What the Papers Say, Aug. 23, 2013

Kommersant

1. Yelena Kiseleva and Pavel Belavin article headlined "Sports Ministry does not play with Finance Ministry" says that the sports office is against the finance office becoming the organizer of state lotteries in support of the FIFA World Cup 2018; p 1 (654 words).

2. Olga Allenova and Lana Parastayeva article headlined "Five years of independence" looks at the way the situation in Georgia's breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia has changed since Russia recognized their independence five years ago; pp 1, 5 (1,101 words).

3. Vladislav Trifonov article headlined "Investigators withdraw from Skolkovo project" says that criminal cases against the Skolkovo investment fund staff are falling apart; pp 1, 4 (599 words).

4. Olga Shestopal et al. report headlined "Trade becomes appealing" says that unlike before, this year the largest Russian banks prefer to credit trade companies rather than oil, gas and telecommunications companies; pp 1, 8 (641 words).

5. Natalya Gorodetskaya article headlined "Prosecutor General's Office defines political activity" says that having listened to how the Prosecutor General's Office defines political activity, the presidential human rights council has suggested that the law on NGOs should be revised and decided to bring up the issue at the meeting with the president on Sept. 4; p 2 (480 words).

6. Alexei Shapovalov article headlined "Statistics Service monitors foreign investment" says that the State Statistics Service's report on foreign investment in the first half of the year shows that the amount of foreign investment grew, but the outflow of capital from Russia kept increasing; p 2 (502 words).

7. Viktor Khamrayev article headlined "United Russia to assess September elections in October" says Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev stated yesterday that the ruling United Russia party has all chances to perform well at the regional elections on Sept. 8. The party has decided to sum up the outcomes of the elections at its congress, which is due to be held on Oct. 5; p 3 (445 words).

8. Matvey Mishin article headlined "Complaints about Navalny being collected" says that the Moscow city electoral commission will soon consider complaints over Moscow mayoral hopeful Alexei Navalny's campaigning, filed by the A Just Russia member Nikolai Levichev; p 3 (600 words).

9. Oleg Rubnikovich and Maxim Pilotov article headlined "Defense Ministry fighting for fuel base" says that the Defense Ministry is trying to get back one of its facilities that former Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov allowed to sell — an oil transshipment terminal in Murmansk Region that has strategic significance for the navy; p 3 (496 words).

10. Musa Muradov et al. report headlined "Ingush community shows political culture" says that an Ingush public organization has found insulting a statement made by Prime Minister Medvedev linking Ingushetia's decision not to hold direct election of the republican head to peculiarities of political culture in the region, and has complained to President Putin; p 3 (492 words).

11. Sergei Mashkin article headlined "Prosecutor General's Office finalizes version of Vladimir Putin's attempted assassination" says that the criminal case over attempted assassination of the Russian president has been submitted to court. Ilya Pyanzin, who was recently extradited from Ukraine, is the only defendant; p 4 (550 words).

12. Grigory Tumanov and Diana Munasipova article headlined "Pussy Riot wants to be corrected with work" says that Pussy Riot participants, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, sentenced to two years in colony for a punk prayer in the Christ the Saviour Cathedral, have prepared a petition asking to replace the remaining term in penal colonies with correctional works; p 4 (594 words).

13. Olga Kuznetsova article headlined "Kurds gathering into state" says that the first nationwide conference of Kurds set for Sept. 15 will discuss the ways of uniting the nation and creating their own state. The Russian Foreign Ministry supports Kurds' participation in a peace conference on Syria, the article says; p 5 (595 words).

14. Pavel Tarasenko article headlined "War on Syria bypassing UN" says that the West has for the first time announced a possibility of using force against Damascus bypassing the UN Security Council if the allegations of the use of chemical weapons by Damascus are proved. A Russian expert says that radical Islamists might be behind the attack rather than Bashar Assad or the opposition; p 5 (549 words).

Nezavisimaya Gazeta

1.Anastasia Bashkatova article headlined "Flooding threatens space flights" says that the damage to the economy due to flooding in the Far East is estimated at over 10 billion rubles (about $302.7 million) and the figure is not final. If the trend persists, the consequences of the flooding may even push the Russian economy into recession and affect the construction of the cosmodrome in the Amur Region; pp 1, 4 (1,224 words).

2. Andrei Serenko article headlined "Putin to meet Obama after all" says that Joaquim Crima, a native of Guinea Bissau, who settled down in the Russian town of Volgograd, has suggested that Volgograd be made the capital of the Customs Union. Crima, nicknamed as 'local Obama', hopes to meet President Putin during his visit to Volgograd and voice the proposal himself; pp 1-2 (504 words).

3. Alexandra Samarina article headlined "Prosecutor General's Office corrects head of state" says that at yesterday's meeting of the presidential human rights council, a representative of the Prosecutor General's Office said that Russian NGOs had received foreign financing of more than $1 billion that President Putin had referred to; pp 1, 3 (772 words).

4. Alexandra Samarina article headlined "United Russia may be moved aside after elections" says that United Russia's presence in politics is gradually reducing whereas its approval rating remains steadily high as compared to other parties. The Kremlin is waiting for the outcome of the elections before making a decision on whether to replace United Russia with pro-Putin's people's front or not; pp 1, 3 (713 words).

5. Viktoria Panfilova article headlined "Bishkek decides to sell water to neighbours" says that Kyrgyzstan's idea to sell water to neighboring countries has made them indignant. Experts warn that a failure to achieve compromise on water use will inevitably lead to a conflict; pp 1, 6 (664 words).

6. Yury Panyev article headlined "Unabiding NSA" says that declassified court documents show that the National Security Agency's surveillance system has illegally intercepted a huge bulk of personal emails by Americans who had nothing to do with terrorism; pp 1, 7 (747 words).

7. Editorial headlined "Fear of Goebbels' ghost" says that Russian lawmakers have asked the prosecutor's office to check Joseph Goebells' book recently published in Russia for extremism. Lawmakers do not trust the society's ability to tell good from evil and fear that Russians will find Goebells' Nazi ideas appealing, editorial comments; p 2 (530 words).

8. Alexei Gorbachev article headlined "They threaten to remove Navalny from race" says that Moscow city electoral commission officials will discuss today whether the registration of Alexei Navalny as a Moscow mayoral candidate should be canceled over reported illegal campaigning. Experts are confident that Navalny's disqualification is unlikely; p 3 (567 words).

9. Igor Naumov article headlined "Vladimir Putin deals with helicopters" says that the president has chaired a meeting on the development of helicopter construction and the industry's advance on foreign markets; p 4 (619 words).

10. Darya Tsiryulik article headlined "Russian go-betweens set up Microsoft" says that Washington is investigating ties between the Microsoft company and its business partners who reportedly bribed Russian officials in order to get contracts; p 7 (600 words).

Vedomosti

1. Alexei Rozhkov and Maxim Tokaylo article headlined "Government creating second Olimpstroi" says that the government has chosen Sport Engineering company affiliated with the Sports Ministry to close contracts on construction and reconstruction of seven stadiums in Moscow for the FIFA World Cup 2018; pp 1, 19 (601 words).

2. Editorial headlined "Explain and rule" says that amid increasingly scandalous election campaigns in Moscow and several other regions, pro-Kremlin political analysts tend to invent plausible explanations to devalue achievements of opposition candidates and refers to a report by the Civil Society Development Foundation. Editorial wonders if the authorities will be content with using "mantras" or will switch to using force, a traditional scenario; pp 1, 6 (400 words).

3. Anastasia Kornya et al. report headlined "Asset found for Navalny" says that Montenegro authorities have confirmed that Alexei Navalny was registered as one of the founders of MRD Company and looks at the consequences for the main opposition candidate for Moscow mayor; p 2 (604 words).

4. Polina Khimshiashvili article headlined "Syrian balance" says that reports on the use of chemical weapons in Syria might be used to justify military intervention by the western forces; p 3 (455 words).

5. Editorial headlined "Poisoning scenario" says that reports on the use of chemical weapons in Syria have exacerbated discussion among world powers over the settlement of the Syrian crisis and made the threat of military actions against the official Damascus a topical issue. Although many western politicians and military are aware that there are not enough resources for a new war, the situation is aggravated by the confrontation of the West with the coalition of Russia and China on the issue; p 6 (332 words).

6. Oleg Salmanov article headlined "Man of week: Computer in editor's office" says that the destruction of The Guardian's hard drives containing files from NSA former contractor Edward Snowden highlighted law-enforcers' fear of free and uncontrolled circulation of information; p 7 (312 words).

7. Andrei Babitsky article headlined "Bad news: Obama's closed government" says that Bradley Manning's trial and sentence show that despite Obama's vows to make his administration the most transparent one in the U.S. history he believes everything the military tell him and does not understand why the public needs information. In this aspect he does not differ much from President Putin or the Chinese leader; p 7 (429 words).

Rossiiskaya Gazeta

1. Alexander Gasyuk article headlined "To begin with Moscow? To change Montenegro" says that Montenegro has confirmed that Alexei Navalny was a co-founder of a company there. Navalny denied he had foreign property, and the head of his campaign headquarters blamed hackers for messing up with the registry of Montenegro's tax service; p 2 (200).

2. Natalia Yachmennikova interview with Mikhail Pogosyan, president of the United Aircraft Building Corporation, speaking on Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft; p 3 (1,300).

3. Valery Kononov article headlined "Who invents shade for Magnitsky" says that human rights activist Alexander Brod wonders why businessman Konstantin Ponomarev, involved in the Magnitsky case, has not been sued and continues his business activities; p 4 (400).

4. Maxim Novikov article headlined "BOSS almighty" says that the USA has developed another surveillance system, Biometrical Optical Surveillance System, which will allow law-enforcers to promptly identify a terrorist or a criminal on the wanted list in a crowd. After Snowden's revelations, Americans are unlikely to welcome the novelty; p 8 (400).

5. Maxim Makarychev article headlined "From elite to prison" looks at the trial over Chinese official Bo Xilai; p 8 (200 words).

Izvestia

1. Dina Ushakova article headlined "Igor Shuvalov backs privileges for small business" says that First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov has approved the proposal to prolong 20-percent-insurance payments for small companies; p 1 (376 words).

2. Boris Mezhuyev article headlined "To have long dream about Montenegro" blames Navalny's election campaign headquarters and Navalny himself for incompetence as reports about Navalny's construction company in Montenegro come up; p 1 (638 words).

3. Anastasia Kashevarova article headlined "U.S. Department of State drafts new programme to bypass law on NGOs" says that the U.S.-Russia Peer-to-Peer Dialogue Program is aimed at helping Russian NGOs to get US financing without breaking the law on NGOs; p 2 (778 words).

4. Anastasia Kashevarova and Mikhail Rubin article headlined "Concept changes" says that the authorities are trying their best to avoid disqualifying Moscow mayoral hopeful Navalny; p 2 (496 words).

5. Alexei Krivoruchek article headlined "They search for two nuclear generators in Arctic" says Russian professionals are searching for two "deadly dangerous" radioisotope thermoelectric generators used in the 1970s to provide electricity to lighthouses and then lost; p 3 (800 words).

6. Dmitry Drobnitsky article headlined "To prison with clear conscience" says that a 35-year-long sentence for U.S. Private Bradley Manning is too much and ponders over President Barrack Obama's motives; p 5 (782 words).

Moskovsky Komsomolets

1. Mikhail Zubov article headlined "Election other way around" features expert comments on this year's election campaigns in Russia; pp 1, 4 (700 words).

2. Lina Panchenko article headlined "Politkovskaya case: Murder without motive" sums up the case on the killing of famous Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya; pp 1, 4 (1,700 words).

3. Mikhail Zubov article headlined "Navalny does not catch 'bureaucratic fleas'" says the Moscow City Court has not fulfilled Navalny's request to remove his rival Sergei Sobyanin from the mayoral election race in Moscow; p 2 (300 words).

RBC Daily

1. Svetlana Makunina article headlined "Russia to pay for repressions" says that Ingushetia is drafting a law suggesting that victims of repressions be supported from the federal budget. The deputy head of the A Just Russia, Oksana Dmitryeva, praises the move; p 2 (900 words).

2. Alina Yevstigneyeva and Yulia Sinyaeva article headlined "Officials to be asked not to put pressure on business" says that the Russian government has proposed a set of initiatives in order to fight the administrative barriers and bureaucratic pressure on business; p 3 (700 words).

Komsomolskaya Pravda

1. Yulia Yermakova interview with prominent Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva speaking on her comments as regards her hometown Volgograd, which many regarded insulting; p 25 (900 words).

2. Article by Andrei Isayev, United Russia lawmaker and head of the Duma's Committee on Labour and Social Policy, headlined "Lessons of 'migrant' summer" comments on the recent crackdown on migrants in Moscow and outlines the moves that could help improve the situation; p 5 (600 words).

3. Nigina Beroyeva article headlined "Syria: who used chemical weapons?" features Beroyeva's report on her visit to three main hospitals of Damascus, where she did not find a single person suffering from the chemical attack; p 8 (500 words).

Novaya Gazeta

1. Diana Khachatryan article headlined "Who will look after crooks and thieves?" features a report from the headquarters of the Alliance of Independent Observers organization on the way it is getting ready to monitor the elections on Sept. 8; pp 5-6 (1,100 words).

2. Maria Yepifanova and Olga Prosvirova article headlined "Elections: 10 most high-profile scandals" features a list of the recent scandals around the key opposition figures taking part in mayoral and gubernatorial elections in different regions of Russia: Alexei Navalny in Moscow, Gennady Gudkov in Moscow Region, Yevgeny Roizman in Yekaterinburg; p 7 (1,000 words).

Krasnaya Zvezda

1. Anna Potekhina and Maria German article headlined "Amur test" reports on military men's help in the elimination of the flood consequences in Russia's Far East; pp 2-3 (2,200 words).

2. Viktor Ruchkin article headlined "Syrian opposition does 'funny chemical business'" accuses the Syrian opposition forces of falsifying the information on the alleged chemical attacks carried out by the Syrian government; p 5 (700 words).