Kommersant
1. Ilya Barabanov article headlined "Crimea not afraid of military" says that Ukraine's eastern regions have taken well the Russian Federation Council's decision authorizing the president to use the army in the territory of Ukraine; pp. 1, 4 (693 words).
2. Pavel Bulavin and Sergei Sobolev article headlined "Europa Plus to sit on Dorozhka" says that the European Media Group, which owns Russia's most popular radio station Europa Plus, is planning to buy its closest rival Dorozhnoye Radio; pp. 1, 10 (715 words).
3. Olga Shetopal article headlined "Cash left alone" says that the Finance Ministry has suspended the consideration of a bill limiting cash payments in Russia; pp. 1, 8 (642 words).
4. Kirill Melnikov article headlined "Rosneft takes Odessa" says that state-run oil company Rosneft is considering buying the Odessa-based oil refinery, which has recently suspended its operations and has fallen under the control of VTB. The asset is not interesting, so the deal is purely political, experts say; pp. 1, 7 (753 words).
5. Maxim Ivanov and Natalya Gorodetskaya article headlined "Federation Council stands together" says that the Federation Council has authorized the Russian president to use the army in the territory of Ukraine. The State Duma has asked the president to use any possible means to "protect" the population of the Crimea; p. 2 (784 words).
6. The newspaper's society section headlined "Citizens are for and against sending troops into Crimea" says that supporters and opponents of the decision to use the Russian army in Ukraine have held rallies in Moscow and St. Petersburg; p. 2 (314 words).
7. Galina Dudina interview with Nikolai Tikhomirov, a member of the Federation Council's delegation to Crimea, headlined "Analogy with Czechoslovakia and Afghanistan is inappropriate." who explains why the upper chamber has voted for the use of the Russian army in Ukraine; p. 2 (400 words).
8. Ivan Tyazhlov et al. article headlined "Start of oncoming traffic" says that the latest developments in Ukraine have forced many Ukrainians to ask for political asylum in Russia. According to the Federal Migration Service, there have been 143,000 such people over the last two weeks; p. 2 (463 words).
9. Pavel Tarasenko article headlined "Ukraine's east enveloped in war of flags" says that pro-Russian rallies have been held in a number of Ukraine's eastern and southern regions. They did not do without clashes with Maidan protesters. However, anti-Russian rallies turned to be stronger the day after the Russian Federation Council permitted to use the army in the territory of Ukraine; p. 4 (653 words).
10. Olga Kuznetsova interview with Kharkiv Mayor Hennadiy Kernes, headlined "Situation in Crimea is different. We live and work according to Ukrainian laws," speaking about the situation in Kharkiv; p. 4 (594 words).
11. Galina Dudina interview with Russian consul-general in Simferopol, Vyacheslav Svetlichny, headlined "Task of self-defense squads is to prevent ruses," speaking about the state of affairs in Crimea and the issuing of Russian passports for Berkut riot policemen; p. 4 (366 words).
12. Sergei Strokan article headlined "Ukraine announces mobilization" says that Ukraine has put on alert its armed forces in response to the Federation Council's decision permitting to use the Russian army in the territory of Ukraine; p. 5 (536 words).
13. Kirill Belyaninov and Maxim Yusin article headlined "U.S. warns like in 2008" says that the U.S. has warned Moscow that if it steps into the Ukrainian crisis by using the army, the West will introduce sanctions against Russia. The move is similar to that of August 2008 after Russia launched a military operation against Georgia, the article notes; p. 5 (676 words).
14. Sergei Sidorenko interview with new Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrei Deshchitsa, headlined "We pin hopes on West's talks with Russia," speaking about the Western and Russian stances on the new Ukrainian authorities; p. 5 (600 words).
15. Maria Yefimova interview with Leonid Slutsky, chairman of the State Duma CIS Affairs Committee, headlined "We will cooperate with this team if Ukrainian people elect it," speaking about Russia's policy toward the new Ukrainian authorities and the West; p. 5 (490 words).
16. Viktor Khamrayev article headlined "Deputies launch fight against terrorism" says that the State Duma has approved in the first reading a package of antiterrorist bills, which toughen criminal punishment for terrorism, increases Federal Security Service officers' powers, restrict anonymous payments on account and grant law enforcers free access to information about Internet users; p. 6 (609 words).
17. Irina Nagornykh article headlined "Ella Pamfilova to remain responsible for distribution of grants" says that Ella Pamfilova may continue distributing presidential grants among human rights organizations but will suspend her membership in the Civil Dignity movement after she is elected the Russian human rights ombudsman; p. 6 (557 words).
18. Dmitriy Butrin article published in the regular column headlined "Rules of game" looks at the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum, which ended on March 1; p. 7 (401 words).
Nezavisimaya Gazeta
1. Alexei Gorbachev article headlined "Navalny isolated from Moscow City Duma election campaign" says that Moscow's Basmanny District Court has placed under home arrest opposition activist Alexei Navalny, who is targeted in the Yves Rocher Russia embezzlement case. Experts say that in doing so, the authorities have defined the limits for Navalny beyond which he should not go; pp. 1-2 (455 words).
2. Anastasia Bashkatova article headlined "Ruble switches to martial law" says that the Ukrainian political crisis may seriously affect the Russian ruble rate; pp. 1, 4 (887 words).
3. Mikhail Sergeyev article headlined "Beijing starts silk road to CIS with higher education" says that the implementation of the Chinese "Silk Road" project has begun with the establishment of Chinese language centers in Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan; pp. 1, 4 (564 words).
4. Alina Terekhova and Alexander Chernyavsky article headlined "No growth, no need for it" reports on the annual economic forum held in Krasnoyarsk; pp. 1, 4 (717 words).
5. Tatyana Ivzhenko article headlined "Moscow's actions to enable Kiev to implement Yushchenko's old plans" says that the nationwide mobilization has been announced in Ukraine to protect the country from "Russian aggression." However, Kiev hopes for settling the conflict with Russia in a diplomatic way. The future of bilateral relations depends on President Vladimir Putin's decisions to this effect, the article says; pp. 1, 6 (2,053 words).
6. Darya Tsilyurik article headlined "West is ready to punish Russia for Crimean Spring" says that the West has accused Russia of violating a number of international agreements and is considering retaliatory measures, including sanctions; pp. 1, 6 (761 words).
7. Editorial headlined "Ukraine is broke" says that Ukraine is facing a deep. economic crisis. The West wants Ukraine to take an IMF loan to solve economic problems. Russia says that crediting of Ukraine should be linked with the human rights situation there; p. 2 (465 words).
8. Alexandra Samarina and Yekaterina Trifonova article headlined "Maidan rushes into Russian politics" says that the Russian authorities have finally stopped keeping silence as regards the Ukrainian political crisis and taken a number of active steps. Experts are split over the timeliness of the move; p. 3 (1,374 words).
9. Rodion Mikhaylov article headlined "Presidential senators to increase Federation Council's role" looks at a mechanism to form the Federation Council, which has been changed for the fourth time over the last 20 years; p. 5 (1,787 words).
10. Alexander Malyshev article headlined "Russians back Ukraine by car races and demonstrations" says that mass rallies in support of Russian-language Ukrainians have been held across Russia; p. 5 (581 words).
11. Yury Paniyev report "Tehran says nuclear bomb is sin" comments on the statement of the Iranian president that the country will not produce nuclear weapons; p. 8 (800 words).
12. Svetlana Gamova report "Crimean factor" says that Moscow has made the first steps to repeat South Ossetian scenario in Crimea having warned about the possibility of sending troops into Ukraine; p. 9 (1,000 words).
13. Sergei Zhiltsov report "Kiev provokes disintegration of Ukraine" looks at the political crisis in Ukraine; p. 11 (1,600 words).
Vedomosti
1. Maxim Tovkaylo and Olga Kuvshinova article headlined "War with economy" says that the escalation of the Ukrainian political crisis is threatening the Russian economy; pp. 1, 5 (1,400 words).
2. Alexei Nikolskiy article headlined "Crimea is not rival" looks at tasks being performed in Crimea by the Russian military; pp. 1, 20 (1,700 words).
3. Editorial headlined "Victory over reason" warns Putin against a war against Ukraine; pp. 1, 6 (550 words).
4. Maria Zheleznova article headlined "Deactivation of Navalny" says that opposition activist Alexei Navalny has been placed under home arrest; p. 2 (600 words).
5. Editorial headlined "War of delusions" looks at an information war over Russia's military involvement in the Ukrainian political crisis; p. 6 (500 words).
6. Konstantin Sonin article headlined "Worse than crime" describes the Russian authorities' decision to send troops into Ukraine as a political mistake that will have long-term implications; p. 7 (650 words).
7. Dmitry Kazmin et al. article headlined "Central Bank switches to personalities" says that former Senator and banker Gleb Fetisov has been arrested on charges of large-scale fraud; pp. 10, 14 (600 words).
8. Polina Khimshiashvili article headlined "Revolution in ministerial way" looks at the makeup of the new Ukrainian government; p. 21 (1,300 words).
9. Svetlana Bocharova report "Russia not going to grow" says that A Just Russia has suggested to simplify the procedure of accession of new territories to Russia. However, other State Duma factions and the Kremlin have not backed the idea; p. 3 (550 words).
10. Kirill Kharatyan report "Man of week: Vladimir Putin" looks at "Putin's Olympic Games" and at his decision to use troops in Ukraine; p. 7 (350 words).
Izvestia
1. Yelizaveta Mayetnaya article headlined "'Thank you, my dear, that you have not abandoned us'" shares the journalist's impression of the visit to the Crimean town of Balaklava. Local residents welcome Russian servicemen's presence in Crimea, the article says; pp. 1, 3 (1,074 words).
2. Alena Sivkova and Dmitriy Runkevich article headlined "'Crimea, Russia, Sevastopol'" describes a mass rally held in central Moscow in support of Russian people living in Ukraine; pp. 1-2 (695 words).
3. Maria Gorkovskaya article headlined "Diplomatic demarches do not frighten Moscow" says that the U.S. and the EU have unleashed a diplomatic war against Russia after the Federation Council permitted to use the Russian army in the territory of Ukraine. Russia has promised retaliatory measures, the article says; pp. 1, 4 (986 words).
4. Natalya Bashlykova article headlined "Federation Council frees president's hands" says that the Federation Council has unanimously voted for sending Russian troops into Ukraine until the political situation stabilizes there; p. 2 (655 words).
5. Alexei Krivoruchek article headlined "Experience from operations in Caucasus to help army" assesses the combat capability of Russia and Ukraine and concludes that the Russian army is predominating; p. 2 (612 words).
6. Yegor Sozayev-Guryev article headlined "Viktor Yanukovych says he intends to regain power but does not explain how" says that ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has held a news conference in Rostov-on-Don and provides the details; p. 3 (617 words).
7. Article by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov headlined "No Yaroshes will exist soon, but we will live in peace and concord " slams the leader of the Ukrainian nationalists from Right Sector, Dmytro Yarosh, for calling on the North Caucasus rebel leader Doka Umarov to organize terrorist attacks in Russia and also expresses support for Ukrainian people; p. 4 (325 words).
8. Pavel Kochegarov and Gaydar Batyrkhanov article headlined "Military court returns lawyer to former commander Chirkin" says that a military court has found illegal investigators' decision to disqualify the lawyer of the former commander of the ground troops, Vladimir Chirkin, charged with bribe-taking; p. 5 (431 words).
9. Alexander Yunashev article headlined "Dmitry Kobylkin becomes best governor thanks to opinion of residents and businessmen" focuses on an effectiveness rating of Russian governors made by the Civil Society Development Foundation a month ago; p. 5 (620 words).
10. Andrei Gridasov article headlined "General Sugrobov's career in Interior Ministry completed" says that Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev has sacked the head of the Interior Ministry's main directorate for economic security and combating of corruption, Denis Sugrobov, following a high-profile corruption scandal involving Sugrobov's subordinates, and has not transferred him to the reserve; p. 6 (574 words).
11. Andrei Gridasov article headlined "Vasilyeva to be made by court to read 900 pages per day" says that on March 4, a Moscow court will consider investigators' request to set the time limit for studying the materials of the criminal case for former Defense Ministry official Yevgenia Vasilyeva charged with fraud; p. 8 (600 words).
12. Kirill Benediktov article headlined "Prudently and toughly" contemplates prospects for the development of Russian-U.S. relations given the countries' different stances on the Ukrainian political crisis; p. 9 (1,060 words).
13. Igor Karaulov article headlined "When compromise prevented" says that Russia is not planning to "occupy or annex" Ukrainian territories, but, on the contrary, wants to defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine by bringing in its troops there; p. 9 (782 words).
14. Sergei Roganov article headlined "Baby talk of Western policy" says that Russia has downplayed the West's support for the Maidan protest by the decision to use the army in the territory of Ukraine, thus showing itself a superpower; p. 9 (849 words).
15. Alena Sivkova report "Regions ready to accept refugees" says that according to the authorities of Russia's three western regions, they are ready to accept Ukrainian refugees; p. 1 (500 words).
Rossiiskaya Gazeta
1. Vladislav Vorobyev article headlined "Crimean rampart" says that the West has been abashed by Russia's decision not to stand apart from the Ukrainian political crisis. The U.S. threatened Russia with "implications"; pp. 1-2 (1,084 words).
2. Yury Snegirev interview with the Crimean prime minister, Sergei Aksynov, headlined "There will never be Maidan in Crimea," speaking about the state of affairs in the autonomous republic; pp. 1, 3 (1,331 words).
3. Vitaly Petrov article headlined "To save ordinary citizen" says that the Federation Council has unanimously endorsed Putin's request to use the Russian army in the territory of Ukraine. Article is followed by Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin's comment; p. 2 (701 words).
4. Kira Latukhina report headlined "President Yanukovych: Rada is illegitimate" gives an account of ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's news conference held in Rostov-on-Don; p. 4 (1,447 words).
5. Maxim Makarychev article headlined "Misters fight …" says that clashes have begun between Maidan radicals; p. 4 (618 words).
6. Maxim Makarychev report "Man with gun makes choice" says that Crimea has now its own armed forces; p. 3 (400 words).
Moskovsky Komsomolets
1. Mikhail Rostovskiy report "Do Russians want war?" tries to answer a question about what, in fact, Russia wants to achieve in Ukraine; pp. 1-2 (850 words).
2. Melor Sturua report "Hands off and hands are too short" says that according to experts, the U.S. does not have "powerful options" as regards Russia's actions in Ukraine; pp. 1, 3 (800 words).
3. Olga Boguslavskaya report "Aggression and despair" says that the content of Russian TV news and newspapers provokes aggression with people; pp. 1, 5 (800 words).
4. Marina Perevozkina report "Everything is calm in Crimea" looks at the situation in Crimea; pp. 1-2 (850 words).
5. Yelena Gamayun report "Who are you, Mr. Yarosh?" says that Ukraine's Right Sector leader Dmytro Yarosh has asked Chechen rebel leader Doka Umarov for help. For his part, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has issued harsh response; p. 2 (350 words).
6. Article by Priest Andrei Kurayev "End to one church?" looks at the situation in Ukraine and says that Orthodox Kiev may "say good-bye" to Moscow; p. 3 (1,200 words).
7.Tatyana Melikyan report "Three questions to experts" publishes comments of analysts as to how events may unfold in Ukraine; p. 3 (800 words).
Noviye Izvestia
1. Yana Sergeyeva article headlined "Volunteers go away …" says that the Ukrainian Supreme Council has called on Putin not to bring in Russian troops to Ukraine. Meanwhile, a nationwide mobilization was announced in Ukraine; pp. 1-2, 4-5 (859 words).
2. Igor Vandenko article headlined "Do Russians want war?" tries to explain why Russia has decided to bring in its troops to Crimea and says that Russia is currently finally "losing" Ukraine; p. 2 (557 words).
3. Yekaterina Dyatlovskaya article headlined "Deadlock" says that the Justice Ministry has registered Alexei Navalny's Progress Party. Navalny was placed under home arrest and banned from using the Internet; p. 2 (436 words).
4. Vladimir Kusov and Mark Agatov article headlined "Until first blood" says that the situation in Crimea remains tense; many fear that hostilities may begin soon there; p. 2 (617 words).
5. Anna Alexeyeva article headlined "Who goes hand in hand in line" describes rallies for and against the decision to bring in Russian troops to Ukraine held in Moscow; p. 2 (748 words).
6. Margarita Alekhina article headlined "Electoral right" says that a package of antiterrorist laws passed by the State Duma on Feb. 28 may become a means for persecution and score-settling; p. 5 (604 words).
Novaya Gazeta
1. Olga Musafirova article headlined "Russian Spring covers Donetsk" describes a pro-Russian rally in the Ukrainian city Donetsk; pp. 4-5 (921 words).
2. Yulia Latynina article headlined "Crimea. Steal during fire" says that "criminals" that are in power in Crimea are "tricking money out of the Russian president" to preserve their posts and defeat their enemies and contemplates the implications of Russia's intervention in Ukraine; p. 7 (720 words).
3. Pavel Felgengauer article headlined "Operation 'Russian Crimea'" says that the situation in Ukraine has developed in a different way than Russia expected, that is why the Russian authorities have decided to intervene in Ukraine while the new Ukrainian government is not finally formed; p. 5 (671 words).
4. Yaroslav Shimov article headlined "100-year-long war" contemplates mistakes in Russia's policy in the post-Soviet space; p. 13 (719 words).
5. Irek Murtazin article headlined "Money, nothing political?" says that businessman and ex-Senator Gleb Fetisov, who is heading the Green and Social Democratic Alliance, has been arrested on suspicion of large-scale embezzlement; p. 14 (994 words).
6. Nadezhda Prusenkova article headlined "'They told me that he was killer'" gives an update on the trial on journalist Anna Politkovskaya's murder case; p. 18 (1,238 words).
7. Yelena Masyuk interview with opposition activists Boris Nemtsov and Alexei Navalny, headlined "Article 19 Point 3. Disobedience to legal order of 'Kosmonavt,'" speaking about criminal cases launched against them for participating in a protest rally; pp. 16-17 (2,854 words).
8. Andrei Kolesnikov article headlined "Intervention" slams Putin's decision to send troops to Ukraine; pp. 1-2 (565 words).
RBK Daily
1. Maria Makutina et al. report "Operation 'Crimea'" reports on the response to the Federation Council's approval of Putin's decision to bring Russian troops into Crimea; pp. 1, 3 (1,500 words).
2. Yevgeny Novikov interview with the Ukrainian economy minister on the future of the Ukrainian economy; pp. 1, 5 (1,200 words).
3. Dmitry Koptyubrenko report headlined "Crimean campaign to come cheaper than war with Georgia" compares costs of different military campaigns and says that costs for the possible campaign in Crimea will be comparable to those for the military conflict between Georgia and Russia in 2008; p. 2 (450 words).
4. Andrei Kotov and Alexander Polozky article headlined "Financial anesthesia for Yanukovych" says that Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein have decided to freeze the assets of ousted Ukrainian leader Viktor Yanukovych and other countries of the European Union may soon follow their example; p. 3 (600 words).
Komsomolskaya Pravda
1. Yelena Sadykova interview with the president of Bashkortostan, Rustem Khamitov, on the situation with migrants and extremism in the republic; p. 23 (1,500 words).
2. Georgy Bovt report "Are Western sanctions threat to Russia?" speculates on the possible sanctions that the West may use against Russia after the Federation Council approved Vladimir Putin's decision to bring Russian troops into the Ukrainian Autonomous Republic of Crimea; p. 4 (700 words).
3. Alexander Kots and Dmitriy Steshin report headlined "Crimea knuckles isthmus" on the recent developments in Crimea; pp. 6-7 (1,000 words).
March 3, 2014 / BBC Monitoring / ©BBC