What the Papers Say, April 22, 2014

Kommersant

1. Lyubov Tsareva article headlined "Russia to work on self-assessment" says the Russian authorities are considering the possibility of setting up a national rating agency. First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov is to discuss this issue at the government meeting this week, the article adds experts believe it will take up to 10 years to implement the plans; pp 1, 10 (786 words).

2. Maxim Ivanov and Irina Nagornykh article headlined "Regions do not want to share upper chamber" says Russian regions oppose the idea to introduce presidential nominees to the Federation Council. Some regional authorities are said to oppose the relevant changes to the Constitution, the article says; pp 12 (722 words).

3. Anna Pushkarskaya and Sergei Sobolev article headlined "Uralvagonzavod to deal with tours" says Oleg Safonov who used to work at Uralvagonzavod plant will become the new head of the Federal Tourism Agency; pp 1, 13 (725 words).

4. Roman Rozhkov and Vladimir Lavitsky article headlined "Pavel Durov no longer in Vkontakte" says Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Vkontakte social networking website, Russia's equivalent of Facebook, is leaving the company. New top manager of the company has not been appointed so far, the article adds; pp 1, 13 (580 words).

5. Ivan Safronov article headlined "Meetings to be made serial ones" says President Vladimir Putin is to hold a number of meetings with the Defense Ministry and defense sector enterprises in May to discuss re-equipment of the Russian Armed Forces and the armament of Crimea; p 2 (465 words).

6. Natalya Gorodetskaya article headlined "Their own powers promised to Crimean municipalities" says the local authorities in Crimea are promised broader powers due to the special status of the region. The relevant laws will be passed by the end of the year, the article says; p 3 (508 words).

7. Taisya Bekbulatova and Vadim Nikiforov article headlined "Crimea joined with rehabilitation" says President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree rehabilitating Crimean Tatars and other ethnic minorities living in Crimea, who suffered from repressions in 1930s; p 3 (400 words).

8. Maxim Ivanov article headlined "Ella Pamfilova pushes bloggers to court" says the Russian presidential council for human rights has criticized amendments to the internet legislation limiting the rights of bloggers. According to the article, new human rights ombudsman Ella Pamfilova said the bill could be disputed in the Constitutional Court; p 4 (468 words).

9. Andrei Kolesnikov article headlined "They look into roots" reports on the meeting of the State Council chaired by President Putin that discussed the difficulties the Russian agricultural sector is facing; p 6 (1,459 words).

10. Pavel Tarasenko article headlined "Candidates added to Syria" says the next presidential election to be held in Syria on June 3 will have several candidates to choose from. President Bashar al-Assad is considered a favorite, the article says; p 7 (693 words).

11. Maria Yefimova article headlined "Simple choice left for Egypt" says the registration of presidential candidates has finished in Egypt. Former Defense Minister Abdul Fattah al-Sisi is expected to win the polls, the article says; p 7 (601 words).

12. Yanina Sokolovskaya article headlined "Presidential candidates unofficially introduce themselves to Ukraine" says the presidential election campaign in Ukraine is being conducted predominantly online, where candidates are trying to portray each other in negative way; p 8 (591 words).

13. Galina Dudina and Yelena Chernenko article headlined "They split Caspian Sea between five" says a meeting of the foreign ministers from five Caspian states is to be held in Moscow to discuss the legal status of the sea; p 8 (461 words).

14. Ilya Barabanov article headlined "Protest does not leave occupied places" says the Ukrainian authorities and Donetsk separatists are accusing each other of violating the Geneva agreements. Meanwhile, the author reports that situation in the region remains stable; p 8 (683 words).

Nezavisimaya Gazeta

1. Alexandra Samarina article headlined "Putin sends Kozak to Crimea" says Putin has set up a government commission for Crimean affairs and at the same time signed a decree rehabilitating Crimean Tatars who suffered from Soviet repressions. Experts doubt that the measures will resolve Crimea's problems; pp 1-2 (504 words).

2. Tatyana Ivzhenko article headlined "Ukrainian East declares referendum date" says Kiev is unlikely to recognize the results of a referendum to be held in Donetsk Region on May 11. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian authorities are to conduct talks with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden who is visiting Kiev; pp 1, 6 (1,547 words).

3. Anastasia Bashkatova article headlined "Gambling zone number five" comments on the Russian authorities' plans to set up a gambling zone in Crimea; pp 1 , 4 (954 words).

4. Igor Naumov article headlined "Siberian coal promises bright future to Russia" says Siberia is expected to become one of the centers of global industrial growth as according to some forecasts new industrial facilities will be set up in the regions with abundant energy resources; pp 1, 4 (817 words).

5. Svetlana Gamova article headlined "Moldova recognizes Moscow voice as harmful one" says Moldova has started getting rid of Russian television channels due to their propaganda against the European integration of the country. The Moldovan government has backed the parliament proposal to ban broadcasting of Russian television news channels that are watched by 90 percent of the residents; pp 1, 6 (798 words).

6. Yevgenia Novikova article headlined "Tajik Abdollah leading in Afghan election" says former Afghani Foreign Minister Abdollah Abdollah is leading in the Afghan presidential polls. Candidates who lost the vote are forming a coalition for the second round of the voting, the article says; pp 1, 7 (746 words).

7. Editorial headlined "Why it is hard to fulfil Geneva promises" says all sides in the conflict in eastern Ukraine have different expectations from each other making it really hard to ease tensions; p 2 (520 words).

8. Vladimir Skosyrev article headlined "Tory appeal to God in fight for votes" says British Prime Minister David Cameron has made a religious speech during Easter holidays reportedly in an attempt to enlist support of more voters as Conservatives are losing support of the electorate; p 2 (558 words).

9. Yury Paniyev article headlined "Biden brings stick and carrot to Kiev" says the U.S. provides the new Ukrainian authorities with moral and material support as Vice President Joe Biden is visiting Kiev; p 7 (839 words).

Vedomosti

1. Anastasia Golitsina article headlined "Durov cracks bad joke" says CEO of Vkontakte social networking website loses his post and the network will be controlled by Rosneft head Igor Sechin and tycoon Alisher Usmanov; pp 1, 16 (600 words).

2. Editorial headlined "Golden standard" analyses reasons for the international popularity of Russian avant-garde artists and notes that Russian art and literature often like to destroy previously accepted standards; pp 1, 6 (400 words).

3. Lilia Biryukova article headlined "How to legitimize self-willed seizure" looks at Putin's decree rehabilitating Crimean Tatars and how it may be implemented; p 2 (500 words).

4. Alexei Nikolsky and Polina Khimshiashvili article headlined "Criticism from behind" says the Russian presidential council for human rights has criticized the initiative aimed at limiting the rights of bloggers; p 3 (500 words).

4. Expert Konstantin Simonov article headlined "When will Europe wake up?" warns the EU against breaking up economic cooperation with Russia as the U.S. will benefit from it at the expense of European enterprises; p 7 (500 words).

5. Yelena Khodyakova and Mikhail Serov article headlined "Turkey like second Ukraine" says that Turkey is seeking discount for the Russian gas supplies; p 13 (700 words).

Izvestia

1. Yelena Teslova article headlined "Communications Ministry accuses presidential human rights council of censorship" says the presidential human rights council has complained to the Russian Communications and Mass Communications Ministry over persecution of some independent media; pp 1, 3 (432 words).

2. Svetlana Subbotina and Vladimir Zykov article headlined "Google suspected of violating law on personal data" says Federation Council senator Lyudmila Bokova demands that Google and Roskomnadzor communications watchdog check the legality of new Google procedures of monitoring personal data of its users; pp 1, 3 (648 words).

3. Svetlana Povoraznyuk article headlined "57 percent of television viewers watch president's phone-in session" says more than half of all Russian television audience watched the recent phone-in session of President Putin, a survey says; p 5 (586 words).

4. Darya Tsoi article headlined "Dnestr region asks Russia for recognition" says the Dnestr region parliament has asked President Putin to recognize the independence of the region; p 8 (510 words).

5. Alexei Miller article headlined "From "red line" — to path over gap" gives an opinion on the results of Geneva meeting on Ukraine and says its diplomatic outcome causes double feelings; p 9 (500 words)

Rossiiskaya Gazeta

1. Yelena Novoselova article headlined "Money for cradle of revolution" reports on her visit to the Russian State Archive of Social and Political History where documents allegedly prove that Germany funded October revolution of 1917 in Russia; pp 1, 12 (2,150 words).

2. Roman Markelov article headlined "Get all possible goods" says a recent survey shows that Russians spend all of the money they earn and do not make any savings. Experts are worried by this consumption trend attributed to people's expectation of devaluation of the national currency; pp 1, 3 (593 words).

3. Leonid Radzikhovsky article headlined "War and peace" says despite the Western leaders rhetoric aimed at threatening Russia, Ukraine has to accept the annexation of Crimea and make up with Moscow; p 3 (816 words).

4. Igor Dunayevsky article headlined "New person in U.S. Embassy" says career diplomat known for his previous work in Ukraine and Georgia John Tefft is likely to become new U.S. ambassador to Russia; p 8 (854 words).

5. Yury Gavrilov interview with Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov speaking on prospects for Russia-NATO cooperation in the light of the Ukrainian crisis; p 9 (2,900 words).

6. Natalya Kozlova article headlined "Scientist to check Serdyukov's amnesty" says Russia's Central Military Prosecutor's Office has asked for a special scientific investigation of the former defense minister military credit; p 7 (200 words).

7. Vladislav Kulikov article headlined "Nazism in words"says a new draft legislation to equal to extremism justification of Nazi; p.7 (400 words).

Moskovsky Komsomolets

1. Irina Bobrova interview with Ukrainian presidential candidate Oleh Tsaryov speaking on his election plans and the Ukrainian crisis; pp 1-2 (774 words).

2. Slovyansk-based correspondent Svetlana Samodelova article headlined "'Let them live without us. We can easily live without them '" looks at the latest developments in the town of Slovyansk in Ukrainian southeast where a shootout took place on April 20; p 2 (600 words).

RBK Daily

1. Yevgeny Krasnikov report "Remembered and sacked" says that on April 21, the social network Vkontakte terminated the contract with the network's founder Pavel Durov; pp 1, 10 (350 words).

2. Zhanna Ulyanova report "'For Moscow' with Navalny's plan" says that the nonparliamentary opposition has agreed to set up the For Moscow coalition to stand in the Moscow City Duma election; p 2 (650 words)

3. Mikhail Rubin report "Presidential human rights activists stand up for bloggers" says that the human rights council will ask Putin to return for the second reading at the State Duma the anti-terrorism bill, including the document on putting popular blogs in a special registry; p 2 (550 words).

4. Stepan Opalev report "Land for Crimean Tatars" looks at Putin's decree to rehabilitate Crimean Tatars; p 2 (800 words).

5. Maria Makutina report "Duma will hold Medvedev accountable for crisis" says that State Duma deputies intend to talk "in a tough manner" to Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev during the delivery of his annual report on the work of the government; p 3 (500 words).

Noviye Izvestia

1. Diana Yevdokimova et al. report headlined "Without conversations" says that although Russian officials are obliged to respond to journalists' inquiries, it is impossible to call officials to account for their refusal to do so; pp 1, 5 (1,131 words).

2. Valery Yakov report "To save field furniture master" says that former Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov has been amnestied "definitively"; pp 1-2 (350 words).

3. Yekaterina Dyatlovskaya report "Fences for network" says that the presidential human rights council has said that the legislative regulation of the Russian Internet is pointless and harmful; p 2 (700 words).

4. Yana Sergeyeva report "Neither good nor bad" says that Ukraine is getting ready for the presidential election, the results of which Moscow may not recognize; p 2 (600 words).

Komsomolskaya Pravda

1. Nigina Beroyeva report "Gambling business interested in peninsula" says that Putin has suggested that a gambling zone should be created in Crimea; p 2 (300 words).

2. Viktor Baranets report "Amnesty will not save Serdyukov" says that former Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov may become defendant again because the Main Military Prosecutor's Office still has questions to him despite the amnesty; p 3 (450 words).

3. Alexander Kots brief interview headlined "'Right Sector wanted to blow up our TV tower"' with Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, "people's mayor" of Slovyansk; p 4 (200 words).

4. Alexander Kots report "Luhansk demands autonomy" says that a "congress of people's delegates" has been held in Ukraine's Luhansk region; p 4 (450 words).

5. Alexander Grishin report "Yanukovych offers Ukraine five steps to peace" says that Ukraine's ousted President Viktor Yanukovych has a plan to overcome a crisis in Ukraine; p 4 (250 words).

Trud

1. Sergei Frolov report "Geneva and life" looks at the Geneva agreement on Ukraine and says that it was easier to sign the agreement than implement it. Article features pundit Fedor Lukyanov's comment ; p 2 (950 words).

Tvoi Den

1. Andrei Muravyev report "Glue flippers together!" says that Americans will carry out an exercise in the Black Sea with the participation of combat dolphins and sea lions; p 2 (200 words).

2. Anton Stepanov report "Female brute from Maidan" says that the people of Ukraine's southeast demand a referendum on federalization. Meanwhile, the residents of Slovyansk have detained Irma Krat, leader of the "radical women's hundred"; pp 2-3 (250 words).

Krasnaya Zvezda

1. Unattributed report "'U.S.' plan in Ukraine exposed"' looks at an article of a Ukrainian analyst published in The Kiev Times newspaper that analyzes the current situation in Ukraine; p 3 (600 words).

April 22, 2014 / BBC Monitoring / ©BBC