moscow. Five of the students from former Soviet republics will win university scholarships. - Protesters in the Pankisi Gorge are demanding the return of two hostages reported to be kidnapped by local Chechens. They are threatening to take the law into their own hands if the government does not take action. - Two sergeants have deserted the Novosibirsk garrison; 20-year-old Dmitro Maksimov and 22-year-old Renat Zabirov are suspected of stealing between 500,000 and 700,000 rubles from the safe of the division commander - The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has reviewed the case of former diplomat Valentin Moiseev (arrested in July of 1998 and accused of treason to the favor of South Korea). The Supreme Court did not change the ruling against Moiseev. - Fifty houses in Rostov-on-the-Don have been left without heat as a result of an accident along the pipes. Temperatures last night dropped to -25/-30F degrees [-13/-21F] -- almost a record low for the past 72 years. - The trial of four men accused of carrying out the October 1999 contract murder of State Duma Deputy Viktor Novoselov has began in St. Petersburg. - Makhachkala residents are commemorating the six-year anniversary of the storming of the city hospital by Chechen field commander Salman Raduev's fighters. ******* #4 Russian Army Claims Final Victory in Chechnya MOSCOW, Jan 10, 2002 -- (dpa) The Russian army claimed Thursday it has crushed the last units of Islamic rebels in Chechnya after more than two years of fighting. Only insignificant pockets of militants now remain in the North Caucasus republic after the mopping-up operations launched late last year, army chief of staff Anatoly Kvashnin said in Moscow. He ruled out further attempts to negotiate with these rebels after the failure of talks at the end of last year. "There will be no more mistakes. Our position is clear, no more concessions to bandits," Interfax news agency quoted Kvashnin as saying. The military said it killed more than 100 rebels in special operations since the end of December. But the Russian human rights organization Memorial has accused federal soldiers of killing several dozen civilians in the process. Moscow's second campaign to crush resistance in Chechnya began in autumn 1999. Official casualties list more than 3000 soldiers and policemen killed, although the numbers are thought to be understated. The military leadership said recently that around 2,000 militants remain at large in the republic. ******* #5 BBC Monitoring Russian general says no end in sight to Chechen war Source: Chechenpress web site, Tbilisi, in Russian 9 Jan 02 9 January, Chechenpress state news agency correspondent S. Spasokukotskiy: High-ranking representatives of the Russian power [defence, internal affairs and national security ministries] bodies assert that the Kremlin won't go along with supporters of what they call "premature ending of the war in Chechnya". In their opinion, such a "cessation of the military operations in Chechnya would only play into the militants' hands". Russian generals are confident that for the first time in recent years the Kremlin has put into effect "the correct tactics to protect state interests". What do the Russian generals mean by this? That they intend to continue the so-called anti-terrorist operation with its infamous clearance operations until acts of sabotage and terrorism carried out by Chechen militants are ended, the militants themselves are isolated, and their leaders are either exterminated or tried in court. The Russian military top brass is counting on the Kremlin not making a political decision to start peace talks with Aslan Maskhadov's administration. They predict that "by the spring all groups of fighters still capable of resisting federal forces will be destroyed". In an interview with your correspondent, one of the Russian generals admitted that the tactics of clearance operations, including "certain punitive measures against the civilian population" have fully justified themselves. According to him, punitive measures affect primarily those families that render direct assistance to Chechen fighters. The general maintains that "due to the extensive efforts taken by the Russian special services and their agents among the local population", the federals possess up-to-date information on practically every Chechen family and are well aware of those who fight against them and of those among the civilian population who support the fighters". According to the general's information, "it is a bit more difficult to monitor the situation in refugee camps in Ingushetia." The Russian general is most angered by Chechen families that frequently move about, especially from Ingushetia to Chechnya, and vice versa. The general believes that "the number of those supporting Chechen fighters is especially high" amongst these refugees. When asked "What next, when new generations of Chechens grow up? What are you (the federals) counting on?" the general muttered evasively: "We will first accomplish our key anti-terrorist operation missions, appoint normal people to govern Chechnya, give the nation order and tranquility, and then, who knows, the younger generations may start learning the lessons from the accounts of their elders and will not want to go into this hell again!" "But history proves the opposite?!", I objected. "Then we will give them (Chechens) what-for. Repetition, as Suvorov used to say, is the mother of learning. And they cannot do a damn thing (the style of the interview has not been changed) to Russia. If they want to live like people, they will, if they don't, we will crush them to powder!" "All of them?", I queried. "If we have to, we will!", was the answer. "And how about the right of nations to self-determination? Democracy, at last?", I tried to argue. "I don't give a damn about your democracy! And the rights too! Things will be the way the country needs them. And those who care about the country will understand such democracy. To explain is not our business. Our fucking business is to protect the Motherland!" (the general's style has been left unchanged), our interlocutor concluded. P.S. I will not dignify this with any comment, as I think the opinion provided needs no commentary at all! ****** #6 BBC Monitoring Chechen MP asks USA for help to fight Russian terrorism in Chechnya Source: Chechenpress web site, Tbilisi, in Russian 0636 gmt 9 Jan 02 9 January, Chechenpress correspondent, A. Amayev: In connection with the latest statement by US Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz that the USA is ready to render assistance to countries that intend to combat terrorism, we asked the head of defence and security committee of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria [CRI] parliament, A. Magomedov, to comment on this. The member of the Chechen parliament said that he welcomes the US government's statement and highly appreciates the US contribution against international terrorism. At the same time, he admitted that the CRI had great difficulties in fighting the Russian terrorist groupings which are carrying out the genocide of the Chechen people. According to the Chechen parliamentarian, during the last three months over 2,000 civilians together with hundreds of crippled old people, women and children of the Chechen state, were killed by the Russian terrorists. Almost all populated areas of the CRI periodically come under unprovoked shelling and mortar strikes by the Russian terrorists, A. Magomadov said. As a result of terrorist attacks by the Russian aircraft and helicopters, private houses of the Chechen citizens are destroyed, the latest example of which is the deployment of helicopter gunships by the Russian terrorists on 7 January in Argun. Therefore, bearing in mind that the Chechen people have been suffering for three years from the presence of the Russian terrorists on their land and by taking advantage of the proposal by Washington, I, on behalf of the CRI parliament, officially ask the USA to render a comprehensive assistance to us, A. Magomadov said. ****** #7 New York Times January 10, 2002 Letter The Civic Spirit Is Alive in Russia To the Editor: As someone who has spent the last 10 years in Siberia, supporting civil society development, I disagree with "Russia's Leaders Are Different. It's the People Who Are the Same" (Week in Review, Jan. 6). Citizens are becoming active, and partnerships between government and nongovernmental organizations exist in many regions. Last summer, I served on a committee to select Siberian entrepreneurs for internships. Compared with two years ago, the growth in numbers and professionalism was stunning. The "tangled ball of thread" that you use to characterize democracy in Russia is no more or less complicated than the developmental challenges facing any democracy. Corruption is one of the issues being addressed; another is the widening gap between rich and poor. No one has "cast the ball of thread aside." On the contrary, an increasing number of Russian citizens are taking the ball and running with it. SARAH LINDEMANN-KOMAROVA Novosibirsk, Russia, Jan. 7, 2002 ****** #8 Protesters rally over jailing of Russian reporter By Oleg Zhunusov VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Dozens of protesters gathered in Russia's Pacific port of Vladivostok on Thursday to demand the release of journalist Grigory Pasko, jailed last month on charges of high treason. Criticism of the military court verdict has mounted, with the head of Russia's upper house of parliament describing as groundless Pasko's conviction for telling Japan about the Russian navy dumping toxic waste in the Sea of Japan. Demonstrators gathered outside the Vladivostok offices of the FSB domestic security service, the successor to the Soviet-era KGB that brought the case against Pasko, a former navy captain who worked as journalist for the Pacific Fleet's newspaper. "I think a precedent will be created. Some positive decision must be taken," Pasko's wife Galina, bundled up against sub-zero temperatures, told RTR state television. "Justice must triumph." The group unfurled a large yellow banner reading "Try Corrupt Admirals, not Journalists" and remained outside the building for about an hour before dispersing. The FSB denounced the protest as a "well-organised political action in no way related to justice." Four people were briefly detained this week after taking part in an unauthorised rally outside the FSB's Moscow headquarters. Interfax news agency said they had been ordered to appear before a city court. A military court found Pasko guilty of passing military secrets to Japan, sentencing him to four years in a high-security jail. He will appeal against the verdict. The military prosecutor's office has also appealed, saying Pasko's four-year jail term was too lenient. Sergei Mironov, head of the Federation Council upper house of parliament, became the first high-ranking official to denounce the ruling. "As a citizen of Russia, I think the man has been convicted for no good reason," Mironov said in St Petersburg on Wednesday. "If a military secret affects hundreds of thousands of people, or even millions, and affects the health of their children, I don't think there should be any punishment for violating such a secret." Pasko's defence was built on a Russian law stipulating that information about environmental dangers could not be classified. Human rights groups have also spoken against the verdict. Amnesty International this week called for his release and said his prosecution appeared "motivated by political reprisal for exposing the practice of dumping nuclear waste." ****** #9 Financial Times (UK) 10 January 2002 Editorial Kremlin TV The struggle for media freedom in Russia is murky and complicated. But it is important if the country is ever to develop into a fully fledged democracy. In the latest twist, Boris Berezovsky, the exiled businessman linked with Boris Yeltsin, former president, is considering selling control of his television network, TV6. This follows moves by Lukoil, the big oil company, which has a stake in the network through its pension fund, to drive TV6 into liquidation. Lukoil argues it is acting on commercial grounds. But Mr Berezovsky claims the oil company is co-operating with the Kremlin in a political attack on him and a broad assault on media freedom. The argument echoes the row last year over control of NTV, Russia's largest non-state television channel, where Gazprom, the state-backed gas monopoly, forced out Vladimir Gusinsky, NTV's former owner, who had also upset the Kremlin and is also now in exile. Neither Mr Berezovsky nor Mr Gusinsky is an ideal champion of media freedom. Each has in the past cynically manipulated his channels for political ends. But even they are more suitable media owners than big corporations closely linked to the state. Private owners compete with each other, however crudely, and produce a market, of sorts, in information. State ownership stifles competition and undermines the free flow of information. This is particularly true in Russia, where the state until recently had a media monopoly. Following the chaos of the late Yeltsin years, Vladimir Putin has stabilised Russia politically and economically. But this stability has come with an increase in the Kremlin's power almost everywhere, including in the media. As an ex-KGB man, Mr Putin is not, by instinct, a democrat. He was right to reassert the Kremlin's authority. But he must not go too far. Democracy cannot flourish without a host of public and private institutions, including media organisations, competing for influence. Mr Putin claims to understand this. He says the real guarantee of media freedom is financially secure media groups, free from control of the state or of big business. That is true. But the way forward does not lie via extra Kremlin media control. Lukoil should step aside from talks over TV6's future and Gazprom should go ahead with plans it has aired to sell NTV. After that, the Kremlin should consider privatising one of the two big state networks, ORT and RTR. Then, the necessary increase in the Kremlin's administrative authority would be matched by an expansion of institutions capable of keeping at least a modest watch on that authority. ******* #10 The Times (UK) JANUARY 10 2002 Turkey changes line on Chechen rebels FROM CLEM CECIL IN MOSCOW TURKEY may extradite the Chechen propagandist and Islamic fundamentalist Movladi Udugov to Russia, which accuses him of armed rebellion. In a shift of policy, Turkey, formerly sympathetic to the separatists in Chechnya, yesterday requested the dossier against Mr Udugov, the former Chechen Prime Minister, that Moscow prepared almost two years ago. In recent months he has been seen in Pakistan and Afghanistan where, according to Russian television, he may have met Osama bin Laden. A Russian presidental aide, Sergei Yastrzhembsky, said that Turkey’s decision could shortly lead to Mr Udugov’s arrest, although he admitted that Mr Udugov might not be there. The Russian Interpol department had sent extradition notices to all the countries where he might be hiding; in recent days he had been seen in a Gulf state, he said. Mr Udugov ran for Chechnya’s presidency in 1996. It is believed that his campaign was financed with Saudi money. In the 1994-1996 RussianChechen war he told the world of Chechnya’s plight: it was said that Moscow had lost the information war to him. He told the West that fundamentalism would increase if the world did not back Chechnya. Yesterday Turkey refused to comment on the decision to consider his extradition. However, since September 11 it has made clear that it supports the international war against terrorism, being the first country to offer to send Muslim peacekeepers to Afghanistan. Chechnya is increasingly connected to international terrorism. Mr Yastrzhembsky said yesterday that “a new wind is blowing, and Turkey is beginning to understand the reasons for the conflict in Chechnya. Members of international terrorist organisations, including Chechen terrorists, are welcome in fewer countries.” The present Russian-Chechen war is in its third year. Yesterday one of the biggest engagements for months was completed by Russian Special Forces. Acting on intelligence that terrorist attacks were planned for New Year’s Eve, federal forces conducted operations in four areas of the republic culminating in the blockade of Argun. Russia says that rebel losses total 92, including two leaders, with five Russian soldiers lost. The rebels say that they have lost no fighters but that more than 50 Russian troops were killed. ****** #11 The Times (UK) JANUARY 10 2002 Obituary Lev Zaikov Moscow Communist Party boss in an era of transition LEV ZAIKOV was perhaps best known as the man who succeeded Boris Yeltsin as Communist Party boss in Moscow when Yeltsin broke with the party leadership in the autumn of 1987. Lev Nikolaevich Zaikov was born in the Russian city of Tula but spent most of his life in Leningrad. Before becoming a politician he had made his career in military industry, working his way up from the shop floor to becoming a factory manager by 1961. From 1974 until 1976 he was general manager of a large industrial association in the Leningrad region. Zaikov, who was a capable administrator and not much concerned with ideology, had joined the Communist Party in 1957, but it was not until 1976 that he moved from an industrial to a political post. From that year until 1983 he was chairman of the executive committee of the Leningrad City Soviet. In those days, however, the head of the local Soviet was not the equivalent of the mayor in post-Soviet Russia, but, rather, number two in the hierarchy to the Party First Secretary. Accordingly, it was another promotion for Zaikov when he became First Secretary of the more powerful Leningrad regional party committee in succession to Grigory Romanov in 1983. Thus Zaikov had already achieved some experience of local administration before the new Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, brought him to Moscow as a secretary of the Central Committee in 1985 and promoted him to full membership of the Politburo a year later. Within the party leadership Zaikov was responsible for overseeing the military and the armaments industry and was also, accordingly, involved in discussions about arms control. When Boris Yeltsin, who was First Secretary of the Moscow Communist Party organisation from 1985 to 1987 ventured criticism of the way perestroika was going in an unscheduled speech at a Central Committee meeting, he was replaced in that office by Zaikov. Although a pragmatic official, Zaikov had no chance of competing with Yeltsin for the hearts of Muscovites, for by daring to challenge the party hierarchy Yeltsin had established a reputation for courage and independence. Moreover, his well-publicised populist gestures — such as occasionally travelling by bus or metro — had given him a near-hero status in the late 1980s. For a time, moreover, Zaikov had not only to compete with the popular image of Yeltsin but also to combine his city responsibilities with the sensitive post of overseer of the military. Zaikov was replaced as Moscow Party First Secretary in 1989 and removed from all his leadership positions, including Politburo membership, in 1990 in the course of Gorbachev’s transfer of power from party to state institutions. He took no further part in political life and returned to Leningrad (soon to reacquire its pre-revolutionary name of St Petersburg), where he lived out the first decade of post-Soviet Russia as a pensioner. Lev Zaikov, member of the Soviet Politburo, 1986-1990, was born in Tula, Russia, on April 3, 1923. He died in St Petersburg on January 7, 2002, aged 78. ******* #12 Prosecutor General's Office may question current, former heads of Gazprom on Sibur case - Ustinov MOSCOW. Jan 10 (Interfax) - The Russian Prosecutor General's Office plans to question a number of current and former heads of Gazprom in connection with the criminal proceedings against leaders of the Sibur Company. "We are planning to question a number of current and former heads of Gazprom," Prosecutor General Vladimir Ustinov replied to an Interfax question on Thursday. He made it understood that the Sibur heads that were detained on Wednesday might be indicted. "If the investigations have grounds charges will be made," he said. "The grounds should be weighty enough so that even the court does not have reason to annul our resolution," Ustinov remarked. On Wednesday the Prosecutor General's Office detained Sibur President Yakov Goldovsky, Chairman of the Sibur Board of Directors and First Deputy Head of Gazprom Vyacheslav Sheremet, and Sibur Vice- President Yevgeny Koshchits. Criminal proceedings followed an examination done at the request of Gazprom heads, Ustinov said. They requested that the withdrawal of Sibur assets be examined. Ustinov did not give details about the investigation. "I do not want to disclose the mechanism of the assets' withdrawal," he said. "There are many ways to drain the assets of this or that company. I think that after the investigation we will show how it is possible to make the hitherto richest company bankrupt." Charges against the detained must be made within three days from the moment of their arrest, Ustinov said. ******* #13 Moscow Times January 10, 2002 Top Sibur Executives Hauled In By Feds By Anna Raff Staff Writer A day after ransacking Sibur's headquarters, federal prosecutors Wednesday detained the CEO and board chairman of the country's largest petrochemical holding as part of an investigation into theft at Gazprom. A Prosecutor General's Office spokesman said Sibur chief executive Yakov Goldovsky and board chairman Vyacheslav Sheremet -- who is also a Gazprom first deputy CEO -- were being held on charges of abuse of authority. A third executive, vice president Yevgeny Kozhits, was also being held. It was not clear late Wednesday whether the three executives were still being questioned. Prosecutors are investigating the illegal sale of 2.6 billion rubles ($86 million) worth of Gazprom assets, the prosecutor's office said in a statement. The prosecutor's office did not know exactly which assets were sold, nor could it comment on when the alleged crimes took place. The criminal case against these managers was opened Monday, and a surprise raid on Sibur headquarters followed Tuesday. Vice president Valery Pisaryov assumed the duties of Sibur CEO on Wednesday, Interfax reported. These latest allegations of asset stripping are the climax of a long-standing struggle between Gazprom, the nation's gas monopoly, and Sibur, which is Russia's leading producer of petrochemicals and is 51 percent owned by Gazprom. The appearance of prosecutors is a crippling blow to Gazprom's old guard -- led by former Gazprom CEO Rem Vyakhirev -- and a boost to new management, led by current chief Alexei Miller, a friend of President Vladimir Putin who was appointed in May to replace Vyakhirev. During the former management's reign, Sheremet was considered Vyakhirev's right-hand man. He was loathed by Gazprom's minority shareholders -- including board member and former Finance Minister Boris Fyodorov -- for buying Gazprom assets at rock-bottom prices in his family members' names. In the past, a sudden flurry of activity on the part of the prosecutors has rarely led to actual prosecutions. But a slew of arrests is usually enough to scare those the Kremlin targets for wrongdoing, said James Henderson, head of research at the Renaissance Capital brokerage. "Actual prosecution would be the most dramatic sign of change," Henderson said. "But at the end of the day, officials usually come out and say that nothing illegal had happened." In a press release, Gazprom said it had sent a stack of incriminating evidence to Prosecutor General Vladimir Ustinov, and Prime-Tass reported that top Gazprom managers sent the prosecutor's office a letter expressly asking for an investigation into the theft of assets. "Gazprom has continually kept law enforcement officials up to date on how Sibur is damaging the interests of its shareholders and creditors by selling the assets of subsidiaries," the press release said. It also appears that Gazprom is using these strong-arm tactics to force Sibur to pay back its debt of $827 million. In November, the Gazprom board decided to restructure the debt in a long-term agreement, and all of Sibur's assets are to act as collateral for the debt. In an April speech, Putin ordered Gazprom management to stop the flow of "millions" from the gas monopoly, and ever since Gazprom has been on the offensive with rogue subsidiaries that threatened to break from the gas giant's grasp. The government is Gazprom's largest shareholder, with 38 percent. Assets potentially worth billions of dollars -- such as stakes in gas-condensate producer Rospan and Russian-Hungarian joint venture Panrusgas -- have landed in the hands of Gazprom managers and their relatives since the former Soviet Gas Ministry was incorporated in the early 1990s. Late last year, Goldovsky threatened a share emission that would have shrunk Gazprom's stake in Sibur from 51 percent to 4 percent. Had the emission taken place (it was scheduled for Nov. 4 but later canceled), Gazprom would have been required to pay some $800 million to $900 million to retain its stake. But even then, Gazprom would have lost control due to a planned issue of preferred shares to businessmen close to Goldovsky. An extraordinary meeting of Sibur shareholders was scheduled for Wednesday to resolve questions of control at the subsidiary, but was canceled because a quorum could not be met. Only 13.33 percent of votes were represented as the meeting convened at 11 a.m. According to the agenda, shareholders were to elect a new board of directors as well as align the company charter with a new federal law. Fundamental changes to the law on joint stock companies came into effect Jan. 1. Among them is the following provision: A simple majority is the most that can be required to remove the chief executive. This is the crux of Gazprom's problems with Sibur. Miller and Gazprom's new managers have tried to oust Goldovsky from power for the past six months, but have been unable to do so because Sibur's charter requires the approval of 75 percent of shareholders in order to do so. "With the 75 percent requirement, it was impossible to get rid of the general director, even if there were important reasons to get rid of him, even if he had his hand in the company's cash," said a lawyer with a Western law firm in Moscow. In a statement, Gazprom said it boycotted the meeting because "more time is needed to agree upon the new version of the company charter." A source inside the company said that shareholders tied to Sibur management were adamant in their refusal to change that article of the charter. Even with a majority of Sibur's shares -- acquired in 1998 -- Gazprom has a minority on Sibur's 17-member board. On Wednesday, the Kommersant newspaper reported that the number of seats was to be reduced to nine: Four would go to Gazprom managers, four to Sibur and one director would be independent -- former Dresdner Bank CEO Walter Bernhard. ******* #14 The Guardian (UK) 10 January 2002 Russia edgy at spread of US bases in its backyard Ian Traynor in Moscow The US military build-up in the former Soviet republics of central Asia is raising fears in Moscow that Washington is exploiting the Afghan war to establish a permanent, armed foothold in the region. The swift construction of US military bases is also likely to ring alarm bells in Beijing, although the central Asian states appear to be embracing the Americans to dilute Russian influence in what Moscow views as its strategic backyard. In the latest sign of the US build-up, Galaxy transport aircraft landed at the Manas airfield outside Bishkek, capital of Kyrgyzstan, yesterday to prepare for the arrival of at least 3,000 American troops. The Americans have already stationed about 1,500 troops in Uzbekistan, struck agreements to use airfields in Tajikistan, set up bases in Afghanistan, and have secured Pakistani permission for US forces to pursue al-Qaida suspects on Pakistani territory. Of the five ex-Soviet states of central Asia, Turkmenistan alone is resisting pressure to allow the deployment of US or other western forces on its soil, although it is allowing overflights of military aircraft. In Kazakhstan yesterday, the speaker of the Russian parliament, Gennady Seleznev, effectively claimed the power of veto for Moscow on US deployments in central Asia. He pointed out that Russia has a collective security pact with the central Asian states, except Uzbekistan, and added: "They [central Asians] must not take any decisions without joint consultations in the framework of the treaty. "Russia would not approve of the appearance of permanent US military bases in central Asia." Russia's armed forces newspaper, Krasnaya Zvezda, complained yesterday of "the inexorable growth" of the US military presence in central Asia, even although the Afghan war was winding down. Washington now has 13 bases in nine countries ringing Afghanistan and in the Gulf. An American officer at the Manas base being built in Kyrgyzstan told the Interfax news agency yesterday that up to four aircraft were landing daily, that 17 US planes had arrived since December, and that the base would hold 3,000 troops living in 10-man tents. This base is 250 miles from the western Chinese border. With US bases to the east in Japan, to the south in South Korea, and Washington's military support for Taiwan, China may feel encircled. At a meeting in Beijing this week of Chinese, Russian, and central Asian officials, aimed at dovetailing their "counter-terrorism" strategies, Russia and China urged an end to outside interference in Afghanistan. But the central Asians, par ticularly the Uzbeks, appear happy to welcome the US as a foil to the big regional powers. The American troops moving to Kyrgyzstan will enjoy diplomatic status, as they do in Tajikistan, under deals negotiated with the host countries. The US is also allowed to control a three-mile security cordon around Manas base. In addition to weakening traditional Russian domination, the central Asian states - all of them authoritarian regimes regularly criticised by the US state department on human rights grounds until September 11 - are being rewarded by US aid and trade concessions and security and military cooperation deals. Scores of French troops were flown to Kabul from Tajikistan yesterday. In an agreement reached last week between the French and Tajik defence ministries, Paris obtained permission to use Tajik airfields for operations in Afghanistan. Last September, the Russians pooh-poohed the possibility of the US deploying to central Asia. Then President Vladimir Putin gave the green light, enraging many in his security and military elites. ******** #15 Neue Zürcher Zeitung January 5, 2002 Minsk: Soviet Reality Today Daily Life in the Belarusian capital By Patrick Nigg Ten years ago, the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic became the independent Republic of Belarus. Under the leadership of its authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, there has been much less change in the Belarusian capital Minsk than in other East European capitals. One feels no sense of a new start among its people. – The author is a freelance journalist living in Minsk. Whenever I tell a local that I live in Minsk voluntarily, and am glad to be here, I am sure to be greeted by an utter lack of comprehension. Even upon my arrival, the Belarusian border guard wished me a "speedy return to Switzerland" - intending no nastiness, only friendliness. Most people you encounter in Minsk are convinced that life in Belarus is essentially impossible: the wages too low, the winters too cold, the potholes in the streets too deep, the bureaucracy too oppressive. Criticism of one's own country is quite fashionable here, as is its exaggeration. Lenin and Dzerzhinsky Still on Their Pedestals But the Belarus bureaucracy has earned its reputation. As soon as you enter a government office here, you find yourself in a world of uniforms, flags, stamps and marks of rank, while the hours of waiting can turn even the proudest resident into a humble supplicant. The representatives of authority are strict and very conscious of their own power. They are also constrained in a very tight corset of competence, and except for a few helpful exceptions they all know exactly the limits beyond which a problem is no longer in their own bailiwick. In many respects, in externals as well as the self-image of officials, the old Soviet Union still remains surprisingly present here. The White Russian entry and departure visa for resident aliens, for example, entitles the holder to pass the "border of the USSR" (the visa form was printed in 1992). On the streets of Minsk, too, traces of the old days still remain. Lenin, long since toppled from his pedestal in other East European countries, still stands uncontested in front of the government building, and even Felix Dzerzhinsky, the founder of the Soviet secret police, has his park and his statue right across from the once-and-present KGB building. In the downtown area of this metropolis of 1.7 million people, there is little evidence of the economic pressure that bears down so heavily on the country as a whole. The city is clean, the number of expensive Western automobiles on the streets seems to increase every day, the house fronts are in immaculate condition. And law and order reign, since the militia is ubiquitous. Once or twice a day, when the men in uniform line up at 15-meter intervals along the curbs - their faces to the passing pedestrians, their batons behind their backs, the roadway suddenly swept clear of traffic - and the presidential Mercedes sweeps past with its escort, a West European gets a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach. But the people of Minsk are calm in the face of Alexander Lukashenko's monarchical mode of rule. It is a traditional fact of life here that the masters live by different rules from those that govern the common folk. Lukashenko's Prediction "If things are going well for the government, they're going well for us," says Sasha in describing the basic attitude of his compatriots. People here are happy and proud to show outsiders the city's new, largely glass railway station, the expensive and handsomely designed metro station. Such prestige structures are "gifts to the people," so they can never be too elaborate, while in many parts of the city water must be boiled before it is safe to drink. "You will live badly, but not for long." That somewhat ambiguous promise was reportedly made by then-presidential candidate Lukashenko to the voters in 1993. His critics are agreed that the man who has since then been the authoritarian ruler of this former Soviet republic and its 10 million people has at least kept the first part of his promise: most White Russians live badly. A comparison with neighboring Poland, Latvia or Lithuania is depressing. The fact that those countries are preparing to become members of the European Union is, on the one hand, symbolic of the economic and political backwardness that Belarus has garnered for itself in its decade of independence. At the same time, it is not only pessimists who fear that this country's future place on the outermost frontier of the EU will be a shady spot indeed. Its western and northern neighbors, especially Poland, have long been busy preparing their borders with White Russia to conform to the requirements of the Schengen Agreement. The only consolation is provided by a glance to the east and south, where Russia and Ukraine are not in much better shape than Belarus. Outside of Minsk's downtown area, out where the slab-sided Soviet-era apartment buildings dominate the cityscape, you encounter urban misery on every hand: people who earn their living collecting empty bottles, people who search through garbage for something usable or even edible, people who spend their nights on radiators in staircases, people who obviously drink more than they eat. Here it becomes quite evident why the life expectancy of White Russians declined by 3.2 years from 1991 to 2000 - and here, too, one sees the relative poverty of the average population. A Room with a Few Like tens of thousands of people in Minsk, Olga, an orchestral violinist, lives in a "residential home." She shares her 15 square meters (161.4 square feet) of living space with another woman, and the two share a toilet and shower with eight other parties (one room to a party, some of which consist of three-person families). To avoid being dependent on the communal kitchen, the two young women have a hotplate and a water coil heater in their "apartment." The house rules are strict, the hallways are dirty. Oleg is somewhat better off. He is 26 years old, a captain in the White Russian anti-aircraft force; married to a teacher, he has a 1-year-old daughter. Together with the wife's parents, the young family inhabits a four-room apartment - quite a comfortable living arrangement by Belarusian standards, but probably as good as it will ever get. Formerly, during the days of the White Russian S.S.R., young families generally lived with parents or in residential homes and waited for a good many years before they were assigned an apartment by the government. Today they have nothing left to wait for. State-owned apartments at merely symbolic rents are no longer provided, and the properties offered on the free market are not affordable to ordinary citizens like Oleg. He would have to pay a minimum of 80 dollars a month for a two-room apartment on the outskirts of the city. The salary of close to 200 dollars a month that Oleg earns as an anti-aircraft officer is above average. A saleswoman must get along on the equivalent of about 60 dollars, a female university lecturer on 80-100 dollars. Nevertheless: "It's just barely enough, if you live modestly," says Oleg, and goes on to explain that "modestly" means no eating or drinking out, and certainly no visits to the disco. He is proud of his rank and enjoys his profession, but would change if he could earn more elsewhere. The military academy trained him as an electrical engineer, and he feels it is insulting that, with his education, his situation is so poor materially, while others "who have learned nothing, but have influential parents, make money in all sorts of businesses." Perestroika's Bad Reputation To the question of who is responsible for these conditions, Oleg replies that he doesn't really know, but "the whole filthy mess" began with perestroika. Almost everyone in the army supports the president, he says, because unlike the political opposition, Lukashenko would never vote in favor of NATO membership or cuts in the size of the military. "If I were a civilian, I might think twice about voting for the president," declares Oleg. But he prefers not to talk about politics. He doesn't know much about it, he claims, just enough to know that not much has changed in White Russia since the end of the Soviet era. That's why he doesn't want his last name used in this article: "I don't want to get an unpleasant letter from my ministry." In another part of the city, an arts society is celebrating a festive evening. The host and his friends, most of them musicians and dancers, are not among the "novorishi," the nouveaux riches business moguls who are changing the look of Minsk's streets with their fancy cars. But thanks to engagements abroad, these artists have gotten their hands on some hard foreign currency and their work with state-run or state-supported ensembles has brought them the kind of contacts so important in dealing with government offices and officials. One of those contacts, an officer of the traffic police, has even been invited to the party and has kindly offered his help in the event that any of the guests find themselves with problems as a motorist. "If you don't want to live with torn wallpaper, you have to have plenty of adrenalin in your blood," declares the host. Life is stressful, he says, but there are ways to arrange things. And a change of government would only disrupt the network of contacts that he and his friends have so laboriously built up. No one here is seriously interested in the country's democracy deficit. ******* #16 pravda.ru January 9, 2002 VLADIMIR MIKHEYEV: DANGER EQUIVALENT TO 500 CHERNOBYL CATASTROPHES IS STORED IN SIBERIA Today’s guest is director of the Civic Center for Nuclear Non-proliferation (in the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk), Vladimir Mikheyev. He was born in 1955 and has a higher education. Has been working on nuclear safety problems since 1989. He is also a founder of the Ekologichesky Vestnik (Ecological Bulletin) newspaper, which was the first ecological newspaper on the territory of the former CIS. The first issue of the newspaper was illegally printed on October 14, 1989. Since 1989, Vladimir Mikheyev has been one of the leaders of the Krasnoyarsk public ecological organization Green World. In February of 1990, he was one of the organizers of the regional ecological movement, and in 1994, he was elected chairman of the movement. The ecological movement organizes actions to inform the population of the consequences of the processing of nuclear waste. Vladimir Mikheyev, together with independent experts, initiated expeditions on the Yenisei river for the analysis of the river’s radiation pollution. The information was then published in the mass media. He is the author of several publications on the problems of nuclear pollution and the processing of spent nuclear fuel. - There is not so much information about the activity of the Civic Center for Nuclear Non-proliferation that you lead. Tell us about the main objectives of the Center. - Our main objective is informing of the community and mass media of nuclear security problems, the consequences of processing spent nuclear fuel and nuclear non-proliferation. For this purpose, we publish books and booklets, constantly update our official site, and organize press-conferences. We also provide information about nuclear problems for people concerned; our public library is open for everyone. - What is nuclear security for Russia ? - “Do no harm” is the key principle of nuclear security for Russia. It means that all plans of the Russian Ministry for Atomic Energy are to be clear for the population; they are also to be approved by the people of the regions where the construction of new nuclear power plants or depositories of spent nuclear fuel are planned. - We have been witnesses of a long discussion between supporters and opponents of the import of spent nuclear fuel to Russia. Spent nuclear fuel is already being transported to the ghost town of Zheleznogorsk. Officials of the Ministry for Atomic Energy say that this is a way to earn $20 billion, which is to be spent on the solutions to vital ecological problems of Russia. For many people, the explanation is rather agreeable. - First of all, the sum of $20 billion was officially published for the first time by a representative of Non-Proliferation Trust, Inc. (America) at the beginning of 1999. You may find articles about it on our official site. Second, the sum of $20 billion is the total cost of the project, from which all expenses are to be deducted. Russia’s Minister for Atomic Energy, Rumyantsev, said in Krasnoyarsk on July 13, 2001 that Russia would get only a part of the sum. Even the minister does not know the exact amount. This is to be the sum after the deduction of the project’s net cost (transportation, construction of depositories, and other expenses) from the earnings. Our center expects that Russia will earn only $350 million within 40 years. Third, it is not ruled out that a part of the sum will be stolen in Moscow, as the ministry is personally interested in obtaining the money. The resignation of ex-minister for Atomic Energy Yevgeny Adamov in March 2001 was caused by his commercial activity in his private interests. The Duma has already published documents that reveal the existence of corruption in the Ministry. - But not only our own and imported spent nuclear fuel poses a threat to nature and the population of the Krasnoyarsk region. What are other most threatening problems ? - Reprocessing spent nuclear fuel is the most dangerous operation in the nuclear fuel cycle (from uranium production to radioactive waste disposal). Ninety-five percent of noxious discharge falls during reprocessing. That is why, as the ministry plans to import spent nuclear fuel, it will also reprocess. The ministry plans to launch its RT-2 plant by 2020. As of now, radioactive wastes and spent nuclear fuel with the activity of 3.7 billion curie are stored at the depository in the town of Krasnoyarsk-26. For reference, after the catastrophe in the Ukrainian city of Chernobyl, about 59 million curie were discharged. That is why we may say that a catastrophe 74 times larger than that one of Chernobyl is being stored at the mining chemical plant in Krasnoyarsk-26. The ministry plans to construct a new dry depository for spent nuclear fuel with a capacity of 33 000 tons for imported and domestic spent nuclear fuel. This is a great additional loading at the rate of 20 billion curie. If the existing depository is expanded, the loading will gain 3 billion curie more. If the ministry’s plans succeed, the loading of the mining chemical plant in Krasnoyarsk-26 will make up over 25 billion curie by 2010-2015 (or a discharge equivalent to 500 Chernobyl catastrophes). Therefore, we may say that the depository may become the most contaminated place not only in Russia but in the whole world within the next 10-15 years. - During the period of perestroika, ecologists played a very important role. However, today, we observe no mass protests even against most detrimental projects. What is the reason for it ? - There are two reasons for it. The population is preoccupied with the settlement of everyday, routine problems; the society’s activity has decreased. Russia’s ecological organizations carve out a miserable existence because no support is obtained from local authorities. - Which public organizations and political parties does the center cooperate with? - We try to avoid politics. The center has close contacts with Russian and foreign public organizations, which allows us to obtain efficient information and organize joint-campaigns. - Tell us about the rich history of the ecological movement. - The creation of the regional ecological movement was accompanied by demonstrations the population of the Krasnoyarsk region against the construction of platform #27 in the summer of 1989. The peak of the population’s activity fell at this very period. Several ecological anti-nuclear meetings supported by writers Viktor Astafiev and Roman Solntsev were organized. The joint efforts helped save the land where the Ministry for Atomic Industry (today’s Ministry for Atomic Energy) planned to construct platform #27, an enterprise for the storage and processing of spent nuclear fuel. That very event is considered to be the organization’s birth. However, there was no information about the activity of the mining chemical enterprise in the town, and the ecological movement aimed at informing the population about the enterprise’s work and its harmful consequences. The examination of the nuclear production was the key objective of the movement’s work at that time. The movement wanted the people to know the truth about the harmful production, but the authorities of that time prevented the mass media from publishing such information. Then, we decided to publish our own ecological newspaper, and Ekologichesky Vestnik newspaper illegally issued on October 14, 1989 for the first time. We published seven issues illegally before the newspaper was officially registered. In the newspaper, we published exact information about radiation pollution of the Krasnoyarsk region caused by the mining chemical enterprise. The movement organized several ecological expeditions on the Yenisei river to examine radiation pollution of the water. The Krasnoyarsk public ecological organization Green World was founded in the summer of 1989; on its basis, the Krasnoyarsk regional ecological movement was created in 1990. The organization collected over 50 000 signatures against the construction of the RT-2 plant in the region. Then, the regional ecological movement, together with the Krasnoyarsk regional administration, organized three international radiological conferences on conversion and nuclear security problems. The Civic Center for Nuclear Non-proliferation was created then to continue the work of the ecological movement. - And let us speak about the future now. What may happen within the nearest time if nuclear security problems are not settled in Russia and other countries ? - Several catastrophes of Chernobyl extent may occur… - Most part of information about the environment is top-secret, as it is connected with the defense complex. However, the government protects the sphere rather strictly (we may judge about it by the court’s verdict on the case of journalist Grigory Pasko). How does the center settle the problems that arise in this connection? We know that the center works on the creation of a system for public control over the activity of the mining chemical enterprise in Krasnoyarsk-26. - We have been working on the problem since 1989. Different kinds of pressure from the KGB, Federal Security Bureau, and Federal Intelligence Service have been exerted on the organization, but we still keep on working on the problem. The center has opened its subsidiary in Krasnoyarsk-26. - Tell us about the future plans of the Civic Center for Nuclear Non-proliferation and the Krasnoyarsk regional ecological movement scheduled for 2002. - We plan to work on informing the community and mass media of the danger that may be caused by the further development of the plutonium industry in the Krasnoyarsk region and the construction of an international depository of spent nuclear fuel. One of the main objectives is also to increase our professionalism in opposition to the popularization of the Ministry for Atomic Energy. - They say that two classes of ecologists exist: pessimists and well-informed optimists. How do you characterize yourself ? - I belong to the second type of your classification. - Do the Russian authorities and the society understand the importance of ecological problems ? If not, how should we achieve this? - There is no understanding of this kind so far, which is why we should exert pressure on the authorities to achieve it. Vladimir Mikheyev was interviewed by Andrey Lubensky PRAVDA.Ru Translated by Maria Gousseva ******* #17 Financial Times (UK) 10 January 2002 Window of Opportunity in Russian Market By Andrew Jack Just when Russian equities should have gone into a seasonal slumber, they have outstripped expectations and surged ahead on the back of a voracious appetite from investors. Traditionally, Russians wind down in late December and hardly wake up again until mid-January, after the western and orthodox Christmas and New Year celebrations have been completed. Yet the benchmark RTS index has risen sharply in the last few weeks on unusually high volumes and there are few signs yet that the trend is slowing. With little sign of any spillover from the Argentinian default, that puts Moscow on track to continue its recent record as one of the very best performing markets in the world. "The market has been rising without substantial resistance and fund managers coming back from their holidays with surplus cash are realising that they have to invest," says Alexei Zabotkine, economist with the Moscow-based brokerage United Financial Group. James Fenkner, chief equity strategist with Troika Dialog, says: "There is nowhere for investors to park their dollars and generate high yields. Russia is looking attractive from the top-down political context, dividend yields and on the basis of valuations." He estimates dividend yields will exceed 4 per cent for 2002, making equities look very attractive at a time of sharply declining interest rates and diminished returns elsewhere. With the macro-economic climate sharply improved, reform measures underway, and a healthy trade and budget surplus, the Russian bond market has improved sharply on the back of rating upgrades in recent months, to the point where many analysts now see it as fully valued. That leaves equities as the next best thing, given that they are still substantially undervalued - at least according to those based in Moscow with an interest in talking up Russia. Mr Fenkner stresses in particular the attraction of preference shares - those Russian corporate shares which pay a substantial dividend by law, originally designed to provide income to the employees who took part in the privatisations of their companies during the 1990s. He argues that they offer not only attractive yields as they stand but also the potential for further gains as they are restructured and converted into common stock in the future. Lukoil and Norilsk Nickel have already carried out such schemes. Surgut and Tatneft, the oil companies, as well as regional electricity and telecommunications companies, may follow suit. Given the recent conversion to more enlightened corporate governance by the former pariah Yukos, and even signs that the gas monopoly Gazprom is seeking better value for its shareholders, there are also indications of improvement at the micro-level. And, with the likely launch of American Depositary Shares for Wimm Bill Dann, the dairy and juices group, this month, there are signs of diversification from a very narrow base in the oil and gas sectors. But, with the world economic outlook still uncertain, analysts warn that 2002 - and even the first half of the year - may be the final period of sharp growth for Russian equities in some time. ********