What the Papers Say, Jan. 9, 2014

Izvestia

1. Lyudmila Podobedova report "People to be jailed for five years for penetrating oil rigs" says that the State Duma has suggested that punishment for attacks on shelf facilities should be toughened; pp 1, 4 (1,000 words).

2. Natalya Bashlykova report "Replacement prepared for head of republic of Altai" says that many politicians and experts believe that Alexander Berdnikov, head of the republic of Altai, whose term in office expires in January, has no chance of being re-elected for a third term; pp 1, 3 (800 words).

3. Andrei Gridasov report "Special services look for live bombs among militants' widows" says that after recent explosions in Volgograd, special services are carrying out large-scale "anti-criminal mopping up operations" in the North Caucasus and in neighboring regions. Special services pay particular attention to ethnic Russians, article says; pp 1, 5 (600 words).

4. Andrei Gridasov report "Main witness is being withdrawn from Politkovskaya case" says that changes may happen in the trial over the murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya due to the deterioration of health of the main witness of the prosecution; pp 1, 5 (750 words).

5. Ivan Cheberko interview headlined "We would like Russia to stay in Baikonur forever" with Talgat Musabayev, chairman of the Kazkosmos national space agency of Kazakhstan; pp 1, 4 (2,400 words).

6. Yegor Sozayev-Guryev report "Children's choir sings Olympic song for Vladimir Putin" says that in St. Petersburg, almost 1,000 children are rehearsing a song to be performed at the closing ceremony of the Sochi Olympics; p 2 (600 words).

7. Yelena Malay report "State Duma doubts MAK is needed" says that following an air crash in Kazan, the State Duma has decided to check the work of the Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK); p 2 (800 words).

8. Anna Akhmadiyeva report "Channel One and Rossia 1 share celebrating people" says that according to TNS Russia, the provider of audience measurement data, almost 95 percent of the television audience watched Putin's two different midnight New Year addresses; p 6 (650 words).

9. Anna Akhmadiyeva interview headlined "Presence of God is transmitted via relics" with pro-Kremlin television journalist Arkady Mamontov, who speaks about the film "The Gifts of the Wise Men" shown on the television channel Rossia 1; p 6 (800 words).

10. Maria Shatalova report "Guests of Olympic Games to get discounts" says that the transit tourists, who go to Sochi via Moscow, will have an opportunity to put up at Moscow hotels and visit places of interest in the city with discounts; p 8 (900 words).

Rossiiskaya Gazeta

1. Taras Fomchenkov article headlined "2014 without kopecks" comments on the new law regulating the work of tax collectors that allows them to round up sums in tax returns to get rid of kopecks; pp 1, 4 (350 words).

2. Leonid Radzikhovsky article headlined "May first" praises President Vladimir Putin's policy and says he is implementing the promises he made during his election campaign in 2012; pp 1, 3 (1,700 words).

3. Tatyana Shadrina report "Drops in luggage" says that the Federal Air Transport Agency has toughened restrictions concerning hand luggage; pp 1, 3 (250 words).

4. Kira Latukhina article headlined "Examination number one" reports on visits to Russian regions made by Putin in early January; p 2 (950 words).

5. Tatyana Zamakhina article headlined "Volgograd's echo" says amendments to the Criminal Code drafted by a Federation Council senator will make officials face up to 15 years in prison for negligence resulting in failure to prevent terrorist attacks. The document was drafted following explosions in Volgograd; p 2 (500 words).

6. Tamara Shkel report "Deputies carry out investigation" looks at the State Duma's plans and says that the deputies intend to amend the law on investigation activities and "enlarge the capabilities" of law enforcers; p 2 (600 words).

7. Tatyana Zykova brief report "'Odnako' is in Rosneft now" says that Mikhail Leontyev, commentator of the "Odnako" slot on state-controlled Russian Channel 1, will become a top manager in the oil company Rosneft; p 2 (150 words).

8. Yekaterina Zabrodina article headlined "War in green way" says Moscow has accused Greenpeace of disrupting talks with the Senegalese authorities over the future of the Russian seamen detained on board the "Oleg Naydenov" trawler; p 7 (700 words).

9. Vladislav Vorobyev article headlined "Swan, crayfish and Damascus" criticizes the Syrian opposition for attempts to downplay the importance of the international conference on the Syrian conflict which is to be held in late January and warns the opposition that they risk losing international support if they ignore the conference altogether; p 8 (650 words).

10. Ksenia Burmenko report "Back to normal" says that security has been stepped up in Volgograd following explosions in late December; p 10 (600 words).

Rossiiskaya Gazeta weekly

1. Excerpts from the interview that Patriarch Kirill II gave to television channel Rossia 1 on Jan. 7 ; p 4 (900 words).

Moskovsky Komsomolets

1. Tatyana Fedotkina article headlined "This holiday with scandal on lips" slams Russian Orthodox Church cleric Andrei Kurayev and showman Ivan Okhlobystin for their anti-gay rhetoric during New Year holidays; pp 1, 3 (450 words).

2. Andrei Yashlavsky report "No-one had right to forcibly detain them" looks at the detention of a Russian fishing ship by the Senegalese authorities. Article features comments by Russian experts; p 2 (850 words).

3. Oleg Bazak article headlined "European Maidan celebrates Christmas with rice pudding and champagne" says the Ukrainian opposition continues pro-European protests in Kiev; p 2 (300 words).

4. Matvey Ganapolsky article headlined "Russia-14" sums up economic and political results of 2013 and notes that the recent developments in Russia, such as volunteer campaigns during floods, have shown that civil society is being born in the country; p 3 (900 words).

5. Natalya Rozhkova et al. report polls Russian politicians, both opposition and pro-Kremlin ones, who sum up political results of 2013; p 5 (1,100 words).

6. Unattributed report "Snowden opens window to Russia for spies" says that the Federal Migration Service has drafted a bill on asylum in Russia; p 1 (250 words).

Komsomolskaya Pravda

1. Dmitry Smirnov article "Putin acted as Father Frost" gives an account of President Putin's travels and meetings on New Year's Eve ; p 2 (250 words).

2. Alexander Kots article headlined "Seizure of the "Oleg Naydenov" : Greenpeace's revenge?" looks at the incident off the West African coast in which a Russian fishing ship was seized by the Senegalese military; p 3 (400 words).

3. Nigina Beroyeva piece headlined "Norwegian herring chewed out" says Russia has banned imports of produce by 485 Norwegian fishing companies over alleged violations of veterinary requirements; p 3 (150 words).

4. Darya Aslamova and Dmitry Steshin commentary pieces headlined "Do we need Lezginka [North Caucasus dance] in Red Square on New Year night?" and "Why does nobody in Dushanbe dance Yablochko [Russian sailors' dance]" respectively look at controversy that immigrants' New Year celebrations in Moscow's Red Square have caused among some Russian Internet users; p 4 (450 words).

5. Alexander Boyko report "Search is under way in Moscow for suicide bombers from Dagestan" shows pictures and contains information on four people whom the police suspect of being potential suicide bombers; p 8 (100 words).

Komsomolskaya Pravda weekly

1. Interview with prominent writer Zakhar Prilepin headlined "Now Russia can dictate its own policy" looks at main political and other events in Russia in 2013; pp 2-3 (1,300 words).

Argumenti i Fakti weekly

1. Vitaly Tseplyayev article "Period of turbulence" contains a compilation of comments from pundits on what awaits Russia in 2014; p 4 (900 words).

2. Vyacheslav Kostikov commentary piece headlined "Chapayev is needed: What challenges Vladimir Putin faces" looks at the tasks the Russian head of state has to tackle; p 6 (800 words).

3. Interview with the head of the republic of Ingushetia, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, headlined "What to do with the Caucasus?", p 7 (800 words).

4. Vasily Kray and Georgy Alexanderov article "Easy target? Why did terrorists blow up Volgograd yet again?" contains comments from pundits and experts on the double terrorist attack that hit Volgograd in late December; p 8 (650 words).

Tvoi Den

1. Andrei Muravyev piece headlined "Our home is no Sodom" looks at actor and former priest Ivan Okhlobystin's anti-gay campaign; p 2 (200 words).

2. Anton Stepanov article "Black delirium" gives details of what it describes as "a shocking incident in Red Square" when an African man climbed up to the roof of one of the churches in Moscow's central Red Square to deliver a Muslim prayer; the article also contains an interview with the man's Russian wife, who says it was "a nervous breakdown"; pp 4-5 (450 words).